Getting water out of wort chiller

[onipar]

This will most likely rank high on my list of stupid questions...

Is there any particular way to get the excess water to drain from a wort chiller after use?

I was just testing my new chiller, and it occurred to me that all of that water was still in the coils, so I just sort of picked it up and held it upside down and let water drain out.

It took a while, and I think there's still some in there. Is there a better/easier/more effective way?

Is it okay if some water remains in the coils? (I have a stainless steel one, so I wasn't too concerned with that.)

Thanks!

 

[ChickenArise]

Blow into it.

 

[hwilshusen]

I just store it hanging upside down.

 

[onipar]

Both good answers! I actually did try blowing into it, but I must have weak lungs.

Thanks!

 

[TimpanogosSlim]

got an air compressor?

 

[PJM]

I don't really worry about it myself. Its not going to hurt anything.

 

[onipar]

got an air compressor?

Nope, but that did occur to me. :rockin:

PJM, thanks. It's good to know that it won't have any negative effects on the equipment at least.

 

[pfgonzo]

I'm an immersion chiller blower myself

 

[drives_a_bike]

Blow into it.

HAHA...That's what I was going to say!

Sometimes the most obvious answers are the best...

 

[wilsojos]

I get out what I can easily so it doesn't make a mess and don't worry about the rest.

 

[NCangler17]

Leave it in there, and make it an excuse to brew more often.

 

[JonM]

There's water sitting in your house piping and it's fine. Wort chiller's made out of the same stuff. A little water sitting in there won't hurt it.

That leftover water will, however, come rocketing out of there once you put it in a hot pot, so be careful on that end.

 

[onipar]

Leave it in there, and make it an excuse to brew more often.

This wasn't a contest, but if it was, you'd have won!

JonM, thanks for the tip. Knowing me, I'd have been staring into the business end of the outlet hose just as I put the chiller into the pot.

 

[neosapien]

Leave it in there, and make it an excuse to brew more often.

wait....we need excuses to do that? unless, of course, SWMBO objects...

 

[wilsojos]

wait....we need excuses to do that? unless, of course, SWMBO objects...

But honey, that water has been in my chiller all week. It can't be good for it, I better start another batch. You understand, right? That was an expensive piece of equipment. See ya in a few hours. And, I'll throw in a load of laundry while its brewing. You're the best.

 

[rilshoc]

Just keep it in a warm place in the winter, don't want to freeze and split a tube.

 

[onipar]

Just keep it in a warm place in the winter, don't want to freeze and split a tube.

Ouch! Good tip.

 

[Dan]

But honey, that water has been in my chiller all week. It can't be good for it, I better start another batch. You understand, right? That was an expensive piece of equipment. See ya in a few hours. And, I'll throw in a load of laundry while its brewing. You're the best.

+1

 

[Chipman]

Just keep it in a warm place in the winter, don't want to freeze and split a tube.

I second thatta one, happened to my old brewing buddy. What a pain the next brewday to find that surprise

 

[Pie_Man]

I've left the water in there. I've also held the chiller horizontally and turned it end over end, so that the water can go from the bottom coil "up" a coil on each turn which works pretty well.

 

[Rbeckett]

This will most likely rank high on my list of stupid questions...

Is there any particular way to get the excess water to drain from a wort chiller after use?

I was just testing my new chiller, and it occurred to me that all of that water was still in the coils, so I just sort of picked it up and held it upside down and let water drain out.

It took a while, and I think there's still some in there. Is there a better/easier/more effective way?

Is it okay if some water remains in the coils? (I have a stainless steel one, so I wasn't too concerned with that.)


Thanks!

You could use compressed air if it is readilly available. I use air on my leg extenders so it is on the panel already so switching to the chiller seems fairly easy. Just a thought, sorry about chiming in so late.
WCB

 

[Yooper]

T

That leftover water will, however, come rocketing out of there once you put it in a hot pot, so be careful on that end.

Yep, I learned that one myself the hard way. The worst part is, I'm a slow learner as it didn't happen just once. Or twice.

It took a while, but I finally had an epiphany- put the hoses on the chiller connections BEFORE placing it into the wort and pointing it at your bare legs or chest. Boiling water shooting out at high speed onto bare skin hurts. Each time.

 

[shelly_belly]

I use CO2. Blowing out a 50' chiller was not fun.

 

[dutchoven]

I hold mine by the bottom at a 45-degree angle with the in-/output facing down and turn it clockwise or counterclockwise (depending on the coil direction) to drain ... Works well to get the residual water out ...

 

[onipar]

Hey, just wanted to thank everyone for all the great tips and tricks. Sounds like the best method for me will be holding it sideways and turning it, as I don't have a easy source of compressed air/CO2, and I have a 50 footer which was hard to blow into (I tried). :cross:

I'll also probably let some residual water sit in it, as I'm sure I'll get tired of trying to get it out.

Anywho, just wanted to thank everyone again.

 

[TrubDog]

40 psi and my RV adapter I use to clear my lines in the fall. Clears out all the water from my IC in about 30 seconds. It's a blast! (cringe)!

 

[MakoMadness]

Idk if it's right or not but if im not planning on useing it again in the next week i hold mine upside down to drain then set in boiling water for 20-30 min. Usually it just steams out for a bit but BE CAREFUL, besides having to worry about the steam, sometimes water has come shooting out. In my kitchen my sink is near enough that I just aim the open ends toward it and clean up the mess after.

 

[Revvy]

If you brew in the winter and leave it in garage or someplace that could freeze, you could end up cracking it, just like your pipes, i know several brewers who have had that happen to them, including one of our members.

While I was cooling the wort down to pitch the yeast, I went to start dumping the sanitizer out of my carboy and my ale pale. I happened to walk by the kitchen door and look out side to see me brew kettle over flowing all over the porch. I raced outside, and sure enough, my brew kettle was flooding. I yanked the wort chiller out, and sure enough there was a split in the bottom most coil. Needless to say, I wasn't happy at all. I threw the wort chiller across the back yard and yelled a certain 4 letter word. I went in and grabbed a hydrometer and took a reading...1.005. A whole freakin 10 gallon batch of beer ruined...

I am ready to chew nails right now.

If you use an oxygen bottle/ stone to aerate your wort you can use that to blow out the chiller. Just take the drain hose end (the one without the hose threading) and hook it up to your red bottle's regulator (even just hold it tightly to it) had open the valve for 30 seconds. It's push the water out.

 

[HawksBrewer]

After I disconnect the chiller I just hold the inlet hose up higher than the coils and let the siphon effect take over. It takes about a minute, but almost every drop of water pours out nicely... makes it lighter to carry as well.

Surprised that no one else has tried this or at least not bothered to comment on it. Hooking up an air compressor to do something gravity/siphon can do easily seems like overkill. But then again overkill isn't always a bad thing...

 

[Keithww]

Haven't tried it yet, but what if you just disconnected the input line and left the output line attached and raised the chiller up high and set it where the siphon would drain it? Next brew day is 6/3 and I will try that with my new chiller.

 

[Revvy]

Surprised that no one else has tried this or at least not bothered to comment on it.

Because I don't find that it does the job.....

 

[onipar]

Thanks for the continued suggestions.

I had a brew day on Saturday and before I could tell my brother about the different options, he instinctively blew into the hose. Took a few seconds, but he got the water out. I think I just have weak lungs.

If I had a convenient (or any) source of compressed air or the like, I'd use that method in a heartbeat.

 

[rjwhite41]

I used to blow into it but now I hook it up to a pump. The pump is for my wife's excercise ball, I think it cost $5 tops, the outlet hose fits perfect and you just push down on it repeatedly for 15-20 seconds to get all the water out.

 

[onipar]

I used to blow into it but now I hook it up to a pump. The pump is for my wife's excercise ball, I think it cost $5 tops, the outlet hose fits perfect and you just push down on it repeatedly for 15-20 seconds to get all the water out.

Hmmm...I actually might have something like that sitting around. A rummage through the garage is in order.