Wort Chiller....etc

[dandan]

I think i'm on the slippery slope and edding to exract soon then on to All Grain when I have the equipment, but im on a tight budget at the moment!

Can you get away with out using a Wort chiller/cooler or is there an alternative way of getting around it! I know that it wouldnt cost much to make one, but i would need to do some plumbing and attach a new tap to the system as well because we have stupid taps that don't take hosepipe adaptors! (last time I tried to do plumbing, the kitchen ended up very, very wet! :whistle: )

 

[Moley]

Can you get away with out using a Wort chiller/cooler or is there an alternative way of getting around it!

I am NOT the right person to advise on this, I've now done two AG brews.

For the first one I left it to cool naturally, it took hours, and I gather you can get a haze if you don't cool the wort. I got a slight haze, but it tastes great.

Second mash, after it had cooled to something not quite so scalding I tapped off a few litres at a time into sanitised PETs and dropped them in the sink. A couple of water changes over 20 minutes and they were down to 25°C.

I'm not saying I will be sticking with this method, but it seemed to work.

 

[Wez]

While you don't have to chill quickly there are BIG advantages in doing so.

Cold Break - By chilling quickly you get a cold break which is the coagulation of proteins in the wort which if left in the beer can throw a chill haze

Infection - The quicker you can get a yeast pitched and get a c02 blanket over the beer the less likely it is to become infected - extending this period without yeast increases the risk of infection.

Why don't you transfer it to FV when it's cooled enough not to be risky then put the FV in your bath, fill it with cold water stir the wort and keep changng the water...

Some :thumb: thoughts anyway...

 

[Greg]

Dan, you can get a hose adapter that will fit most taps from homebase etc.

It claps onto the tap and has various fittings to seal the tap and prevent leaking. I use one and they work pretty well. Cost about £8.99 (not that cheap for what they are!) but cheaper and easier than changing your taps.

 

[dandan]

Cheers Greg, Wez and Moley! :thumb:

Dan, you can get a hose adapter that will fit most taps from homebase etc.

It claps onto the tap and has various fittings to seal the tap and prevent leaking. I use one and they work pretty well. Cost about £8.99 (not that cheap for what they are!) but cheaper and easier than changing your taps.

We used to have a tap thing like this! but it water sprayed out left right and centre! and if you did get a good connection it soon fired off under pressure! :twisted:

Would freezing a say 5L of water and putting the block og ice into the wort work??

 

[highwayman]

DD .as Wez says...You can cool it in a bath of cold water....I did when I first started and it works:thumb:

 

[jamesb]

I had the same problem with those adaptors, they're not great for all taps.

What I did in my old house (I have proper plumbed in supplies now :party: ) was to get a "Y" adaptor for the washing machine connection, add an additional standard washing machine valve and put a hosepipe adaptor onto that. Worked a treat and no mess at all.

 

[Aleman]

Transfer the hot wort to a FV with as little splashing as possible Snap on the lid, and stick it outside . . . Leave overnight . . Pitch yeast in morning.

While not ideal it does work.

What I believe our Down Under 'Exports' do is to fill a 20L plastic jerry can with the hot wort, Screw on a CAP allow it to cool, then tip it into a sanitised FV and pitch the yeast.

 

[ano]

Transfer the hot wort to a FV with as little splashing as possible Snap on the lid, and stick it outside . . . Leave overnight . . Pitch yeast in morning.

This is what I do. Didn't want to say as I've only got 3 brews under my belt and one of them hasn't cleared heh, although that's probably not down to a lack of quick cooling. No infections though :thumb:

 

[warra48]

There is anther way. In Australia, they seem to have invented the "No Chill" method.
Personally, I have not done it, but I have sampled a number of different brews done this way, and it seems to work well.
Here's a link to a wiki on AHB. http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum/i ... article=56