I've been making Kava for years, and I've just recently found the sweet spot for brewing it. Believe me, it will save you anguish and money if you follow these simple directions:
For strong Kava - 2 tbsp for each cup of water. Brew two cups of water (8 tbsp of kava) for each krunking session. This is plenty strong. (Nakamal at Home's kava making instructions are really pretty wasteful, in my opinion. You'll burn through your kava really fast if you follow them. 1 cup of kava to 2 cups of water is just crazy, looking back on my years of muddy kava brewing. That being said, I do think that recipe is appropriate for Chief's Jungle, which isn't a finely ground blend). Make sure to add a pinch of soy lecithin to the dried kava root. Knead it thoroughly in the water for at least 10 minutes, or until the sieve no longer has a "greasy" feeling.
For a weekday night - 1 tbsp for each cup of water. Same instructions as above with the soy lecithin. Squeeze until it's not greasy.
Remember, if none of these recipes work for you, you can always try out the crazy 2:1 ratios some people live by. I, for one, wish I could reclaim all the wasted Kava I went through following that rule of thumb.
As far as re-using roots, you really shouldn't have to. A bag of Kava lasts an impressive amount of time if you use the instructions above. Once you've squeezed it until there is nothing left but dried pulpy root, you have gotten everything out of it. The soy lecithin bonds to the kavalactones and sucks out all of their life.
