Immersion chiller

Depends on what you need versus cost to build. I like to build stuff, lol.
of course as old AC&R man I have lots of cooper tubing...

 

I guess this is one of those aspects of how far you want to take the hobby. Concentrate on just the beer making or get into building all of your own stuff and do the whole DIY thing.

I bought a stainless wort chiller, FWIW. Copper reacts and thus seems 'dirtier' to me. Check on some vids on youTube for copper vs stainless chilling times. The 1 or 2 I saw, there was no appreciable difference.

 

Immersion chillers are easily made out of copper, but you can often find pre-made at similar prices. I use SS, and would recommend it over copper, simply because they're more durable.

 

I found it to be less expensive to build one and it only took me about 30 min (not including trip to the hardware store). Was a snap to put together and worked beautifully.

 

about $10 cheaper. stainless copper

 

I use copper chillers. Haven't tried stainless, except in my jockey box, but that's really a different application. Keep in mind that using a copper chiller will add trace amounts of copper to your wort, which is good for fermentation, particularly if you're not getting copper into your wort anywhere else in your process.

 

To piggy back on the trace copper comment, I use a SS chiller and throw a $.50 copper elbow in the kettle at ~5 minutes. Saved me a few bucks, and I can use the copper piece when making starters too.

 

That surprises me, but I never gave it much thought since I already have a chiller (copper).

 

I have made one, bought one made, and rearranged a pre-fab one (the made one I bought). I prefer the one I bought. I looks much nicer, but that is a personal preference. For context, I love to build as much as I can. Built my temp controllers, my brew kettles (drilled and installed weldless (non-pre-fab) bulkheads and thermometers and sightglasses), a couple MLT, my pump set up, stir plate, hop oasts...

Also, there is no need to have the chiller to the top of your kettle, or your wort for that matter. Leaving a chiller in still wort will not chill as effectively as moving wort. You can either stir the wort around, rock the kettle (careful not to splash 180*F out onto yourself though), or install a whirlpool arm if you have a pump. If the top of the chiller is a few inches under the top of the wort it is fine since you should be causing it to move anyways.

 

I assumed he meant the bend in the chiller inflow/outflow was lower than the top of the kettle, which would make it pretty hard to use. But if it's just the top of the coils that's lower than the top of the kettle, I agree that's fine.

 

Didn't even consider that aspect. Good point. OP, if you are talking about the height of the coils relative to the height of the kettle, then no issue. If you are talking about the height of the chiller itself (bend at top) being to short, then that is an issue that might only be corrected by building your own to specs.

 

Off topic but.... It seems to take about thirty five minutes for my immersion chiller to cool down my wort is that too long?

 

Nope. That's about how long it takes me during the summer months. If you're worried about it, it is possible to speed up the process by using a pre-chiller in an ice water bath, and recirculating/stirring to create a whirlpool etc.

 

I had the same problem with the height so I made mine and I am not a DIY type of person. I used 20 ft of 1/2 copper. I also made the ends a little longer then usual and bent them slightly downward. That way if I ever have a leak it will drip to the ground instead of down the ends of the copper into the kettle. Some of the commercial models look like they could drip right into the kettle if you have a leak.

 

I bought one and when I got a bigger kettle I just gently bent them up so they came straight up, works fine for me. I like making things but the cost savings was not enough for me to justify making it myself.

 

I struggled cooling my wort until I built an immersion cooler. I love fabricating my own equipment and liked the efficiency it gave me. Then I bought a plate chiller and donated my IC to a museum . . . IMO the only way to go. Remember, a plate chiller can handle a 20 gallon batch as easily as a 5 gallon'er. I suspect no one has ever ditched their plate chiller and gone back to an IC. Just another option to consider . . .

 

This. I just got a SS version because it is more durable, but also because stainless doesn't tarnish. I don't want to come back after 6 months and find a green chiller, and then put that in my wort (I hear it comes out sparkling if you do). There is an efficiency difference but it is not large. I found that by the time I bought the tubing, and fittings (since I use a garden hose on both ends) I would pretty much pay for the chiller and then have to make it and risk kinking tubing. I also heard it is nearly impossible to bend small diameter, low wall thickness steel tubing without special tooling (there is a whole thread on hbt about people kinking there stainless lines). To me the DIY route is limited to copper tubing which is much easier to bend.