How long does a 3/8" 20' IC take to cool to pitch?

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RedIrocZ-28

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The reason I ask is because I think I have "built a better mousetrap". I have looked at the standard design IC and I thought that I could do one better. What I ended up with is what I call the Rib-Cage Immersion Chiller. Like in the title of the thread I used 22' of 3/8" copper tubing and of that 22' I have 20' used in the coils.

So, how long should a normal 20-25' 3/8" IC take to bring boiling wort to 70*? Since I don't have a standard one, I have no way to pit my results against control data.
 
Mine will take 6 gals of wort to 70F in about 30 minutes. This in winter when the outdoor tap water is about 50F and with constant agitation.

GT
 
my 20 ft 3/8 IC has taken 4 gallons from boiling to pitch temp in about 15 minutes. I have the coils spaced about 1" apart and soldered to the riser tube on the fittings side, and supported with 12 gauge wire looped and soldered to keep them spaced evenly 180 degrees away from the fittings. It keeps the chiller more rigid and easier to handle. It also makes it a great aerator for when the wort is cooled. pulling it up and down rapidly really aerates the wort.
 
Maybe it's because it's winter here in the mountains, and I have well water, but my 33' IC get 5.25 gallons to 70F in 9 minutes.
 
Depends entirely on the temp of the coolant water and whether you keep the IC agitated in the wort. 10-15 minutes with a cooler of ice and water (approx 35°) recirculated with a submersible pond pump.
 
I did a test last night with boiling water, it took a mere 10 minutes and some change to get from 212 to 70 degrees. The real test will be today when I brew and use it for the first time.

I do have a few questions though. I boiled the cooler last night in water with some distilled white vinegar and it came really clean, but there are still some green spots so I was thinking of taking some steel wool to them. But I have read that you can impart the metal taste to the wort if there is no oxidation layer on it. How do you build this up?? Or basically how do I prepare my chiller for its maiden voyage?

Quick responses will be appreciated, I plan to brew in a little over an hour.
 
It took 17 minutes to cool just shy of 6 gallons to pitching temps with 20' of tubing immersed. I was very impressed with this little inexpensive cooler I made. I have a total of $11 in it for fittings and hose, as the copper was donated to me from a friend who works in heating and cooling. Its so much nicer than the 45+ minute ice bath method! I should start building these and selling them.
 
It took 17 minutes to cool just shy of 6 gallons to pitching temps with 20' of tubing immersed. I was very impressed with this little inexpensive cooler I made. I have a total of $11 in it for fittings and hose, as the copper was donated to me from a friend who works in heating and cooling. Its so much nicer than the 45+ minute ice bath method! I should start building these and selling them.

You should post a picture of this thing first! :rockin:
 
The Rib-cage

Feb21_0004.jpg
 
That's awesome! definitely a much better use of space. The only challenge I could see would be stirring the wort, but you might not even need to with that design.

I got 3.5 gals down to 75F in 11 minutes when I brewed on saturday, and mine is just one big coil.
 
Hopaholic, that was the point of this design, there is absolutely no need to stir the wort that I can tell because there is never more than a few inches between the wort and the next closest coil.

I have a few more pics that I'll post real quick to show how much coverage this coil setup has.

Feb21_0002.jpg


What I thought was important was to have the outer edge of the wort chilled next to the walls of the kettle because the walls of the kettle are going to retain heat the most, as well as getting Max coverage of the wort via interwoven coils so there isn't, like I said earlier, more than a few inches between hot wort and another ice cold coil.

The cold break was amazing, I have never seen this amount of trub left on the bottom of the brewpot before. I can only imagine what a longer coil would do for me in say a 7.5gal pot like I plan to get so I can start making 6.5gal batches.
 
I remember seeing a side artice in BYO a few months back about the Frankenchiller:

Brew Your Own: The How-To Homebrew Beer Magazine - Frankenchiller

Tests with Denver water in March (~40F out of the tap), the article claims just over 3 minutes to pitching temperature. Of course, it's probably got $150 worth of copper in it.

OT: Keggle owners, spray some cold water onto the lower skirt of the keg at the start of chilling. It holds a lot of heat.

My 25' IC goes from boil to pitch in about 20 minutes for a 5.5 gallon boil.
 
Wow, just wow, to me that design looks like overkill and a bit inefficient. I have no doubt that my little chiller could do 10 minutes or under if I were to have immersed the brewpot in a cold water bath instead of setting in on the counter. I felt the pot at intervals and only when the temperature of the wort in the center got down to about 120 did the sides of the pot become cool enough to touch.

Darn, looks like I am going to have to brew again.... for scientific purposes of course!
 
Hopaholic, that was the point of this design, there is absolutely no need to stir the wort that I can tell because there is never more than a few inches between the wort and the next closest coil.

What I thought was important was to have the outer edge of the wort chilled next to the walls of the kettel because the walls of the ketel are going to retain heat the most, as well as getting Max coverage of the wort via interwoven coils so there isn't, like I said earlier, more than a few inches between hot wort and another ice cold coil.

Nice design. If you are not going to stir the wort this is a pretty good design because it distributes the coils even throughout the wort. However don't assume that you could not chill faster with agitated wort. Fluid motion around the coils will increase the rate of heat exchange between the copper and wort. This will improve the efficiency of you chiller even with your distribution. Also depending on the environment the outside walls of the pot should cool fairly quickly as the large surface area of the highly conductive metal conducts the heat to the outside air. With 20F outside temps I know that was not a problem with my last brew. However it sounds like you get plenty fast cooling with it as is and you don't have to attend the cooling.

I believe the main reason for the design of most chillers is manufacturing ease. It is very simple to wrap tubing at a constant radius.

Craig
 
CBBaron, I like your take on this. And I do believe you are right about the reason for the commercial chillers to be a single coil. Mine was very simple though, just a paint can and about 15 minutes to wrap the coils, and 15 minutes to attach all the fittings and do a leak test. Can't wait for Thursday. :)
 
It is already at the top of the wort as it sits. So you guys are suggesting the agitation of the wort? That re-suspends the coldbreak though, I thought you wanted to avoid that stuff getting into the fermenter?

Yes, by agitating the wort, you will get more efficient cooling. As far as the break material goes, try a technique called whirlpooling. After cooling, stir vigorously for a few minutes, cover and walk away for 20+ minutes. The kettle trub will form a cone in the center and you can siphon from the outside edge of the kettle, minimizing transfer of break material into the fermenter.
 
I think I will try this whirlpool technique tomorrow on my day off. I am thinking of maybe doing a 3 gal batch of "The Dark Lord" just to see if I can clone it. I'm betting 5-6 minutes cooling time with this chiller and the pot immersed in a cold water bath.
 
Your design was an inspiration. I just finished building one like this, except mines a lot less pretty. I'll post some pics when I find my camera.

Thanks for the idea.

Edit: Here's a pic. I used a Carlo Rossi gallon jug to make the coils. I just used its today for the first time. It took 5 gallons of wort down to pitching temp in about 10 minutes. This thing rocks!

IMG_3662.JPG
 
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