Penguin Chiller Temp Problem

[Maineiac]

Having problem dropping my fermenter temp.
Spike 8 gal conical. 5 gal batch of Heffe. Insulated with 3 ft of insulated hose between fermenter and chiller.
Room temp is a steady 70f
Chiller holds temp currently at 32f
Fermenter has been sitting at 40f for 30 + hrs
Have pulled pump and hoses. Checked for blockages and flushed.
Re attached. Flow seems adequate.
Used a 50-50 mix as suggested by Spike.
Chiller does come on after a 2 degree rise.
I could switch out my controller but it followed the fermenter temp drop from 68f to this point.
Any ideas. I wondering if a higher volume pump is the answer.
Currently using the one supplied by Spike with my cooling coil.

 

[Jtvann]

If I want to hold my fermenter at 35 degrees, I need my chiller set to about 28 degrees. You need your chiller cooler than the temp you’re trying to crash too by a decent margin.

Walking the temp down slowly will help prevent coils icing up.

 

[Beholder]

It’s most likely your heat load on the fermenter that is setting your minimum point. As alternate to dropping your glycol set point, you can push down to a 33% glycol mixture, which will push up the specific heat (and heat flux through the coils) by 10%. It will also drop the viscosity, which will increase flow through the pump. The trade off is the increased risk of slushing with the higher freeze point, but is certainly the preferred split if you brew lower ABVs where coil icing in the beer would preclude lower glycol set points in any case