CFC chiller advice

[Jon]

Hey all, I use the Grainfather with its included CFC chiller, which works pretty well--my issue is I don't know what's the most efficient vs fastest way to use it. Should I run the pump full blast and adjust the cold water flow to be fast as well?

Should I slow the pump down using the ball valve, and run the water slower for maximum contact time and maximum cooling? Maybe a mix?

To further complicate matters, my tap water is right around 80*, so I have to pre-chill in a bucket of ice water (that I chill in the kegerator overnight or during the brew) and dump the icemaker into the cold water--so ideally, I need to get the whole batch chilled before the ice melts!

Ideally, I'd like to chill as quickly as possible, with water usage being a secondary concern.

[ScrewyBrewer]

@Jon what I do with my CFC is to get the temperature of the wort down as low as the tap water temperature will allow, then put the fermentor in the chest freezer to cool it down the rest of the way. Doing this saves me on water and from having to use ice. The extra hour it takes the wort to cool to pitching temperature is used for cleaning things up a bit while waiting.

[Dawg LB Steve]

Still trying to dial in mine but have found 1/4 open on ball valve at pump and slow on water to maximize colder water contact. Can get 10 g cooled to 70 in about 20 minutes.

[Jon]

Ok, I guess I'll continue to experiment and see what I can figure out. I've only chilled 2 batches with the grainfather's CFC, so it's really too early to judge. The pump on the GF is good, but not a super high flow rate (for what it does, it doesn't need to be) and it can definitely get slowed down by hops and other trub clogging the intake filter...so I suppose it will vary from batch to batch.

I'll see what kind of cooling I can get with it wide open on my next batch...probably the weekend after next.