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Can I whirlpool with hop stopper 2.0?

 
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chronomancer




Joined: 23 Jan 2017
Posts: 3
Location: Oregon


PostLink    Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2018 8:41 pm    Post subject: Can I whirlpool with hop stopper 2.0? Reply with quote


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Hi!

I have a fairly standard Electric Brewery setup with 20gal SS Brewtech kettles, the original hop stopper, and a chillzilla CFC. I really like my hop stopper but my chiller leaves much to be desired. I have to run my water at full speed and my beer at a trickle to get it to come out around 80F. I even opted to add an inline ground water chiller using an old immersion chiller and a bucket of ice, to no avail. I use TONS of water and, being frugal and wanting to save water, I plan on adding a whirlpool port to my kettle and running my wort faster to better utilize my cooling water. To do this I would have to forgo the use of my original hop stopper because it will clog with the cold break. Also, I like to use whole hops and would have to switch to pellets to avoid clogging my pump.

Can I switch to the hop stopper 2.0, add a whirlpool port to recirculate while chilling, and continue to use whole hops? (Of course, less than the recommended 1GPM)

I like my process, which derived mostly from this site, and I am reluctant to change much. This solution, if it worked, would make my workflow the same or better, and save some water and a little time.

Let me know what you think.

-Chrono
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TheUpsideDownDog




Joined: 27 Nov 2018
Posts: 5
Location: Connecticut

Drinking: Grapefruit IPA, Coffee Stout

Working on: Kolsch, Berlinerweisse


PostLink    Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2018 12:02 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

You could recirculate through an ice bath rather than flow water nonstop. It’ll get the temp down much quicker too. I find three bags of ice with water recirculated in a five gallon bucket gets five gallons of wort down to pitching temp in one pass through my counterflow chiller.
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chronomancer




Joined: 23 Jan 2017
Posts: 3
Location: Oregon


PostLink    Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2018 5:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

That's not a bad idea. I brew 10 gallons at a time, so unless I start freezing my own ice, that would be an additional 12 bucks or so per batch. With my groundwater pre-chiller my water gets down pretty cold already, 35-38F. Even with water that cold my chiller is still largely ineffective at such a slow transfer speed. The water comes out pretty cool still. The chillzilla needs a fair amount of speed so the convolutions in the inner coil can help with heat exchange.

I currently have the water side hard plumbed so I don't have to mess with setting it up every time. If I end up being able to whirlpool and get rid of my groundwater pre-chiller I may look into using a recirc method with ice.

Does anyone out there have any experience whirlpooling with the new hop stopper 2.0?
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kal
Forum Administrator



Joined: 12 Dec 2010
Posts: 11116
Location: Ottawa, Canada

Drinking: Pub Ale, Electric Creamsicle, Mild, Pliny the Younger, Belgian Dark Strong, Weizen, Russian Imperial Stout, Black Butte Porter


PostLink    Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2018 5:22 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi and welcome to the forum!

chronomancer wrote:
I have a chillzilla CFC. I have to run my water at full speed and my beer at a trickle to get it to come out around 80F.

What's the temperature of the chilling water? Are you sure you're passing the water and wort in opposite directions through your CFC? 80F sounds really high given your location. EDIT: Missed your 35-38F comment with the pre-chiller. With water that cold you should be able to chill your wort single pass into the mid to high 40's at a fairly quick pace. So something is definitely not right with the chiller. Before making any changes to your setup to account for your poor chilling, I'd fix the problems at the source.

I've also asked the Hop Stopper manufacturer to chime in here as well as they have the most experience with the product of course - stay tuned!

Kal

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Last edited by kal on Thu Dec 20, 2018 7:45 pm; edited 1 time in total
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ihomebrewsolutions




Joined: 09 Apr 2015
Posts: 19
Location: Knoxville, TN


PostLink    Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2018 7:38 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Dennis Collins here from Innovative Homebrew Solutions, manufacturer of the Hop Stopper. The thing that really puzzles me here is that your counterflow chiller is so ineffective. I have seen this brand of chiller in action before and thought it to be a pretty good one. Virtually any chiller (certainly a commercially made one) should be able to flow wort at a brisk pace with 38 F chill water. In my own brewery, I have a homemade CFC (3/8" copper inside a garden hose, about 30 ft) and our groundwater here in Knoxville gets to about 50 F in the winter. Under these conditions my water flow is barely above a trickle to keep from overchilling and it comes out steaming hot. In short, I think there is something wrong with your chiller.

With this in mind, I think your chiller is the real problem and would recommend not building a new process around something that doesn't work very well. I would seriously think about replacing the chiller. The Therminator works very well along with other various plate type chillers. In any event, I would refrain from implementing a whirlpool if you can help it. The whirlpool takes extra time and does put an extra strain on the Hop Stopper. The Hop Stopper 2.0 is certainly better suited for a set-up like you are proposing, but I think you can stay with a single pass (especially now with winter ground water temps) and a simpler process with a better chiller.

As Kal mentioned, it might be worth verifying that it is plumbed right. Something is amiss...

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chronomancer




Joined: 23 Jan 2017
Posts: 3
Location: Oregon


PostLink    Posted: Thu Dec 20, 2018 10:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Thanks for the responses! I just double checked my configuration and I have the water in the outside coil flowing bottom to top, and the beer in the inside coil flowing top to bottom. It certainly does chill the beer, just not nearly enough. Looks like I'll see about getting something else for a chilling solution. It's too bad I've had this thing for too long to return it. Maybe I'll reach out to the manufacturer to see what they may be able to do for me.

I have a thermometer tee'd into the beer output. Maybe I'll make sure that thing is reading the correct temperature on the output. I'm pretty sure I verified that a long time ago. I think I would have realized by now if I were overchilling.

I still may pick up the new hop stopper, as I like the idea of not slowing down at the end.

Thanks a bunch! I'll update the thread as I make the changes.
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kal
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Joined: 12 Dec 2010
Posts: 11116
Location: Ottawa, Canada

Drinking: Pub Ale, Electric Creamsicle, Mild, Pliny the Younger, Belgian Dark Strong, Weizen, Russian Imperial Stout, Black Butte Porter


PostLink    Posted: Fri Dec 21, 2018 12:51 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Can you post some pictures of your Chillzilla CFC?

Kal

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kal
Forum Administrator



Joined: 12 Dec 2010
Posts: 11116
Location: Ottawa, Canada

Drinking: Pub Ale, Electric Creamsicle, Mild, Pliny the Younger, Belgian Dark Strong, Weizen, Russian Imperial Stout, Black Butte Porter


PostLink    Posted: Mon Mar 29, 2021 9:18 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I get asked all the time about whirlpooling or more specifically why I don't do it so I wrote a guide that you may find helpful:

https://shop.theelectricbrewery.com/pages/the-case-against-whirlpooling

Cheers!

Kal

_________________
Our new shop with over 150 new products: shop.TheElectricBrewery.com
We ship worldwide and support our products and customers for life.
Purchasing through our affiliate links helps support our site at no extra cost to you. We thank you!
My basement/bar/brewery build 2.0
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View user's photo album (21 photos)
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