Ss brewtech conical

[illomenbrewery]

Hey everyone, I was just hoping to get suggestions. I just ordered my 14 gallon Chronical (non-BME). I am looking for some accessories. I want to have a blow off cane, be able to pressure transfer, and have a way to dry hop with minimum o2. Anyone have some recommendations? I am not sure if i will have to get the upgraded lid. But, right now if I don't upgrade the lid I am thinking of getting the Spike blow off cane with 1.5" TC End. Would I be able to attach a Pressurized Transfer Fitting 1.5” TC to the end of the blow off cane when I am ready to transfer? I am just thinking I would not have to drill another hole if i went that route. As for the dry hopping, I am thinking of a jaybird yeast brink (the one with sight glass). Thanks!

 

[couchsending]

I own 4 7g Chronicals, a Spike CF5, 7g Brewbucket, and a 3g Brewbucket. I’ve put somewhere around 300 batches through them. Here’s my advice.

Don’t bother with the blow off cane honestly. Sure they look cool but they’re a PITA to clean and your money would be better spent somewhere else.

Just buy one of these and some silicone tubing.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collecti...-5-tri-clover-to-1-2-hose-barb-with-90-d-bend

Definitely buy the pressure transfer piece.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collections/accessories/products/1-5-tc-pressurized-transfer-fitting

I have a dedicated Co2 tank hooked up to a manifold with five of these permanently attached to Co2 lines. One for each conical and one for the 7g Brewbucket. I pull the blow off and attach one of these towards the tail end of fermentation. They only hold about 2psi but that’s all you need honestly.

Don’t bother with the crazy o2 free dry hopping contraption, it’s not critical. I can make crazy aromatic hoppy beers without it. I make tons and tons of hoppy beers. By attaching the transfer fitting at the tail end of fermentation you’re trapping in enough Co2 to create somewhat of a positive Co2 environment. After fermentation is totally finished, soft crash your beer to 55-60*. Leave for 24 hours and remove your yeast. Then pull the transfer fitting and add your dry hops quickly using a funnel. Once they’re in quickly put the transfer fitting back on, turn on the Co2 and use the PRV to purge headspace 4-5 times and then leave that 2ish psi head pressure. After your pre determined DH time is done slowly drop to say 39-42. Depending on your lid and your transfer piece (honestly the PRVs are all slightly different) that’ll be as low as you can go without losing head pressure (which you don’t want).

Here’s what I would invest in..

How are you controlling temps? Is the conical in a dedicated freezer? I first bought 2 of the regular Chronicals then converted all of them to essentially the BME. I had the lids with the cooling coils which sucked for numerous reasons. Ended up buying the drill bit and installed the coils in the body like the BME.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collecti...m-carbide-hole-saw-bit-for-ftss-chiller-coils

I also ended up installing the sample valve on mine as well. (Same drill bit) Makes taking small gravity samples way easier than using the racking arm.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collections/accessories/products/miniballvalvewnewrackingarm

Once you take apart the ball valves every single time you clean the Chronical you’re gonna want to replace them. You need to clean them every time as they can get nasty and pulling them apart and putting the back together constantly sucks!! Replace them with butterfly valves! Trust me! You can find cheap 1.5 TC butterfly valves on eBay. You don’t need to buy the ones through SS. Issue there is then you do need to buy the dedicated rotating racking arm.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collecti...p-racking-arm-for-chronical-series-fermenters

If you buy the BME edition the rotating racking arm is built into that butterfly valve but they don’t sell that valve as an accessory... which sucks!

Don’t buy the 3” lid! You want as small of a port to add dry hops as possible. Sure a 3” port is nice if you were dry hopping a 10bbl tank but it’s overkill for 7-14 gallons. The 1.5” TC lid is better for dry hopping especially if you use a funnel.

Hope that helps.

I’ve brewed a ton of beers in these devices. Lots of award winning beers if that matters, especially hoppy ones. You don’t need the fancy dry hop device. Remove yeast before dry hopping and learn how to properly purge a keg of absolutely all Co2 and properly transfer without O2 pickup. That’s way more important.

 

[illomenbrewery]

Wow, thank you for the great information! You definitely answered my questions and helped me with a few decisions. So I will keep the regular lid, skip the blow off tube, and get the pressure kit and sampling valve. Butterfly valves will definitely be on the upgrade list as well. Currently I have a fermentation chamber that fits the conical. I will eventually get the upgraded ftss coils for the conical. I have a spare ac so I might do a diy glycol setup. I definitely appreciate all of the help and input!

 

[Brooothru]

I own 4 7g Chronicals, a Spike CF5, 7g Brewbucket, and a 3g Brewbucket. I’ve put somewhere around 300 batches through them. Here’s my advice.

Don’t bother with the blow off cane honestly. Sure they look cool but they’re a PITA to clean and your money would be better spent somewhere else.

Just buy one of these and some silicone tubing.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collecti...-5-tri-clover-to-1-2-hose-barb-with-90-d-bend

Definitely buy the pressure transfer piece.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collections/accessories/products/1-5-tc-pressurized-transfer-fitting

I have a dedicated Co2 tank hooked up to a manifold with five of these permanently attached to Co2 lines. One for each conical and one for the 7g Brewbucket. I pull the blow off and attach one of these towards the tail end of fermentation. They only hold about 2psi but that’s all you need honestly.

Don’t bother with the crazy o2 free dry hopping contraption, it’s not critical. I can make crazy aromatic hoppy beers without it. I make tons and tons of hoppy beers. By attaching the transfer fitting at the tail end of fermentation you’re trapping in enough Co2 to create somewhat of a positive Co2 environment. After fermentation is totally finished, soft crash your beer to 55-60*. Leave for 24 hours and remove your yeast. Then pull the transfer fitting and add your dry hops quickly using a funnel. Once they’re in quickly put the transfer fitting back on, turn on the Co2 and use the PRV to purge headspace 4-5 times and then leave that 2ish psi head pressure. After your pre determined DH time is done slowly drop to say 39-42. Depending on your lid and your transfer piece (honestly the PRVs are all slightly different) that’ll be as low as you can go without losing head pressure (which you don’t want).

Here’s what I would invest in..

How are you controlling temps? Is the conical in a dedicated freezer? I first bought 2 of the regular Chronicals then converted all of them to essentially the BME. I had the lids with the cooling coils which sucked for numerous reasons. Ended up buying the drill bit and installed the coils in the body like the BME.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collecti...m-carbide-hole-saw-bit-for-ftss-chiller-coils

I also ended up installing the sample valve on mine as well. (Same drill bit) Makes taking small gravity samples way easier than using the racking arm.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collections/accessories/products/miniballvalvewnewrackingarm

Once you take apart the ball valves every single time you clean the Chronical you’re gonna want to replace them. You need to clean them every time as they can get nasty and pulling them apart and putting the back together constantly sucks!! Replace them with butterfly valves! Trust me! You can find cheap 1.5 TC butterfly valves on eBay. You don’t need to buy the ones through SS. Issue there is then you do need to buy the dedicated rotating racking arm.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collecti...p-racking-arm-for-chronical-series-fermenters

If you buy the BME edition the rotating racking arm is built into that butterfly valve but they don’t sell that valve as an accessory... which sucks!

Don’t buy the 3” lid! You want as small of a port to add dry hops as possible. Sure a 3” port is nice if you were dry hopping a 10bbl tank but it’s overkill for 7-14 gallons. The 1.5” TC lid is better for dry hopping especially if you use a funnel.

Hope that helps.

I’ve brewed a ton of beers in these devices. Lots of award winning beers if that matters, especially hoppy ones. You don’t need the fancy dry hop device. Remove yeast before dry hopping and learn how to properly purge a keg of absolutely all Co2 and properly transfer without O2 pickup. That’s way more important.

I'll second just about everything @couchsending said. My first conical was the baseline Chronical, and I made each of the mods listed except the sampling valve (didn't want to drill another hole in the tank) and I personally like the 3" TC domed lid over the 1.5" TC domed lid. I have both, but now the 1.5" TC is used on my Brew Bucket. The domed lids are definitely worth it.

For taking samples, I use a dedicated 1.5 TC mounted sampler that I leave on the transfer port until I'm ready to actually transfer. Doubly agree with replacing the ball valves with butterfly valves. It only took one fermentation in my Unitank to convince me that the Chronical needed them too. Tank mounted chiller coil is far superior to lid mount.

Looking back, I probably should have bought the BME edition at the outset. But by upgrading incrementally and 'shopping' the upgrades through different sources I ended up configuring exactly what I wanted and probably saved a buck or two.

Brooo Brother

 

[specialkayme]

I own 4 7g Chronicals, a Spike CF5, 7g Brewbucket, and a 3g Brewbucket. I’ve put somewhere around 300 batches through them.

What's your preference?

 

[Jsmith2154]

I own 4 7g Chronicals, a Spike CF5, 7g Brewbucket, and a 3g Brewbucket. I’ve put somewhere around 300 batches through them. Here’s my advice.

Don’t bother with the blow off cane honestly. Sure they look cool but they’re a PITA to clean and your money would be better spent somewhere else.

Just buy one of these and some silicone tubing.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collecti...-5-tri-clover-to-1-2-hose-barb-with-90-d-bend

Definitely buy the pressure transfer piece.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collections/accessories/products/1-5-tc-pressurized-transfer-fitting

I have a dedicated Co2 tank hooked up to a manifold with five of these permanently attached to Co2 lines. One for each conical and one for the 7g Brewbucket. I pull the blow off and attach one of these towards the tail end of fermentation. They only hold about 2psi but that’s all you need honestly.

Don’t bother with the crazy o2 free dry hopping contraption, it’s not critical. I can make crazy aromatic hoppy beers without it. I make tons and tons of hoppy beers. By attaching the transfer fitting at the tail end of fermentation you’re trapping in enough Co2 to create somewhat of a positive Co2 environment. After fermentation is totally finished, soft crash your beer to 55-60*. Leave for 24 hours and remove your yeast. Then pull the transfer fitting and add your dry hops quickly using a funnel. Once they’re in quickly put the transfer fitting back on, turn on the Co2 and use the PRV to purge headspace 4-5 times and then leave that 2ish psi head pressure. After your pre determined DH time is done slowly drop to say 39-42. Depending on your lid and your transfer piece (honestly the PRVs are all slightly different) that’ll be as low as you can go without losing head pressure (which you don’t want).

Here’s what I would invest in..

How are you controlling temps? Is the conical in a dedicated freezer? I first bought 2 of the regular Chronicals then converted all of them to essentially the BME. I had the lids with the cooling coils which sucked for numerous reasons. Ended up buying the drill bit and installed the coils in the body like the BME.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collecti...m-carbide-hole-saw-bit-for-ftss-chiller-coils

I also ended up installing the sample valve on mine as well. (Same drill bit) Makes taking small gravity samples way easier than using the racking arm.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collections/accessories/products/miniballvalvewnewrackingarm

Once you take apart the ball valves every single time you clean the Chronical you’re gonna want to replace them. You need to clean them every time as they can get nasty and pulling them apart and putting the back together constantly sucks!! Replace them with butterfly valves! Trust me! You can find cheap 1.5 TC butterfly valves on eBay. You don’t need to buy the ones through SS. Issue there is then you do need to buy the dedicated rotating racking arm.

https://www.ssbrewtech.com/collecti...p-racking-arm-for-chronical-series-fermenters

If you buy the BME edition the rotating racking arm is built into that butterfly valve but they don’t sell that valve as an accessory... which sucks!

Don’t buy the 3” lid! You want as small of a port to add dry hops as possible. Sure a 3” port is nice if you were dry hopping a 10bbl tank but it’s overkill for 7-14 gallons. The 1.5” TC lid is better for dry hopping especially if you use a funnel.

Hope that helps.

I’ve brewed a ton of beers in these devices. Lots of award winning beers if that matters, especially hoppy ones. You don’t need the fancy dry hop device. Remove yeast before dry hopping and learn how to properly purge a keg of absolutely all Co2 and properly transfer without O2 pickup. That’s way more important.

What's your preference?

Curious as well. I have a 3gl brewbucket as my primary. Did you make any mods to it? I control temp by putting it in a wine fridge but I’m looking for some ideas on better transfer practices.

 

[couchsending]

The BME Chronicals. Spike CF5 is decent. Nice to have a vessel that holds a lot more pressure. Still wouldn’t bother trying to fully carb a beer in it. The polished interior of the Spike cleans easier and the manifold option is cool but the overall build quality isn’t as nice as the SS Stuff I have.

I use the 7g Brewbucket for diastaticus yeasts or mixed ferment primary fermentation. It’s fine but not being able to easily dump/harvest yeast kinda sucks. It also doesn’t have cooling coils so I have to rely on ambient or an external heating belt.

The 3g Brewbucket is pretty much used for dark beers. I have a room in my basement that’s around 60-62 for 7 or 8 months so I use that to control temp. It gets used the least. Wish I could buy a domed lid for it!!

All the others have cooling coils and are hooked up to glycol so it’s kinda hard to compare.

 

[illomenbrewery]

I'll second just about everything @couchsending said. My first conical was the baseline Chronical, and I made each of the mods listed except the sampling valve (didn't want to drill another hole in the tank) and I personally like the 3" TC domed lid over the 1.5" TC domed lid. I have both, but now the 1.5" TC is used on my Brew Bucket. The domed lids are definitely worth it.

For taking samples, I use a dedicated 1.5 TC mounted sampler that I leave on the transfer port until I'm ready to actually transfer. Doubly agree with replacing the ball valves with butterfly valves. It only took one fermentation in my Unitank to convince me that the Chronical needed them too. Tank mounted chiller coil is far superior to lid mount.

Looking back, I probably should have bought the BME edition at the outset. But by upgrading incrementally and 'shopping' the upgrades through different sources I ended up configuring exactly what I wanted and probably saved a buck or two.

Brooo Brother

Why do you prefer the 3 inch lid?
On your 3 inch lid what accessories are you running? Did you add a 1.5 inch hole for the transfer kit? That triclover sampler sounds good too ! Which one did you go with? Do you guys happen to know if you could buy the cooling coils by itself without the whole ftss kit? I really just need the coil. Thanks for all the feedback![/QUOTE]

 

[Jsmith2154]

Do you guys happen to know if you could buy the cooling coils by itself without the whole ftss kit? I really just need the coil. Thanks for all the feedback!

Last I checked their site, no. You need to buy the whole ftss kit. I considered it for a moment for my 3gl but decided my fridge method works fine for me and I struggle keeping cool enough liquid for the ftss to properly cool my Fermentations.

 

[couchsending]

Personally I think the 3” lid is totally unnecessary on such a small fermenter. I want to keep the O2 exposure down to as little as possible. A much larger opening doesn’t help that. If you use a funnel it’s super easy to pour hops in quickly through the 1.5” TC port.

The thing that does suck is hops always get lodged in the TC coil especially on heavily dry hopped beers. I actually use a spoon in the funnel to redirect the hops to the side of the coil which helps.

I also think sight glasses are rather unimportant or overkill for these small fermenters. Sure everyone wants to have the same gear the pros have and look cool but they really don’t serve a purpose other than wasting or exposing more beer. They might make sense on a 7bbl tank where it’s no big deal to waste a gallon running it through a sightglass. You should be using clear tubing so you can see everything regardless. Pros aren’t.

 

[Brooothru]

Why do you prefer the 3 inch lid?
On your 3 inch lid what accessories are you running? Did you add a 1.5 inch hole for the transfer kit? That triclover sampler sounds good too ! Which one did you go with? Do you guys happen to know if you could buy the cooling coils by itself without the whole ftss kit? I really just need the coil. Thanks for all the feedback!

[/QUOTE]

The first thing I did was get a 3" TC to 1.5" TC reducer so that I could use all my 1.5" fittings in the 3" TC port. Besides that, I use my 3" TC CIP ball for cleaning both the Chronical and Unitank, and on the unpressurized Chronical I can mount the NorCal/Jaybird Sight Glass Yeast Brink on top of the dome lid (upside down) with a butterfly valve in between, so that I can pitch yeast, add dry hops, etc., in an essentially oxygen free way. Also, having more surface area on a 3" opening allows more space for custom fittings for your setup. There are numerous examples on the NorCal and Brewer's Hardware websites. You can even make your own in a blank 3" TC cap, or have JayBird custom build one for you. Imagine having a 3" cap with a PRV, thermowell input, gas-in quick disconnect, AND 1.5" TC port all combined in one piece!?! Not sayin' I'd ever need something like that, of course, but let your imagination run wild.

Brooo Brother

 

[Brooothru]

Personally I think the 3” lid is totally unnecessary on such a small fermenter. I want to keep the O2 exposure down to as little as possible. A much larger opening doesn’t help that. If you use a funnel it’s super easy to pour hops in quickly through the 1.5” TC port.

The thing that does suck is hops always get lodged in the TC coil especially on heavily dry hopped beers. I actually use a spoon in the funnel to redirect the hops to the side of the coil which helps.

I also think sight glasses are rather unimportant or overkill for these small fermenters. Sure everyone wants to have the same gear the pros have and look cool but they really don’t serve a purpose other than wasting or exposing more beer. They might make sense on a 7bbl tank where it’s no big deal to waste a gallon running it through a sightglass. You should be using clear tubing so you can see everything regardless. Pros aren’t.

As I mentioned to the OP, my workaround for yeast pitching, dry hopping, etc., is Jaybird's Sight Glass Yeast brink. On the dome lid ferrule I mount a butterfly valve. On top of the valve I mount the brink with the gas relief port on top. Then I fill the brink to 'the brink', so to speak with yeast, hops, whatever. Install the top TC gap, purge with CO2 if desired, open the butterfly valve, and voile la! A virtually O2-free transfer! I've never noticed hops getting stuck in the cooling coils of either the Chronical or Unitank, but the how would I know? Even if they do, aren't they still dry hopping?

As to sight glasses in particular, when I first got my Chronical I saw the mini sight glass and thought, "What the heck. $29 bucks," and bought it. I mounted it on the dump port upstream of the bottom dump valve. It only added 2" or less to the 'under dump valve' ground clearance, and I've got the Chronical leg extenders. With it in place I can monitor the settling of trub after transferring the wort from the BV. Later when it comes time to harvest yeast, I can separate the "dirty" yeast by slowly dumping till the yeasties appear sparkly clean, then switch to a clean collection jar. When fermentation is complete I can dump settled trub, hops and residual gunk before I pressure transfer into a keg.

Best $29 I ever spent. Later when I got the Unitank I installed the mini sight glass on it. Of course you can anticipate the obvious: after the next fermentation in the Chronical I had to order another one, since I missed the original one so much. SWMBO'd cries in the night, "When will this spending END???"

Brooo Brother

 

[couchsending]

I've never noticed hops getting stuck in the cooling coils of either the Chronical or Unitank, but the how would I know? Even if they do, aren't they still dry hopping?

Do you have the 14g or 7g? On the 7g the cooling coil ends up exposed above the beer usually. Especially if you previously dumped any trub or harvested yeast. When adding dry hops the hops then get lodged in the top if the coil that’s above the surface of the beer, not making it into the beer. With the 14g it’s not an issue.

Yes you can trick out your conical with whatever you want.

Get the 3” lid, but then you have to buy the 3” to 1.5” reducer, or the dry hopping contraption which also means even more Tri clamps and butterfly valves.

Put the sightglass on the bottom but then you need to buy leg extensions. Yes it’s nice to be able to see what’s inside but after you dump trub or harvest yeast once or twice you can easily figure out how to do it effectively without seeing inside.

the cheapest work around for less O2 exposure during dry hopping would be to install a small little ball valve on the lid you could hook Co2 up to and create a Co2 positive environment when adding dry hops, just like the big boys do. Wanted to do it forever, still haven’t bothered.

I’m just trying to offer the least expensive options for upgrades to improve the experience for the OP.

There are limitless options.

 

[Brooothru]

Do you have the 14g or 7g? On the 7g the cooling coil ends up exposed above the beer usually. Especially if you previously dumped any trub or harvested yeast. When adding dry hops the hops then get lodged in the top if the coil that’s above the surface of the beer, not making it into the beer. With the 14g it’s not an issue.

Yes you can trick out your conical with whatever you want.

Get the 3” lid, but then you have to buy the 3” to 1.5” reducer, or the dry hopping contraption which also means even more Tri clamps and butterfly valves.

Put the sightglass on the bottom but then you need to buy leg extensions. Yes it’s nice to be able to see what’s inside but after you dump trub or harvest yeast once or twice you can easily figure out how to do it effectively without seeing inside.

the cheapest work around for less O2 exposure during dry hopping would be to install a small little ball valve on the lid you could hook Co2 up to and create a Co2 positive environment when adding dry hops, just like the big boys do. Wanted to do it forever, still haven’t bothered.

I’m just trying to offer the least expensive options for upgrades to improve the experience for the OP.

There are limitless options.

Definitely spot on re: never-ending $$$ in pursuit of 'perfection'. I've got the 7 gallon Chronical and Unitank. Fourteen gallons of beer is usually just too much for me to deal with anymore, even with the help of friend and relatives, so two 7s made more sense the one 14. When I drilled the side holes in the Chronical I drilled as close to the bottom seam as I could to submerge as much of the coils as I could. I couldn't find the 17mm drill bit I'd purchased from SSBT for the job, so I used a $20 Milwaukee step bit I had in the tool box. Ended up nearly burning up the bit drilling the bottom hole. That 304 stainless was pretty tough material. Fortunately, no leaks.

I almost always get (estimated) 6.2~6.5 gallons into the fermenter, based on the known volume in the BV before transferring minus the trub left in the BV after transfer. Once in the fermenter I chill the wort for several hours to encourage settling. I transfer through the racking valve and position the racking arm slightly below parallel with the bottom of the fermenter to induce a 'second' whirlpool and seems to help with settling even after the BV whirlpool. Once things have settled in the fermenter I drain out 2-3 quarts of dense trub which not only makes for clearer wort but also gets the working volume inside the fermenter down to a reasonable size. As you know, 7 gallon volume of the fermenter doesn't mean you can fill it with 7 gallons of wort!

Fortunately I married an understanding woman who indulges my spendthrift ways. At least as long as I continue supplying her and her friends with enough kit wines. Seems like a fair trade-off.

Brooo Brother

 

[akpingel]

Great recommendations here. I have a 14 gallon one I just got as a birthday present. I noticed that the measurements on the inside only go down to 8 gallons. I primarily do 5 gallon batches, other than the measures not being there, will I run in to other issues using it to do 5 gallon batches?

 

[Brooothru]

Assuming you're planning to use the chilling coil, it could prove problematic. At the very least it will be very inefficient. You'll probably only have about 1/3 of the coil submerged. It won't effectively chill the gas (air, CO2) in the mostly empty fermenter.

You'd be better off having a fermenter closer to the volume of your intended brew.

Brooo Brother

 

[akpingel]

Good advice. I am using a Blichman coil in mine and I installed it as low as I could without it contacting the thermowell. I think I get about 1/3 of the coil submerged in a 5 gallon batch. I just need external heat right now so it is something to deal with in the future by May or June. But I can say that after doing my first batch, I don't know why I would go back to a bucket. Now I am planning a 7 gallon Chronical or Unitank so I can get back to doing more than one batch at a time.
Solve one problem, create two more!

 

[Brooothru]

Good advice. I am using a Blichman coil in mine and I installed it as low as I could without it contacting the thermowell. I think I get about 1/3 of the coil submerged in a 5 gallon batch. I just need external heat right now so it is something to deal with in the future by May or June. But I can say that after doing my first batch, I don't know why I would go back to a bucket. Now I am planning a 7 gallon Chronical or Unitank so I can get back to doing more than one batch at a time.
Solve one problem, create two more!

I've got a Chronical (upgraded to "BME status") and a Unitank that I got about a year after the Chronical. If you can deal with delayed gratification and/or swing the $$$ price tag, I'd recommend going with the Unitank. It comes with some additional concerns with regards to cleaning and sanitation (i.e., more work) but it offers a lot more control and options for brewing. I still have the Chronical and use it as an adjunct to the Unitank, but the "Uni" is definitely my primary go-to for fermentation.

Brooo Brother

 

[akpingel]

Definitely spot on re: never-ending $$$ in pursuit of 'perfection'. I've got the 7 gallon Chronical and Unitank. Fourteen gallons of beer is usually just too much for me to deal with anymore, even with the help of friend and relatives, so two 7s made more sense the one 14. When I drilled the side holes in the Chronical I drilled as close to the bottom seam as I could to submerge as much of the coils as I could. I couldn't find the 17mm drill bit I'd purchased from SSBT for the job, so I used a $20 Milwaukee step bit I had in the tool box. Ended up nearly burning up the bit drilling the bottom hole. That 304 stainless was pretty tough material. Fortunately, no leaks.

I almost always get (estimated) 6.2~6.5 gallons into the fermenter, based on the known volume in the BV before transferring minus the trub left in the BV after transfer. Once in the fermenter I chill the wort for several hours to encourage settling. I transfer through the racking valve and position the racking arm slightly below parallel with the bottom of the fermenter to induce a 'second' whirlpool and seems to help with settling even after the BV whirlpool. Once things have settled in the fermenter I drain out 2-3 quarts of dense trub which not only makes for clearer wort but also gets the working volume inside the fermenter down to a reasonable size. As you know, 7 gallon volume of the fermenter doesn't mean you can fill it with 7 gallons of wort!

Fortunately I married an understanding woman who indulges my spendthrift ways. At least as long as I continue supplying her and her friends with enough kit wines. Seems like a fair trade-off.

Brooo Brother

Now that you have to unscrew the coil to take it out, do you have issues with gylcol pouring out? Or do you never take the coil out to clean? Curious how you deal with this. Thanks!

 

[Vale71]

There are self-sealing quick disconnects, either third-party or direct from SSBrewtech (which are just rebranded third-party products), that will keep glycol from pouring out whenever the tank is disconnected from the chiller.

 

[akpingel]

Yea I was looking in to these. I'm going to have a problem getting it to pass through the hole drilled for the coil.

 

[Brooothru]

Well firstly, the coil is a permanent mount on the 8" TC cap so it removes as one piece from the unitank. The glycol lines are connected to the coil with quick disconnect fittings that self-seal, so there's never an issue with spilling glycol. I don't drain the coil between uses, but a generally accepted process is to drain and replace the water/glycol solution every year or so. I've been running the system for a little bit over 15 months, so I guess I'm due for a drain and replace. I'll just remove the QDs on the glycol lines and drain the coil when I drain and replace the glycol in the tank.

 

[Brooothru]

Yea I was looking in to these. I'm going to have a problem getting it to pass through the hole drilled for the coil.

Shouldn't be a problem. Get a female NPT barb fitting to thread onto the coil stubs on the side of the tank. Then run a 6" jumper line from each barb fitting to a QD that connects to the glycol lines QD coming from the glycol chilling tank. That's how I connect the glycol to my Chronical with the side-mounted coil.

 

[akpingel]

Do you happen to have a picture? I am having a hard time visualizing the barb thread securing to the fermenter. Is the barb fully threaded to also be the bulkhead fitting?

 

[Brooothru]

Do you happen to have a picture? I am having a hard time visualizing the barb thread securing to the fermenter. Is the barb fully threaded to also be the bulkhead fitting?

Here's the jumper setup. The barb is fully threaded to the coil inlet and outlet that pass through the fermenter wall. Ignore the Brew Bucket. It's fermenting wine!

Here it's connected to the glycol chiller

It appears from your photos that the threaded part of your bulkhead pass through might be ½" MNPT, so the barb fitting you would need a complementary female threaded (FNPT size and thread count) to fit. Then it's just a matter of connecting hoses to the QD fittings with worm clamps or Odeker type clamps. Just make sure the barb fittings' threads match the bulkhead pass through threads, and they're not something less common like British National Pipe Thread (BNPT) fittings. They might leak even though they might appear to be matching threads. Or use lots of teflon tape and plenty of torque .
View attachment 718949

 

[akpingel]

Thanks for the photos! Interesting, this still suggests you do not take the coil out, because it is blocked by the QD fitting. I can see that you can loosen to clean around it though, or are you using a CIP and havent had a need to take the coil out?

 

[Brooothru]

Good question. The side-mounted coil in the Chronical stays fixed in place and doesn't get removed. The TC lid-mounted coil on the Unitank stays fixed to the removable TC cap and obviously comes out every time the TC comes off.

I do have a CIP that I hook up to a pretty high volume sump pump for circulation. It's actually overkill for a seven gallon setup. Increasingly I simply empty the fermenter after transferring to kegs and spray the inside surfaces with a sink sprayer. I then remove all the TC attached devices and clean out the nooks and crannies, and disassemble and/or soak the accessories. I put TC caps over the port openings and fill the inside with hot water and PBW to reduce the krausen ring and clean the inside, often letting it stand over night. After soaking I empty the fermenter, rinse the inside with hot water and spray everything down with a StarSan mister.

After everything has air-dried, it gets reassembled, sealed up and stored in ready condition for the next brew day. I hate using all that water and wasting so much PBW for a 7 gallon fill-up when 1~2 gallons with a CIP ball cleans just as well, or better. But by the time I've removed the accessories and capped the ports (which I would have done regardless of whether CIP or sprayer cleaned), it's actually easier to hand wash than machine wash. Plus, we're on a well so the marginal impact of using extra water is negligible and the only 'runoff' gets treated in our septic with little if any environmental impact.

 

[pvpeacock]

I have two original SS Brewtech Chronicals (not the BME versions) with the FTS2 temperature control systems and a Glycol chiller. I understand the side mounted coils may be more efficient than the lid mounted coils, but find that the latter are easier to clean because they are removable. In addition, with my Glycol chiller, I don't believe I am losing any real control over the temperature anyway.

I also have the non-leaking quick disconnects on the Glycol lines. When I clean my fermenters, I just fill up a 4 gallon bucket with PBW, take apart all the valves, fittings and washers, throw them in the bucket to soak and then sit the lid on top so the coils are submerged in the PBW. I then rinse, reassemble and voila.