HOW TO MAKE AN IMMERSION WORT CHILLER

How to make a dual coil Immersion wort chiller

So the time comes in every starting brewer’s operation where ice buckets and partial boils don’t cut it anymore, and its time to do full boils and experiment with the many aspects of home brewing. And from that the need arise for a way to get their wort cooling faster. (wort is beer before you add the yeast) So the question was brought up “how do I want to cool my wort?” There are many options out there; there are immersion chillers, counter flow chillers and plate style chillers, but which one is right for me? Based purely on ease of component acquisition, assembly, and cleaning I decided I wanted an immersion chiller. Now many question come up after that, what type of metal, what size tubing, how long, configuration, make or buy? I looked at the many available options online and in my local brew shop but didn’t find the style of wort chillers I wanted. I did find one that had many features I wanted but it was oversized for my brew pot and too tall. So the choice was relatively easy I was going to make my own wort chiller. Recently copper tubing has risen in price to astounding levels almost making it equally priced as stainless steel tubing. But stainless steel is still slightly more expensive AND is not as efficient in transferring the heat as copper which is what you want for trying to get the heat out of your wort, so I decided to buy copper tubing. What size? Well a lot of the online ones made for 5 gallon batches were made from 3/8” copper tubing usually 25’ in length. Since I was already going with a 50’ coil I decided to make mine out of 1/2” because I figured with the longer coil and the design I wanted the more water volume would benefit me. I also noticed a lot of the chillers only had a large outer coil and I thought I could build a better one with a dual coil design. The basic idea behind this is simple where is the hottest part of the beer, in the center. So why would you put you main cooling element on the perimeter? My question exactly. So I wanted to build a one piece dual coil wort chiller out of refrigeration grade 1/2” copper tubing 50’ or so in length and here is how I did just that.

First I gathered all my materials I needed a 50’ coil of ½” refrigeration grade copper tubing, a form for the inner and outer coils, and a pipe bending spring as to prevent kinking which is incredibly easy to do with copper tubing. Now I was originally against purchasing the pipe bending springs because I thought I didn’t need them, but if I could recommend anything it would be to suck up and buy one because you’ll see later it pays for itself almost instantly. Oh I almost forgot you wil also need your favorite beverage to enjoy while working as this will take some time, way more time then I had planned on the inner coil alone, but it is worth it. So here’s everything laid out

Now I used a 4” diameter piece of PVC pipe and the form for my inner coil, I got extremely lucky that I picked 4 “ as this was probably the tightest coil possible using the spring set as it kept binding on this diameter any smaller and it wouldn’t have worked. So basically I started by straightening out about 2.5’ of copper to bend over the edge of the pot and to attach to my inlet and outlet hoses. Then I made a roughly 90 degree bend and started forming it to the PVC pipe.

I noticed immediately this was going to take a while as the spring had a hard time bending the tight diameter and I was constantly having to massage it around the bends. Shortly after I finished my first full bend I got a little anxious and tried to go faster. Big mistake. I had the spring slightly ahead of the bend point on the pipe and soon I pushed to form it to the pipe…KINK! $#@#!$%# expletive!

Seeing my mistake I just bent the pipe back and forth a few times till it broke off and started again now the length had been cut to about 47 feet. See my reasoning for the spring benders it was worth it! Also I noticed the spring bender was scratching my pipe! So I remedied that problem as well at this time by taking the end of the spring and flaring it out to prevent that last sharp edge form dragging along the pipe and scratching the snot out of it.
So basically the second time around I took my time and made sure the spring was covering the bend point of the tubing at all times while forcing it around the PVC pipe. And I worked my way down the pipe, basically bending a few inches at a time, removing the PVC pipe, advancing the spring, replacing the pipe and bending the next few inches, until I reached about 9 inches in height on my center coil (my brew pot is 11inches deep).

Slowly but surely I worked my way to this after about 1.5 hours

And now the hard part was over! Look at the beautiful results! So my inner coil was done now I need a roughly 10-11” diameter outer coil and enough tubing left over to run the exit over the edge. I had originally planned on using a form for the outer coil as well but quickly realized without bending the straight piece I could fit it down on the coil in the proper place so I decided to free hand the outer coil. It made me nervous too because if I kin it here I mine as well throw the entire thing away and start over wasting all my hard work, time, and money. So basically I started a larger coil and measured it and adjusted it until it both centered my inner coil and measured 10.5 inches diameter. Then I just started slowly working may way up the rest of the coil constantly checking to make sure the coil was straight and maintaining diameter. I fount the larger diameter I was able to move much quicker as the spring would slide much easier around the tubing. I literally completed the out coil in 20 minutes.

Then when I had about 2.5 feet left of tubing I bent another 90 matching it up with the inlet tube. I got lucky they both ended up in the same position on the coils.

So after about 2 hours and 1 blister on my index finger from spinning the spring to advance it on the 4 inch inner coil I had a finished wort chiller.

So now all that’s left is to make sure it fits how I want it to inside my brew pot. And it fit perfectly inside my brew pot. I also spent a little time spacing the coils a bit and elevating a lot of them towards the top since that’s where the most heat is. It’s all about efficiency!

PERFECT!

All that’s left to do is hose clamp on an inlet and outlet hose onto their respective ends, and my wort should be cooling in no time flat! Plus I do get a sense of accomplishment since I built it myself just remember take your time!

The FOSHOS Game 4

TEAM FOSHOS CHRONICLE:

WINNER, WINNER CHICKEN DINNER!...............

FOSHOS WIN 4-1!

It was a game for confidence, it was a game to show no mercy against an inferior team, and the FOSHOS didn’t disappoint! Again the FOSHOS had trouble securing subs for the men with 2 no shows in game 4 but the men who showed took the field for iron man and played great. I went to get a cup of hot chocolate when the ball was started, figuring I had time since the FOSHOS are slow starters and need time to warm up. What a mistake that was on this night. When I returned I found the scoreboard already 1-nothing in favor of the FOSHOS due from a very quick goal scored by the “Dean of Mean” Chris. It was finally a great start for the FOSHOS. It was a short lived lead however from and partially deflected knuckle ball and a gift from god kick from a Perfectly Imperfect forward that found the upper corner of the net. There was nothing the FOSHOS defenders could do but watch. Being stung by their own mantra “rather be lucky than good any day” the FOSHOS were now tied with Perfectly Imperfect 1-1. Not to be outdone the FOSHOS shook off that miracle goal and started to take over the game. The defenders for the FOSHOS could have taken a nap from all the offense the FOSHOS were able to produce. It wasn’t 5 minutes later body sacrificer extraordinaire Emily “Like a Rock“ took a pass/shot from 30 yards out that bounced and snuck its way into the back of the net through a couple defenders it was a nice goal, and her first of the season! And just like that the FOSHOS took the lead 2-1 and never looked back. 5 minutes before the half Wes “Showtime” dribbled the ball into the offensive zone. Defender upon defender tried to impede his direct streak towards the net but Wes was not to be out done and dribbled around each defender as if they were 4 year olds and took the ball un-assisted all the way to the house. The rest of the FOSHOS look on and wonder what got into the wiry scorer, they had to look no further than the end line where Wes’s current flame sat watching, adding to the motivation of Wes to put on a good show for his lady friend. The FOSHOS then went into halftime up 3-1 and looking for more. No real strategy talk, just keep up the pressure and keep pouring on the pain, the second half should be fireworks!

Right from the get go of the second half Perfectly Imperfect decided they wanted to play rough and started hacking and playing a little dirty which usually shows a lack of skill. The FOSHOS realized it was going to be that type of game and played with them as well. This did not play to the FOSHOS strong suit however since they actually posses skill, and many times were caught beating several defenders one on one only to get stuffed by the final defender in their way. Both teams played back in forth in this type of game play no one really putting scoring opportunities together. With good defense by manager Kellough and Mel “Sultress of Sticking It” who consistently stuck her foot into an onrushing opponent and made them look foolish by taking the ball away, the offense got going for the FOSHOS and the heat was on. Half way through the second half the FOSHOS started passing more and the offense began to come easier to them getting a lot more scoring chances that way. The Solid midfielders Marko ”Super Sub” and Lauren “Always Smiling” played great transition soccer though the midfield and kept the ball flowing towards the net and coming back on “D” when needed. About 8 minutes before the end of the game a quick shot taken by manager Kellough got unintentionally blocked by the backside of a back to defender and was deflected right to the feet of Wes who quickly blasted it into the net putting the FOSHOS on top 4-1. The game would finish that way after a few flagrant fouls against Stephanie “Tougher Than You” and manager Kellough by Perfectly Imperfect, obviously frustrated by the beat down they were receiving they started hacking even more and taking cheap shots. Luckily the game ended shortly after and no one was kicked out of the game. The final word was delivered by FOSHOS with a 4-1 smack down.

The always succinct Emily had this to say after the game “I scored, woo hoo! Uh….we won! That’s it”

Strong words from a strong player……

It was a great game and the FOSHOS again showed they can score and have great defense, they need to stick with their type of soccer no matter what the opponent does. If the opponent wants to be cheap and play dirty then the FOSHOS should maintain focus and keep the passing strong and hit them where it hurts……. on the scoreboard. Till next time……………..

The FOSHOS Game 3

TEAM FOSHOS CHRONICLE:

OK IT WAS A GOOD TIE!...............

FOSHOS TIE 1-1!
Stephanie scored goal 2 minutes after half


Oh it was a tough game against Manhattan united, they are a good team with passing and setup plays. The FOSHOS undaunted by the opposition held their ground and played all out and had ample opportunities to win the game, as did Manhattan united. It was a tough first half he FOSHOS barely scraping enough players together to take the field. Emily “I work waaayyyy too much to be late for a 9PM game” showed up after the first 5 minutes or so to give the FOSHOS at least 1 sub. The game started off slow by both teams basically passing the ball back and forth in the midfield. Manhattan united scored and a good goal from a header from one of their girls it was a good goal, but tough to swallow for the FOSHOS. 14 minutes into their third game of the season the FOSHOS were trailing an opponent for the first time this season. The FOSHOS finished the half strong not allowing Manhattan united to build on their momentum with solid defense by Rick “Bionic Man” and Mel “The Baroness of Ball Blocking." Play was solid in the first half For the FOSHOS but they really needed to step up the pressure in the second to come back.

The second half began fast paced, just how the FOSHOS like it, and the FOSHOS were looking to tie the game quickly. 2 minutes into the second half Stephanie “The Sniper” blasted a shot about 25 feet away and blew it past the Manhattan united defender. And just that quickly the game was tied 1-1, but no time to celebrate now there was a lot of time left and the FOSHOS were looking to win not to tie. The FOSHOS kept the pressure high with the play of solid midfielders Manager Kellough, Emily, and Chris “I like when people golf slowly in front of me” who kept the ball moving through the field and had their hands full with the rushing Manhattan united team. Manhattan united was rushing their whole team forward not defending their goal from long shots, manager Kellough rallied the FOSHOS an told them to start taking some long shots because Man U wasn’t playing defense. The FOSHOS had some great shots by Lauren “I’m cold when its 75” and manager Kellough even managed to put a shot off the cross bar, but no shots made it home. The wiry Wes had some good opportunities as well and played great but the net seemed to shrink as the game went on as the shots never seemed to find the net. It was a great second half by the FOSHOS and ended in a bit of controversy, as a 2 on 1 rush from manager Kellough and west was shanked by Kellough even though the Man U defender blatantly slide tackled in the box which should have been an automatic goal. Manager Kellough was very upset with himself for not burying that ball in the back of the net. That was how the game would end in a 1-1 tie and a solid game by the FOSHOS. Manager Kellough was pleased with the team but not necessarily with the refereeing, however next time will try and limit the amount of opposing the ref to the really blatant fouls. But to put it bluntly the ref sucked a big one.

It was a great game and the FOSHOS again showed they can shoot and have great defense, they need to continue to put the ball on net they will find it easy to score and will be a dominant team in this league. No one was available for comment this week but I overheard Wes telling the team some improvements to make for next time. We’ll see if the team implores a new strategy next week against an inferior opponent. It should be a fun game next week and hopefully see the scoreboard lit up for the FOSHOS next week it will be interesting one way or another. Till next time……………..

Pandiculation!

pandiculation \pan-dik-yuh-LEY-shuhn\, noun:an instinctive stretching, as on awakening or while yawning

"Pandiculate for Health! Grow Tall! Get Well! Be Young!" Exuberant ads like this, running in health-fad magazines since 1914, have proclaimed the virtues of a spine-stretching device called the "Pandiculator."-- Time, 1942-04-12

by 1611 from French pandiculation from Latin pandiculari "to stretch oneself" and French suffix -ion.

Its weird when cool words have simple meanings, and me personally i have to wonder why in the hell we came up with words like this. I think a lot of the "unique" and "unusual" science and language come from smart people being to stubborn to admit they are wrong or are making things up all together. Like this word for example, way long ago two latin dudes were chillin and one dude didn't get enough sleep the night before. so he goes to yawn and simply do the whole stretchy yawning prowess of a lion, and the other latin dude must have been like "hmmm why must you pandiculari." and so the tired latin dude goes "what the hell did you just call me?" and the smart latin dude was like what you just performed pandiculari. not knowing how to react and being kinda of tired (obviously) he just let it go and the word stuck and now has evolved to our pandiculation. must have been cool living in days where you can just make up words and people bought it, now they just look at you funny and call you stupid.......trust me.

Another example to backup my case, this time in science. i had thought of this when i first learned about but then a comedian also brought it to public attention was the male seahorse carries the baby and gives birth! the only animal in the universe that i know of that the male carries the baby and gives birth... what a load of horse puckey! you know damn well that's a stubborn biologist way back in the day when seahorse were discovered and saw one and was like "yup that's the male sea horse, what a beautiful animal." and his partner said "dude it just gave birth." stunned yet not wanting to admit he was wrong he said "oh in seahorse species the male has the baby." jimminy christmas i say!

i think this happens a lot and i am tempted to find something i can make up and people will go with it, whether it be something discovered, or a word. hmmm maybe i just snacklecracked my knuckles it certainly felt instinctive.........till next time.............

The FOSHOS Game 2

Every monday i send out a gametime reminder with a little chronicle for my weekly soccer team the FOSHOS. The name comes from a japanese restaraunt we frequent called Osho's. Its like a response when asked "hey you want to go to Osho's today?" and i reply "FOSHO"...stupid i know but it makes me chuckle so shut it!

Anyways i'll post the chronicle up here so anyone who cares can check it out, last names have been removed to protect the innocent.

TEAM FOSHOS CHRONICLE:

THE WIN THAT NEVER WAS…………

FOSHOS TIE 1-1!

Finally the FOSHOS took the field and had a real game, with a real team to play, it was an exciting night for all involved. This time the FOSHOS showed up with enough players for 1 sub for each gender, although expected 2 subs for the males. Manager Brian Kellough was quoted as saying “sure would be nice to finally meet this Travis guy.” But its was too late to worry about who wasn’t there and get to work with who was there! The starters took the field with a 2-3-2 position as called for by manager Kellough, and with one forward rotation of the ball the game was on! Much like the last game it was a slow start for the FOSHOS feeling out the competition and getting warmed up. The FOSHOS, without their speedy forward the wiry Wes, initially had trouble getting the ball near the crease for some easy scoring opportunities. The first 5 minutes were pretty much back and forth without either team really putting together a nice scoring drive. After that though the FOSHOS realized it was time to start for real, and began booting the ball down field, the forwards began carrying the ball more and passing their way towards the net and in and instance the game was changed. At about 11 minutes in Stephanie “Countess of Kicking” put the FOSHOS in the lead with her second goal of the season from right in front of the net! The FOSHOS went wild having scored their first REAL goal of the season; high fives flew like confetti at Times Square on New Years Eve. And again after the first goal the scoring opportunities seemed to come at ease for the FOSHSO. Seems the FOSHOS need to see a ball go in the net before they start playing, Manager Kellough thinks its because most of them are engineers, and probably require a proof of concept before they actually believe the ball fits in the net and they can score, dang engineers! Either way the FOSHOS now have a 1-0 lead. But it was short lived, it wasn’t 3 minutes later the other team answered, mainly due to a rare lapse in defense on the FOSHOS part which gave the MB Scraps an easy scoring opportunity and they took full advantage. 2 minutes before the half the FOSHOS had a perfect scoring opportunity, a beautiful give and go between the sub Marko “the whiz kid” and manager Kellough, but the MB scraps defender came sliding in at the last minute to kick the ball away. To the dismay of manager Kellough the Referee missed a big call there and by all means that should have been a goal, after a short protest to no avail play was back on. Bllllllrrrtttt the whistle blew and it was half time, the game was tied 1-1 and the FOSHOS faced their first real test of the season to see what their gonads were made of. Manager Kellough rallied the troops, after returning from retrieving his ball that was kicked over the fence on a foul worthy slide tackle from MB Scraps, noticing it a bit peculiar that the MB Scraps always having a defender in the box even though they would bring all 7 into the offensive zone. AH-HA! The MB Scraps had been substituting people in form the goal line while someone would step off from the other end of the field! Those sneaky besteds! So having noticed this, the FOSHSO were going to do the same moving their subs to behind their own goal.

The second half began fast paced, just how the FOSHOS like it, and the FOSHOS dominated the half the ball only occasionally made it into their defensive end. The FOSHOS kept the pressure high with the play of solid midfielders Vlad “the crazy man” and Chris “I love to run hard” who kept the ball moving through the field and snuffed any opposing force with ease. Rick” my knee is busted but I can still play just fine” also was a big part of the mid field dominance. The FOSHOS had some beautiful scoring opportunities, but couldn’t find the back of the net. Shots rang out from the feet of the FOSHOS players coming from all angles and all parts of the offensive zone. Shots were flying like machine gun fire, yet none of them made it to their target. IF this game could have been won on shots on goal the FOSHOS would have destroyed the other team 800-5 but alas it is not decided that way and the game ended in a 1-1 tie. Lauren “I’m not mean” played solidly at midfield and forward as did Mel “The Duchess of Defense” and Emily “playing for the right team” playing mainly defense. Fantastically just like the last game the defense of the FOSHOS was almost impermeable, shows the great skill that is sitting back for the FOSHOS. The defense is a great back up and manager Kellough might try and push more forward next game to get more shots on net, and hopefully put some in this time. It was a great first “real” game and the FOSHOS again showed they can shoot and have great defense, if they continue to put the ball on net they will fin it easy to score and will be a dominant team in this league. Interviewing the always unpretentious Tilton after the game, he had this to say:

Chris: “man what did we have like 800 shots on goal?”
Me: “that’s…… exactly right Chris, wow. How do you feel?”
Chris: “I feel tired man, it was a tough game, and we played great just couldn’t find the back of the net tonight.”
Me: “did you know the game could end in a tie?”
Chris: “Heck yeah I did, I ain’t no Donovan Mcnabb! What a stupid question…..What kind of question is that?”
Me: “sorry… are you happy with the tie?”
Chris: “The tie is alright, sure beats a loss, but no it’s not as good as a win, but for now we’ll take it.”
Me: “what do you think the FOSHOS can improve on for next game?”
Chris“I think we should keep doing what we are doing and put the ball on net, the goals will come. We are still knocking off rust our accuracy will only improve.”
Me: “Thanks Chris”
Chris: “I just want to say one more thing; I want to thank all mighty god for giving me these skills, and thanks all my teammates for playing hard, and to keep pushing. We will find a way to win together, let’s keep passing and playing like a team and the W’s will follow!”

It was the win that never was today but tomorrow could be the win that is (? Ha ha ha ha) if the FOSHOS keep playing the way their playing. Next time with their leading goal scorer wiry Wes back and a full set of subs they will only be better, so the other teams in the league should watch out, the FOSHOS are now pissed and looking for redemption! Till next time……………..

The FOSHOS Game 1

TEAM FOSHOS CHRONICLE:

FOSHOS WIN 3-0! (Technically 8-0, but they forfeited)

Immediately after the FOSHOS took the field with excitement they quickly had secured a “W” in the game by Aragon City forfeiting the game immediately dues to lack of female players. (They must have had a premonition to the beat down they were about to receive anyways). Looking to kick the ball around and knock off the rust from many of us having been sitting on the shelf for a while, they played the match by allowing the referee to play for them and the FOSHOS own Emily graciously volunteering to play for the other team (won’t hold it against you!). So the game was set, it was an iron man competition, no subs for either side!

The game began slowly the FOSHOS running around and feeling out the competition, not trying to do too much, and get back into feeling the ball at the feet. It took about 5-6 minutes for the FOSHOS to warm up enough to knock some of the rust off and begin playing like a team of veterans, and then it was beautiful to watch. The ball started flying downfield, the forwards making good cuts to the goal, passing from the defense was becoming increasingly solid and accurate, yet the ball refused to go in the back of the net. About 8 minutes in midfielder and manager Brian Kellough turning on a pass from the defense snapped a quick shot towards the goal, shooting from just past midfield on a prayer, and by the grace of god it made it to the netting! Kellough was quoted as saying “I’d rather be lucky then good any day!” and just like that the FOSHOS were on the board with their first goal of the season! Soon there after the initial goal the scoring floodgates opened up with 2 quick goals from the “Wiry” Wes, and Chris “The Titan” showing why the manager had chosen them for the team. Next up Stephanie “I’m like dynamite (small but powerful)” gets her first goal of the season burying a great shot right in front of the net and like that the game was in hand 4-0, Aragon City was broken and pretty much the FOSHOS took over the game. Wes added 4 more goals intermittently throughout the game, just peppering shots at will using his speed to create separation from the defenders. Lauren “The Queen of Mean” played solidly at midfield not taking any crap from anyone. At one point, with the ball in her possession, she strongly held her ground on an incoming rush from an Aragon City midfielder sending him ass over tea kettle to the ground, leaving him thinking twice about coming back for round two. Great looking shot on this woman, look for Lauren to be on the scoreboard soon! The defense didn’t go unnoticed either with solid play from Mel “The Duchess of Defense“ and sub of the night Kevin “The Baron of Blocking”. Mel consistently attacking Aragon City forwards as they entered into her side of the field. Tenaciously standing her ground not fooled by their weak moves and, like stealing candy from a baby, constantly removing the ball from their possession and clearing it up field. Kevin played solid at stopper not allowing an uncontested shot all night sticking his foot in the way of every ball kicked his direction. With Mel and Kevin in the defense Aragon City had no chance of getting close to the net and that solid defense is what allowed the FOSHOS offense to stay forward and pummel the net of the opposing team. Emily “cool nickname when she plays for FOSHOS“ played solidly for the other team even though, to the stupidity of the other team they definitely under utilized her skills rarely sending a ball in her direction. She looked aggressive and during the game, not caring if they were on her real team or not, sent both Kellough and Chris to the ground on separate occasions with her fearless no guts no glory attitude always putting her body on the line for the ball, it will be great having that for the FOSHSO next time around!

It was a good starter game for the FOSHOS they looked great on offense and stingy on defense making them a team to be reckoned with. The FOSHOS played a great game to a final score of 8-0 burying Aragon City in the dirt to the extreme delight of their manager Brian Kellough. The always opinioned Kellough had this to say after the game “We played great tonight, I hope we keep the passing up, look for open people, and keep taking shots on net and taking advantage of the opportunities we are given. Everyone did great and as long as we keep working together, we’ll dominate a lot of the teams in this league! Should be a fun season!” Next time with a full compliment of players and subs they will only get better, so the other teams in the league should watch out, the FOSHOS are for real. Till next time……………..

Starting My Blog

Well the time has come and I have lots of thing to say I will try and keep this updated best I can. I don't write that well and I talk fast so try and keep up!

see you soon