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Ideas to use available cooling on property?

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  • Ideas to use available cooling on property?

    As we begin our buildout in a couple of months, my landlord has presented me with a possibility. He has a cooling process for his manufacturing plant that is next door that will be able to provide me with 40 degree glycol cooling. My question is how would we/or could we integrate the available cooling with my glycol chiller to be able to cool the fermenters further and possibly cool the walk ins. Is this possible and would it decrease the size chiller that I would start with? Or is this something his engineer should contact the chiller manufacturer and work out.
    thanks again.

    Scott

  • #2
    LOTS of variables in this equation. What type of business is his cooling system providing cooling for and what is the nature of his setup and use of the chiller now? Will your HX be a 2 stage, glycol assist? This will be the largest single demand on the chiller, and can cause large swings in your glycol reserve temperature. Is his system a packaged chiller or modular with a remote glycol reservoir? Does his glycol need to be at 40F, or can it all run at 28F (which is where you'll want yours)?

    My first reaction is that the glycol system is basically the heart and circulatory system of your brewery. It has to work, period. I would be hesitant to do anything other than my own dedicated, properly sized system. Recommend getting the chiller manufacturer in the loop for sure.
    Last edited by TonyT; 04-05-2015, 09:08 AM.

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    • #3
      Maybe you could use his 40 degree glycol to pre-cool your return glycol before it gets to your reservoir. This would take some of the load off of your chiller but will require some additional pressure (possibly another pump) to get the return liquid through the hx. You would also need to be able to bypass this return hx when your tank temps drop below 40 otherwise you are just cooling his glycol. May not be worth the effort depending on how many tanks you have and how automated you want the process to be.

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      • #4
        Technical Details

        First things.
        You need glycol at 28-30F, not 40.
        With that said, I'm curious why this man would think he has an unthought of measure of extra capacity on his process system BTU wise that he can spare??
        Also redundant chillers are not typically valved on the line at the same time. Thay have to be isolated from each other unless ported to a common circulation well.

        What you could do with such a glycol source is use it more creatively if it is genuinely available at a usable flow rate etc.
        One example would be to cool down a reserve of chilled water held in a CLT for knockout. 40 degree glycol is perfect for chilled water application.
        In our case we chill about 500 GAL of water to be used simultaneously in a 3 circuit HX for wort cooling.

        Thats how I might use the offer of free $$ cooling.
        Warren Turner
        Industrial Engineering Technician
        HVACR-Electrical Systems Specialist
        Moab Brewery
        The Thought Police are Attempting to Suppress Free Speech and Sugar coat everything. This is both Cowardice and Treason given to their own kind.

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        • #5
          Pipe to heat x to cool wort? Or cool water in clt for heat x.

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          • #6
            Thanks for the replies. I don't know the details yet of my landlords system, I am speaking to his engineer today. It was just offered as an idea last week so I was seeing what probrewer had to say and you have given me some good questions for him. I am not a professional brewer, but will be hiring one soon who can work this out. I will have my own
            chiller, but if there is a way to save $$$$ by chilling my CLT, or pre chilling the return glycol, or even cooling something else, it is possible, and not too costly then I am going to look into it.

            thanks again,

            Scott

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            • #7
              I think using it to chill water for the CLT is a great idea, with your chiller sized to handle the load as well, if your landlord's system can't always handle the load. In the summer, chilling our CLT is a huge load on our chillers, probably half the capacity.
              Linus Hall
              Yazoo Brewing
              Nashville, TN
              www.yazoobrew.com

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              • #8
                Thanks everyone for you responses. But, if it sounds too good to be true than it probably is. Just spoke to landlords engineer and it won't work out. Your responses helped my understanding of the conversation.
                Basically it would be the same line that will provide the hot water for our ambient floor heating and wouldn't be available at all times. Next question is too see if that hot water line can heat a HLT.


                Scott

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                • #9
                  Originally posted by redlodge.sam View Post
                  Pipe to heat x to cool wort? Or cool water in clt for heat x.
                  Bingo. Use that as a glycol stage in your heat-x.

                  EDIT: Derp. Remember kids, Always Read The Thread To The End.
                  Russell Everett
                  Co-Founder / Head Brewer
                  Bainbridge Island Brewing
                  Bainbridge Island, WA

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