Immersion chiller efficiency

[Scotty]

Any idea how efficient an immersion cooler will be when brewing 10Gallon+ brewlengths?

I have an IC made of 12mm microbore copper of around 12m in length. I also have the remainder of the copper coil at 12m also. Should I make another IC to work in tandem with the original or would a counterflow chiller be better given the volumes concerned?

I do prefer the idea of dropping the cooler into the wort, so no messing about with sterilising though

[trucker5774]

My preference would be to use the remaining pipe and add to your chiller with a smaller or wider coil

[EccentricDyslexic]

Consider adding some elbows to introduce some turbulance too, if you have a nice smoth run for the cooling water you wont get the best heat transfer.....my Immersion Cooler is a rectangular shape made with 15mm copper pipe and lots of elbows and works very well, i have the flow turned right up at the beginging of the cool but as the outflow of the IC cools down to luke warm i turn the flow down a bit...to save a bit of water.

steve

[dcq1974]

Show us a Pic Steve! A list of parts would be nice also

[Scotty]

Show us a Pic Steve! A list of parts would be nice also

Sounds like a plan! Yeah Steve, show us as we are gear whores!

[EccentricDyslexic]

Well i warn ya its not pretty but it works!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/33498481@N00/4331541031/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/33498481@N00/4332278136/

Steve

[RajBoab]

Was listening to an episode of the Brewing Network's - Sunday Session with jamil Zainesheff yesterday.
Jamil was talking about using an immersion chiller in conjunction with a wort pump. Basically he uses a pump to circulate the wort between the boiler tap and the top of the wort to vastly improve the chilling speed, due to the surface area that comes into contact with the immersion chiller. He said that it will chill the fluid down 100F in a minute.

[Scotty]

Well i warn ya its not pretty but it works!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/33498481@N00/4331541031/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/33498481@N00/4332278136/

Steve

You're right, it isn't pretty!

I can see that working as the water doen't have a smooth path to follow and as you say, causes some turbulance in the pipe. From what I can see, you do 6-7g brews? How long does it take to chill the wort to pitch temperature, roughly?

[Scotty]

Was listening to an episode of the Brewing Network's - Sunday Session with jamil Zainesheff yesterday.
Jamil was talking about using an immersion chiller in conjunction with a wort pump. Basically he uses a pump to circulate the wort between the boiler tap and the top of the wort to vastly improve the chilling speed, due to the surface area that comes into contact with the immersion chiller. He said that it will chill the fluid down 100F in a minute.

Plus it would be adding air to the wort, thus helping it cool (in theory). As good a plan as it sounds, what would be the take on sterilisation of the pump pipework?

[EccentricDyslexic]

You're right, it isn't pretty!

I can see that working as the water doen't have a smooth path to follow and as you say, causes some turbulance in the pipe. From what I can see, you do 6-7g brews? How long does it take to chill the wort to pitch temperature, roughly?

5 gallon brews, 25-26l in the fermentor i aim for. The IC displases about 1l. It takes 15-20 mins to cool to 25c. I steralise my pump and pipe work during the boil by pumping boiling wort through it and back into the boiler. When the boil is over, i turn the IC on, when the wort is below 80c i turn the pump back on to keep the wort moving rather than stiring.

Steve

[Scotty]

sounds like a plan

I will have the capacity to do 10g brews so I'm thinking of a similar chiller, but larger. Or maybe two of similar size to increase the surface area without the water having to travel further unlike one large chiller

[EccentricDyslexic]

Nice! I'd like to upgrade to 80l stock pots for the HLT and Boiler, wish i'd done it in the first place!

Oh well, i am happy with smaller brews, they match the cornie size well and it give me more practice and results in more of a selection of beers...so i'm not in a rush!

Steve