Author: Malcolm Frazer

As far as innovative homebrewing equipment goes, Ss Brewtech has been on the cutting edge for years, providing high quality stainless steel kettles, mash tuns, and fermentation vessels that are within most homebrewers’ reach. As manufacturers of professional brewing equipment as well, Ss Brewtech has struck a nice middle-ground with their higher end quasi-pro equipment, an area they really seem to shine.

Over the last few years, I’ve had the pleasure of using the Brewmaster Edition Chronical, an impressively tricked-out conical fermentor that’s essentially a small version of what a professional might use. As great as the unit is, its size puts a hamper on the ability to control fermentation temperature– it just doesn’t fit in typical refrigerator and chest freezer chambers. Being concerned with consistency and predictability, particularly when brewing exBEERiment beers, precise temperature control is important to me. I initially rigged up a convoluted system that pumped ice water through the coil in my Chronical, which worked quite well for ales, though it became unwieldy when fermenting 2 beers at the same time. It was also difficult to effectively ferment lagers at traditionally cool temperatures and cold crash.

After chatting with the folks from Ss Brewtech about chilling options, they offered to send me their new (at the time) Ss Glycol Chiller to use in exchange for an honest review. They explained it could be used to independently control the temperature for up to 4 fermenting beers at the same time and that it was powerful enough to effectively cold crash without any other form of chilling. Having previously used a glycol chiller that I’d built myself and ultimately ended up getting rid of, I was curious to see how this much nicer version would compare.



The product reviewed for this article was provided by the manufacturer in exchange for an honest review; no other compensation was provided. The opinions expressed in the article are solely those of the author and a concerted effort was made to approach the review from an unbiased perspective.

A simple explanation of how the Ss Glycol Chiller works– it has a self-contained refrigeration unit that keeps glycol stored in a reservoir at a consistent 28°F/-2°C. When the temperature of the beer gets too warm as measured by a controller, a pump turns on and sends cold glycol through the coils submersed in the beer in the fermentor. Once the beer drops back down to below the set-point, the pump turns off.

Assembly

Unfortunately, the delivery company had their way with my package and it arrived with some necessary parts broken. As expected, Ss Brewtech was quick to remedy the issue, and once the replacement parts arrived, I proceeded with what little assembly was required.

It’s not necessarily a tiny unit, but for what it does, I feel it has a reasonable footprint at 20″ W x 20″ D x 15″ H (51 cm x 51 cm x 38 cm), which integrates nicely into my homebrewery.

Usage & Build Quality

Based on my experience with the BME Chronicals, it’s obvious Ss Brewtech cares about quality, and they certainly proved as much with the Ss Glycol Chiller. With so many parts, I’ll provide a more detailed overview of the various components and connections of the chiller in this section.

The chiller relies on a 1/3 horsepower Tecumseh compressor to provide 2300 BTU per hour cooling capacity, which maintains an ample supply of consistently cold glycol.

A solution of 1/3 propylene glycol and 2/3 water is placed in the 3 gallon reservoir and kept cold by a copper refrigerant line. Small pumps submersed in the glycol get independently activated when the temperature sensor in the particular beer they’re controlling indicates it’s warmer than desired.

A simple to use controller is used to regulate the temperature of the glycol solution that can be controlled to whatever temperature the user desires.

The reservoir cover has 4 plastic output ports on the right side, each one connected to a separate pump by tubing on the underside, as well as 4 brass ports on the left side that receives the used and thus warmer glycol solution, completing the closed loop.

I’m not sure why Ss went with plastic on one side and metal on the other, as outfitting the entire thing with metal barbs would improve durability. In fact, one of the broken pieces when I received the unit was a plastic barb, though I haven’t had any issues since repairing it.

A length of tubing extends from the out port to the chilling coil input on the fermentation vessel then more tubing is used to connect the chilling coil output to the return port on the chiller.

With everything connected, all that’s left to do is set one’s desired temperature on the controller regulating the beer, which for me is the Ss Brewtech FTSs, and the Ss Glycol Chiller will handle the rest.

Performance

Using the Ss Glycol Chiller in conjunction with the SS Brewtech FTSs, my fermenting beers consistently stay within 1°F/0.5°C of my desired temperature, regardless of whether I’m making a warm fermented ale or cool fermented lager. When the beer temperature gets too warm and the sensor triggers the glycol pump, it takes all of 1-2 minutes to chill it back down to where it needs to be.

In addition to maintaining fermentation temperature, there are some other things I use this unit for, such as chilling wort to pitching temperature. In the summer when my groundwater is warm, I’ll use the chiller to finish what my immersion chiller couldn’t. On many occasions, I’ve racked 90°F/32°C wort from my kettle to my fermentation vessel then used the glycol to chill it to 68°F/20°C in as little as 5 minutes. For lagers, another 5-10 minutes is all that’s necessary to bring the temperature down to 50°F/10°C. It’s pretty incredible. Actually, with the confidence I’ve gained in the system, I sometimes pitch when the wort is still warm, set my desired fermentation temperature, and walk away. Dangerous, I know. I am dangerous.

Of course, the glycol chiller also works great for post-fermentation lagering and cold crashing, reducing the beer from fermentation temperatures as warm as 68°F/20°C to 32°F/0°C in as little as 15 minutes, a far cry from the 2+ hours it takes in chest freezer chambers. And beers can be held at lager temperatures for as long as the brewer wishes prior to packaging, meaning it’s clear and all-but-carbonated when it comes time to package.

Ss Glycol Chiller Hacks

I like to be able to move my fermentation vessels around for cleaning and such, which was a bit of a hassle since the tubing to and from the glycol chiller was attached with hose clamps. My cheap yet effective solution to this was to install plastic quick disconnects between all tubing connecting the chiller to the fermentation vessel.

One option some people opt to do is wrap all of the tubing running between the chiller and fermentation vessel with foam insulation to reduce warming when the pump is running. This is particularly helpful when the chilling unit is farther away from the fermentor and requires longer supply lines, though with my current setup, I haven’t had to insulate and the chiller works great.

The insulation also helps keep the condensation formed during chilling from dripping off the tubes and forming puddles, which can lead to corrosion. It’s for this reason that I will be adding insulation soon.

| THE VERDICT |

My experience with the Ss Glycol Chiller over the last year has been nothing short of fantastic. In addition to its ease of use, reasonable footprint, sleek look, it reliably maintains fermentation temperature better than any other method I’ve used in my 20 years of homebrewing. While chest freezers and refrigerators work well for single batches, one of the most appealing things about the Ss Glycol Chiller is that it allows for fermentation of up to 4 batches at the same time at completely different temperatures– I can be make a Hefeweizen next to a Kölsch!

As with anything, there are certainly some drawbacks to this unit, the most obvious of which is cost. At $1,099.00, the Ss Glycol Chiller isn’t intended for the new brewer trying to figure out if the hobby is for them– this is a serious piece of equipment for serious brewers interested in upping their fermentation game. Another downside to this unit is that it is specifically designed to work seamlessly with Ss Brewtech FTSs compatible fermentation vessels, and while there are ways to retrofit it to work with other fermentors, the process can be a hassle and reduces much of the convenience. My last complaint is minor and has to due with the plastic glycol out ports, which are more susceptible to breaking than the brass input ports. I doubt I’ll end up ever breaking one, as I keep my chiller safely stored, but metal for all of the nozzles seems an easy way to reduce the risk such issues.

Overall, the Ss Glycol Chiller has met all of my cooling system demands– it’s reliable, requires little in the way of maintenance, and it works exactly as it’s supposed to. Yeah, it’s expensive, but I consider valuable the fact it allows me to independently control 4 fermentors at the same time, something no freezer or refrigerator chamber can do. It’s also small enough to fit on the bottom of my brew cart, freeing up the space taken up by other larger chambers. For the hardcore brewer who shares my obsession with precision and consistency, especially those already using Ss Brewtech fermentation vessels, the Ss Glycol Chiller is sure to be hit!

The Ss Brewtech Glycol Chiller can be purchased direct from the manufacturer.

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