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Brewers that use immersion chillers and also own a pump should know that recirculating the wort back into the kettle to whirlpool the wort makes for much faster cooling and will also make a concentrated pile of trub and hop particles in the center of the kettle bottom. This whirlpool port assembly installs high up on your kettle wall above the typical wort level and then extends down before curving to the side to force the recirculated liquid towards the sidewall.
Introducing the BrewHardware exclusive and purpose-built unit called the Spin Cycle. We started with our industry leading "True Bulkhead" weldless bulkhead design with captured O-ring and extended male threads and had the 1/2" drop tube fully welded in. The result is THE most compact and visually stunning way to whirlpool without the need to put a ball valve on the port (the port is meant to be installed well above the max liquid level). It includes the base unit with the welded drop tube, the captured high temp silicone oring, a thin SS washer and a 1/2" NPS locknut to hold it all together. Best of all, look at that price! You couldn't get a professional welder to tack weld two pieces of scrap together for this much.
OPTIONS:
LENGTH: The standard setup positions the output at 10" below the center of the bulkhead hole but you can also select 12" or 14". In general, the outlet height of the whirlpool is not critical. You just want to make sure it's at least 3" off the bottom of your pot and will remain at least 1" below the surface of the wort (be careful to consider all the batch sizes you will use). Note that we can also make them at drop lengths that are any length between 4" and 14". If you want a length not listed, order the next longer size and specify the length in order comments.
POT OR KEG? The drop tube sits so close to the side wall that we need to know if it's for a pot or a converted keg. Since you'll install it up nice and high, it will be on a curved area of the keg. We need to make a mild bend so that the drop tube doesn't hit the side of the keg.
ACCESSORIES:
Since the exterior of the pot will have 1/2" Male NPT threads sticking out, you'll have to decide how you want to attach your hose returning from the pump. Our first preference is to thread on a Camlock Type A (CamA) which would be appropriate if you already have camlocks in your system. You can also use a BLQD type A (BLQD-A) if you are using that quick disconnect style. The last option would be to use a hose barb with a 1/2" NPT female thread on it. None of these are included with this unit and will be added in the accessory list on the right.
Install Notes: Drill a clean 13/16" diameter hole in the upper sidewall of the pot, above the max liquid level line you plan to use. It is also important to remove any sharp edges or "burrs" from the inside edge of the hole, otherwise the oring can get torn. Pro Tip: If you are using a step bit to make this hole, drill most of the steps from the outside of the pot all the way up to the 3/4" size. Then drill to 13/16 from the inside of the pot to remove the sharp burr. If you have a sharp edge on the outside of the pot, it will NOT affect the interior oring seal at all. It will get covered with the SS washer anyway.
If you already have a hole drilled that is larger than 13/16, such as an SS brewtech pot with a 7/8" hole, we can install an additional "centering oring" that will position the fitting properly for a reliable seal. Select this in the option dropdown.
Insert the threaded portion of the unit through the hole from the inside of your pot or keg with only the oring in place. On the outside, install the metal washer and locknut and snug everything up with a wrench. You can simply hold the drop tube with one hand to keep it vertical while tightening the exterior locknut. Note: Due to how close this assembly sits to the sidewall of the pot, be aware of any interior features that would obstruct the unit. One example is the Bayou Classic pots that have the interior rim that supports a basket. You can use the Spin Cycle in these pots but the install has to be done below the ledge rather than above it.
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WHIRLPOOL BUYER'S GUIDE - Everything you ever wanted to know about it and more.
First, all we're trying to accomplish here is to get the volume of the liquid in the kettle spinning. It's accomplished by drawing off liquid from the drain bulkhead, into a pump and then from the pump into a specific piece of hardware that forces the flow parallel to the kettle wall (more on that later).
WHY? Well, there are a few reasons why a brewer would stir liquid during brew day. CHILLING. If you use a drop in immersion chiller you can either manually stir aggressively or whirlpool stir the wort to decrease chilling time substantially. HERMS SYSTEMS: If you have a 3 vessel system with a HERMS heat exchange coil in your hot liquor tank, you must stir the water in the HLT to ensure consistent heat exchange in the coil. KETTLE TRUB SEPARATION: The stirring motion puts all your hops, hot and cold break (trub) in a neat pile. Why it happens is interesting science and you can learn all about it by searching for the "Tea Leaf Paradox". Here's a demo video: https://youtu.be/dGAFxs63SlE?t=66
If trub separation is your goal, we recommend using a kettle fining agent such as whirlfloc. Shut the pump down after about 3 minutes of stirring and leave the kettle alone for at least 30 minutes, or up to an hour. That lets some of the finer particles settle all the way down to the bottom.. Then slowly draw off the clean wort using a diptube as close to the kettle wall as possible. HOP STANDS A lot of modern recipes call for whirlpool hopping or a "hop stand". Besides trying different temperatures for this process, many people also recommend keeping the wort moving during this hopping phase. Since it's not physically rolling around in the boil, the mechanical movement helps to better extract the oils from the plant material.
A quick word about competitor products. Bobby, the owner of BrewHardware has been an active brewer for over 15 years and he's also an engineer. He doesn't just copy other products and rebrand them but prototypes and tests them for actual real world efficacy in brewing applications. Every one of the whirlpooling products sold here are effective at stirring. You will find quite a few product variations but it's only to deal with different customer situations. Here is a brief summary of the variations. You can click on the links to read more and order that specific version.
SPINCYCLE: This version has a built in bulkhead that requires a hole drilled to 13/16" somewhere in the upper side wall of your kettle. This version has a welded "drop tube" that brings the liquid flow below the liquid level of the kettle. This unit does NOT require an exterior ball valve since the port is above the liquid line at all times.
SPINCYCLE SUBMERGE This version is essentially the original Spincycle product above but without the welded drop tube. It also acts as it's own bulkhead but it will be installed in a drilled 13/16" hole BELOW the liquid level (somewhere between 2" off the bottom and up to 2" below the lowest planned liquid level). This product requires a ball valve on the outside of the pot.
SPINCYCLE SHORTY - This is a modified version that is meant to thread in to a female NPT welded port below the liquid line. It does NOT have a built in weldless bulkheads.
SPINCYCLE OVERBOARD - If you want to add a whirlpool return but you don't want to drill any new holes (or don't have existing ones). This one clamps over the top edge of the kettle.
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