Beer Forum

As mentioned in the past, I live in a condo. I have NO outdoor hose hookups to borrow for chilling, and I'm nervous about fiddling with my cheap-ass faucet too much (like removing the faucet screen to put on a hose adapter) because I don't want to have to replace it. My last brew (my first all-grain) was only 3 gallons, and I got it from 203f (boiling temp at my altitude) down to 72f in about 30 minutes via an ice/cold water bath and vigorous stirring with a sanitized spoon. Is there a better option than buying and/or storing up ice to use in an ice bath without spending $100+ on an immersion chiller and a pump to run iced water through the chiller? I know my options may be limited, but I'd like to keep the cost under $40, if possible. And craigslist hasn't been very helpful.

I'm open to suggestions, and I know I may have to pry open my wallet a bit more, but I want to keep the expenses down a bit so I can afford to brew

Bite the bullet and get yourself a chiller.
During the winter, I use the sprayer attatchment from my kitchen faucet.
I take the sprayer off by removing a simple cotter pin. Then, I put hard tubing into the hose. After that I hook up the other end of the hose to the "in" side of my chiller. Works like a charm!

snowcapt wrote:Bite the bullet and get yourself a chiller.
I take the sprayer off by removing a simple cotter pin.

I'll take a look at my sprayer, but I don't know if it's that sophisticated. I got one of those $80 faucets to replace a broken one, and it came with an extremely cheap (shiny plastic) sprayer. I like the idea, though! Is there possibly a way to connect a hose to my bathtub faucet? Or just some kind of tight rubber connection that I can "stick" to the sink faucet?

you will definitely be able to remove the sprayer- no matter how cheap it is. They are made to be installed and uninstalled easily.
It may not be a cotterpin, but there will be a way to get it apart and it shouldnt be difficult at all. Takes me all of about 30 seconds to accomplish.
As far as your tub or sink, I couldnt tell ya.

Not only do I have a cheap ass faucet, I'm pretty sure it's from the same era as my harvest gold stove. I've had a hose adapter on mine since I moved into this place 4-5 years ago. If you're not beating the hell out of it, I don't see how you could break anything. I'm not even all that careful with mine. My adapter has hose threads at the top & regular threads at the bottom, so I've never pulled it off since the day I put it in & still can hook up stuff like a Pur water filter or whatever. 5 minutes for about $5. That's almost as cheap as Spidey.

Keep the batch sizes 3 gallons or less, and just use a cold water bath. You don't need to use ice. I've been brewing for 14 years and I do not own a chiller. I would only get one if I wanted to brew 5-6 gallon batches on a regular basis. But I don't. Another thing you could try -- split your batch into two buckets and do 2 cold water baths instead of just one. Problem solved. You just need two tubs or sinks in your abode. Shouldn't be too hard to find.

dmtaylor wrote:Keep the batch sizes 3 gallons or less, and just use a cold water bath. You don't need to use ice. I've been brewing for 14 years and I do not own a chiller. I would only get one if I wanted to brew 5-6 gallon batches on a regular basis. But I don't. Another thing you could try -- split your batch into two buckets and do 2 cold water baths instead of just one. Problem solved. You just need two tubs or sinks in your abode. Shouldn't be too hard to find.

I definitely have two tubs! And since I live in a condo that won't let me use propane burners on my deck (fire code) or in the "common" areas (HOA regulations), I'm "stuck" with 3 gallon batches. Which is actually nice. I get about 28-30 bottles for $12-$18 in ingredients, depending on the recipe. A case and a six-pack for the cost of a Dogfish Head four-pack? Yes please!

GilesTH wrote:I definitely have two tubs! And since I live in a condo that won't let me use propane burners on my deck (fire code) or in the "common" areas (HOA regulations), I'm "stuck" with 3 gallon batches. Which is actually nice. I get about 28-30 bottles for $12-$18 in ingredients, depending on the recipe. A case and a six-pack for the cost of a Dogfish Head four-pack? Yes please!

Hank Hill would be so ashamed of this establishment.