Need Ideas - Brew Pot Won't Fit In Sink

[tagillis]

I'm planning on doing a full boil today and just discovered that my new 7.5 gallon pot won't fit in my sink. I have a laundry tub, but it is 60 feet away and down a flight of stairs. I don't really want to carry 40LBs of boiling water down a flight of stairs. I don't own an immersion chiller. No other pots or coolers that the pot will fit in. Anybody have ideas on how to safely handle the hot wort? I've thought about drawing the wort off into smaller batches and using a smaller pot to chill in the sink.

Thank you in advance for any and all ideas.

 

[soccerdad]

One of those tubs with rope handles

 

[Spartan300man]

I have one of those red plastic round containers from WalMart, it might be a laundry tub, has rope handles. I fill it with ice and bottles/cans when we have people over for backyard parties. I also have filled it with cool water and ice cubes when I ferment, and drape a wet towel around my bucket- like a swamp cooler.

 

[fuelish]

If you haven't brewed it yet, put it off until you come up with a way to cool it, i.e., go buy something that "works" for you...I mean, you could do what you're considering (smaller pot in sink), you could buy a big ol' round trashcan or some sort of container that WILL fit the pot (the guys above me beat me to it, they posted as I was typing), you could buy an immersion chiller - dunno what your choices might be on New Years day, but.....surely, brew day could wait, yes? If you absoluteky HAD to do it today, then go ahead with your idea....might take some time to accomplish, but should be fine, I'd imagine. Do you have a tiny sink or a squat wide pot???...or both Yeah, the tubs mentioned above would work, I use 'em for swamp coolin' my mead ferments in summer

 

[beergolf]

I have never used these but they are used in restaurants all the time to rapidly cool hot liquids. Should work. Just freeze and then dip an a bucket of Starsan to sanitize. Should be able to get them at any restaurant supply store.

http://www.webstaurantstore.com/3071/cooling-paddles.html

 

[Bellybuster]

put lid on pot at end of boil and let cool in pot????

2l bottles filled with water then frozen. spray with starsan dunk into wort??

 

[soccerdad]

If you know anyone who works in HVAC you might be able to get a 15 ft or more piece of copper for free or cheap. Even a super penny pinching shop will demand that their installers save the scrap, but they are saving it for scrap - salvage value. You might not get 25 feet of half inch, but you might get 17 feet of three eighths. My chiller was free but for the end fittings.

 

[Mismost]

Then there is the passive route....do nothing....no chill. I have no chilled the last 6 batches. Boil Saturday, leave it alone but covered, transfer Sunday after church. me likey simple.

 

[wilserbrewer]

I vote no chill as well. I find it cools faster if you leave the kettle lid off until the wort reaches 165 or so. If you have a flame out hop addition add it as a hop stand around 170-180.

Perhaps place it outside after a couple hours if it's cool out.

The frozen soda bottles work well and speed things up as well once the wort gets down to 100 or so.

 

[histo320]

Before I got a wort chiller I used by bathtub. Filled it up with cold water and put about 4-5 bags of ice in it. I didn't worry about contamination because I left the lid on. After about 45-60 minutes or when all the ice was melted I would pull it out and then check the temp in my kitchen.

Probably not the safest way to do it but worked for me and I never had an issue.

 

[SanPancho]

for this batch- just go no chill. i've had and made some great no chill beers and about the only thing that is a negative in my opinion is that the hop profile isnt quite as "bright" or "clean" as with chilling. the beer is still going to come out with hop flavor, its just ever so slightly muted compared to chilled beer. if you're really worried about losing hop flavor, just add some dry hops after primary.

but considering your current situation, no chill seems the way to go. next time you'll be more prepared. it happens to all of us.

 

[Dirt_McGirt]

I have never used these but they are used in restaurants all the time to rapidly cool hot liquids. Should work. Just freeze and then dip an a bucket of Starsan to sanitize. Should be able to get them at any restaurant supply store.

http://www.webstaurantstore.com/3071/cooling-paddles.html

When I was cooking in a gastropub/microbrewery kitchen years ago I went to order another one of those in our supply order, and couldn't think of what to call it. We all had just always called it the "soup dildo."

More on-topic - I considered getting one of those before I got an immersion chiller. But I worried whether star-san would properly sanitize it when it's at freezing temps.

 

[tagillis]

Thanks for all the ideas, everyone! Lots of good suggestions. I think I'm going to try a combination of tub and frozen water bottles. I just saw a Home Depot ad for those 60 qt storage bins for like $6. Think I'll go snag one of those if I can't find the drink tub, or something like it.

I'm intrigued by the no-chill idea. I had never heard of it but seems like there's fair number of people are using it. I'm going to have to read a bit more about it.

If you haven't brewed it yet, put it off until you come up with a way to cool it, i.e., go buy something that "works" for you.

Fuelish, I agree with your advice. I had the whole day planned out, but will just delay my brew until tomorrow. Guess I'll have to focus on drinking beer today i/o making it.

Do you have a tiny sink or a squat wide pot???...or both

I guess a wide pot. The sink is fairly standard, I think. Just has a darn divider running down the middle.

 

[tagillis]

If you know anyone who works in HVAC you might be able to get a 15 ft or more piece of copper for free or cheap. Even a super penny pinching shop will demand that their installers save the scrap, but they are saving it for scrap - salvage value. You might not get 25 feet of half inch, but you might get 17 feet of three eighths. My chiller was free but for the end fittings.

I wish I did. I'd take whatever I could get. 10-15 feet is better than nothing, right?

 

[soccerdad]

But don't fear no-chill as others here have mentioned. Even when I use my chiller, the groundwater here is never cold enough to get to the 60s, so I almost always pitch the next day. It's never been an issue.