Maxi 110 for Wort cooling?

[TheSumOfAllBeers]

There are ways to connect the maxi cooler so that the cooler is cooling independent of coolant circulation.

[guypettigrew]

Thanks for all the replies, but still unsure if a Maxi would be any good for me. The noise and the extra box are not a problem.

I now understand it can recirculate.

The SS Brewtech temperature control system pumps cold water through a cooling coil in the FV. The cold water is held in a cool box. The sensor/control box with the SS system keeps the fermenting beer within better than +/-1C of the set temperature.

The problem is the water in the cool box is kept cold by me adding frozen bottles of water. Which means I have about ten bottles of water in the cool box and another ten waiting in the freezer for when a change over is needed. Not a major problem, I know, but I'd like to move to a more automated system.

What I'd want is for the Maxi to keep the water in the cool box at about 2C. The pump and sensor etc which come with the SS chronical temperature control system would then pump the cold water through the cooling coil inside the FV. As the water warms up the Maxi would cool it down again--or would it?

Does the Maxi have thermostatic control to keep the recirculated water at about 2C?

Pumping cold water from the Maxi into the coil in the chronical would be complicated.

Rob (Malt Miller) is about to get in the upgrade kit for the chronical which will give heating and cooling control using a heat pad and the cooling coil fed from a cold bath. I want to find some way of keeping the cold bath at about 2C so it doesn't need constant maintenance. I already have the basic SS temperature control system.

Hope this makes some sort of sense.

Thanks.

Guy

[barneey]

Fitting an STC or similar as a thermostat will give you full control over the maxi.

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=60518&hilit=maxi+radiator

Buy Maxi, buy a couple of STC's, a radiator heater, make a coil, rewire a few bits in the cooler, job done.

[Aleman]

You can wire the Chronical Cooling system directly into the python recirc of the Maxi and do away with the cool box completely.

If I had gone for the SSTS for my chronical that is what I would have done, - I have a maxi 310

[Kev888]

Guy, the maxi coolers combine fridge/freezer innards with a small bath of water; they automatically keep this water-bath cold, in fact with a bank of ice around the edges of it - the bath is therefore near freezing. So this bath can replace your cool box and remove the need to add ice manually. The bigger the maxi (110, 210, 310) the bigger the bath - and the bigger and noisier the maxi.

'Some' maxis (but not all) have a recirculation pump that is normally used to recirculate the cold water around python lines (and those fonts you see with condensation on). This recirculation can be used to pump the cold water around your fermenter's immersion coil instead. Maxis without recirculation can still be used, but you need to sort out a way of pumping the water yourself.

Though of course for a fermenter you need some temperature control. Many people use an stc1000 (or similar) to control when the recirculation pump (or potentially your own pump in the cool bath) operates, with a small amount of electrical hacking. I don't have the SS system but I'd guess it may have a similar control capability - currently used for your cool box pump.

It is additionally possible to replace the maxi's in-built cool-bath thermostat with an stc (or similar) if you wish to control how cool the bath itself gets. That is usually just a refinement but may be needed - for example if you wanted to achieve lower temperatures than iced water normally reaches with the use of (non-poisonous) antifreeze measures. It has been used to prevent the cool-bath over-icing if the in-built recirculation pumps are stopped, but again antifreeze potions seems an easier solution to that.

[TheSumOfAllBeers]

You can wire the Chronical Cooling system directly into the python recirc of the Maxi and do away with the cool box completely.

^ this is what I mean.

There is an alternative way of rigging up the maxi to the Chronical - run the cooling systems lines through the beer lines of the maxi rather than the python coil.

You keep your current pump etc. And just leave the maxi unattended to maintain its water bath at 0C.

The advantage of this, is that your temp controller is not cycling the power to the maxi cooler, which does not like being turned on and off rapidly.

[Aleman]

The maxi's python pump is wired into the FTSS controller instead of the FTSS pump.

You leave the maxi compressor to do its own thing Un modified, it is a minor rewire to split the python from the incoming mains on the maxi.

If The maxi is without a python then the FTSS pump goes in the reservoir.

[guypettigrew]

Very many thanks to all of you, especially Kev888.

I now have a much better understanding of what a Maxi cooler is and how it works. The next step for me is to buy one and get to grips with using it.

There's this one for sale, refurbished, 12 month guarantee at what seems a reasonable price. It has the recirculation pump so seems to fit the bill. Does it? Should I buy it?

Thanks again.

Guy

[TheSumOfAllBeers]

Maxi coolers are mighty things. You are buying one to automate your temp regulation, but you will find that their cooling power will give you extra options:

- rapidly take your cooling wort down the final few degrees down to pitching temp ie from say 27 -> 17.

- lager

- remove chill haze easily

[Kev888]

Guy, the maxi cooler you linked to sounds suitable, although I can't comment on value for factory reconditioned ones as I've only bought used from private ebay sellers before. Usually the latter go for around say £60 to £80 and some have worked fine, though it must also be said that they've been in very variable condition - a couple needed new thermostats even to work at all.
So it depends what their factory reconditioning includes as to the value, really.