Which IC wort chiller to buy?

[younger96]

So I need to buy a wort chiller... need = want. Been looking at immersion chillers, copper coil. I could get all technical and do some calculations to determine the best size to buy, but experience beats effort in my book, so looking for some feedback.

I currently do extract and partial mash brews, so usually have 3 gallons or less of wort, but planning ahead I want a chiller that I can use for 5 gallon AG brewing. The 50 foot coil of 1/2" copper seems a bit overkill for 5 gallons, given that I have rather cold water year around for cooling. I'm leaning to the 25' x 1/2". I have low water pressure so I want to stay with at least 3/8" tubing. I'll never do a >5 gallon batch, so will the 25' be sufficient??

Thanks for the recommendations...

 

[stevea1210]

25 ft 3/8" is the 'norm'. Anything bigger than than will offerr quicker chilling at an additional cost.

I would not recommend going smaller than the 25' 3/8" personally. until I switched to a cfc, that is the size I had. Except for July and August, it worked fine.

 

[wilserbrewer]

Any IC is only as good as the feed water...being in Maine, you might just be in luck...if you are on well water and have year round temps in the fifties, I would guess a 25' 3/8" would work well.

Hell, a small chiller w/ cold influent will outperform a much lager chiller w/ tepid influent.

What is your high tap temp?

 

[younger96]

Thanks all, I felt like the 25' x 3/8" was the right choice. I went with that and purchased one today for $40. Can't wait to try it out next weekend.

 

[Jewrican]

because the temp of the water you are running though it matters most, i use a plastic bucket filled with water and dump ice into it, then use a pond pump to pump the water through the IC and then back into the bucket. I usually go trough two buckets of ice water and it is chilled in no time at all. Works great.

 

[HSM]

I use a SS 25ft chiller from Midwest and it works perfect. From boil to 70 in under 15 minutes.

As has been mentioned, the tap temp is a very true factor. I just checked my tap and it's running at 67F. Not bad for the end of summer. In winter months I would guess it's significantly cooler, and that's when I do most of the brewing.

 

[HSM]

because the temp of the water you are running though it matters most, i use a plastic bucket filled with water and dump ice into it, then use a pond pump to pump the water through the IC and then back into the bucket. I usually go trough two buckets of ice water and it is chilled in no time at all. Works great.

I have a friend that uses this method for his alcohol fuel still and he says it works very well.

 

[jldc]

I use a SS 25ft chiller from Midwest and it works perfect. From boil to 70 in under 15 minutes.

As has been mentioned, the tap temp is a very true factor. I just checked my tap and it's running at 67F. Not bad for the end of summer. In winter months I would guess it's significantly cooler, and that's when I do most of the brewing.

I also have the 25 ft stainless steel chiller from Midwest. It works great. I know that some people talk about the increased ability of copper to transmit heat, but I doubt that a copper coil can work much (if any) better than my SS chiller. The dominant factor is water temp in. The water coming out is usually not that much different than the wort temp.

I aslo use a submersible pump. In the winter, I just recycle cold water from my pool. In the summer, I use a tub of pool water with added ice as needed.
Flame off to 68 degrees in 15-20 min in the winter (unlimited 50 degree water). Somewhat longer in the summer depending on how much or little ice I use.