Best Glycol Chillers for Home Brewing Compared

Hello and welcome to Bitter Reality Brewing. Yes, you heard me right, not cheers, but chill. It’s that time. I need to step up to a glycol chiller and I need your help. This video is going to be for several people.

First, it’s going to be for me. I need your help. If you own a glycol chiller for home brewing, you’ve used a glycol chiller, you’ve owned a glycol chiller, your best friend has one and you hang out there and help him with it all the time, or you just know a lot about glycol chillers, I need your help.

Leave me a comment below which one I should buy, why I should buy it, and justify it. Keep in mind, I like to experiment, so you may have seen some of my previous videos to understand what fits my needs because what fits one person’s needs may not fit another person’s needs.

I have one out of the six glycol chillers that we’re going to talk about today that I think works for most home brewers, most, not all. And then I have a variety of different variations of that.

So, for people who don’t have a glycol chiller but have just even a remote possibility of needing a glycol chiller down the road or considering buying one down the road, or need justification why not to buy a chiller, this video might be for you. So, you might want to keep watching….

So first of all, we’re going to take care of the fermentation chambers and get them off the list very quickly. And on the glycol systems, I’ll go over the specs we’re going to talk about, and I’m going to go over the brands, and then we’ll nail the six and get them done, and which ones were my favorite. I had one that was up here, one here, one here, and now these two are tied, and this one is down here. Why?

First of all, I have a Comos Kegerator, an eight-tap Kegerator I have had since Father’s Day pretty much or just after Father’s Day of 2022. And I have been using it as a lager fermentation chamber. I have not used it as a Kegerator. It is not set up as a Kegerator.

This weekend I’m turning it into a Kegerator because, well, things around the house are getting finished and we’re going to start having lots of company over. I have seven taps there, I need four over here, and eventually, I’ll have the other four full, so I’ll have 15 taps.

Yeah, and you know, my beer is free, so yeah, 15 taps. And some of it might not be beer, but the majority, of course, will always be beer. So, I need to get moving and start changing the way I do things.

First, let’s go over fermentation chambers because I think that works a lot for most people. And I have my ale fermentation chamber that I built myself. You’ve probably seen it in my YouTube video where I did the tour, so you can see it. I’ve done previous videos showing it off, and that thing does an amazing job.

But it can’t really go much below 50 degrees Fahrenheit and maintain that temperature. So it works great for ales, not for lagers.

So I considered buying another Comos Kegerator, but just the fridge part. It’s really nice, it’s got a stainless steel plate that’s put in there to kind of protect the overall fridge. It has a fan, it blows the air really well, it keeps the air pretty consistent throughout, there’s not a lot of gradients in there as far as temperature differences, and it’s a thousand bucks. It’s expensive, it’s on wheels.

And then you have the RAPT from Kegland, the RAPT fermentation chamber, and that thing’s amazing. I have a good friend who has one and he brags about it and says that the temperature is very consistent, it doesn’t get a lot of gradients because you know, heat rises, you know, it was a concern.

The thing you don’t understand is both of those are around a thousand dollars. Freight’s going to cost you another 200 to 300 to get it delivered, so they’re really sitting about 1,250, you just put it somewhere in the middle.

And they do a great job, and you don’t end up having to buy this, this, you know, like let’s say a pharmaceutical example, or if you’re over on Anvil, you know, you get the thermal well, you got the chiller, you got, you got so many things you have to buy, and those add up.

Plus, you need a pump, you need a temperature controller. A fermentation chamber really is a good deal financially.

And yes, I will leave links to everything down below, some of them affiliate, some not. Feel free to click on them if you’re going to buy something, or if you just want to go shopping, click on them, buy something else, sometimes I get a little chump change on that too. I definitely appreciate it, thank you.

So, which glycol chillers are we looking at?

I’m looking at three. BrewBuilt, who’s BrewBuilt? BrewBuilt is under MoreFlavor, which is under MoreBeer. It’s a family of companies. Yeah, some of you out there going, MoreBeer, BrewBuilt, same company. I didn’t say that, but they’re in the family companies, they’re related somehow. I don’t know if they’re in the same warehouse or where they are, but they’re definitely related. So it’s a reputable company.

Then you have Blichmann, we all know who Blichmann is. We have Grainfather, hopefully you know who they are. And we have SS BrewTech. I know some may not know who SS BrewTech is, they’ve been around for a long time too.

They make a lot of bigger systems, they are trying to get into some of the other markets, but yeah, all of them are reputable companies, good systems that have gotten good overall reviews and have been around for a while.

So first, we’re going to jump right into the one that I think works for most people. I’m gonna go over the compressor horsepower, the BTU, the wattage, the amount of liquid, how much wattage it uses up to, of course, things like that. They’re important, all those items are very important, more than most people realize.

BrewBuilt IceMaster Max 2 Glycol Chiller

So first, we’re going to go into the BrewBuilt IceMaster Max 2 Glycol Chiller. Why do I think that’s the best deal for most people?

First of all, it’s $700. I know everybody’s going, “$700, oh my gosh!” That’s actually the cheapest one on this list. So yeah, I know I just lost a lot of people. Once I’m out of here, see you later. But $700, it includes the temperature probe, it includes the temperature monitor, and it has the pump.

So it’s pretty much got everything except for your coil and anything you need for your fermenter, whether you’re using a Crucible from Anvil, Blichmann, SS BrewTech, or anyone else, or a Brew Bucket even. Yes, you’re still going to need some sort of a jacket to keep the temperature controlled, to keep it from releasing that cold air or getting warm from outside.

You’re going to need a coil to pump the liquid through and help cool the wort or future beer. But those are additional expenses that you’ll have to spend. But you’re not going to need a pump, you’re not going to need the temperature controller, and you’re not going to need the probe because they come with it.

And that right there can cost you $60 to about $200 based on what you’re buying. It does not include wheels, just little rubber feet. You might be able to put wheels on there, I don’t know. But for me, I think that’s just a great system for most people. It is 3/8 horsepower, 500 watts, 1700 BTU, and about four and a half gallons of total liquid, that’s water and glycol blended. So it works great.

BrewBuilt IceMaster Max 4

Number two, BrewBuilt IceMaster Max 4. This one was my favorite, hands down my favorite. Once I got off knowing that you know, two might not work for me, I thought it would. Most people don’t have more than one or two things brewing.

And you know, it’s $700. But I’m kind of a good salesman, you know. I go in there, I’m like, “Hey, I just want the cheap one. I just want the cheap one.” “Oh, for a little more I can get more features.” “Ah, for a little more I can get more features.” Yeah, I sell myself and I step up all the way to the really nice ones. So I’m like my own worst enemy.

But it is what it is. And long term, I would rather spend a little bit more and get something that’s going to exceed my needs or at least meet my future needs and not meet my current needs and feel like I should have, you know, two $700 systems because I bought another system to do two more later would be a lot more expensive than buying one for maybe a grand.

So this one does sell for about a grand. It’s 3/8 horsepower, 780 watts, and 2600 BTU, and eight gallons. But just like the Max 2, it has built-in pumps, built-in temperature controllers, built-in probes. So you have everything except for what you need for your fermenter to connect to it.

So that’s a great deal. And hands down, that one really caught me by surprise with everything that it came with. Comes with wheels, and the majority of all of these come with wheels except for the first one I told you, the Max 2.

And the wheels are important for me because I like to put anything on wheels so I can start moving this around. So if I have to rearrange this room, I don’t need to get like, you know, a bunch of big dudes to come help me lift everything or me unstack everything, move it, put it all back together. Yeah, it’s not worth my time.

So I wish my fridges were on wheels, that would be really nice. But IceMaster Max 4 Glycol Chiller, hands down one of the best ones out there for the feature set. I haven’t used any of these personally, so I can’t review any of them for good, bad, indifferent. But feature-wise, comparing them, that one definitely, definitely ahead of the game.

BrewBuilt IceMaster Max 8 Glycol Chiller

Number three, sticking with BrewBuilt, we have the BrewBuilt IceMaster Max 8 Glycol Chiller. This one is a beast. It’s $1,300, so it’s a step up in price, but it’s also a step up in power. It has a 1/2 horsepower compressor, 1,000 watts, 3,400 BTU, and it can hold up to 8 gallons of liquid.

Like the Max 4, it comes with built-in pumps, temperature controllers, and probes. It also has wheels for easy movement. This one is for the serious home brewer who has multiple fermentations going on at once and needs the extra power and capacity.

Number four, we have the Blichmann Glycol Chiller 1/3HP. This one is $899.99, so it’s a bit cheaper than the Max 8, but it’s also less powerful. It has a 1/3 horsepower compressor, 1,250 watts, 2,800 BTU, and it can hold up to 4 gallons of liquid.

It comes with a built-in pump and temperature controller, but you’ll have to buy the temperature probe separately. It also doesn’t come with wheels, so you’ll have to find a permanent spot for it or add your own wheels.

Grainfather Glycol Chiller

Number five, we have the Grainfather Glycol Chiller. This one is $999.98, so it’s in the same price range as the Blichmann. It has a 1/6 horsepower compressor, 1,000 watts, 2,000 BTU, and it can hold up to 6 gallons of liquid.

It comes with a built-in pump and temperature controller, but like the Blichmann, you’ll have to buy the temperature probe separately. It also doesn’t come with wheels.

SS BrewTech Glycol Chiller 3/8 HP

Finally, number six, we have the SS BrewTech Glycol Chiller 3/8 HP. This one is the most expensive on the list at $1,099. It has a 3/8 horsepower compressor, 800 watts, 2,800 BTU, and it can hold up to 4.5 gallons of liquid.

It comes with a built-in pump and temperature controller, but you’ll have to buy the temperature probe separately. It also doesn’t come with wheels.

So, there you have it. Those are the six glycol chillers I’m considering. I hope this video has been helpful for you. If you have any experience with these chillers or have any advice for me, please leave a comment below. And don’t forget to like, subscribe, and share. Thanks for watching!

Frequently Asked Questions

Sure, here are five questions and answers based on the content:

1. What is the most affordable glycol chiller suitable for most home brewers?

The BrewBuilt IceMaster Max 2 Glycol Chiller is the most affordable option suitable for most home brewers. It costs $700 and includes a temperature probe, temperature monitor, and pump. However, it does not include a coil or anything you need for your fermenter.

2. Which glycol chiller is considered the best for its feature set?

The BrewBuilt IceMaster Max 4 Glycol Chiller is considered the best for its feature set. It costs about $1,000 and includes built-in pumps, temperature controllers, and probes. It also comes with wheels for easy movement.

3. What is the most powerful glycol chiller on the list?

The BrewBuilt IceMaster Max 8 Glycol Chiller is the most powerful option. It costs $1,300 and has a 1/2 horsepower compressor, 1,000 watts, 3,400 BTU, and can hold up to 8 gallons of liquid.

4. Which glycol chiller is the most expensive?

The SS BrewTech Glycol Chiller 3/8 HP is the most expensive on the list, costing $1,099. It has a 3/8 horsepower compressor, 800 watts, 2,800 BTU, and can hold up to 4.5 gallons of liquid.

Don’t want to foot the bill on a new one? Go ahead and DIY your own glycol chiller here.