Using an immersion chiller inside out for larger batches

[Ari]

Hey y'all.
I'm trying to go from 3-5 gallon batches to 15-20 gallon batches and I'm thinking of ways to save a little money. I have this 25' immersion chiller that I use in a 4 gallon pot and it works in about 4-5 mintues with some gentle stirring.I'm thinking for a batch 5+ times the size this thing isn't going to cut it in time.
Here's the plan:
take the plastic tubing off so Im left with the copper coil only. Then take some of that heat proof (silicone?) tubing and hook it up to the ends. I'm gona invest in a chugger pump and run some sanitizer through the coil, then run some boiling wort through the coil and submerge the coil in a big bucket of ice water. I think that with the coil stretched apart a little and the ice water getting stirred it should work out ok. Even if it doesnt get down to a good temperature right away, I could run it back into the kettle and have it circle a couple times until it's about room temp.
Has anyone tried this? I know very little about anything so I'm assuming the inside of those wort chillers is as wort-friendly as the outside, right?
I suppose the silicone tubing could just as well spiral around in the ice water, but I think copper has faster heat transfer and I already have 25 feet of that


Thanks for reading,
Ari

 

[BBL_Brewer]

Well, this has been discussed before. I think you would be better off with a counterflow chiller or a plate chiller, but if you don't have the money I can relate. I would suggest doing a test run with water only to evaluate the effectiveness and labor intensity before you boil up a batch of wort. I don't think you are going to like this method. Why not just sell the 25' and upgrade to a larger one? You could use the larger one for all your batch sizes. I use a 100' of 1/2 inch for 15 and 30 gallon batches.

 

[wilserbrewer]

You would need a HUGE bucket of ice water to chill 15-20 gallons of wort, and you would also need to stir the ice bath to transfer heat to the copper coil. You could investigate making a counter flow chiller with your current coil.

 

[jtratcliff]

Use this immersion chiller as a pre-chiller for the 25' counterflow chiller that you build using the Sears $20 black rubber hose.

 

[starscream]

I agree with turning the immersion chiller into a counterflow chiller. all youll need is a hose and some copper pieces to soldier. atleast youll be recycling the chiller.

 

[Ari]

Hmmm, sounds like I may go for a new plate chiller. I thought that maybe with a couple refills this could work. I like the couterflow idea, but I'll still want to use it for 3 gallon batches and that sounds like a lot of trouble. Thanks for your wisdoms