Fermentation chiller coil & temperature distribution issue

[Sean_SA]

Hi all

Please could someone assist me with an issue regarding a chiller coil that has me stumped.

I've recently purchased a glycol chiller to use for fermentation temp control. I've also purchased a chiller coil which is in the image below

In this case with this 30L fermenter, the coil goes quite deep into the fermenter, as I tried to illustrate in this pic below

I've been testing the temp control with just water and what I've seen is that the water above the coil is essentially not cooling to the right temp and stays a few degrees warmer, but the water below and around the coil is at the right temp. Which makes sense to me as cold water will drop and warmer water will rise to the top.

How do I rectify this issue? Would I need to ensure that the coil is as close as possible to the top of the liquid with this sort of coil? Circulating fermenting wort doesn't seem like an option to me nor have I ever heard of anyone doing that.

 

[RM-MN]

Fermenting wort will do its own circulating as the yeast releases CO2 bubbles which rise to the top. Your coil could be anywhere in the wort and be fine. When the fermentation slows and the circulation stops the temperature stratification will return but at that point it doesn't matter anymore.

 

[Birrofilo]

If the coil is of the same material of my SS immersion coil it should deformate easily, by just plying it with your hands.

You could let the cooling action happen along the entire height of the fermenter, by upturning some central coils (making some kind of an inverted M letter) or by raising one of the extremities, by making a / character.

The coils would be at all heights of the fermentations and you should have a uniform temperature.

Some tools exist to avoid making a tightening where you ply the pipe, but that shouldn't be necessary.

I have an immersion cooler which I extended easily even too much (I cannot now make it go back to its original shape, though, because it behaves like a spring). The deformation you apply may be irreversible or not easily reversible.

If I were you, I would put more metal, more cooling action on the upper side.

 

[Sean_SA]

Fermenting wort will do its own circulating as the yeast releases CO2 bubbles which rise to the top. Your coil could be anywhere in the wort and be fine. When the fermentation slows and the circulation stops the temperature stratification will return but at that point it doesn't matter anymore.

Thanks for this advice! Much appreciated