Ack! Wort isn't cooling fast enough!

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switters

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I just finished the boil on my first batch (partial mash). Had the sink full of water and several frozen water bottles, ice packs, ice cubes. After 10 minutes the temp is still at 156. At this rate I don't think I'm going to get down to 70 in 30 minutes. The frozen water bottles are almost melted. What can I do?
 
Drink a beer while you wait?

It'll be fine. You could also stir the water in the sink a bit, or drain it out and refill it with cold water.
 
You need to drain and refill the sink with cold water several times.

When I first put my kettle in, it takes about 30 seconds for the sink water to go from very cold to hot. Usually do about 3 or 4 refills in the first 10 minutes and then it starts staying colder longer.

Stirring the wort helps as well.
 
I wouldn't lose any sleep over the cooling rate. RDWHAHB, it will be cool when it is cool. It won't hurt a thing. I let mine sit overnight and let it cool naturally, no problems, ever.
 
I've never let mine sit out overnight. By changing the water, and gently stirring both the water bath and the wort, it'll be cool in 30 minutes. The "danger" period is when the wort is between 75 and 140 degrees, so once you get below 140, then try to actively chill it so you can pitch the yeast.
 
Well, it's been 35 minutes and it's down to 100. I've changed the water 3 times, and have stirred several times as well. The ice bottles are now mostly water, with some small amount of ice. Guess I don't have much choice now but to keep changing the water and wait.
 
Yep. If you don't change the water, the kettle of hot wort will just sit in a sink full of hot water and the extra mass will make it take LONGER to cool. I just go watch something on TV and go change the water during each commercial break.
 
As said before, stirring the wort will help it cool faster.

I've recently switched from using my sink to the bathtub. I have a bunch of old gatorade bottles I freeze ahead of time and also buy a few bags of ice. The tub helps because you have a much larger amount of water to fill with ice and it displaces the heat without getting as hot, so it last much longer. I can usually pitch within a half hour.

Don't pitch until you are down to your fermentation temp.

You can always get a wort chiller...
 
Yep, next time it's a wort chiller for me. This is my first batch so I didn't spring for it, but I kinda wish I would have.
 
I was tired of dealing with this also. Broke down and made a immersion chiller. I'll see how different it is next week when I brew next. Can't wait.
Dave
 
I bought an immersion chiller at the beginning of the year and can promise you that it will make your brew days much better. Not only is it more effective at cooling your wort than chilling in the sink, but its much safer.

You no longer have to pick up a boiling hot kettle filled with 5 or more gallons of boiling liquid and place in a sink. Its nice to brew and know that you're not going to get burned.
 
a tip for next time, use the bathtub. fill it up with cold water and get 3-4 bags of ice and a few frozen bottles etc etc. put your pot in the water push the ice bags up against the kettle and stir the wort slowly. i do this and can get the temp down to 75-80 in 15-20 mins most times, it might take a little bit longer sometimes tho.
 
I recommend spending the money and making a counterflow chiller. Look it up either on one of the forums here or find a design you like somewhere else online. I made mine with 30 feet of hose and it chills a 10 gallon batch in about 25 minutes. The water coming out the exit hose is so hot that I use it for cleaning etc. This means better efficiency and less waste water as the flow can be adjusted to get the exact temperature desired.
 
I thought that getting the wort below 170 as quickly as possible was important to stop DMS formation. If I am wrong, some one please correct me. I am not sure how it affects the alpha acids beyond that point, but I would not worry too much about it. Sounds like you got it down quick enough to me, at least the important part. I used to put my pot in an ice bath and run an IC at the same time. I would pump water from the ice bath through the IC and constantly refill the bath. Talk about quick temp drops. I would be at pitching temps in 5 to 10 minutes for 5 gallon batches.
 
Chilling was always my Dreaded step of brew day, until I bought a CFC.Now I have a pump that I can wait to try with it. But even a CFC gravity fed is awesome.
 
Yes, I always thought an immersion chiller was more of an optional piece of equipment, until I melted my better bottle carboy....
 
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