DIY Wort Chiller question

[ssghatch2]

So... copper tube must really be made of the stuff that goes into printer ink cause the prices are ungodly. Is there any reason a guy couldnt make a chiller out of aluminium tubing?

 

[WayFrae]

I don't see why not. Just use the same cleaning methods you would use for an aluminum brew kettle.

 

[eluterio]

So... copper tube must really be made of the stuff that goes into printer ink cause the prices are ungodly. Is there any reason a guy couldnt make a chiller out of aluminium tubing?

You could but you would increase the risk of contaminating your wort ending in potentially bad beer! Aluminum will rust, rust in beer probably not good. This is why we don't have aluminum plumbing. Honestly, I made one with refrigerator tubing 1/4 in ID small with 50 ft length cost me roughly 40 bucks. It worked but would take an hour to chill my wort to 80 degrees. I went on craigslist and just bought a 50 foot 1/2 IC for 50 bucks works in 20 mins. IMO not worth making just buy at a local home brew store if you have one. Saves the headache of getting all the parts to make one and now days cost about the same.

 

[WayFrae]

You could but you would increase the risk of contaminating your wort ending in potentially bad beer! Aluminum will rust, rust in beer probably not good. This is why we don't have aluminum plumbing. Honestly, I made one with refrigerator tubing 1/4 in ID small with 50 ft length cost me roughly 40 bucks. It worked but would take an hour to chill my wort to 80 degrees. I went on craigslist and just bought a 50 foot 1/2 IC for 50 bucks works in 20 mins. IMO not worth making just buy at a local home brew store if you have one. Saves the headache of getting all the parts to make one and now days cost about the same.

This is wrong. Aluminum does not rust. Iron and steel rust. Aluminum has a passive oxide layer that protects it from corrosion.

 

[eluterio]

Then apparently I have non aluminum pots at my place that have rust on them. Damn them false advertisements.

 

[WayFrae]

Sometimes aluminum pots will have steel handles and screws holding the handles on, these can and will rust. Also, if you leave anything steel or iron in your aluminum pot with water to soak and forget about it, rust from the steel can stain your aluminum pot. Rust is the corrosion of iron and has the definite orange color we all know. When copper corrodes it is a blue color and brass will corrode green. Aluminum is very corrosion resistant but can and will corrode under the right conditions and usually won't show any color changes. The oxide layer that will protect aluminum will generally be black or grey. Hope this helps.

 

[Indian_villager]

So... copper tube must really be made of the stuff that goes into printer ink cause the prices are ungodly. Is there any reason a guy couldnt make a chiller out of aluminium tubing?

What is your batch size? Do you have a pump for your BK outlet?

I do 5 gal batches.

I have a counter flow chiller built from 1/4" x 15' copper tubing meant for refrigerator tubing. I use that and one of those ebay tan pumps to push my wort through the chiller at an effective rate. Going down to 1/4" tubing will save a whole lot of cost. With the ebay pump I'm able to push wort through in about 10 mins.

 

[dstranger99]

Try a local thrift store, some suprisingly have copper sitting back there in the tool sections.........Copper is your best bet, it's amazing how cold it gets when you run the water through it....

 

[Hamaki]

I suspect that two reasons aluminum may not be commonly used as a chiller material may be that it is not as heat conductive as copper and that it is not as maleable. My first kettle was simple 8 gal aluminum pot; it served me well for a year till I replaced it with a SS keggle. I have no real concerns over increased potential for contamination, corrosion, cleaning difficulty, etc., just efficiency & ease of shaping the tubing into a useful coil.

 

[pschad]

This looks like a good deal. Material to make a 25' for $2
https://coppertubingsales.com/storefront/product_info.php?products_id=1214

 

[pschad]

$24
Sorry

 

[ssghatch2]

It's the stupid shipping that kills. can't this stuff fit in an $8 flat rate box?