Ask The Brewmasters

We have recently acquired a Pall SupraDisc housing that holds 4-16" filter modules. We are planning on incorporating this filter into lager and other bright beer filtration (post centrifuge). I have read some old posts about these lenticular filters, but wanted to see if anyone had any new information on how to store and sanitize the modules before and after use. Do you hot water sanitize or use a chemical method for sanitation before use? If you hot water sani, have you noticed any issues going past the rated 21-25 recommended hot cycles for the modules? Do you drain the housing after sanitation and store the modules in the housing at 1-1.5 bar? 

Any information is appreciated.

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Andrew Sanderson
Quality Manager
Sly Fox Brewing Co
Pottstown PA
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It's been almost 10 years since I last used SupraDiscs and it was for cider, but this is what I remember from our process.

1. We stored them submerged in a plastic drum of citric acid/KMS solution. Citric added to bring pH of water down to 2.0 and then 1,000ppm of potassium metabisulfite.
2. On filtration day we flushed the filter with ground water until the pH was neutral, CIP with sodium percarbonate solution, rinsed to neutral, and then sanitized with StarSan or PAA. We then used CO2 to purge the housing and lines of residual sanitizer before starting filtration with a block and bleed to divert the initial filtered cider down the drain until pH and sensory confirmed residual sanitizer was gone.
3. End of day cleaning was similar. Big differences were cleaning in reverse of filtration flow to avoid pushing fouling further into membranes and starting with cool rinse water and working up to hot in steps to avoid cooking and setting residual pectin in the membranes.
4. We ran two polypropylene filters down stream of the Supradisc at 1 micron and then .45 micron. We were getting about 180 to 200 BBLs through the whole setup before we would have to replace modules. I feel like we probably could have gotten more through them with the knowledge I have now. I imagine centrifuging will help significantly.

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Andy Hannas
Potter's Craft Cider
Charlottesville VA
(804) 200-3591
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Hey Andrew,

We up until recently* ran a Pall Lenticular with Supradisc modules on the outlet of our centrifuge. At the size of unit we were previously running (~30-40bbl/hr) we did not need to run into a buffer tank ahead of the centrifuge. We also ran 4x16" and ran lagers only. We were running the SUPRAdisc SDZD II 250 200ZD25C440SPW which are a DE free, tight grade pad. Your mileage may vary depending on nominal micron rating you choose. 

• We ran exclusively hot water sanitation. End of day was a full regen followed by a hot water sani per the manual's recommended SOP.
• Purged water from the unit prior to storage and left at ~15psi
• Storage time could be up to 3-days
• Full hot water sani at the beginning of a day prior to use after storage
• Ran ~4,500-5,000bbl per set of pads across 30-40 different runs.

Overall the lenticular is a great and simple piece of equipment. The downside is the cost of the pad. A simple upgrade we made was adding digital pressure gauges to make it easier on our team to monitor ∆P. Saving a set of pads by not overloading them accidentally will easily make up for the small cost of that upgrade. There's not much to running these units and I think the manual is actually quite good. Even the caustic re-gen is a handy tool should you find yourself waiting on a new set to come in and need to buy some time. That said every system is unique and I'd reach out to Ken Belau at Pall. He is a great resource and an active (or at least was) MBAA member. 

Cheers!

*We're 6 months into to our upgraded separator and are currently running without them as we audit clarity and shelf-life without a polishing filter.

------------------------------
Campbell Morrissy, PhD
Director of Brewery Operations
pFriem Family Brewers

MBAA NTC - Committee Chair
------------------------------

Campbell and Andy,

Thanks for the information. Very helpful. I am looking at the ZD250, so it is good to see you can get that kind of throughput with them. Have you noticed any issues with DO pickup?

Having a hard time getting in touch with anyone at Pall right now. Do you have a digital version of the manual you could share with me? 

Thanks!

------------------------------
Andrew Sanderson
Sly Fox Brewing Co
Pottstown PA
(484) 524-8210
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 12-31-2025 16:27
From: Campbell Morrissy
Subject: SupraDisc II best practices

Hey Andrew,

We up until recently* ran a Pall Lenticular with Supradisc modules on the outlet of our centrifuge. At the size of unit we were previously running (~30-40bbl/hr) we did not need to run into a buffer tank ahead of the centrifuge. We also ran 4x16" and ran lagers only. We were running the SUPRAdisc SDZD II 250 200ZD25C440SPW which are a DE free, tight grade pad. Your mileage may vary depending on nominal micron rating you choose. 

• We ran exclusively hot water sanitation. End of day was a full regen followed by a hot water sani per the manual's recommended SOP.
• Purged water from the unit prior to storage and left at ~15psi
• Storage time could be up to 3-days
• Full hot water sani at the beginning of a day prior to use after storage
• Ran ~4,500-5,000bbl per set of pads across 30-40 different runs.

Overall the lenticular is a great and simple piece of equipment. The downside is the cost of the pad. A simple upgrade we made was adding digital pressure gauges to make it easier on our team to monitor ∆P. Saving a set of pads by not overloading them accidentally will easily make up for the small cost of that upgrade. There's not much to running these units and I think the manual is actually quite good. Even the caustic re-gen is a handy tool should you find yourself waiting on a new set to come in and need to buy some time. That said every system is unique and I'd reach out to Ken Belau at Pall. He is a great resource and an active (or at least was) MBAA member. 

Cheers!

*We're 6 months into to our upgraded separator and are currently running without them as we audit clarity and shelf-life without a polishing filter.

------------------------------
Campbell Morrissy, PhD
Director of Brewery Operations
pFriem Family Brewers

MBAA NTC - Committee Chair
------------------------------

Hey Andrew. If handled properly we do not see any additional DO pickup from the lenticular but I will stress you need to purge significantly to ensure all water is pushed out of the modules. 

I've attached the manual. Good luck and reach out with any questions!

------------------------------
Campbell Morrissy, PhD
Director of Brewery Operations
pFriem Family Brewers

MBAA NTC - Committee Past Chair
------------------------------

Original Message:
Sent: 01-02-2026 15:15
From: Andrew Sanderson
Subject: SupraDisc II best practices

Campbell and Andy,

Thanks for the information. Very helpful. I am looking at the ZD250, so it is good to see you can get that kind of throughput with them. Have you noticed any issues with DO pickup?

Having a hard time getting in touch with anyone at Pall right now. Do you have a digital version of the manual you could share with me? 

Thanks!

------------------------------
Andrew Sanderson
Sly Fox Brewing Co
Pottstown PA
(484) 524-8210
------------------------------


Original Message:
Sent: 12-31-2025 16:27
From: Campbell Morrissy
Subject: SupraDisc II best practices

Hey Andrew,

We up until recently* ran a Pall Lenticular with Supradisc modules on the outlet of our centrifuge. At the size of unit we were previously running (~30-40bbl/hr) we did not need to run into a buffer tank ahead of the centrifuge. We also ran 4x16" and ran lagers only. We were running the SUPRAdisc SDZD II 250 200ZD25C440SPW which are a DE free, tight grade pad. Your mileage may vary depending on nominal micron rating you choose. 

• We ran exclusively hot water sanitation. End of day was a full regen followed by a hot water sani per the manual's recommended SOP.
• Purged water from the unit prior to storage and left at ~15psi
• Storage time could be up to 3-days
• Full hot water sani at the beginning of a day prior to use after storage
• Ran ~4,500-5,000bbl per set of pads across 30-40 different runs.

Overall the lenticular is a great and simple piece of equipment. The downside is the cost of the pad. A simple upgrade we made was adding digital pressure gauges to make it easier on our team to monitor ∆P. Saving a set of pads by not overloading them accidentally will easily make up for the small cost of that upgrade. There's not much to running these units and I think the manual is actually quite good. Even the caustic re-gen is a handy tool should you find yourself waiting on a new set to come in and need to buy some time. That said every system is unique and I'd reach out to Ken Belau at Pall. He is a great resource and an active (or at least was) MBAA member. 

Cheers!

*We're 6 months into to our upgraded separator and are currently running without them as we audit clarity and shelf-life without a polishing filter.

------------------------------
Campbell Morrissy, PhD
Director of Brewery Operations
pFriem Family Brewers

MBAA NTC - Committee Chair