Counterflow Chiller Plan

[tomwhit19]

I’m looking to upgrade my cooling method by switching from immersion chiller to a counterflow chiller and mainly just to save water so I’ve come up with a design and I’m wondering if anyone has tried this before and what are the pros and cons of it....picture attached

 

[RPh_Guy]

Pros:
Very limited tap water usage.
Not dependent on ground water temp.
Can cool to almost any temp very closely, if you use enough ice.
Reasonably fast.

Cons:
Heavy ice requirement.
Needs 2 pumps.
CFC is more difficult to set up and clean than IC.
Passes all of the cold break and other trub into the fermenter.
Late hops extract more bitterness versus chilling the entire batch simultaneously.

Chilling speed and price depend on the quality of the equipment in the system.

Also FYI, I've heard you want a ball valve downstream from the pump if you want to control flow rate.

 

[aeviaanah]

I suggest putting a tee to use ground water. I use ground water to about 90F then do as you diagram suggests to pitch temp.

If you have a pool, look into circulating through that

 

[day_trippr]

Speaking of pools...ask @passedpawn about this technique...



Cheers!

 

[RPh_Guy]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/is-copper-immersion-chiller-turning-my-pool-green.656597/

 

[tomwhit19]

dont have a pool lol, though in theory that idea seems good idea but i can see how that would create problems

Pros:
Very limited tap water usage.
Not dependent on ground water temp.
Can cool to almost any temp very closely, if you use enough ice.
Reasonably fast.

Cons:
Heavy ice requirement.
Needs 2 pumps.
CFC is more difficult to set up and clean than IC.
Passes all of the cold break and other trub into the fermenter.
Late hops extract more bitterness versus chilling the entire batch simultaneously.

Chilling speed and price depend on the quality of the equipment in the system.

Also FYI, I've heard you want a ball valve downstream from the pump if you want to control flow rate.

not

I did not know that about the bitterness of late hops

My main goals are to cut down time chilling and to not use as much water just flowing down the driveway to the sewer, my towns water prices are based off a ridiculous usage rate and if i brew twice a month ill surely be well over that and have overage fees to pay. though i suppose this process could work with a immersion chiller as well just recirc ice water through the immersion chiller until its at pitching temp then transfer and pitch

 

[RPh_Guy]

The immersion chillers by CuSS and JaDeD are very efficient. You could run tap water through it for just a couple minutes and then ice water if needed.
Pros: Simple, fast, and low water usage. Cools the entire batch at once for good cold break, easy hop whirlpooling, and predictable bitterness from late hops.
Cons: upper end of the price range for a chiller.

https://cussbrewing.com/
https://jadedbrewing.com/collections/frontpage

 

[tomwhit19]

those are some fancy chillers compared to what I have lol, made my immersion chiller from a roll of 1/2" copper for that cost me nothing thanks to my job, hard to beat free, but I do feel its time for some upgrades in my system

 

[passedpawn]

Speaking of pools...ask @passedpawn about this technique...



Cheers!

This was effective cooling, but extremely risky. My system and process have evolved since then, 10 yrs ago. I still use the pool water though: I have a submersible pump that pulls water from the pool, passes it through my counterflow chiller, and returns it to the pool.