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I use a hydroponics water chiller that will chill water down to 37F. A lot less expensive than a glycol system. I can chill my fermenter down to a consistent 55F. Simple hook up, all you need is a small Coleman ice chest for a water reservoir, submersible pumps to circulate the water to your...

Don't do the puree, you'll have a mess to deal with. Use whole fruit or Amoretti's pineapple concentrate.

I did this one, came out ok. Used my own selection of medium roast beans, cracked, 3 oz in fermenter, 3 oz in secondary for a week along with 3 oz roasted cocoa beans. Don't put them in the boil, thats where the bitterness comes from, for me it competes with any hops you might use.

Yes, both pumps are in a small, 3 gallon cooler running about 2 gallons, plus the water in the chiller reservoir itself. In other words, I'm re-circulating about 4 - 5 gallons of water through the chiller. My normal fermenting temp is 65º, so I set the chiller to 60. It's pretty efficient. All...

Go to Black Swan and get the spirit size White Oak, drop one in for a minimum of 6 weeks, longer is better, then have a sip of the Kirkland. You'll be very pleasantly surprised.

Good deal then, looks like it will work well!

I'm using a 1/4 HP chiller, submersible pumps, hooked to 2 STC-1000's for heating and cooling. I can stay within a degree of my desired temp.

Hope he doesn't intend on using water...thats going to be a problem I think.

Yeah, I just happened upon a water chiller while at a hydroponics store looking to grow vegetables indoors by my front window without dirt. I saw this water chiller, the sales guy said it would chill water down to the mid 30's. I told him about my home brewing, and he said he had a used one for...

Hey, if DIY works for you, have at it! I bought my unit used, paid $250 for it, the small cooler, water lines and extra insulation was another $50, so I'm right there with ya! My first chiller was a large Pelican cooler, I froze 2- 2 gallon tupperware containers for block ice, and I was...

I'm using a 1/4 HP Hydroponics water chiller. Insulated lines, I can get both stainless steel fermenters into the upper 30's, low 40's with it.

Just curious, what temps are you trying to maintain? I live in SoCal, San Fernando Valley where summertime temps can reach well over 100º for days.

My chiller rarely comes on also, the water is recirculated in a well insulated cooler.

Well, I suppose I should update my tequila list since the last time I posted here. Currently, I have approximately 30 different labels, mostly Anejo and Extra Anejo's partly because I am a bourbon drinker first. Among the ones on my shelf include 2 bottles of Herradura Selecion Suprema, several...

Just wondering how many people have considered water chillers in place of glycol. I've been using a water chiller similar to those used in hydroponics for over a year, and able to get fermentation temps into the upper 30's. Ambient air temp is around 72, I use SS Brewtwech 7 gallon brew buckets...

Just wondering all you who use Glycol chillers, have you ever thought of using water chillers, like the ones used in hydroponics? I'm able to get down to around 39ºF with mine at half the cost. Wonder how many might have considered using an alternative to glycol.

Do I look like an engineer? Retired. Photographer, adventurer.

I judge the caramelization by the color. As the color changes, different levels of caramel flavor comes out. Nest time I do it, I'll track the temps every hour or half hour and log it. The crockpot can take hours depending on how much you're doing. Word of warning though, it will expand, so...

When it comes to caramelization I think it's all up to the flavor you want to capture. My sense is, a dark, bittersweet caramelization might be good for a stout or porter-like mead, maybe with some dark grains, chocolate, maybe a little barley. A lighter caramelization would be good for a nice...

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