therminator

can anyone give me a personal review on the Therminator. continuing to seriously labor over immersion vs counterflow etc - do like the idea of adding the Whirlpool Chiller concept back regardless of type. is it a pain to pre sanitize etc or clean after - the immersion seems easier but cant really fit it maximally into my designed keggle without alot of extra out of the boil and wasted etc. thanks

docmoran said:

can anyone give me a personal review on the Therminator. continuing to seriously labor over immersion vs counterflow etc - do like the idea of adding the Whirlpool Chiller concept back regardless of type. is it a pain to pre sanitize etc or clean after - the immersion seems easier but cant really fit it maximally into my designed keggle without alot of extra out of the boil and wasted etc. thanks

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I have been using a Mini-Therminator (Shirron) for over a year now. Pre and Post cleaning are a simple as anything, fill it up, let it set, drain and done.

The ONLY issue I have with the Brazed Plate Heat Exchanger is that it's a Brazed Plate Heat Exchanger. Meaning, nobody really knows how much crud is building up inside over time and they haven't been around long enough for any old timers to chime in about flow restrictions or poor efficiencies. And really, who wants to chop one in half "just to see".

With 65*F water, full open, and no restriction on the wort, plus about 10 minutes of kettle recirculation my Shirron could chill 10 gallons to ale pitching temp in about 20 minutes. IF I restricted the wort through I could do a single pass chill in about the same amount of time but always opted to get the bulk chilled down as quick as I could.

I have a Therminator on the way and I have to believe that given it's size over the Shirron that it can do a better job.