when should I cold crash my homebrew

You stir the priming sugar so it's well mixed before bottling ... no?

 

Yes but in the bottling bucket the beer is exposed to oxygen anyway. Opening the ferm bucket and stirring adds another time the beer is exposed. Should this be a concern?

 

For best results ... gelatin can and should be added at bottlin'time.

Start with 1 tsp / 5G.

 

Do i need to sanitize/boil it or anything like that or just toss it in the bottling bucket?

 

Just like dry yeast ... gelatin should be re-hydrated.
BYO's Terry Foster recommended the following procedure:

Pitch 1 tsp / 5G in ~1/4 cup water
Rest ~15 minutes (teh 'bloom' phase)
Nuke ~20 seconds *
Cool ... then pitch into bottlin'bucket

Works for me.

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* some say heat short of boil; others say boiling ain't no never mind.

 

Good procedure, but in my microwave 20 seconds is still cold. It takes me about 1:30. I shoot for 150 degrees, enough to thoroughly dissolve the gelatin but short of boiling.

 

Theoretically, yes. From experience, I would say no.

 

Gelatin works best when the beer is cold. I would think adding it at bottling would be problematic since you also need to keep the beer warm for carbonation.

 

I'm not a fan of horse hooves in my beer. I've used it in the keg on a few different beers that weren't as clear as I wanted and I found that while it fined the beer it dulled the flavor.

 

I was just getting ready to post that kegged beers solve most of the yeast flocculation problems (if you see it as a problem)...most finings strip flavor as well as suspended solids, IMHO

 

Horse makes a tasty meal. I love it pounded and fried thin. For those who think I am joking, I worked on a research farm/slaughter unit for 5 years.

 

Not only is BYO's Terry Foster is a recognized pro-am brewing expert ... but his how-to advice about gelatin has proved to be spot on in my brew closet.

 

yep, the best burger I ever ate was ground horse I had in Germany. If you think about it, it's really not that different from venison.

 

I think you answered your question. Personally, the only time I go out of my way to clear up a beer is for competitions or if I'm going to pouring my beer at a festival.

 

My local market sells ground camel. Yum!