Will this work as a plate chiller?

[pghxdguy]

Here is a pic of an oil cooler I managed to get my hands on. Will this work as a plate chiller? Its stainless/copper, brand new. Not worried about the connections, I have access to a full machine shop, and all the metal working toys you can think of in my garage (MIG, TIG, plasma cutter, etc etc) so making the connections is not an issue. But what I'm wondering is if the size is sufficient to cool wort. I count 15 plates for wort and 15 for water. My summer water temps are around 68-70f. Hand in the pic for size reference...

 

[EJay]

Uh, yeah, that should be sufficient

 

[atoughram]

That is HUGE!

Go big or GO HOME!

 

[OleBrewing]

Holy crap how much u plan on cooling, you will see some wort loss with that monster.

 

[acidrain]

Holy crap how much u plan on cooling, you will see some wort loss with that monster.

Na, you can drain it and recover 95% I'm sure.

I'm jealous... yours is much bigger than mine.

 

[mikescooling]

Your hands are so small, jk. That is a badass plate chiller. you may find that if the plates are not full some heat transfer is lost, but i don't know. I do know that would cost an arm and leg to buy.

 

[pghxdguy]

I guess my reality of what is normal is skewed... I was thinking it may not be big enough. I handle these things daily, and they are "normal" size to me. But, have never seen the ones most here have mentioned, in person either. So I don't have much to compare it too. And yeah...the retail price on these is astronomical.

 

[Hello]

It's new, right?
I would only be worried if it weren't new and previously had been used for oil.

 

[Grannyknot]

I've heard of people using massive industrial plate chillers for wort.
You may need to use a pump, but it should work well.
Sounds obvious, but remember that you'll never get lower than your H20 Temp & in reality, you may only come to within 4-5* of it, regardless of the chillers size.

It will be a beast in the winter though. You'll probably end up having to regulate the amount of water you run through it.

 

[Newsman]

"Normal" plate chillers are about 1/2 to 1/4 that size, I think!

 

[pghxdguy]

Yes brand new. Never saw any liquid out side of manufacturing. I have a pile of used ones on my bench, but the thought of getting oil out of it seems impossible.

My thought was to use it sitting like shown, gravity fed from the keggle, then into the fermenter in one pass. I am making a 300 micron hop stopper 6in diameter, the depth of the kettle to keep stuff out of the chiller. Also thinking about putting another 300 micron (or smaller) screen at the drain valve to trap anything the basket didnt stop. I may get a pump if needed.

Finally, I am using all 100% silicone hoses with nylon braid (heavy diesel heater hose) for the plumbing with a 300*F rating . Anything I should keep in mind with this plan? Nearly all the fittings will be stainless, only exception will be the hose end fittings, they will be brass. Is this a problem?

 

[augiedoggy]

I use a 300 micron hop stopper from arbor on amazon and ebay... just upgraded from their smaller one to the 6x10 inch model... works well to keep most of the solids out of my 20 plate duda diesel chiller which I have to regulate down most of the time because its too efficient for my use...

 

[augiedoggy]

double post

 

[FiddlersGreen87]

Hahaha that thing is just silly. 15 Plates... you should do the math and see what it comes out to being compared to the standard size ones people use for brewing.

"This is my 374 plate chiller." :rockin:

 

[augiedoggy]

Hahaha that thing is just silly. 15 Plates... you should do the math and see what it comes out to being compared to the standard size ones people use for brewing.

"This is my 374 plate chiller." :rockin:

Hey if the price is right then I say go for it.... Its easier to regulate a larger one to get desired temp then mess with one that too small for the task which is more common here...

At least its future proof for future upgrades

 

[userzero]

Fantastic!

 

[FiddlersGreen87]

At least its future proof for future upgrades

He could start brewing in hot water heaters!

 

[pghxdguy]

Maybe a micro brewery would be interested in it? Lol. The price was right, what can I say....

 

[WPStrassburg]

What's the data tag have on it? looks more like 60 plates based on the thickness unless it has really wide channels. Dimensions? 10" wide 16" tall 4" high or so? What size batches you doing?