[gray_59]

I'm here boys!  Good to see ya Robert, BB, and Dale.  Wow...even JZ posting!  So yeah, I use a post chiller in a saltwater Ice bath.  Water temp is around 70 this time of year and I got the wort down to 44 like Robert said.  The hydro sample warmed to 48, but the wort stay at 44.  The doppelbock is in the freezer at 48 and there is activity today.  Pitched a healthy WLP 833 starter (thank you Mr. Malty calc). 

[blatz]

The plate chiller will definitely use less water. . . It will also cost more to purchase. Some think a plate chiller is more prone to an internal buildup of gunk. That has not been my experience with my Therminator. I figure it is because I have a good cleanup/ back flush regimen after each use, AND I use a ring of braided SS hose on the BK wort pickup which snags the really big chunks. With Tejas water temps, I'd use your current coil as a pre-chiller in a bucket o' ice regardless! 

+1 - this is what I do, along with a post chiller for lagers.

I used a shirron PC for 70-80 batches with no issues.  recently switched to a therminator.

[pdbreen]

I think it's all been said, but I'd start by adding the pump and whirlpooling.  You're going to love having a pump around for other reasons as well.

Then, if that's not enough - look at adding a pre-chiller. 

While I love the stats for plate chillers and CFC, I love the simplicity of sterilization and cleanup of an IC.

[tom]

A Shirron is cheaper than a Chillzilla and you can buy 2 Shirrons for the price of one Therminator. So if I were living in the hot South, the ultimate chiller would be 2 Shirrons. Use the 2nd one for 2nd stage chilling with ice water (which will require a sump pump) when your ground water is too hot. Put a thermometer on the chiller output and valves on the wort output and water supply so you can dial in your wort temp.
I always backflush my plate chiller when done, then pump hot PBW through it (which I do to clean my pump and hoses anyway, so there's no extra work). Then you can soak it in a sanitizer or bake it in the oven to sterilize (see John Palmer's book How To Brew for info on time vs temp).

[bonjour]

Our club chose to purchase a CFC over a plate chiller because we felt that with many different brewers using it the ods that one would short cycle the cleaning process and cause latter issues was too high so we bought a chillzilla with a pump.  We all felt that the therminator would be more effective but the CFC was a better choice.

Fred

[narvin]

+1 to everyone who says to get a Shirron (or Therminator, if you command that high a price for gifts!) and use your current IC in a bucket of ice water to pre-chill your ground water.  I've had great results with a CFC as well, if you're concerned about the plate chiller cleaning.

[karlh]

I have been using a chillzilla and am quite happy with its performance.  Its a bit slower than the therminator, but I still get 12 gallons down to pitching temps in about 15 minutes.  I previously had a smaller ID CFC (homemade with 3/8 inch tubing) and it was much slower... closer to 30 minutes plus for 12 gallons. 

[brewboy]

I like a the slower, chilling that an IC offers. I play sitar music, meditate and reflect back on the brew session.