IBU Utilization adjustment for immersion chiller

[brian0123321]

It would be great to have hop utilization adjusted with your equipment profile. I have noticed that when choosing hops below 15 minutes the utilization is lower than the whirlpool standard of 10%. Since I run an immersion chiller and typically have flame-out hops, the flame out has a higher contribution to IBU.

I would love to see the immersion chiller tied to an increased IBU utilization to coincide with whirlpool/flameout additions

 

[Yooper]

That's not really related to the type of chilling, but more so the chilling time. Some folks can chill really fast with an immersion chiller, depending on the ground water temperature or if they use a prechiller for the water.

 

[brian0123321]

That's not really related to the type of chilling, but more so the chilling time. Some folks can chill really fast with an immersion chiller, depending on the ground water temperature or if they use a prechiller for the water.

Makes perfect sense. I guess what I meant was to have an option that can adjust for cooling length. Thanks for the correction.

 

[Yooper]

Makes perfect sense. I guess what I meant was to have an option that can adjust for cooling length. Thanks for the correction.

I agree- but that's a tough one. Isomerization happens at a different rate at, say, 200 degrees vs 160 degrees and so it would be very difficult to make a calculation that would work for everyone. My chiller chills fast to 180 degrees, then a bit slower to 160 degrees, then it's like a snail. So even if we had a calculator to say it took 20 minutes to chill, it wouldn't be all that accurate due to the differences. I wonder if your beers are coming out with more bitterness than you expected if you would find it better to add them as "whirlpool" hops and put in the time and utilization factor that you're experiencing.

 

[brian0123321]

I agree- but that's a tough one. Isomerization happens at a different rate at, say, 200 degrees vs 160 degrees and so it would be very difficult to make a calculation that would work for everyone. My chiller chills fast to 180 degrees, then a bit slower to 160 degrees, then it's like a snail. So even if we had a calculator to say it took 20 minutes to chill, it wouldn't be all that accurate due to the differences. I wonder if your beers are coming out with more bitterness than you expected if you would find it better to add them as "whirlpool" hops and put in the time and utilization factor that you're experiencing.

You are very wise! That is an excellent idea, thank you!

 

[jeffpn]

My chiller chills fast to 180 degrees, then a bit slower to 160 degrees, then it's like a snail

My immersion chillier chills a 5 gallon batch to 140° in under a minute. In the winter, I can get it to 70° in about 3 1/2 minutes. I normally set the timer for 5 minutes to get there.