Immersion copper wort chiller off flavors?

[jcs401]

I am just wondering, could my copper wort chiller be causing some off flavors I've been getting or not likely? I've noticed some almost powder like residue that resides on it when I put it in my boil to sanitize it. After its in there for about 5-10 min. I get this residue type stuff on it even though I clean the heck out of all my equipment after every brew. Any ideas?

 

[ImNoExpert]

Probably not. What kind of "off flavors" are you getting?

 

[snowcrawl]

They do also require some effort to get properly cleaned between boils. It would be good practice to clean your wort chiller during the post boil clean-up phase of your brewing day. Using a good brush and abrasive scrubber to get it cleaned in between the coils.

 

[jcs401]

The off flavors I've had in almost every brew. I thought at first was diacytl but I don't cover during boil, and have a temp controlled fermentation fridge with a thermo well to get accurate temp. I use all ss equipment (with exception of copper chiller) it's sort of metallic ish maybe, slightly alcoholic, possibly medically? I'm just not good at figuring out what exactly is the off flavor. Just does not taste like that "good beer" ya get from stores or bars ya know? I've only ever done kits (LME,mini mash, and have done a few all Grain) could it possibly issues when I purchase the kit ingredients? I mostly get my brew stuff from Austin home brew as I live in Houston so delivery is fast? Should I try a recipe that's not from any type of kit?

 

[Rockn_M]

Sometimes that off or "homebrew" taste is from the extract type kits. I noticed it when I first started and was doing kits where most of the sugar comes from DME or LME. You can try doing a BIAB receipe\kit.

As for the possible taste from the immersion chiller I clean my copper chiller by placing it in my bucket of star san during boiling. The low PH removes any oxidation and makes it nice and shiney. After the wort is chilled I rinse the chiller off with water to remove any large debris.

 

[maurtis]

Also, what water are you using and what temp are your fermenting at? Are you controlling fermentation temps?

 

[BrotherBock]

Medicinal off flavors can come from chorophenols. Which occur when yeast react to chlorine or chloramine in tap water. Active carbon filter will remove these

 

[augiedoggy]

I am just wondering, could my copper wort chiller be causing some off flavors I've been getting or not likely? I've noticed some almost powder like residue that resides on it when I put it in my boil to sanitize it. After its in there for about 5-10 min. I get this residue type stuff on it even though I clean the heck out of all my equipment after every brew. Any ideas?

No not if its clean but I supposed its possible if you are using harsh cleaners that remove the oxidized protective layer on the surface .... do you clean it so the copper is bright again each time? that could be bad.
keep in mind that many older breweries like stella in Belgium use copper kettles and tanks to make thier very popular styles of beer with no such off flavors...even brass found at the hardware store is all lead free now... stainless is for ease of cleaning.

 

[jcs401]

My water I use is from a filter kit RO water is used and I have tested it so I know it's not my water quality. My fermentation temp vary by the yeast I use. Usually between 68-72 degrees F. And stays steady using a Johnson digital temp controller with a thermo well to get accurate temp reading of the beer not the air. I just cannot figure it out??

 

[neilpcraven]

I had that metallic taste and I think it came from cleaning the chiller too much. I read some advice along the lines of the following and haven't had the problem again:

Don't scrub it or clean it back to 'shiny', just give it a good clean with a soft sponge or cloth, then give it a good wipe with white vinegar, and rinse again. The vinegar will react with any oxides on the metal and remove them. Make sure to clean off all the wort from the chiller as soon as it's used otherwise it will etch the copper and you'll have more soluble metal compounds to deal with next time.

I tend to heat a few extra litres of extra water in my hlt kettle used for sparging so I can dump the chiller into that leftover warm water as soon as it comes out of the wort.

Another completely different possibility is that your chiller connections are leaking, and you're dripping chlorinated tap water into your cooling wort.

 

[The_Bishop]

When I'm chilling my wort down, I'll run off the first few gallons of chiller exit water into a bucket, so it's relatively hot. When I'm done chilling, the chiller comes out and goes right into that bucket to soak while I'm finishing up. A quick hose off during cleaning and it's ready to go for next time around.