Review: Brewjacket Immersion chiller.

[nsurround]

The BrewJacket Immersion fermentation temperature control system:

This product basically does what it says it does on the brewjacket.com site. I have confirmed most of the site data based on my initial test brews. It is a heat exchange system only. In other words the room temp must be higher than your targeted fermentation temp. It does not supply heat to the fermentation carboy etc. The unit is often shown without the brew jacket itself, just the carboy and head unit. However you must use the insulated jacket in order for this to all work. The companies new website shows the whole brewjacket set up in a living room and other spaces for comparison in size.

This thing is perfect for lager fermentation temperatures but less so for ale's as ale yeast fermentation temp maybe above your room temp. It all depends on the environment temp that the brewjacket resides in. There is a fan that turns on when the unit is exchanging heat and the current fermentation temp is above the set temp. Otherwise if set and current temp the same the fan turns off and stays off until the current temp rises above the set temp. The units temp probe that measures the current fermentation temp connects to the head unit and goes between the inside of the insulated jacket and the carboy. It does not reside in the connecting rod inside of the carboy. However I saw no problem with this. Unit as tested allowed for a fairly precise control over fermentation temp. Probably better than a frig/freezer even with controller. Quality of the parts seemed generally very good.

After a lager fermentation and maybe a diacetyl rest is over I remove the carboy from the jacket and rack to secondary and put in a lager temp frig. I do not think it is worth using the brewjacket for lagering temps (just fermentation and possibly diacetyl rest temps).

Pros:

1. Great for lager fermentation.
2. Fairly compact in size.
3. Very easy to use head unit and clean the brew rod.
4. Very efficient use of energy.
5. Can use different carboy types and variations incl ale bucket.
6. Blow off tube works well enough for lagers.

Cons:

1. Ale fermentation temps maybe above fermentation room temp.
2. Not easy to get a 5 to 6 gal full fermentation carboy in or back out of the jacket. (see below *)
3. Fairly pricey for doing just one 5-6 gal fermentation at a time assuming purchase of one unit only.
4. Fan somewhat noisy when on but depends on listening environment.

* I found it somewhat difficult to install a full fermentation carboy into the insulated jacket. If using a 5 or 6 gal glass or even plastic carboy (45 to 50 lbs) you really need almost two persons. One to hold the jacket down and one to lift and insert into the top opening of the jacket. The reverse is true when taking the same carboy out of the jacket. There is no vertical side zipper just the top opening with a draw string and clip. Since I ferment in my basement I purchased a small block and tackle hoist that easily lifts the carboy into or out of the jacket. However others may not have that option. Maybe newer insulated jacket versions will have a vertical side zipper for easier carboy installation and removal.

Conclusion:
I feel this fermentation cooler is generally best suited for lagers or where environments are above 70 deg F. I am generally happy with the system and would recommend to those who have limited space, warm climate and want to do lager beers with more precision. Cost of unit currently is about the same as purchasing a new small chest freezer (two 6 gal carboy size) and a temp controller unit. If purchasing I would recommend getting a pre-drilled PET fermenter, with air release (blow 0ff) also available on site.

 

[RansomBrewing]

After a lager fermentation and maybe a diacetyl rest is over I remove the carboy from the jacket and rack to secondary and put in a lager temp frig. I do not think it is worth using the brewjacket for lagering temps (just fermentation and possibly diacetyl rest temps).

I'm curious as to why you say it isn't worth it to use for lagering? I like the idea of being able to use it when I want, and being able to put it away when we aren't making a lager (right now I don't have any way to do a lager).

 

[nsurround]

When brewing a lager, since I have a lagering frig, after fermentation and maybe a diacetyl rest I remove the carboy from the brewjacket, rack to secondary and then put in my lagering frig. Thus freeing up the brewjacket for another lager brew fermentation. Of course you could lager with the brewjacket at say 35 deg. but that would mean your brewjacket could not be used again for another 4 to 6 weeks.

 

[helterscelter]

When brewing a lager, since I have a lagering frig, after fermentation and maybe a diacetyl rest I remove the carboy from the brewjacket, rack to secondary and then put in my lagering frig. Thus freeing up the brewjacket for another lager brew fermentation. Of course you could lager with the brewjacket at say 35 deg. but that would mean your brewjacket could not be used again for another 4 to 6 weeks.

Otherwise it means you need a fridge for lagering in addition to the brew jacket. If you have a fridge, why bother with the brew jacket? The largest benefit I see is the footprint. If you have a fridge you can lager and ferment fairly easily. Why not just buy another brew jacket rather than use a fridge?

 

[RansomBrewing]

Cool. I'll have to order up one of these.

 

[nsurround]

I know what you mean. However I have usually got a couple of ales cold crashing and a lager that is lagering in the same frig. Bringing up the temp to say 52 or 55 for lager fermentation for two weeks does not make sense in my case. I tried using just the frig for everything but was a big headache. AS I said in my original post you could buy a small chest freezer and temp controller that could ferment two lager beers in 6 gal carboys for about the same price. I did not have the space. Lager and fermentation temps are totally different animals. If you want more precise control you will need to separate them.

 

[jschein]

Great review. I just got mine Thursday. On my trial run with water @ 73 degrees after 1 hour no temp difference, 2 hours later same. I pulled the unit and it was ice cold, WTF? I reached in and moved the temp prob and it started to go down, 69 degrees immediately. I put my bucket in the bag first, nsurround said it would be difficult with a full bucket, tough enough with an empty bucket! I cranked it up to 70 and after 2 minutes it shut off. It has now been 4 hours in an 84 degree shed and it still has not come on, holding 69.

 

[planetscott]

I got one of the first units through the Kickstarter program.
I'm on my 5th batch and so far, it has been as advertised. it is kind of noisy, so it stays in my laundry room. It is difficult to remove the carboy from the jacket, so I use a brew hauler strap and step on the jacket as I remove the carboy. There is discussion on the Brewjacket community forums to re-design the jacket with a hook and loop closure. So far, I've only done ales and it has maintained those temperatures well. If I set it at 68, it never gets above 69. You do need to get the wort cooled as close to pitching temps as possible as it does take some time to chill on it's own. Once there however, it does it's job.

I've seen some concern regarding the price, however, to me it is worth it as it takes up far less space than an additional refrigerator.

 

[Vesteroid]

I have one and have only tested it on water. It will pull down about 20 below ambient. Had it in the garage so noise was not a problem, but I don't think I could have it in or near a room where I was sleeping. Hall bathroom maybe.

Plan to lagers with it when I have ales in the freezer. Wish they made a jacket for the Ss brew tech bucket. Not much on the plastic carboys

 

[nsurround]

Yeah have found that the temp probe is a bit finicky but basically works. The largest issue I have found is that if your initial primary wort temp is way above the Set temp that it will take a couple of days to get to the target temp. Especially if your ambient room temp is also much higher. It is actually explained on their website under FAQs. There are a lot of factors that determine the cooling speed.

 

[chlehb]

Totally forgot about these. Since my new apartment still won't have room for a fermentation-fridge I was already getting ready to bury my ideas of lager beers but I now decided to invest in one of these.

They're currently running a kickstarter for the new iteration of the product with heating capabilities. If you already own the old one, you can just buy the upgrade: https://www.kickstarter.com/project...plete-homebrew-fermentation-syste/description

 

[Tall_Yotie]

Just so folks know, they have a VERY long delay. It may be smart to contact them about real lead times before purchasing.

I ordered May 5th, and on June 22nd I finally got told the order was complete, and that was after constantly hounding them for any sort of estimated shipping date.

 

[nobadays]

They must have fixed their delay times.... I ordered mine and within 10 days they were here. I'm on the second brew and just love this thing!

Cheers! Don