ChickenBeer

Recipes 

I have a mini fridge (those little college dorm ones) and it is not big enough for me to do a kegorator so I was thinking about using it as a wort chiller. Idea was to have brass fitting on top run brass tubing coiled in side 20-25' and then run the tubing to the side were I could have a tap or any other kind of one way valve. I know how to construct it but does any one know if this is a waste? meaning is the heat exchange that I will get so minimal because the fridge cant keep up with the exchange rate? fridge gets down to 32 degrees no problem.

Huff360

Recipes 

I doubt it would work very well. The fridge can't keep up with the heat that you are adding to it.

The only way to make it work would be to fill the fridge with water a few days before and let it chill the water. Then the water would absorb the heat from the coil. You'd have to have the water in contact with the coil though, a bunch of 2L bottles wouldn't really help.

Flomaster

Recipes 

not sure if this would work, but here is my take on your idea.
turn the fridge up side down,
turn the compressor,
plumb your copper coil ,
fill with water and Freeze

then again why not put an IC in a 5 gallon bucket, fill with water freeze, run wort through the copper. it might have already been done before I dunno.

-=Jason=-

Huff360

Recipes 

The problem you run into with freezing a bucket of water is that once the ice melts right around the coil, you lose efficiency. You need a good mix of ice and water to help the heat move around. And 5 gals of 32 degree water will only cool 5 gallons of 212 water down to about 122.

Flomaster

Recipes 

makes perfect sense you'll have that ring of water around the coil which is not as cool as the ice.

I'll stick to my CFC its proven to work

ChickenBeer, perhaps you can turn that old fridge into a fermentation box using foam panels and some wood.

-=Jason=-

FoundlingOfDollar

Recipes 

This is exactly what I am hoping to do with mine! I was wondering if the foam panels would leak too much cold air for the fridge to be efficient or if there was a way to get it efficient enough to lager in it. I was thinking of two layers of foam board around a 1x1 frame with the inside filled with great stuff or another spray foam insulation... I figured one side could be a 1' or so collar where I could slide the front of the fridge in the. Pack around the sides with fiberglass insulation. Anyone done this?

P.s. Hijack

Huff360

Recipes 

Yep. There's a build thread in the DIY section about it.

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/fermentation-chamber-first-project-ive-posted-208720/