solids removal before wastewater

[somecallmetim2]

I'm looking for anyone who's had experience with removing solids (ie. grain, trub, hops) from brewhouse wastewater.

50 bbl brewhouse running at least 4 brews a day, 5 days a week.
That's a few hundred gallons of waste per day.

I have been looking into all sorts of different equipment, from self-cleaning filters to vibrating screens to centrifuges, I'd like to know what breweries actually have in use.

Thanks!

[Sauce]

....and dont forget yeast!! I know I'm beating a really dead horse on that matter, but yeast is a reall issue with your local waste water treatment center...they scavenge O2, and most bill your brewery accordingly.

Obviously it isnt a seperation issue like kettle trub, more of a disposle issue.

There's money to be saved on both fronts...maybe its not an issue because it doesnt relate directly to most brewers COGs, but I bet if you pointed it out to the owners and showed them your utility savings over a year once you eliminated both (trub and yeast) from your effluents you might get a something...at least a "attaboy".

But back to the original post.....I would be interested in hearing the same. I've thought about some kind of troff or something with screens that the kettle would drain into over my floor drain.

[beertje46]

If you have some money:
Meura Trub Seperator

[Moonlight]

A fifty is bigger than my 21 bbl, but I made a shallow stainless open-top box with wheels and a drain. It is large enough for my IPA trub, and I layed in some nylon/poly mesh from McMaster, assisted by some spring clamps. By draining the kettle dregs into this, the kettle is freed up for the next brew and you can shovel this out with a plastic shovel after it finishes draining. The high-temp mesh isn't cheap, but even window screen could work for the really tight-budget people. Then again, the stainless fab wasn't cheap either, but depending on what hieght you have to work with under your kettle drain, an old bathtub could work.
I remember years ago seeing a brewery in England press yeast into cakes with a press and cloth. That could solve our yeast disposal issue. I'm also searching for a dehydrator in my spare (!) time.

[somecallmetim2]

Right now we send all trub, hops and lauter drainings to a 'trub tank' (8000 Gal capacity). A farmer will come and pick this up and use it as soil treatment.
He picks this up for trade in Spent grain for his cattle.

Unfortunately when you throw yeast into this tank, it fills up rather quickly, and the farmer has to pick this up as many times as he picks up the spent grain.

With fuel costs and the fact that it takes 3+ hours to pump the Trub tank, it's not cost effective for him.

I'd like to send all cellar waste to the 'trub tank' and send all our brewhouse waste to our wastewater plant, sans solids.

The settling/screen tank sounds like a good idea, but maybe a bit labor intensive.

Please keep the suggestions coming!
Thanks

[Moonlight]

How about keeping the yeast in plastic drums (ideally with removable tops) in the cold box and fork lift them onto the farmer's truck. That way the yeast won't ferment the trub, and won't fill your bin.

[Rob Creighton]

Waste treatment facilities often use parabolic screens which is a very cost effective method of removing solids from liquid but I'm not sure its right for your application. It is a J shaped sloted screen with a very fine slot. Liquid waste is introduced to the top of the screen and filters through the screen to drain while all solids roll down the screen and fall off the edge of the screen into a collection container. It's simple and comes in a variety of sizes.

[gitchegumee]

I've posted this before, but will again: Spent yeast in those quantities may be useful to a food processor as autolyzed yeast protein. You might even get a buck or two for several hundred gallons per week. Check with food processing companies to deal with the yeast--it worked for us! Cheers!