Counter flow chiller build

[Loyd]

Spent an afternoon putting this chiller together. I used 18' 3/8 copper tubing that was left over from another project. I had a 20' water hose I no longer used that went into the project. The only additional parts were two t fittings, four hose clamps and a plumbing solder kit.

 

[Loyd]

What I started with.

 

[Loyd]

Close up of the parts

 

[Loyd]

Had to drill the fitting out with a 3/8" drill bit for the copper tube to slide through.

 

[Loyd]

I slid the copper tubing through the water hose and rolled the tubing around a 5lb co2 cylinder. I ended up cutting about 3 ft of the water hose off to match the length of the copper. Soldered the fittings on with a propane torch and used a wet rag to keep from melting the water hose.

 

[Loyd]

Attached the hoses to the fittings with hose clamps and tested for leaks. Just have to clean it and test how efficiently it works now. It was a fun afternoon project. I used a lot less parts and soldering than I have seen others builders use. If you are concerned about your solder joints leaking just push the 3/8 copper about 6" further through the copper t fitting. That will allow you to keep an eye on your solder connection. The way I have mine soldered the wort hoses will cover the solder joints.

 

[SleepyCreekBrews]

Gotta love those Pex fittings . Any plans to bind it up so it doesn’t bet bent/kinked/damaged.

 

[SEndorf]

Well done!
Out of curiosity, what was your materials cost vs. the ~ $200 bucks for a store purchased CFC?

 

[Loyd]

Gotta love those Pex fittings . Any plans to bind it up so it doesn’t bet bent/kinked/damaged.

Yes I am planning on building a stand that will hold the chiller and a recirculating pump.

 

[Loyd]

c

Well done!
Out of curiosity, what was your materials cost vs. the ~ $200 bucks for a store purchased CFC?

I purchased everything locally from Home Depot and Walmart.

$10 for the 25' rv drinking water hose.
$25 for 20' of 3/8 copper tubing from Home depot
$8 for two pex fittings from Home Depot
$5 for 4 ss hose clamps from home depot
$15 for plumbing solder Kit at Home depot

$63 all together if you just bought enough material to just build one.

This was a project I have wanted to attempt for awhile. The copper and the hose were just laying on the shelf collecting dust. I started by cutting a small piece of 3/8 copper tubing about 2" long. I also cut off an 8" section from one end of the garden hose. I took those pieces to Home depot to find a t fitting that would fit. The closest thing I could find to fit was the pex fitting. The pex fitting had to be drilled out with a 3/8 drill bit so the copper would slide through. I drilled it with my hand drill in a clamp down bench vice.
If a couple guys got together and purchased the copper in bulk and shared a solder kit you could build something similar for $35-40 each

 

[Loyd]

Here is a shot of the wort chiller mounted in my brew shed connected to my glycol chiller.

 

[indymedic]

Nice build! Looks very clean. I have been Thinking about changing from an IC to a CFC. How do the garden hose style chillers do vs all copper chillers. What are some pros and cons of both.

 

[E606]

Resurrecting an old thread. I completely copied this build. Really appreciate the pictures and instruction. It was very easy putting this together.


Thanks Loyd

Thanks loyd