The Best Wort Chiller

[JaDeDBrewing]

Here at JaDeD Brewing, we have seen some discussion lately about which wort chiller type is the best for homebrewers, so we are issuing a challenge to any homebrewer that does not NOT use a Hydra or a King Cobra immersion chiller to chill their wort. Here's the challenge: Purchase a JaDeD Hydra or King Cobra immersion chiller, and if you don't have faster and easier brew days using a JaDeD chiller, we will buy back your JaDeD Hydra or King Cobra at full price, including all shipping charges, for up to six months from your purchase date.*

That's right, you can buy a Hydra or a King Cobra and use it as much as you possibly can for up to six months, with no risk to you! We want you to compare your existing chiller to your new JaDeD chiller, side-by-side to see the difference that it takes for the two chillers to go from flame-out to yeast pitching temperatures, as well as to be cleaned, stored, and ready for your next brew day. No other chiller manufacturer or retailer is willing to make this kind of offer.

With actual chilling times of 3 minutes (Hydra) and 3.5 minutes (King Cobra) for a 5 gallon batch**, the Hydra and the King Cobra are comparable to the speed of a plate chiller. However, both the Hydra and the King Cobra can be cleaned in less than 1 minute, and you don't need to buy an expensive food grade pump to get these chilling times or to properly clean and sanitize them, as you do with a plate chiller. Also, tube-in-shell CFCs are not even close to these chilling times. The fastest possible chilling times for a tube in shell CFC under ideal conditions for a 25' rubber hose type CFC is 5 minutes and for a convoluted type CFC is more than 7 minutes. Similar to a plate chiller, a CFC requires a food grade pump to achieve its fastest chilling time. Another advantage of using an immersion chiller, rather than a plate chiller or CFC, is that it can NEVER clog! Our immersion chillers can be completely cleaned faster than you can even switch the hoses on a CFC or plate chiller to start the cleaning process!

*There is an asterisk. Why is there an asterisk? There is an asterisk because you need to make sure that you are running your new JaDeD chiller in the same configuration as your current chiller. Ideally, you will optimize any chiller that you are using, by using short, 5/8" diameter or larger hoses, turning the chilling water on full blast, and agitating the wort during chilling. Your chilling water flow rate is very important in achieving the fastest possible chilling times. This is why we recommend using a garden hose spigot whenever possible. If you have chilling water flow restrictions with any chiller, your chilling times will be slower in nearly a linear manner. We have tested all of our chillers and we know the science behind their performance. If you are not getting our listed chilling times for ANY of our products, email us. We know that we can get your chilling speed where it should be!

**What the heck JaDeD! A double asterisk? We know that two asterisks seems a little excessive, but this is very important information. The listed chilling times for all of our chillers are for a 5 gallon batch of boiling wort to get to 10 degrees Fahrenheit above your chilling water temperature while using our recommendations for the fastest chilling times. If you need to get your wort temperature close or equal to your chilling water temperature, your chilling time will increase substantially with any chilling method, not just an IC.

 

[LostHopper]

Is the Hornet no longer made?

 

[mprokop]

What about the wasp? Every time I check their website it seems to be sold out.

 

[JaDeDBrewing]

Is the Hornet no longer made?

The Hornet has been replaced by the Mantis. Here is a link to our HBT post in the vendor showcase announcing the release of the Mantis.

What about the wasp? Every time I check their website it seems to be sold out.

The Wasp has been removed for a redesign. We have a few other projects that are in front of the Wasp redesign, but keep checking the our website!

 

[day_trippr]

 

[Mugsfull]

I have a fitting question. I see the diameter of the King Cobra is 14". I have a 10 gal MegaPot 1.2. It has a diameter of 14.1". Do you think this will work in this pot?

 

[bobo31]

I have the Hydra. Using it in my brew pot(no name brand) the top 1 or 2 coils are above the wort when chilling. However it is still AWESOME! I wouldn't trade it. It takes literally like 5 seconds to go from boil to 170ish for hop steeps. It chills very quickly.

 

[zizouandyuki]

Can you help explain how this is different from other immersion chillers on the market?

I see nothing on your website or here that details what makes this a better chiller. It just says it's faster without giving any real specifications or details on how or why it's faster. Thanks.

 

[HLSheppard]

I have the Hydra. Using it in my brew pot(no name brand) the top 1 or 2 coils are above the wort when chilling. However it is still AWESOME! I wouldn't trade it. It takes literally like 5 seconds to go from boil to 170ish for hop steeps. It chills very quickly.

I can't believe how fast my Hydra is. 6 gallons from 200+ to under 70 in 5 minutes or less (depending on our Michigan ground water).

My son and I just shake our heads (while timing it) each time we brew.

My top two coils also stick out above the wort but we just stir and watch in amazement.

 

[Yeastieboy]

I am so sick and tired of dealing with my plate chiller. Which chiller is recommended for 5-10G batches in a 15G Bayou kettle? I really like the look and ease of these solutions. My kettle is a single vessel eBIAB system with a 220V BoilCoil in the bottom.

 

[JaDeDBrewing]

I have a fitting question. I see the diameter of the King Cobra is 14". I have a 10 gal MegaPot 1.2. It has a diameter of 14.1". Do you think this will work in this pot?

We would recommend getting a 20" Hydra for your kettle. the 0.1" of clearance for the King Cobra is a little too close and you will end up scratching the heck out of both your chiller and kettle. You will have one or two coils that stick out of the wort, but this will not adversely affect your chilling times. If you are really concerned about the exposed chilling coils, we can make a custom Hydra that will have all the chilling coils fully submerged.

I have the Hydra. Using it in my brew pot(no name brand) the top 1 or 2 coils are above the wort when chilling. However it is still AWESOME! I wouldn't trade it. It takes literally like 5 seconds to go from boil to 170ish for hop steeps. It chills very quickly.

Sweet! We like hearing this!

Can you help explain how this is different from other immersion chillers on the market?

I see nothing on your website or here that details what makes this a better chiller. It just says it's faster without giving any real specifications or details on how or why it's faster. Thanks.

Both the Hydra and King Cobra are constructed using a total of 75' of 3/8" O.D copper that are run in 3 parallel 25' coils. Essentially, you have 3 "normal" chillers that are all being fed cold water, resulting in chilling times that no other IC can match and that are on par with "High end" plate chillers. We did hundreds of chilling tests before arriving at the final design for the Hydra and King Cobra chillers. As for the why they are better, it comes down to the design and construction. There is a lengthy explanation that we can go into if you would like, but it will boil down to chilling water flow rate and water usage efficiency of the tubing size and length (I.E. throw a lot of chilling water at tubing that is pretty efficient at heat transfer).

I can't believe how fast my Hydra is. 6 gallons from 200+ to under 70 in 5 minutes or less (depending on our Michigan ground water).

My son and I just shake our heads (while timing it) each time we brew.

My top two coils also stick out above the wort but we just stir and watch in amazement.

We designed the Hydra knowing the potential chilling power it has and we also still have the same reaction of "This is crazy fast"...every time! We'll drink to that!:rockin:

I am so sick and tired of dealing with my plate chiller. Which chiller is recommended for 5-10G batches in a 15G Bayou kettle? I really like the look and ease of these solutions. My kettle is a single vessel eBIAB system with a 220V BoilCoil in the bottom.

Let us know what the actual clearance is that you have on the interior of your BoilCoil and we can either make a recommendation or get a custom design for your setup.

 

[Mugsfull]

Order placed for the 20" Hydra - Thanks for the reply!

 

[zizouandyuki]

Both the Hydra and King Cobra are constructed using a total of 75' of 3/8" O.D copper that are run in 3 parallel 25' coils. Essentially, you have 3 "normal" chillers that are all being fed cold water, resulting in chilling times that no other IC can match and that are on par with "High end" plate chillers. We did hundreds of chilling tests before arriving at the final design for the Hydra and King Cobra chillers. As for the why they are better, it comes down to the design and construction. There is a lengthy explanation that we can go into if you would like, but it will boil down to chilling water flow rate and water usage efficiency of the tubing size and length (I.E. throw a lot of chilling water at tubing that is pretty efficient at heat transfer).

Thanks for the additional info. May have to put this to the test soon

 

[unviewtiful]

I've had a hydra for about a year now, and it works awesome for my 10 gallon batches in a keggle. I've never been successful hitting 180F for a hopstand because it chills so quickly and I overshoot it! Literally 30 seconds or less and I'm there.

My setup has a prechiller sitting in ice water since since I live in a warm climate (southern Arizona), so I have a bit more restriction than is optimal, but I can get below 70F in about 10 minutes if I keep everything moving.

The hydra is my second favorite investment into homebrewing, behind only my fermentation chamber.

 

[NathPowe]

Just chiming in to say that JaDeD makes great chillers. I have the (apparently now discontinued) Hornet and it's a great piece of equipment. Fast and efficient. This is a hell of an offer they're making so I hope folks are able to take advantage. You won't regret it if you do.

Cheers and enjoy the brew.

 

[Yeastieboy]

Let us know what the actual clearance is that you have on the interior of your BoilCoil and we can either make a recommendation or get a custom design for your setup.

The nominal inside clearance (diameter) of the coil is 12.25". Thanks!

 

[crane]

What about electric brew kettles that have a heating element mounted at the 3 gallon mark like what you get with a keggle? Is it still going to chill in less than 5 minutes with it only submerged in the top 2.5-3 gallons?

The placement of my heating element has zero affect on the performance of my plate chiller.

I'm not trying to say that your chillers aren't any good. When I moved to electric brewing I quickly realized that no immersion chiller will work well unless it is designed to straddle the heating element.

 

[Yeastieboy]

A similar thought crossed my mind. My kettle diameter is nearly 16" so there's not much liquid depth with a 5G batch and much less with a 3G batch. I would have to measure (or do the math) but I'd guess 12" depth for a 5G and 6" for a 3G batch respectively. Would the chiller be completely submerged in both scenarios?

 

[JaDeDBrewing]

Order placed for the 20" Hydra - Thanks for the reply!

Hey Mugsfull,

Thank you for your purchase! Or course, please let us know if you have any questions about your new chiller when you get it and use it.

Thanks for the additional info. May have to put this to the test soon

Based on your signature, it would appear that you are in the Dallas area, if that is still the case, we have some recommendations for chilling that will greatly shorten your brewing day, and lower your water usage. If so, send us an email and we can help you from there.

I've had a hydra for about a year now, and it works awesome for my 10 gallon batches in a keggle. I've never been successful hitting 180F for a hopstand because it chills so quickly and I overshoot it! Literally 30 seconds or less and I'm there.

My setup has a prechiller sitting in ice water since since I live in a warm climate (southern Arizona), so I have a bit more restriction than is optimal, but I can get below 70F in about 10 minutes if I keep everything moving.

The hydra is my second favorite investment into homebrewing, behind only my fermentation chamber.

Thanks for the compliments! Anytime one of our products makes it in the top 2 pieces of someone's equipment, we're happy!

For your pre-chiller, make sure that you don't hook the pre-chiller inline with your Hydra until you get close to your chilling water temperature. This will get you the higher flow rate from your chill water source that the Hydra loves while saving you ice on the back end of chilling.

Just chiming in to say that JaDeD makes great chillers. I have the (apparently now discontinued) Hornet and it's a great piece of equipment. Fast and efficient. This is a hell of an offer they're making so I hope folks are able to take advantage. You won't regret it if you do.

Cheers and enjoy the brew.

We really liked the Hornet, but the replacement (the Mantis) has a wider range of kettles and wort volumes that it can chill so we couldn't rationalize have both designs since they have almost identical chilling times and water usage.

We thought it was a pretty good offer too! We started JaDeD Brewing as homebrewers who knew that there was be a better way to chill and we want to give everyone the chance to use, what we consider, the best chillers available. We know, big surprise, JaDeD thinks that their chillers are the best overall...just saying....we are and we're backing it up.

The nominal inside clearance (diameter) of the coil is 12.25". Thanks!

My kettle diameter is nearly 16" so there's not much liquid depth with a 5G batch and much less with a 3G batch. I would have to measure (or do the math) but I'd guess 12" depth for a 5G and 6" for a 3G batch respectively. Would the chiller be completely submerged in both scenarios?

If you would like, you can purchase a custom Hydra and email us with your order number and HBT name and we will get you the perfect chillier size to fit your rig.

What about electric brew kettles that have a heating element mounted at the 3 gallon mark like what you get with a keggle? Is it still going to chill in less than 5 minutes with it only submerged in the top 2.5-3 gallons?

The placement of my heating element has zero affect on the performance of my plate chiller.

I'm not trying to say that your chillers aren't any good. When I moved to electric brewing I quickly realized that no immersion chiller will work well unless it is designed to straddle the heating element.

The Hydra will chill 5 gallons of boiling wort to 10 degrees F above your tap water in 3 minutes when the following conditions are met:

1) you are feeding the chiller 6 GPM of chilling water input (you will need 5/8" or larger hoses that are as short as possible from a garden hose spigot)

2) the Hydra is fully submerged in the wort

3) you constantly agitate the wort

Of course you won't be fully submerged in the upper 2-3 gallons of wort, but 5 minutes is not out of the question with that wort level. That being said, we have a few custom chillers that we have done in the past for customers that incorporate legs to hold the chiller above heating elements and are completely submerged in very small wort levels. Here are a few pictures of what we have done before...Also, our Cyclone CFC rocks! Just saying.

 

[Yeastieboy]

If you would like, you can purchase a custom Hydra and email us with your order number and HBT name and we will get you the perfect chillier size to fit your rig.

That's excellent. Are custom Hydras still covered by your 6-month guarantee?

 

[JaDeDBrewing]

That's excellent. Are custom Hydras still covered by your 6-month guarantee?

Yes sir!

 

[schaez]

I wish I knew that legs were an option. I just got a king cobra. Works great, but I'm currently balancing it on my pickup tube and element. I highly recommend these chillers though.

 

[pretzelb]

Is there a plan to sell a pre chiller? If flow rate is critical then all the pre chillers I see now will be an issue. Mine is smaller diameter so I assume it would decrease the effectiveness. I would think you guys would know the best way to make a pre chiller to work with your IC.

 

[JaDeDBrewing]

I wish I knew that legs were an option. I just got a king cobra. Works great, but I'm currently balancing it on my pickup tube and element. I highly recommend these chillers though.

Email us with your order number. We have a solution for you!

Is there a plan to sell a pre chiller? If flow rate is critical then all the pre chillers I see now will be an issue. Mine is smaller diameter so I assume it would decrease the effectiveness. I would think you guys would know the best way to make a pre chiller to work with your IC.

Great question. We have been talking about that idea, but we don't offer anything at the moment. There are a few issues with current pre-chillers from our prospective.

1) They add more flow restriction due to not only the smaller diameter of tubing, but also the additional hoses needed and additional length of tubing

2) They are rather inefficient. You are using one heat exchanger to feed a second heat exchanger and each have efficiency losses.

3) It would cost almost to same as a normal Hydra. It would need to be constructed in a similar manner as the Hydra so it would use all the same fittings and input/output lines, it would just have 25'-30' less copper tubing (so probably in the $120-$130 range).



That being said, here is what we have found to be the best way to deal with high ground water temperatures:

Before you start your chilling process, fill up a bucket with 5 gallons of cold water and about 10-12 lbs of ice cubes or crushed ice and give it about 5 minutes to chill the water, occasionally stirring.

Use your Hydra or King Cobra chiller as normal and you will get to 10 degrees Fahrenheit above your tap water temp in 3 to 3.5 minutes (make sure you follow our "Immersion Wort Chiller Optimization" recommendations). Unhook the hose from your garden hose spigot and put it on a pump like this one (NOTE: We do not recommend using any pump labeled "pond pump" these are for very low pressure applications and they don't have the power to supply the needed flow rate through the chiller). This is very important: do not recirculate the chilling water back into the ice water bucket. You will ruin the temperature differential, severely lowering the chilling power, of what used to be, 5 gallons of 40 degree F chilling water. With the 5 gallons of ice water you can drop the wort from 90F (this assumes you were using 80F chilling water to start chilling) to around 65F (for 5 gallons of wort) and it shouldn't take longer than 5 minutes total (3 minutes to 10 degrees above your tap water temp, 45 seconds to switch the hose to the pump, and about 1:15 to run 5 gallons through the chiller). Again you should NOT recirculate this water, just run the chilled water through the chiller once while you stir the wort.

Cheers!

 

[goondog]

I just purchased a custom hydra and used it this past weekend.
I have a 15g BK and usually do 5g batches and on occasion 10g.
Talking w Jaded they recommended decreasing the height of the hydra to bring the coils a couple of inches to submerge completely to my general post boil level.

My previous cooling regimen included a wimpy chiller with ground water and then swithcing to another chiller in a ice bath to get temps to the low 70 range. This took more than 20min typically and then another hour in my chamber until i get it to pitching temps.

We ran the hydra just off my garden hose (cool h20 this month) for about 5-6min and i was down to mid-high 60s with constant stirring and agitation.

Great product easy cleaning and saved a ton of time.

I considered plate chillers and other options but for the cost and simplicity this cant be beat.
Highly recommended!!

 

[JaDeDBrewing]

I just purchased a custom hydra and used it this past weekend.
I have a 15g BK and usually do 5g batches and on occasion 10g.
Talking w Jaded they recommended decreasing the height of the hydra to bring the coils a couple of inches to submerge completely to my general post boil level.

My previous cooling regimen included a wimpy chiller with ground water and then swithcing to another chiller in a ice bath to get temps to the low 70 range. This took more than 20min typically and then another hour in my chamber until i get it to pitching temps.

We ran the hydra just off my garden hose (cool h20 this month) for about 5-6min and i was down to mid-high 60s with constant stirring and agitation.

Great product easy cleaning and saved a ton of time.

I considered plate chillers and other options but for the cost and simplicity this cant be beat.
Highly recommended!!

We are glad you like your chiller and we love hearing from our customers! If you get a chance, share a picture of your chiller in action on our new Facebook page!

 

[radwizard]

Is it possible to get your Whirlpool Arm attached to the chiller? For example, purchase a Hydra with a Whirlpool arm all in one?
Your products look really great.

 

[JaDeDBrewing]

Is it possible to get your Whirlpool Arm attached to the chiller? For example, purchase a Hydra with a Whirlpool arm all in one?
Your products look really great.

Yes, if you order both the Hydra and Whirly Bird at the same time, we will custom bend the Whirly Bird to fit the Hydra's coils. We just had a customer post this pic on our Facebook page

 

[EtchyLives]

@JaDeDBrewing,

I've got a 100qt concord pot that I usually do 5 or 10 gallon batches in. The majority of my coil (50ft 1/2 in Dia copper) sticks out the top and my chilling times run about 15 minutes with vigorous stirring.

Which of your products do you recommend? I'm blessed with cold tap water all year long.

 

[JaDeDBrewing]

@JaDeDBrewing,

I've got a 100qt concord pot that I usually do 5 or 10 gallon batches in. The majority of my coil (50ft 1/2 in Dia copper) sticks out the top and my chilling times run about 15 minutes with vigorous stirring.

Which of your products do you recommend? I'm blessed with cold tap water all year long.

For your kettle size and batch size combo, we recommend our King Cobra chiller. The King Cobra is constructed using the same amount of copper as the Hydra (75' of 3/8" copper tubing run in 3 parallel coils), but it has the chilling coils lowered to only 4" tall, resulting in both better water efficiency and much faster chilling speeds, especially compared to your current chiller.

 

[Lunkerking]

I am looking to upgrade my wort chiller to be able to handle 10 gallon batches. I have a 15 gallon 1.2 MegaPot and as I mentioned I am looking to chill 10 gallon batches. Which one of your wort chillers would you recommend?



My pot is 15.7 inches wide by 18.3 inches high.

Thanks!

 

[JaDeDBrewing]

I am looking to upgrade my wort chiller to be able to handle 10 gallon batches. I have a 15 gallon 1.2 MegaPot and as I mentioned I am looking to chill 10 gallon batches. Which one of your wort chillers would you recommend?



My pot is 15.7 inches wide by 18.3 inches high.

Thanks!

If you are doing mostly 10 gallon batches, a standard Hydra will work perfectly for your kettle. If you do more than an occasional 5 gallon batch, you should consider a "custom" 20" Hydra. Email with your kettle clearance (if you have a thermometer, diptube, or any other obstructions) and we can design a chiller that will be fully submerged is your 5 gallon batches.

 

[Lunkerking]

Great ! What would your pricing be on a custom 20 hydra?

 

[JaDeDBrewing]

Great ! What would your pricing be on a custom 20 hydra?

The cost is $164.95 + shipping. There is a drop down menu on the upper right side of the Hydra page where you can chose the custom option.

 

[bferullo]

(I use a 10 gallon MegaPot. My Groundwaters is about 58-60 degrees. )

Used my new Mantis today. Worked better than I could have hoped. Well worth the money. I also love the low profile so that the coils are all submerged.

I was able to get to pitching temp (68 degrees) in less than 15 minutes. That is significantly less than my old 25ft standard copper chiller.

I would highly recommend this chiller and the guys at jaded. The jaded guys are also great at helping you select which chiller best fits your needs. I almost bought the chinchilla, but thanks to the guys at jaded I was told to get the mantis. Yes, it cost me more than i was looking to spend...BUT it worked as described. So the slight cost difference for the "right" chiller for the job was worth it. Better to spend the money once, than to get a chiller that doesn't do what you expected it to accomplish.

 

[HLSheppard]

Did my first 10 gallon batch yesterday. Chilled from 200 to 72 deg. F. in 6 minutes and change. Our groundwater was cool (not cold) but still super-pleased!

 

[TonyKZ1]

I'm also interested in the Chinchilla due to doing small volume batches (partial 5G batches) and also not wanting to use/waste a large amount of water from our well. I used ice water cooling before with a 3G pot and that worked fine cooling 1-1.5G but now my 5G pot fits in my kitchen sink with only an inch or 2 to spare, so I'm looking at the immersion cooling options.
Thanks, Tony

 

[JaDeDBrewing]

I'm also interested in the Chinchilla due to doing small volume batches (partial 5G batches) and also not wanting to use/waste a large amount of water. I used ice water cooling before with a 3G pot but now my 5G pot fits in my kitchen sink with only an inch or 2 to spare, so I'm looking at the immersion cooling options.
Thanks, Tony

The Chinchilla will work really well for 2 to 3 gallon batches. That being said, if you have ground water that gets above 60F, or if you plan on moving up to 5 gallon full boil batches in the future, we recommend that you consider the Mantis wort chiller. The Mantis uses two 25' coils of 1/4" O.D. copper tubing that are run in parallel, resulting in chilling speeds that are double the speed of the Chinchilla, while maintaining its low water usage.

 

[mesita]

Howdy! I've started brewing smaller batches in an Anvil Brewing 5.5G kettle. 12" diameter (but probably lose an inch or so due to the thermometer and pickup tubes), and 3G of wort make it to a height of ~6.5". I also do the occasional larger batch 5-7G or so in a much larger kettle.

I'm torn between trying to squeeze a Hydra into the smaller kettle, and being able to enjoy the faster chill times in my larger batches, or getting a Mantis and dealing with potentially slower times in the larger batches. With displacement in the kettle, the Hydra would probably have 1-2" of coils exposed above a 2.5-3G batch, while the Mantis would be fully submerged, but with less surface area. On a plus, I've got a full 90 PSI coming out of my 5/8" garden spigot for this.

I'm being a pain, I get it - I've been through 4 chillers as I've changed equipment and batch sizes, and I would love to get one I could use all the time! To throw another loop at you, I live in South Florida, and my groundwater can get as high as 85F. My dog won't even drink it, and looks at my fridge with an actual puppy face begging for me to be merciful...

So, what do you think? Hydra or Mantis? Or forget about chilling this stuff quickly and develop a taste for hot wort soup? Anything special I can do to get around the pickup tube and thermo issue with the bigger chiller? I'd cry if I had to lose those.

Thanks in advance!

Mike

 

[dmcman73]

Howdy! I've started brewing smaller batches in an Anvil Brewing 5.5G kettle. 12" diameter (but probably lose an inch or so due to the thermometer and pickup tubes), and 3G of wort make it to a height of ~6.5". I also do the occasional larger batch 5-7G or so in a much larger kettle.

I'm torn between trying to squeeze a Hydra into the smaller kettle, and being able to enjoy the faster chill times in my larger batches, or getting a Mantis and dealing with potentially slower times in the larger batches. With displacement in the kettle, the Hydra would probably have 1-2" of coils exposed above a 2.5-3G batch, while the Mantis would be fully submerged, but with less surface area. On a plus, I've got a full 90 PSI coming out of my 5/8" garden spigot for this.

I'm being a pain, I get it - I've been through 4 chillers as I've changed equipment and batch sizes, and I would love to get one I could use all the time! To throw another loop at you, I live in South Florida, and my groundwater can get as high as 85F. My dog won't even drink it, and looks at my fridge with an actual puppy face begging for me to be merciful...

So, what do you think? Hydra or Mantis? Or forget about chilling this stuff quickly and develop a taste for hot wort soup? Anything special I can do to get around the pickup tube and thermo issue with the bigger chiller? I'd cry if I had to lose those.

Thanks in advance!

Mike

If your squeezing smaller batches in that kettle and worried about to much loss to displacement of an immersion, why not use a CFC chiller or Plate chiller? Recirculate the wort through the CFC/Plate chiller back to the kettle to get the temp down as cool as you can get it (dependent on your ground water temp) and then transfer to ferementor and let your temp control you have set to drop the wort temp down to pitching temps. As long as the temp is below 100F before transferring to fermentor, there is no risk of "off flavors" (look for threads on DMS from water droplets from steam dripping back into the wort that could produce off flavors) occurring while the Wort chills further in a sealed sanitized fermentor until it reaches pitching temps, even if it sits over night.

There are also quite a few users that just use a "no chill" process by just just turning off the heat to their kettle and letting their wort cool down on it's own using ambient air and having success, others put their small kettles into an ice bath and stir their wort with a sanitized spoon until it chills down as well.

There are a lot of different options you could use.