Wort chiller build.

[DunklesWeissbier]

$30, a trip to HD, and about an hour of bending tubing and scratching my head. And I'm ready to brew!

I can't believe how easy it was.
I'm heating up some water right now to give it a trail run. Hopefully I'll be brewing this afternoon.

Parts.

All done!

Testing for leaks.

 

[phidelt1499]

Not bad for $30. Nice work.

 

[DunklesWeissbier]

Works great! Just took 3 gallons from boiling to 70 degrees in under 10 minutes.

 

[Golddiggie]

Makes you wonder why people buy them already made, doesn't it?

I made my own IC a little while ago, when I went all grain and had full batch size to cool down. Made it much easier to cool ~5 gallons of wort to pitching temps.

It will take longer to chill a full 5 gallons. But, depending on your water temp, and how you move it in the pot, you could be looking at about 15 minutes (maybe more, maybe less)...

I'm planning on building one with 50' of 3/8" copper in the next month or two... I plan on making some tighter bends for the in/out parts, to help things out. I also plan on doing a goose-neck like you did. Should make things easier when using it...

While you probably didn't need to use the two hose clamps on the IC itself (on each line) it's not a bad idea. I would just recommend checking them before each use, or every other, to make sure they haven't loosened up some. It would really suck to turn on the water only to have one leak into your perfectly good wort.

 

[DunklesWeissbier]

I'm already planning another larger one for brewing 5gal batches outdoors in the summer. Thinking I might try 50' of 1/2" tubing and using some elbows for the tight bends.

This one is going to work great on the stovetop.

 

[Golddiggie]

I'd stick with 3/8" copper... Unless you have a really high volume of water running out of the faucet, 3/8" will do really well... Think of it this way, the pipe inside the house is 1/2"... You'll only have as much flow as can go through that, so if you use 1/2" tubing, flow will actually be slower than with 3/8" tubing. So, going with more expensive tubing won't cool any better than going with 3/8". I wouldn't go down to 1/4" since that has too small a surface area... I just don't see making it from 1/2" as doing any better than 3/8"... Not with the material cost difference at least.

 

[DunklesWeissbier]

I'd stick with 3/8" copper... Unless you have a really high volume of water running out of the faucet, 3/8" will do really well... Think of it this way, the pipe inside the house is 1/2"... You'll only have as much flow as can go through that, so if you use 1/2" tubing, flow will actually be slower than with 3/8" tubing. So, going with more expensive tubing won't cool any better than going with 3/8". I wouldn't go down to 1/4" since that has too small a surface area... I just don't see making it from 1/2" as doing any better than 3/8"... Not with the material cost difference at least.

Your right about the 1/2" house plumbing. I never thought about that.
And the 1/2" is twice as much $$ as the 3/8". I'm not sure I want to try and bend the 1/2" tubing either.
The 3/8" was fun enough.

 

[Golddiggie]

I wouldn't imagine it would be as easy as the 3/8" was... You might need to get some tools to help bending the 1/2"...

I might pick up some of the tools to get tighter bends when I build my next one... That way I can get a nice gooseneck coming out of the pot.

Since the 1/2" is double the money, I'd really go with the 3/8"...

I already have someone interested in my 20' IC that I built... After he had a chance to use it too.. So, when I build my next one, I'll recover at least part of the costs that way.

 

[DunklesWeissbier]

While you probably didn't need to use the two hose clamps on the IC itself (on each line) it's not a bad idea. I would just recommend checking them before each use, or every other, to make sure they haven't loosened up some. It would really suck to turn on the water only to have one leak into your perfectly good wort.

Thanks for the advice about checking the hose clamps. They loosened up quite a bit after the test run. Just got done with the first brew and it worked great. :rockin:

 

[Golddiggie]

Glad that it helped... I mentioned it since we checked mine on Thursday evening/Friday morning before using it... I had used it a few times before this, but hadn't checked the clamps... There was a small leak on one of the lines, so I checked both clamps... Both needed to be tightened. Worked great after that, chilling down both of our brews quickly...

It's great when you can make something that works so well... Especially when you make it for less than you would have paid to buy one. :rockin:

 

[brewdoctor]

For what it's worth. I soldered two 90 degree copper fitting on to my wort chiller. Just incase the hoses leaked water (ie h2o getting past the hose clamps) the h2o would drip onto the ground and not flow into the kettle. When I first built my chiller I bent a 90 in the tubing, then thought it looked better to have the 90's soldered inline. It would be a simply improvement. I have had heard horror stories of brewers starting the h2o through the chiller then returning to find a kettle of h2o overflowing.

Brew on,
Brewdoc

 

[Golddiggie]

Those stories, and what I saw on 2/26 is part of why I now check my IC before using it... One of the people on the sponsored brew day, on 2/26 had a POS IC... 1/4" tubing, with lose clamps... He had the thing INSIDE the bucket to cool his wort, with the cover on it, and the water was set to trickle, since it was so poorly made... The water was turned up enough, so the hose would be free for others to use in less than 1-2 hours... The exit line broke off inside the bucket... It was caught early enough, but his volume went from 5-5.25 up to just over 6.5 before we saw and ran to turn off the hose. He was NOT watching it (he was also about three sheets into the wind)...

I made my IC so that it can handle full water flow... From any household faucet. It's a simple matter for me to check the hose clamps too (usually have a Leatherman with me on a brew day, or access to more tools)...

Taking 1 minute to check the clamps can save you from a brewtastrophie...

 

[MTB]

Is it more efficient to have the coils packed tightly? Or spread them out a little bit?

 

[Golddiggie]

Is it more efficient to have the coils packed tightly? Or spread them out a little bit?

A little gap between them seems to work well... Not talking about 1/2" or 1/4" more like 1/16" or so... Basically, I don't think you'll be able to get the coils tight enough, by hand, to have an issue. You'll have wort flowing over the entire thing (that's in the wort)... Even the ones you see manufacturered, with wire holding the coils at set spaces don't have large gaps. I suspect it's only spaced as it is due to the material they use to hold it that way. If you wanted to, you could get some very thin copper wire to hold the spacing as you want... Or just let it be...

 

[DunklesWeissbier]

I did use copper wire both to separate the coils and hold it all together. It made it a little more solid when handling it.

 

[Frenchy]

How did you use the copper wire to tie it together and space it? Loop around the bottom coil, and then criss-cross your way to the top??

 

[camus]

How did you use the copper wire to tie it together and space it? Loop around the bottom coil, and then criss-cross your way to the top??

I originally built my that way but it was a pain the rear, I used 12ga wire, it was to tall etc.

Ended cutting it off thinking I would redo it, never have, the coils have been loose since.

 

[DunklesWeissbier]

How did you use the copper wire to tie it together and space it? Loop around the bottom coil, and then criss-cross your way to the top??

Thats how I started out doing it but the wire I bought was too thin. I ended up doubling it up, looping it around the bottom, criss-crossing each loop and giving it a few twists between each loop. Ended up with about 1/8" between each coil. If i build another I will use thicker copper wire.

 

[flairman]

I keep thinking about this style wort cooler and it kinds of bothers me the volume of water that is used. Besides kind of being a waste in my area water is expensive. I have this idea to fill the sink with water and a ton of ice cubes and then hook a pump up to the cooler. It sucks the cold water out of the sink, through the cooler and then back into the sink on the other side. If the water starts getting to warm toss in a few more cubes.

If you assume a flow rate of 5 gallon/minute (which is not necessarily accurate) and 10 minutes of cooling time that is 50 gallons of water. Using the water in the sunk and ice cubes I bet you would use maybe 15 gallons.

While I am not an environmental fanatic I do like to minimize my impact and conserve when possible.

 

[phenry]

I used the same double clamps over the tubing to connect mine, I was having problems with minor leaks when I was running the water through it though. Nothing more than a drop every 10 seconds though. A few wraps with electrical tape solved the problem, but I was thinking a nice layer of silicone over the copper before I slid the tubing on would be a more permanent fix.

I keep thinking about this style wort cooler and it kinds of bothers me the volume of water that is used. Besides kind of being a waste in my area water is expensive. I have this idea to fill the sink with water and a ton of ice cubes and then hook a pump up to the cooler. It sucks the cold water out of the sink, through the cooler and then back into the sink on the other side. If the water starts getting to warm toss in a few more cubes.

If you assume a flow rate of 5 gallon/minute (which is not necessarily accurate) and 10 minutes of cooling time that is 50 gallons of water. Using the water in the sunk and ice cubes I bet you would use maybe 15 gallons.

While I am not an environmental fanatic I do like to minimize my impact and conserve when possible.

I put the discharge hose into the washing machine (I use the utility sink in our laundry room) so that way it doesn't go to waste. Even if your washer isn't right next to your water source, you could always fill buckets and use them to fill the washer, water plants, etc.

 

[hamiltont]

How did you use the copper wire to tie it together and space it? Loop around the bottom coil, and then criss-cross your way to the top??

Here's an example of the wire lacing. It's just 14/2 electrical wire with the insulation stripped off. The double coil works great for 10 gallon batches. Boil to pitch ~62F in ~20 minutes. Cheers!!!

 

[Golddiggie]

hamiltont, is that 50' of copper tubing??

I was planning on making my next IC from 50' and just making sure it was small enough to fit into my 32qt pot so that I could use it in both 5 and 10 gallon batches (60qt pot for 10 gallon batches)...

 

[hamiltont]

hamiltont, is that 50' of copper tubing??

I was planning on making my next IC from 50' and just making sure it was small enough to fit into my 32qt pot so that I could use it in both 5 and 10 gallon batches (60qt pot for 10 gallon batches)...

I think it was 40'?? The inside was wrapped around a coffee can & the outside was around a 5 gallon plastic pail. I kept it short in height so I could chill the occasional 5 gallon batches in my 15 gallon pot. Gently stirring the wort makes a huge difference in the heat dissipation. Cheers!!!

 

[RMitch]

What you use to connect to sink?

 

[Golddiggie]

Last time I moved the IC instead of the wort... Chilled it down real nice too... I think as long as you do something to get more wort over the IC coils, you'll do well.

For connecting the tubing to the faucet, you can get the parts from your local Lowe's, Home Depot, or most hardware stores. Look in the plumbing section and just tell them you want to go from 3/8" ID tubing to a hose faucet... It took a couple of fittings for me to do it, but it wasn't difficult at all.

 

[hamiltont]

What you use to connect to sink?

Ahh. The finished product. Sorry 'bout that. I just used a 25' RV hose, cut it in half & got some hose repair parts from the garden section. The hose wasn't tight on the 3/8" tubing so I slid a short piece of vinyl tubing over it first. Then there's a garden hose adapter you can get in the plumbing section for your sink. Cheers!!!

 

[hamiltont]

Last time I moved the IC instead of the wort...

Ya, I did that the first few times but that thing gets pretty heavy after a while, hot too! A gentle swirl with the spoon is lots easier. Cheers!!!

 

[Golddiggie]

My IC connections...

Hose end

Showing the hose connected to the IC...

I plan on using a short hose to extend the reach to the hose faucet for the next brew day... That way I can just leave the kettle on the table/burner and move the IC in it... I can hold the tubing without issue, so it's pretty easy on my IC... For the next one, I can just use the OvGlove...

 

[DunklesWeissbier]

I used this:

http://www.acehardwareoutlet.com/productdetails.aspx?sku=43597&source=GoogleBase

and this:

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

To connect to my faucet.

My local HD didn't carry the Faucet to hose adapter anymore so I found it at Ace.
As for the hose end, I originally had the list from another thread on here to get the parts to make one like Golddiggie, but while looking for the parts I found the one piece 3/8 to hose adapter at HD.

 

[anthonyadams]

just did the same thing and saved a bunch of bucks highly recommend the project

 

[Frenchy]

How do you prevent crimping the tubing while you bend it? Does wrapping around a round object like the bucket help with that?

 

[Golddiggie]

I used the canister that my cooking implements usually go into... You just bend it carefully and you don't need to worry about it...

For cost, for what you can buy a 25' IC for, I'll be able to make my 50' IC and still save money. Mine will still be from 3/8" OD copper...

 

[DunklesWeissbier]

How do you prevent crimping the tubing while you bend it? Does wrapping around a round object like the bucket help with that?

I used my ball lock keg which is about 8.5" in diameter. The hard part is bending the ends up. I got a few small kinks in mine. Just don't try and bend a tight radius.

 

[RMitch]

^This. Its actually somewhat difficult to crimp it. Anywhere between 180 and 90 degrees is relatively easy to bend by hand. But beyond that becomes difficult. And bending up definitely is more difficult.

 

[P-J]

Go to Sears and buy this:

To bend your tubing ends so they go over the edge of the kettle.

Then I'd suggest that you use compression fittings to adapt your copper to a hose barb. It will require 2 pieces - compression to male thread and then a female thread to hose barb. I would really avoid using a hose clamp directly with a hose slipped onto the copper tubing. You will see what I'm talking about given enough time.

Edit: Changed the tool. just realized you are dealing with 3/8" copper. BTW the tool is $11.48 - Link? Three-Size Tubing Bender

 

[Golddiggie]

Not going to agree with P-J on this...

1. Compression fittings are NOT easy to do without the flaring tool... If you don't have the tool, you'll need to get one. They are NOT cheap either. By the time you get that tool, you've spent more than you would have just buying a pre-made IC...

2. You don't NEED to get the expensive bender to make the final bends to the outside of the pot. They also have tools that are essentially springs that slip over the copper and allow you to hand form them. They come with several sizes in the package, so you can use them for other sized tubing too (later)...

I did try to use compression fittings on my IC... Could NOT get them to seal up at all. Gave up and just slipped the hose over the copper tubing. If you use the hose clamps properly, they won't leak one bit... Plus, changing the way the IC is setup without having compression fittings is easier. If you mess up the compression fitting when you're putting it together, forget about it...

Unless you're a plumber, or someone that's done MANY compression fittings in the past, I wouldn't go that route at all.

Use good strength hose/tubing on to connect the IC to the water source, and carry it away, and you won't have any issue. If it really was such a poor way to connect, the majority of people here would be using compression fittings, instead of the rare few. If you use the cheap vinyl tubing/hose, you could have issues with it... I don't think I'll see that happen, considering the host I picked... I'll probably use it on my next IC too.

 

[P-J]

Hmmmm..... There is a HUGE difference between a compression fitting and a Flare Fitting. The one you describe is a flare fitting.

See you didn't
...
Nevermind. I'm done.!

 

[Golddiggie]

Then it's the twit's at Lowe's that are the issue... I was looking to have threaded attachments for the tubing, so that's what they had for fittings to use in 3/8"... So after struggling with those for an evening I just said F it and slipped the tubing over the ends... Took more time to type this post than to actually do it...

I'm more inclined to use the KISS principle for my IC... Means it will be very easy to make changes moving forward... If I want to add another coil to it, I can just use a couple of short pieces of tubing to bridge them.. Not that I would mind you...

Also, I'm not a plumber, don't play one on TV, nor did I stay at that hotel... I prefer things like this to be easy on me, not more complicated than they need to be.