Hi All, For context, I am very new to brewing and, given space issues, only do 1 gallon extract batches currently. My current chill method is using an ice bath in my sink (faucet is not easy to take apart to a wort chiller) and that usually takes 30-45 minutes to get to pitching temp. I recently bought the NB anti-gravity pump (link below) to get away from using an auto siphon and I am wondering if there are any other uses for this. I found the wort chiller below and was wondering if it would work (and actually make sense) to use with the pump. My thought is to have ice water run from the sink into the chiller via the pump then dump the output water (once the wort cools down enough may go to close loop and just recirculate the water in the sink). I know diaphragm pumps are only for the cold side (NB's is up to 140 degrees) so I am just wondering if this will work. My thought was only ice water would be passing through the pump so temperature should be fine but want to sanity check if this even makes sense. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Pump: https://www.northernbrewer.com/products/anti-gravity-transfer-pump-kit Wort Chiller: https://shop.greatfermentations.com...MIp6qEpr394wIVgYzICh04mwWOEAQYASABEgImCvD_BwE
One thing I forgot to mention, I would use the same pump/hoses to transfer the chilled wort to the fermenter. Would just add an extra step of running start san through the system.
Honestly, with the pump you have, I would look at just getting 1/4" or 3/8" bendable copper pipe/tubing from home depot or lowes and making your own for about $20-30 less... Using the same pump would require sanitation. One might be able to run the wort through the coil (which would be in the ice bath) and right to the fermenter.
Agree with @Granitebeard , these are easy to make. Nothing more than a coffee can to wrap the tubing around and the clamps/fittings are cheap. Plus you make it to fit your exact brew kettle. A couple of hints: the outside of the chiller will develop a patina between brews and you really don't want this dissolving in your kettle. A long starsan soak (start of brew day) will make it shiny-new looking. Save your ice water for last (unless you own an icehouse) . . . it's the difference in temp that does the job. Hit the hot wort with tap water first (somewhere between 40-80, depending on season), when wort reaches 120'ish send in the frozen water. Use food-grade silicon for your tubing as it'll be used to transfer wort, it only cost a smidgen more and lasts a long time. Sanitizing between tasks should work. If you're paranoid about microbes you could dedicate a simple immersion pump (Amazon <$20) and vinyl tubing for the water, then the fancy pump/silicon-tubing for Señor Wort.
Thanks all, will look to make my own chiller out of 3/8 copper and just get a pond pump instead of having to sanitize the pump and hoses. Quick question, does anyone know of a submersible pump that can take 3/8 tubing? All of the ones I found have 1/2 barbs. Could heat up the tubing and force it on there but wanted to check.
If you use silicone tubing it will fit the 1/2” barb without much oomph. If using vinyl tubing soak the end of the 3/8” tubing in warm/hot water for a bit to soften, then force it on to the 1/2” barb. Once installed you can leave them attached to each other and remove (or not) the barb/tubing assembly from the pump housing for storage. If you don’t install a garden hose adapter on your immersion chiller, use clamps on the tubing where they attach to the immersion chiller. This is my pond pump and it works fine. Decent video on a DIY immersion chiller:
Many submersible pumps will come with multiple barbs/connectors like @riptorn posted . . . just search around Amazon. Another tip, you don't want a large pump. It's actually more efficient (less water wasted) to have a lower rated gph pump, especially with your mini-system. So think small, maybe 100'ish. Also, it isn't critical for the connectors to be perfectly sealed as any leakage will just go back into your reservoir. My pump has "straight" connectors held by friction only. If a few drops get out they are just recycled. Different story with the wort connectors.
Sorry if this is stating the obvious, but when you say that your kitchen tap (sorry, faucet) is hard to connect to a wort chiller, I'm assuming that means that you've looked at hosepipe adaptors and it's still the wrong shape?
Thanks for checking, my tap is a pull down (similar to the below) and I have tried taken apart but could not find anywhere that an adapter would actually fit. https://www.homedepot.com/p/America...n-Faucet-in-Stainless-Steel-4005SSF/100684606
I have almost the same sink I went to Home Depot and got a double sided male threaded adapter 1/2” :3/4” and my mini wort chiller that was about $50 attaches perfectly if you don’t want to go through the trouble of making it. I do 1 gallon batches as well so it comes In Handy
That is really helpful, I appreciate it. Just to make sure I understand correctly, you take off the head of the faucet, screw on one end of the adapter and then connect the hose connection to the other side?
Yes, almost all sinks with hoses are 1/2” and the part that attaches to garden hose on the wort chiller are almost always 3/4. So with the double sided adapter you’ll be able to connect the wort chiller to your sink hose. So it works perfectly. If it doesn’t I’ve seen some people use 1/2:3/8 adapter. Check out greatfermentations, their websites sell mini wort chillers.
