plate chiller vs. counter flow chiller

I cast my vote for a CFC as you can build it for cheap...

 

The following article has some information you may find interesting.
http://www.mrmalty.com/chiller.php

I whirlpool with a cordless drill for now as I have not upgraded to march pump(s) yet. Works fine.

 

fyi - a recent Basic Brewing Radio show compared chilling methods.

"November 8, 2012 - ANHC Chilling Experiment
James and Chris Colby, editor of Brew Your Own magazine, join in an experiment at the Australian National Homebrew Conference to test chilling techniques."
http://www.basicbrewing.com/

 

Can't vote because I've only used a CFC, but it was easy to build one and it does the trick. I do have to recirculate ice water and throttle the output of my pump down a good bit during the summer to hit pitching temps, but it's a breeze during early spring, late fall, and winter when the ground water is good and chilly. I like the compact nature of the plate chiller, but I'm a bit scared by the idea of plates getting gunked up and like the cofidence of knowing that recirculating hot oxy through the CFC will take care of any crud. I hate hop bags, so I usually just toss everything straight in the kettle with a jay-bird false bottom and hopstopper and just rack off of whatever makes it past once fermentation is complete.