Immersion Chiller- Hose Connection Heat Abuse

[Paddle_Head]

So I used an immersion chiller to cool a 5 gallon boil.

Chiller was connected to a garden hose(s).

I connected the chiller to both hose before starting the boil, and tested it to ensure the everything was connected tightly so there would be no leaks that contaminated the batch.

I put the chiller into the pot with about 15 minutes to go in the boil.

It actually knocked the temperature of the pot down enough to stop the boil for a few minutes.

Anyway, after awhile the garden hoses connected to the chiller really started to look pretty soft from the heat.

After cooling/transfer/cleanup/etc I inspected the hoses and they were definitely thinned from the heat. I'm pretty sure at this rate they are gonna start leaking after a few more batches.

Any suggestions on what to do to remedy this? Should I put the chiller in later in the boil? Is there some type of hose I should be using?

Thanks.

 

[Reelale]

Just put the chiller in the BK without turning on the water. Turn the water on at flame-out. You just want to sanitize the copper in the boiling wort for the last 15 minutes, then start the water flow for chilling. You might want to get a short length of heavy rubber hose. That worked for me when I had that problem. Also, hose quick disconnects really help. Edit: I only use the rubber hose for my inlet. I use a hose clamp with vinyl tubing for the outlet.

 

[WenValley]

Put the chiller into the boil without the hoses attached. Then when it's time to cool, hook up the hoses and start the cold water flow. Be careful, I've had the chiller puke out hot water from the fittings if there was residual water left in the chiller from the last batch.

Good Luck...

 

[Reelale]

Put the chiller into the boil without the hoses attached.

++++ That's where the quick disconnects come in handy.

 

[Paddle_Head]

thanks guys, makes a lot of sense.