On the Whirlpool Technique, Immersion Chillers, and a Clear Blonde Ale

Hi all, new to the forum and somewhat of an experienced novice with AG.  Ran into an issue yesterday and am finding varied answers all over the web.  Wondering what your experience tells you about the following:

I recently started kegging.  I never worried about clarity in bottles, but now I am looking to clean up my brews.  My first batch (blonde) had some cold break issues.  I was a bit surprised as I am able to cool to 60F in <30 minutes with an immersion chiller and a submergable pump in an ice bath.  At my LHBS i inquired about gelatin, but it was suggested that i start at the beginning of my process first -- get the clearest wort into my fermenter possible and then work down the process.  Makes sense.  His suggestion was that I stop racking as soon as i hit 60 F and instead let it stand and settle.  Worked Great.

heres the problem:  I lost almost 1 gallon of delicious sugary wort because it was completely full of break.  I should note that I used 1 whirlfloc tablet...one thing I have been consistantly reading is that I should not use more the 1/2 for a 5g batch.

So....I have a few ideas, but am looking for some weigh in.  Would whirlpooling fix this issue?  Can you whirlpool with an immersion chiller in if you use a paddle attached to a drill or will the IC obstruct the flow?  Or can you just whirlpool at pitching temp?  Im sure removing the IC would disturb the trub cone.  Or should I just omit the whirlfloc all together?

I might be close to the right path...or down a rabbit hole.  Any guidance or experience would be appreciated.

Cheers.

My personal method is to use the half whirfloc tablet at 5 minutes left, use the immersion chiller to get your temp down below 80F, remove the immersion chiller, sanitize my big spoon that i use during the boil, stir like crazy to make a whirlpool, let it sit for 10 minutes. You will end up with a little mountain of trub in the middle of your pot. I also transfer to a secondary that i put in a cold room in my basement after primary fermentation is done. Always have super clear beer, never had a reason to use gelatin yet.

Oddball said:

My personal method is to use the half whirfloc tablet at 5 minutes left, use the immersion chiller to get your temp down below 80F, remove the immersion chiller, sanitize my big spoon that i use during the boil, stir like crazy to make a whirlpool, let it sit for 10 minutes. You will end up with a little mountain of trub in the middle of your pot. I also transfer to a secondary that i put in a cold room in my basement after primary fermentation is done. Always have super clear beer, never had a reason to use gelatin yet.

Click to expand...

Thanks!  Exactly the input I was looking for.  If a whirlpool can product a trub cone at pitching temps then I should be good to go.  My other concern was if whirlfloc interfered with trub cone formation.  My trub was VERY light and fluffy.  Im guessing this is a result of me over-dosing my wort with the use of 1 whole whirlfloc tablet at 15 minutes.  Ill try your half a tab @ 5 min this coming weekend.

If it works out and the beer is good Ill name it after you