cpankonien
Member
I recently completed my electric biab setup. I've brewed two 10 gallon batches with it, and thought it might be worth sharing. I used the following:
electric brewpot:
15.5 gal Bayou Classic brewpot with basket (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FTEQBK/ref=oh_details_o06_s00_i00)
4500w element (https://www.highgravitybrew.com/productcart/pc/Heating-Element-4500-Watt-SS-306p2514.htm)
ball valve (forget where I got it)
Electric Kettle Controller (https://www.highgravitybrew.com/productcart/pc/Electric-Kettle-Controller-306p3084.htm)
I've done two 10 gallon batches so far, and while they've both been excellent, I would do one thing differently if I was to start over...
Get the bigger (20.5) gallon Bayou Classic pot with basket!
With my current pot, I start with 12 gallons of water, heat that to mash temp.
Add 23 lbs. crushed grains (this fills the pot to the top).
Mash for 60 minutes.
Use winch to raise basket, drain.
Swap basket for vent fan (on winch cable).
Add 4 gallons of water, bring to boil; the rest of the process (hopping, etc)
is as usual.
So I'd rather be able to start with all required water, but since I just drilled holes in my 15 gal pot, it'll be a while before I can justify buying a new 20 gal. pot with basket.
My biggest issue right now is efficiency. Using beersmith, I've calculated that my efficiency is quite low, around 56%. Doing some googling last night, I've realised that I should probably sparge out at 170F for 10 minutes or so, that should help. I'll do that next time.
Also not sure what effect the amount of water vs. amount of grains plays on this. If I had a 20 gal pot, that would be less of an issue (if it's an issue at all).
aux equipment:
220v 30 amp gfci breaker
exhaust fan (got it from a neighbor)
1500lb capacity 12v winch
here's a link to some pictures on google+ of the brew process
https://plus.google.com/photos/107033810631239832896/albums/5734361461503656785
and same on facebook
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.3117310575828.2123274.1356402553&type=1
Observations:
The vent fan has a 6" outlet; since I had an existing 4" line to a dryer vent, I got a 6" to 4" reducer so that I could use that...BAD IDEA! Seems to be enough back pressure that a lot of moisture accumulates on the fan and housing. Going to get rid of the 4" reducer and use 6" hose to a new vent, probably replacing one pain of the basement window with a vent of some sort.
The winch is almost essential. I did a few 10 gallon batches using pretty much the same setup, only fired by propane. 23 pounds of soaking-wet grain is heavy! I had a rope/pulley setup before, but it was difficult to keep the pot at the right height and tie it off at the same time.
If it's not obvious from the photos, I park the vent fan on the table while mashing (it has a carabiner attached to the mount to make switching between basket and vent fan easier). When done mashing, I hoist the basket to the proper level with the winch. When done draining, I park the basket in a big stainless steel bowl to drain a bit more (I only got about a quart last time). I then hoist the vent fan up on the winch and start the boil. (I have a spare bathroom vent fan I was going to use, permanently mounted next to the winch, but I quickly realised there was way too much moisture from the boiling wort for that to vent effectively; also the moisture would still hit the winch during the one hour boil, and I wanted to avoid that).
The electric kettle controller works great, couldn't be happier. Flip the switch, turn the knob, done. Very easy to control boil.
If I do get a 20 gallon pot, I'll also get a 5500 watt element.
I also do no-chill, by the way...
Comments or questions welcome!
electric brewpot:
15.5 gal Bayou Classic brewpot with basket (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000FTEQBK/ref=oh_details_o06_s00_i00)
4500w element (https://www.highgravitybrew.com/productcart/pc/Heating-Element-4500-Watt-SS-306p2514.htm)
ball valve (forget where I got it)
Electric Kettle Controller (https://www.highgravitybrew.com/productcart/pc/Electric-Kettle-Controller-306p3084.htm)
I've done two 10 gallon batches so far, and while they've both been excellent, I would do one thing differently if I was to start over...
Get the bigger (20.5) gallon Bayou Classic pot with basket!
With my current pot, I start with 12 gallons of water, heat that to mash temp.
Add 23 lbs. crushed grains (this fills the pot to the top).
Mash for 60 minutes.
Use winch to raise basket, drain.
Swap basket for vent fan (on winch cable).
Add 4 gallons of water, bring to boil; the rest of the process (hopping, etc)
is as usual.
So I'd rather be able to start with all required water, but since I just drilled holes in my 15 gal pot, it'll be a while before I can justify buying a new 20 gal. pot with basket.
My biggest issue right now is efficiency. Using beersmith, I've calculated that my efficiency is quite low, around 56%. Doing some googling last night, I've realised that I should probably sparge out at 170F for 10 minutes or so, that should help. I'll do that next time.
Also not sure what effect the amount of water vs. amount of grains plays on this. If I had a 20 gal pot, that would be less of an issue (if it's an issue at all).
aux equipment:
220v 30 amp gfci breaker
exhaust fan (got it from a neighbor)
1500lb capacity 12v winch
here's a link to some pictures on google+ of the brew process
https://plus.google.com/photos/107033810631239832896/albums/5734361461503656785
and same on facebook
http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.3117310575828.2123274.1356402553&type=1
Observations:
The vent fan has a 6" outlet; since I had an existing 4" line to a dryer vent, I got a 6" to 4" reducer so that I could use that...BAD IDEA! Seems to be enough back pressure that a lot of moisture accumulates on the fan and housing. Going to get rid of the 4" reducer and use 6" hose to a new vent, probably replacing one pain of the basement window with a vent of some sort.
The winch is almost essential. I did a few 10 gallon batches using pretty much the same setup, only fired by propane. 23 pounds of soaking-wet grain is heavy! I had a rope/pulley setup before, but it was difficult to keep the pot at the right height and tie it off at the same time.
If it's not obvious from the photos, I park the vent fan on the table while mashing (it has a carabiner attached to the mount to make switching between basket and vent fan easier). When done mashing, I hoist the basket to the proper level with the winch. When done draining, I park the basket in a big stainless steel bowl to drain a bit more (I only got about a quart last time). I then hoist the vent fan up on the winch and start the boil. (I have a spare bathroom vent fan I was going to use, permanently mounted next to the winch, but I quickly realised there was way too much moisture from the boiling wort for that to vent effectively; also the moisture would still hit the winch during the one hour boil, and I wanted to avoid that).
The electric kettle controller works great, couldn't be happier. Flip the switch, turn the knob, done. Very easy to control boil.
If I do get a 20 gallon pot, I'll also get a 5500 watt element.
I also do no-chill, by the way...
Comments or questions welcome!
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