Immersion chillers in freezing weather?

[GenIke]

I've only used my immersion chiller in moderate temps. What do you guys do when its below freezing? I brew in my garage and I live in Wisconsin, so you know... it gets pretty cold

 

[b-boy]

I use mine year-round. I live in Buffalo, so I feel your pain. The trick is having a water source. I have a tap in my garage. I just drain the water into my yard. I can cool 5-gallons in just a few minutes. In my opinion cleaning everything is the biggest problem. I usually catch the first minutes of runoff water for cleaning.

 

[mkringii]

I brewed on my pourch once last year.. Plate chiller and hoses started to freeze during transfer to carboys.. Icicles on the pump as well ..

December in west michigan..25 miles from lake michigan so can get cold (not as cold as others) but became pain in the a$$ .. Wont brew in winter time til my rig is complete!

 

[bja]

I've only used my immersion chiller in moderate temps. What do you guys do when its below freezing? I brew in my garage and I live in Wisconsin, so you know... it gets pretty cold

What exactly are you worried about?

 

[foos-n-brew]

Make sure you get all of the water out it when you are done.

 

[gingerdawg]

I run a hose from the laundry room in the house, just off the garage. Do NOT lay the hose on the garage floor for very long before turning it on. Blow out the IC and store it indoors. It will rupture if it is allowed to freeze with even a small amount of water in it. (ask me how I know)

 

[GenIke]

What exactly are you worried about?

Using hoses, the chiller and large quantities of water when it's below freezing...

 

[monkeybox]

I haven't had a problem (I'm also in West Michigan). I drain the water when done, but don't even put much effort into it. So long as it's mostly empty, the water will expand internally.

When you put it in the boiling wort, make sure you've secured the drain hoses because anything left inside will boil and spit out the ends, but that happens even in moderate weather.

 

[bja]

Using hoses, the chiller and large quantities of water when it's below freezing...

You keep everything inside until you're ready to use it. If you have an outdoor faucet, get a propane torch to thaw it out.