Closed loop cooling

[TXCrash]

Can someone point me to a thread where a closed loop chilling setup was built for wort cooling?

I have limited access (read - a few hundred feet) to water in my preferred brewing spot (apartment living at its finest), so I'd like to set up a recirc pump to circulate ice water through one side of the counterflow chiller and wort through the other. I can't find information, however, on how much ice water I should need to chill a 3.5 gallon batch in approx 15 minutes.

I can brew inside, of course, or do no chill - but I'd prefer to do otherwise.

I'm certainly open to running the first, say 50% to a waste bucket (such water would be used for cleaning) and then starting recirc.

I appreciate your ideas.

 

[tally350z]

If you brew inside perhaps the best option would be to setup to run your tap water from your sink through the counter flow chiller first to get the bulk temp down to below 100*. This could be the water you could save for cleaning. Than you can recirculate with a bucket filled with ice and water. I would say for a 3.5 gallon batch would may need 5-10lbs of ice, just to drop the temp the rest of the way. Maybe closer to 5lbs could do it. For my 5 gallon batches with a plate chiller it takes about 8lbs of ice for me.

 

[Natdavis777]

If you brew inside perhaps the best option would be to setup to run your tap water from your sink through the counter flow chiller first to get the bulk temp down to below 100*. This could be the water you could save for cleaning. Than you can recirculate with a bucket filled with ice and water. I would say for a 3.5 gallon batch would may need 5-10lbs of ice, just to drop the temp the rest of the way. Maybe closer to 5lbs could do it. For my 5 gallon batches with a plate chiller it takes about 8lbs of ice for me.

This sounds like the best bet. Get yourself a big plastic vessel and once you have it filled with enough tap water, throw in some ice, and utilize a fountain pump to recirculate that water with some ice through a plate chiller or immersion chiller. Fountain pumps can be had on Amazon for cheap. You will keep water usage to a minimum and can use it to chill and clean like previously stated

 

[number40fan]

You will probably go through 15 gallons of water before you get it cooled enough to start recirculating. Be sure to have a way to hold that much water if you plan to use it again.

 

[SeeMont]

I brew where I do not have access to running water, I haul water in 5 gallon buckets. With this, I use a 35 gallon plastic garbage can filled with water. I freeze 2 liter bottles of water (6 for a 5 gallon batch) I use a large foutain pump from Harbor freight and run through a 20 foot / 3/8" copper immersion chiller. I can chill down to 70 in about 20 minutes. I want a 50 foot coil. I put isophor in the cooling water and save the water. Hope this helps.

 

[WkndBrewer]

I brew with a friend and we had this issue. Go to a hardware store and get some copper tubing (20ft or more), fountain pump, tubing to fit the pump and the ends of the copper tube and a 5 gal bucket. Then what we did was wrap the tube around a flower pot, or something similar to get the coil shape and leave excess at both ends for incoming and out going water place the pump in the bucket and fill with water and ice. Connect the tubing to the copper both ends so one goes from the pump into the coil and the other from the coil to the bucket so it recirculates. This has worked well for us maybe it would work for you

 

[Hamaki]

I thought this thread https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f36/wort-chilling-recirc-vs-counter-vs-plate-285988/ had some good discussion.