Kieselsol and Chitosan question

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Mr_Beer
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Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by Mr_Beer »

To save money I purchased multiple sealed packages of Kieselsol and Chitosan several years ago for mead and wine making.

To use a phrase from my youth -- 'my eyes were bigger than my (figurative) stomach'

All of the Kieselsol has dried up inside the sealed plastic pouches. The Chigosan seems fine. Will the Kieselsol 're-hydrate' if exposed to wort or water?

Obviously I could discard but that seems like a shame.
Last edited by Mr_Beer on Tue Mar 14, 2023 8:16 am, edited 1 time in total.
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jonnys_spirit
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by jonnys_spirit »

Most folks don't use these in ferments for stillin. Some might cold crash or just let it drop out and others just run it with minimal clearing compared to beer/wine/mead ferments. When I make wines I let time clear the wine and also don't use fining agents anymore. I only filter whites - if at all - as a polishing step after it's all cleared (12-18 months or carboy/racking). Give it a try though and let us know if it can be rehydrated.

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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by shadylane »

jonnys_spirit wrote: Tue Mar 14, 2023 7:56 am Most folks don't use these in ferments for stillin.
I had to do a google search to find out what Kieselsol and Chitosan was. :lol:
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by Saltbush Bill »

Your not the only one Shady :lol: ......they say the day ya stop learning........ :crazy:
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by shadylane »

Saltbush Bill wrote: Tue Mar 14, 2023 4:36 pm Your not the only one Shady :lol: ......they say the day ya stop learning........ :crazy:
Hells of fire :lol:

Even with the help of the internet.
I'm forgetting faster than I'm learning. :moresarcasm:
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by shadylane »

Mr_Beer wrote: Tue Mar 14, 2023 5:45 am To save money I purchased multiple sealed packages of Kieselsol and Chitosan several years ago for mead and wine making.

All of the Kieselsol has dried up inside the sealed plastic pouches. The Chigosan seems fine. Will the Kieselsol 're-hydrate' if exposed to wort or water?

Obviously I could discard but that seems like a shame.
My vote is discard.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by jonnys_spirit »

I used to use these for wine and they do strip out some flavor and do a good job of clearing. A close friend that has a shellfish allergy drank the wine and almost died from anaphylactic shock even though the chitosan isn’t supposed to trigger the reaction. I don’t use it anymore ever - for those two reasons and will never recommend it. Maybe it was coincidence.

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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by 6 Row Joe »

Mr_Beer wrote: Tue Mar 14, 2023 5:45 am To save money I purchased multiple sealed packages of Kieselsol and Chitosan several years ago for mead and wine making.

To use a phrase from my youth -- 'my eyes were bigger than my (figurative) stomach'

All of the Kieselsol has dried up inside the sealed plastic pouches. The Chigosan seems fine. Will the Kieselsol 're-hydrate' if exposed to wort or water?

Obviously I could discard but that seems like a shame.
Throw it out. I bought some, tried it a few times, and didn't need it. Just do a secondary ferment for a day or two to clear it. It was a George thing.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by LWTCS »

shadylane wrote: Tue Mar 14, 2023 4:00 pm
jonnys_spirit wrote: Tue Mar 14, 2023 7:56 am Most folks don't use these in ferments for stillin.
I had to do a google search to find out what Kieselsol and Chitosan was. :lol:

It's what ya name one's Siamese (or the like) winery/Distillery cats. No?
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by shadylane »

LWTCS wrote: Wed Mar 15, 2023 4:44 am
shadylane wrote: Tue Mar 14, 2023 4:00 pm
jonnys_spirit wrote: Tue Mar 14, 2023 7:56 am Most folks don't use these in ferments for stillin.
I had to do a google search to find out what Kieselsol and Chitosan was. :lol:

It's what ya name one's Siamese (or the like) winery/Distillery cats. No?
I thought shitosan would be a good brand name for kitty litter.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by kennstminet »

Mr_Beer
Kieselsol is a waterbased suspension of solids.
It should be no problem adding water and stirring well.

I probably missed that part of your question where you may have asked if Kieselsol and Chitosan would make sense for whatever. At least you got a bunch of opinions.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by Mr_Beer »

Thank you for all who replied.

Lots of opinions but no factual answers.

The manufacture says Kieselsol is NOT thaw-tolerant and cannot be re-hydrated.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by ShineonCrazyDiamond »

You looking for facts, call the manufacturer. Buncha drunks round here with more opinions than a desire to lay out research papers for random thoughts.

I've seen a couple times now we fail to meet your level of expectations with regards to referenced replies. Just thought you ought to know now that you might be lucky enough to have someone link "facts" in your threads, but you'll never get just facts. It's a forum not a university.
Mr_Beer wrote: Wed Mar 15, 2023 11:30 am The manufacture says Kieselsol is NOT thaw-tolerant and cannot be re-hydrated.
So what you want from us?
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by LWTCS »

ShineonCrazyDiamond wrote: Wed Mar 15, 2023 11:45 am You looking for facts, call the manufacturer. Buncha drunks round here with more opinions than a desire to lay out research papers for random thoughts.

I've seen a couple times now we fail to meet your level of expectations with regards to referenced replies. Just thought you ought to know now that you might be lucky enough to have someone link "facts" in your threads, but you'll never get just facts. It's a forum not a university.
Mr_Beer wrote: Wed Mar 15, 2023 11:30 am
The manufacture says Kieselsol is NOT thaw-tolerant and cannot be re-hydrated.
So what you want from us?
Well sir, I figure mine and Shady's response have an equally high likelihood of being factual input. Particularly because I will now officially declare that I am naming my future distillery cats the names of,,,Kieselsole & Chitosan. Though I am not willing to commit to a pair of Siamese cats for the distillery. I'll need that money for molasses.

Only thing remaining is for Shady to do to make my assertion complete is to roll out his new kitty liter brand.

I reckon if OP did a search, he wouldn't find but a single thread that discusses this topic (His. Not mine or Shady's) in this forum.

Shady, how the heck are you going to differentiate your new kitty liter brand from every other brand out there? I'm not sure its wise to start this venture in this economic climate? Your just not not going to have any name recognition. I'm mean let's face it sir ( and no disrespect intended) nobody has ever heard of Kiesel & Chitosan.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by jonnys_spirit »

LWTCS wrote: Wed Mar 15, 2023 12:22 pm
ShineonCrazyDiamond wrote: Wed Mar 15, 2023 11:45 am You looking for facts, call the manufacturer. Buncha drunks round here with more opinions than a desire to lay out research papers for random thoughts.

I've seen a couple times now we fail to meet your level of expectations with regards to referenced replies. Just thought you ought to know now that you might be lucky enough to have someone link "facts" in your threads, but you'll never get just facts. It's a forum not a university.
Mr_Beer wrote: Wed Mar 15, 2023 11:30 am
The manufacture says Kieselsol is NOT thaw-tolerant and cannot be re-hydrated.
So what you want from us?
Well sir, I figure mine and Shady's response have an equally high likelihood of being factual input. Particularly because I will now officially declare that I am naming my future distillery cats the names of,,,Kieselsole & Chitosan. Though I am not willing to commit to a pair of Siamese cats for the distillery. I'll need that money for molasses.

Only thing remaining is for Shady to do to make my assertion complete is to roll out his new kitty liter brand.

I reckon if OP did a search, he wouldn't find but a single thread that discusses this topic (His. Not mine or Shady's) in this forum.

Shady, how the heck are you going to differentiate your new kitty liter brand from every other brand out there? I'm not sure its wise to start this venture in this economic climate? Your just not not going to have any name recognition. I'm mean let's face it sir ( and no disrespect intended) nobody has ever heard of Kiesel & Chitosan.
Kitty litter is often made from diatomaceous earth which happens to be used as another fining agent...

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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by shadylane »

Shady's Shitosan Sawdust brand kitty litter will be made from rare, endangered trees that I personally cut down. I'm going to market it as biodegradable and organic. I figure it won't take very long before I have plenty of name recognition. I'll be as popular as Frankenstein and have crowds following me everywhere. :lol:
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

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shadylane wrote: Wed Mar 15, 2023 2:24 pm Shady's Shitosan Sawdust brand kitty litter will be made from rare, endangered trees that I personally cut down. I'm going to market it as biodegradable and organic. I figure it won't take very long before I have plenty of name recognition. I'll be as popular as Frankenstein and have crowds following me everywhere. :lol:
Ok I see where you're going.
Cuz dont nobody even gonna know what the heck kieselsol & chitosan even is. Project would be doomed right out of the gate. Especially if used in a distillery...
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by shadylane »

Mr_Beer wrote: Tue Mar 14, 2023 5:45 am
All of the Kieselsol has dried up inside the sealed plastic pouches.
Sounds like the sealed plastic pouches didn't do a very good job.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by Stonecutter »

Shady if you’re going to supplying the rare and endangered trees for the saw dust I’m here to help as well. Been thinking that I could supply the startup distillery with polar ice cap water I melted myself. Yeah, we’ll ship up a bunch of industrial gas powered heaters and turn them on toward the snow and ice and collect as much as you’ll ever need.
You betcha! Shitsand and Kerosene Distillery will be up and running in no time.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by shadylane »

Stonecutter wrote: Wed Mar 15, 2023 4:57 pm Shady if you’re going to supplying the rare and endangered trees for the saw dust I’m here to help as well. Been thinking that I could supply the startup distillery with polar ice cap water I melted myself. Yeah, we’ll ship up a bunch of industrial gas powered heaters and turn them on toward the snow and ice and collect as much as you’ll ever need.
You betcha! Shitsand and Kerosene Distillery will be up and running in no time.
Shits and Kerosene Distillery
That's the marketing schtick. :thumbup:
Reality will be using tap water and locally sourced sawdust.
Instead of distilling, we get GNS in 50 gallon barrels.
We can even recycle some of the used kitty litter to supply the secret ingredient.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by Stonecutter »

Brilliant! I get it now. Takes me a minute but with enough hints even I can smell what you’re stepping in.
You just need to round up one YouTuber with some graphs and mathematics on a white board to push it and I’m sure you gentlemen will sell plenty of that shit.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by Mr_Beer »

Kieselsol is a negatively charged fining made from silicon dioxide (silica) which is mostly found in quartz.

Once it 'freezes' (an industry term that does not refer to temperatures but instead to loss of liquid properties) it cannot be 're hydrated'. What you have are pieces of quartz like rock.

Chitosan is apparently fairly shelf stable and can be used but since it is focused on positively charged particles there should be a complementary application of Kieselsol.

The short answer is to discard the merchandise.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by LWTCS »

Thanks for that info.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by juana_b »

Crab shells and rocks apparently.


"Chitosan is a positively charged fining made from chitin, a compound that makes up the exoskeleton of crustaceans, such as shrimp, crabs, and lobsters. Kieselsol is a negatively charged fining made from silicon dioxide (silica) which is mostly found in quartz. These finings usually come together under a brand name, such as DualFine. First kieselsol is added and gently stirred into the wine after fermentation and then a day later the chitosan is added and stirred. This combination of the negatively and positively charged finings collect all of the suspending particles in your wine and can typically clear up a wine very quickly."
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by worldsbestdistiller »

Mr_Beer wrote: Tue Mar 14, 2023 5:45 am All of the Kieselsol has dried up inside the sealed plastic pouches. The Chigosan seems fine. Will the Kieselsol 're-hydrate' if exposed to wort or water?
Suppose the easy way out is to try it :-) Yr going to lose nothing apart from a few ccs of water and time.
Looking up the TDS for Protosol, if frozen it will precipitate irreversably, which of course isn't dehydrated.

As an aside, as pimarily a brewer I've generally used aux (silica) finings and isinglas, bought from a local micro or as payment for a few hours 'work' in the brewery.
In the wash for neutral I tend to use Bentonite or a mix of kieselsol/aux with gelatine/chitosan. In a 100 litre tub the wash is crystal clear withn 24-48 hrs. Bentonite by itself usually takes a couple of doses, the first put in whilst still fermenting, and is not so fast.
I would imagine, if used selectively, different fining compounds could be used to alther the character f the spirit, especially in a non neutral as they take out different cmpounds from the wash. Well, they do in a wine must.
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Re: Kieselsol and Chitosan question

Post by CoogeeBoy »

shadylane wrote: Wed Mar 15, 2023 5:17 pm
Stonecutter wrote: Wed Mar 15, 2023 4:57 pm Shady if you’re going to supplying the rare and endangered trees for the saw dust I’m here to help as well. Been thinking that I could supply the startup distillery with polar ice cap water I melted myself. Yeah, we’ll ship up a bunch of industrial gas powered heaters and turn them on toward the snow and ice and collect as much as you’ll ever need.
You betcha! Shitsand and Kerosene Distillery will be up and running in no time.
Shits and Kerosene Distillery
That's the marketing schtick. :thumbup:
Reality will be using tap water and locally sourced sawdust.
Instead of distilling, we get GNS in 50 gallon barrels.
We can even recycle some of the used kitty litter to supply the secret ingredient.
My suggestion, to mitigate those with shellfish allergies, is to use whale carcass instead, hand selected and harpooned, fresh from the ocean to the Shits and Kerosene Distillery.
Just trying to help.....
Taking a break while I get a new still completed....
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