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should 3 BBL SS fermenters be insulated if i have an immersion chiller??

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  • should 3 BBL SS fermenters be insulated if i have an immersion chiller??

    Ok, here's the situation. I am going to have 3 BBL SS fermenters that will be cooled by a glycol system. the fermenters will not be jacketed. Instead, there will be a SS coil submerged in each ferementer that will be feed glycol by the system and temp controlled by an STC-1000. The local company that is building my fermenters for me included an insulation kit on the quote. This insulation kit is basically a thick, heat resistant covering that goes around the outside of the fermenter, similar to what you would see on some mash tuns. However, I am not sure this is a good idea. Yeast create heat when they ferment and I'm not sure trapping that heat in is a good thing. It seems like the glycol system would have to work that much harder to lower the temp. I do realize that once temp has been reached and the yeast have slowed a bit the insulation would make it easier to hold steady temps, but is that really enough to make up for the beginning? Generally it is advisable to let temp raise slightly throughout fermentation.

    Any ideas? Anyone here have insulation on their Fermentors, and if so, why?

    Thanks
    Last edited by amcclai7; 01-21-2015, 05:39 AM.

  • #2
    Also, its going to cost $300 per fermentor to install so unless I see compelling reasons I am going to omit it.

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    • #3
      Fermentation temps are going to be controlled by the glycol so why worry about excess heat during fermentation? if anything take the cover off during fermentation and put it on before you cold crash. Unless the ambient temps in your brewery are like 40°F (doubtful for TN), you will be losing so much energy though your FV's when you are conditioning that you will wish you would have shelled out $300 for the insulation. There are some basic energy calculations you can do to figure out exactly how much energy you will be losing and if it was worth it or not. Maybe an engineer would be kind enough to chime in?

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