DIY glycol chiller for winemaking

[E.E.B.]

Hi everyone, very exided to post my firs thread here!
I make wine from fresh grapes here in Israel already a few years. as one of the most important thing in winemaking is the fermentation temperature I'm looking for methods to chill the must/wine. till now i used AC in the room + frozen bottles i putt in the fermenting wine as necessary.
I saw many posts from home brewers (mostly from the US) about DIY glycol chiller made of window AC, a cooler, circulation pump etc. i think this can be an amazing idea for winemaking too, and you can use it for cold soak, cold stabilization and of course, for a better control on fermentation temperatures. did anyone ever worked with such a thing in winemaking?

L'chaim!

 

[winemaker81]

Welcome to WMT!

I don't have any ideas regarding a chiller, but you may be able to use dry ice, if that is available to you.

 

[E.E.B.]

Welcome to WMT!

I don't have any ideas regarding a chiller, but you may be able to use dry ice, if that is available to you.

Thank you for response!

The idea with a glycol chiller is that it enables you to automate the temperature control as you connect a temperature controller to a pump or to an electrical valve to start/stop the glycol flow based on the wine temperature.
I don't need dry ice (which is actually less available for me) to do that manually - i use frozen bottles and a an AC in the room, i don't ferment more than 50 kg at once so it's okay.

 

[winemaker81]

I'm thinking in terms of you not being able to make a chiller.

I did a quick search and there are plans online. Here's one:

https://homebrewacademy.com/diy-glycol-chiller/

 

[vinny]

I was just looking at these the other day. There are plans online, but it seemed like a complicated solution to a simple problem to me. What does 50 KG of grapes turn into for volume?

The simplest and most efficient solutions I have seen is either building your own box and cooling it or using an old fridge or freezer. There is a member here who insulated a homemade cabinet. I would say 8 foot tall, a couple feet deep, and 6 feet wide, and he uses an air conditioner unit to keep it in the preferred temp ranges. He can ferment or store his wine in it.

If you are only worried about fermentation temperatures you could use an old fridge or freezer with a temp controller to keep a steady temperature during fermentation. This is as simple as it gets and what I am planning to do for beer. My controller just arrived today. You just plug your fridge/freezer into the plug, set the on and of temps and put the probe inside. It cycles the power as needed.

There are other options similar to what you are thinking with cycling the glycol through the must. I saw someone used a water cooler and cycled the water with a pump. Again, the temp controlller could control the pump if you want automated. The don't care what they turn on.

Other folks have made small boxes made out of rigid insulation and used 12 volt car coolers to keep the air chilled. It really depends on what amount you are dealing with, but for small (6 gallons + or -) batches there is very little cooling required in a small space and making a dedicated fermenting cabinet seems to be the most efficient.

 

[vinny]

Here is the big version... Ac unit in the top left corner.


Some smaller ideas

And because you are keeping temps well above refrigeration you can use a small fridge and build on to it to store more in your cabinet. The fridge is sideways and he blu are is built from insulation to expand the storage area. The options are only really limited by ones imagination.

 

[winemaker81]

What does 50 KG of grapes turn into for volume?

50 kg / 110 lbs will produce roughly 6 US gallons / 23 liters. A refrigerator will work.

 

[vinny]

50 kg / 110 lbs will produce roughly 6 US gallons / 23 liters. A refrigerator will work.

That's what I thought. I don't think there is an easier option for small batches.

You can also wire up your own if you need 220. There are lots of different types of controllers.

 

[winemaker81]

The simplest and most efficient solutions I have seen is either building your own box and cooling it or using an old fridge or freezer.

A lot will depend on how much space @E.E.B. has. If he's in an apartment, it may be "not much".

Personally, I'd go with larger than smaller, since we all know carboys breed like rabbits. The number of folks who said, "I have 1 carboy" and then report "I have a dozen carboys" later on is legion. But space and resources can be strict limitations.

 

[vinny]

A lot will depend on how much space @E.E.B. has. If he's in an apartment, it may be "not much".

Personally, I'd go with larger than smaller, since we all know carboys breed like rabbits. The number of folks who said, "I have 1 carboy" and then report "I have a dozen carboys" later on is legion. But space and resources can be strict limitations.

I have one more space under my desk, and a spot beside it now that I have a guitar rack in the living room. Where there is a will, there is a way!

This is where making it becomes the best option. You can put the carboy on insulation and place your box over top if you are really limited. This is where the 12 car coolers come in handy as they aren't much more than a fan.

 

[ratflinger]

What temps are we talking about here?

 

[E.E.B.]

What temps are we talking about here?

Depends on the process - 0-degree Celsius for white wine cold stabilization, 5-8 degrees for red wine pre-fermentation cold soak, 10-15 degrees for white wine fermentation, and 25-30 degrees for red wine fermentation.

 

[E.E.B.]

50 kg / 110 lbs will produce roughly 6 US gallons / 23 liters. A refrigerator will work.

I'm talking about 50 kg of red must (including the skins), that is, about 50 liters.

 

[winemaker81]

I'm talking about 50 kg of red must (including the skins), that is, about 50 liters.

My figure is for finished wine, although your point is taken that you need room for a fermenter, which is (obviously) larger.

How much space do you have for this? Dave (@vinny) is the poster child for "efficient use of space" so tips for that may assist you.