German Brewing

I have been trying to figure out a way to get from boiling down to sub pitch temps, but I can't seem to get there. I currently have a SS immersion 50 foot immersion chiller and a 50 foot copper Counter flow, and I can seem to get it down.

I think my next batch I am going to try using the immersion chiller as a prechiller for the counterflow, using ice to get it down pretty far.

I doubt a pre chiller will work. You'll most likely have to pump ice water through whatever chiller you decide to use.

I couldn't hit cold temps either this weekend. I just went ahead and pitched the yeast and let it ride down in the fermentation chamber because I was more concerned about oxygen uptake than off flavors. Hope it turns out OK.

I recirculate ice water through a counterflow chiller. Last time I accidentally chilled it down to just below 40.

I live in MN I just use groundwater

Anybody try adding epsom salt to their ice water?

Another thought. You could use dry ice + acetone. Should be able to get a nice, frosty -108F combining the two, and both are readily available at local stores. You should be able to reuse the acetone after the dry ice sublimates and just buy new dry ice for brew day.

I got a corney chiller from eBay who can chill a liquid from 15 down to 5 Celsius. This one is connected to the cooling coil inside the fermenter and I do the last bit this way. It's ok to spend some time chilling it down, but leaving it Overnight is a bad idea. I presume you could achieve similar results with a stainless steel immersion chiller.

Initially I recirculate the wort back into the boil kettle and then let it run into the fermenter once one of my probes tells me that the wort leaving the HE is at the same temp as the ground water.

It doesn't make sense wasiting chilled water for the higher
Temps. I'd only use it once the wort is at ground water temperature.

If you want to get really hysterical about it, then you can add a little bit of yeast as antioxidant once the wort is at 10C in the fermenter. But that's probably overkill.

Hope this helps