Tonight I had to throw out a batch of beer...wort actually. I was cooling the brewpot half-full of wort in the bathtub ( I do this when I'm not in a hurry). Well, I left the water running and wandered off. When I realized my mistake, I came running in to see the pot floating sideways (with the lid still on, strangely enough), now full of wort and bath water. This was my first decoction, too. I guess it wasn't meant to be. I would love to hear any other brewing travesties, it might make me feel better.

i have burnt my hands on the brew kettle after too many samples of the previous batch. At least you didnt get hurt.
Time for an immersion chiller!!

Over Labor Day weekend I have a somesort similar tradedy.

It was a beautiful sunny day and the stout I was making looked and smelled wonderful.

I got to the point of cooling the wort. As the water flows through the chiller I generally used to hot water exiting to clean equipment. Things were going find until I hear the sound of water splashing behind me. The kettle was filled with water and the diluted wort was splashing onto the deck.

I lifted the chiller only to find water pouring out of the coils in two spots.

I was seriously bummed.

Now after having time to come to terms with my loss I can say that it was a nice day to be outside and I had a good time brewing. I'm still bummed but that's besides the point.

Perhaps the last time I brewed there was still a little water in the chiller and it froze. However, I've been doing the same thing for over ten years and this has never happened before. Of course, the chiller fairly old. I believe my wife got it for my birthday in 1995 so maybe it was a combination of age and ice formation.

At any rate, I too will am looking for a replacement.

How many feet of copper tubing is your immersion wort chiller made from, Jeepguy? I believe the one I had was 50 feet.

At any rate, Curlyfat and Wild I definitely feel your pain.

Cheers,

Scott

I usually make them 25' but the rolls i get are 50' so i could do a 50 footer. I have seen some that split into 2 coils that look like they would chill fast. Alot more complicated to build but the idea sounds good. I imagine if your chiller was freezing that didnt help. Between being boiled & froze it could have expanded & contracted getting metal fatiuge.(like i do after a couple beers)
Maybe i need to build a portotype superchiller??

Once when I was putting my wort into the fermenter I forgot to check the tap at the bottom. It was still open and some wort managed to pour straight back out onto the kitchen floor before I noticed. I only lost a few litres, but the next day there were ants everywhere.

Misery loves company Thanks guys!