Mark's Place

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The Chiller

    I went with a homemade counterflow chiller for my brewery.  A counterflow chiller is basically a tube inside another tube that has been (usually) bent into a coil.  At both ends, the inner line passes through a reducer fitting while the outer line is fitted with a tee.  This creates two separate paths for liquid to flow.  Wort flows through the inner line while water flows through the outer line.  In addition, the connections are made such that the two liquids flow in opposite directions for better cooling. 

    I chose to use 3/8 and 3/4 copper for the inner and outer lines, respectively.  The approximate length of the completed chiller is 40 feet.  A copper inner line and plastic outer line is also common practice.  To bend the coil a Sanke keg or other large diameter mandrel can be used, but be careful as the 3/4 copper will kink easily.  In my case, I wanted a coil that fit well within my brewery frame so to bend a tighter coil required the aid of a tubing bender.  My father fashioned one from discarded plastic and a bar of aluminum.  It was a two man job but the finished coil came out great.  To build it, we uncoiled and straightened both the inner and outer lines on the floor, then lubricated the inner line with liquid soap.  Then, we ran a fish tape through the outer line and secured the end of the tape to the inner line.  Next, one of us pushed the inner line while the other pulled it with the fish tape.  After both lines were slid together we fed it through the bender, sweated the fittings on both ends, and voila!  Chiller complete.  To keep mine looking nice and shiny, I polished the finished chiller with brass/copper polish and sprayed a coat of clear paint on it.

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