getting to pitching temp in the summer

[grainman]

I want to brew this summer, but it gets so hot here it`s hard for me to get down to 65 degrees with just my IC which also has a secondary coil so I was thinking about getting it down to about 75 deg or so with the chiller then transferring to my fermenter....then go the rest of the way in my temp controlled fermentation chamber before pitching. Has anyone done this method successfully without the beer getting infected?

[siwelwerd]

Yes. It takes a while though. I think you're best off chilling it down with tap water through your IC, then recirculating ice water to get it to pitching temp. I picked up a drill pump at Lowe's for $7 to do this, or you can search E-bay for a deal.

[grainman]

Yes. It takes a while though. I think you're best off chilling it down with tap water through your IC, then recirculating ice water to get it to pitching temp. I picked up a drill pump at Lowe's for $7 to do this, or you can search E-bay for a deal.

can you get it down to 65 degrees that way on a 90 degree day?how long does it take and how much ice do you need?

[siwelwerd]

The speed is going to be almost entirely dependent on your chiller. Larger diameter (hence more surface area) will do it faster. I think you'd be okay with a bag or two of ice. Chill it down to about 80 with your tap water, then I'd guess a half hour of ice water recirc would have you at pitching temps no problems. As compared to hours with the fridge. You can do the fridge as long as you're patient and are good about sanitization.

[grainman]

The speed is going to be almost entirely dependent on your chiller. Larger diameter (hence more surface area) will do it faster. I think you'd be okay with a bag or two of ice. Chill it down to about 80 with your tap water, then I'd guess a half hour of ice water recirc would have you at pitching temps no problems. As compared to hours with the fridge. You can do the fridge as long as you're patient and are good about sanitization.

Excellent! I'm gonna go with the pump / ice water recirc method. Thanks... The cost of 2 bags of ice and a 25 dollar pump is well worth it to be able to brew all summer.