No more ice baths! I bought chiller! Cleaning questions.

[jongrill]

I just bought an immersion chiller and wanted to know how you all clean the copper when you use the device... Is there a certain way to clean it?

Stupid question?

 

[ianw58]

Nit stupid. just asked before...MANY TIMES.

Results from first three pages of a search using "cleaning immersion chiller":

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/chiller-immersion-vs-counterflow-391912/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/used-immersion-chiller-straight-box-387092/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f173/5-star-pbw-379479/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/cleaning-inside-chiller-420329/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/maybe-bad-idea-about-wort-chiller-414926/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f36/homemade-immersion-chiller-404577/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f36/upgrade-options-chilling-help-379005/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/immersion-chiller-risk-contamination-due-open-pot-378275/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/immersion-chilling-keggle-batches-376062/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/cleaning-persistent-bug-374609/

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f14/cleaning-363617/

 

[the_trout]

I rinse with hot water after use to remove any wort residue. Then next brew day I drop it in the boil with 10 mins left. This give it plenty of time to sanitize.

 

[Bamsdealer]

I rinse with hot water after use to remove any wort residue. Then next brew day I drop it in the boil with 10 mins left. This give it plenty of time to sanitize.

This... the easiest is to just hit it with the effluent before cutting the water and dealing with your wort. You still may need to use some ice or wait to pitch depending on the temp of your water supply

 

[homebrewdad]

I rinse with hot water after use to remove any wort residue. Then next brew day I drop it in the boil with 10 mins left. This give it plenty of time to sanitize.

This is exactly what I do. Wash with hot water after use. Boil for the last ten or so minutes in a given batch of beer,

 

[jongrill]

Thanks everyone!

 

[Beernik]

I clean mine with Straight A, just like everything else I brew with.

I'm back to using ice but in a different way.

I just built myself a new IC and I'm using my old one as a prechiller for the new one. Basically that means putting it in a bucket with 20lb of ice to cool the tap water from 70F to 40F before it runs through the IC. The new setup cooled 6ish gallons of wort down to 80F in about 25 minutes on a 95F day. That's twice as fast as my old IC could cool 5 gallons on its own.

 

[E_Marquez]

Like so many others.. I just rinse off the chiller with the water flow after cooling, same with the pre chiller.. let them hand to drain /drip dry while I am pouring into the primary, pitching yeast ect...

Then a quick wash with B-Brite Cleaner now, and then next week when i get ready to brew.. another wash.. and into the bucket with Starsan it goes... to sit till the last 15 min of boil.. then it and my aeration ring go in the pot.

Overkill? perhaps... but no infections or off flavors so far..