thedude123

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I know this is a stupid question, but could someone explain to me how the different types of wort chillers work and which is the best kind to use for 5 gallon batches.

JustDave

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Benny Blanco

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Go with a 25' IC and you're golden.

thedude123

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I have another question, is there a wort chiller that doesn't waste water? It seems like the Immersion coolers are a big waste of water.

mew

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If you get a long (50 ft) coil of 3/8" copper, prechill with ice, and whirlpool while you chill, you'll be running water for <5 minutes.

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ThatFishGuy

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or you can also hook up an immersion chiller to an aquarium pump instead of the faucet. it can pump from a container holding a lot of ice water, that way it just recirculates the water. just make sure to keep ice in there or you might end up recirculating warm water.

Blender

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Or just capture the runoff and use it for cleanup, watering plants, etc.

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Gary

thedude123

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How do you hook up the chiller to an aquarium pump? I like that idea

Bobby_M

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Just don't forget about the fact that creating that much ice uses quite a bit of energy so if you're thinking in terms of economy or absolute environmental impact, running the water (if it's cool enough on its own) is probably cheaper.

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thedude123

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I suppose you would be right. Which is cheaper to run an immersion or counterflow chiller?