Got my BIAB setup, need advice !! (plug in wire gets hot)

Hey guys, i didnt find anything on google so here it goes



First time i plugged in my new brew pot with 2x2200w elements, the plug in wire got so hot it melted, i figured out later it was a cheap wire that obviously couldnt hold the power.

However, when connecting a standart PSU cable (PC power cable) it doesnt melt but it gets hot after a while, is that normal ?

Im no expert and to be honest never paid attention if wires in general got hot, after the first one melted (the thin, cheap one) im to paranoied to try for a longer time, but i've mananged to get the water boiling at 5L mark
Any advice guys ?
Is it normal for the wires to get hot ?

Ingvaroo said:

Hey guys, i didnt find anything on google so here it goes

First time i plugged in my new brew pot with 2x2200w elements, the plug in wire got so hot it melted, i figured out later it was a cheap wire that obviously couldnt hold the power.

However, when connecting a standart PSU cable (PC power cable) it doesnt melt but it gets hot after a while, is that normal ?

Im no expert and to be honest never paid attention if wires in general got hot, after the first one melted (the thin, cheap one) im to paranoied to try for a longer time, but i've mananged to get the water boiling at 5L mark
Any advice guys ?
Is it normal for the wires to get hot ?

Click to expand...

Ummm with that much wattage your really need a 240v outlet. Standard 120 won't push enough power for that size heating element.

Im in Iceland, all outlets are 240v (or 220v? either one)

Ingvaroo said:

Im in Iceland, all outlets are 240v

Click to expand...

Nice! Ok in that case ignore my previous comment and get the biggest thickest plug you can. Most computer PSUs don't pull down the juice that a heating element of that size will bigger is better.

Draken said:

Nice! Ok in that case ignore my previous comment and get the biggest thickest plug you can. Most computer PSUs don't pull down the juice that a heating element of that size will bigger is better.

Click to expand...

Yeah some recommend a wire that is 1.5q and all i could find was 1.0q and that one gets a bit hot, just lukewarm, am i being paranoid ?

Anyone that can help ?

So you are powering both elements from 1 power wire?
If that is the case, you need to be able to safely account for 4500 watts of power, which at 240 is 19 amps or so.
This puts you at 9 AWG, which is a 3mm wire diameter (for EACH conductor).
I don't know about Iceland, but here in the US, 9 gauge wire is kind of rare, I'd size up to 8 gauge (which is 3.3mm diameter per conductor), or maybe even 6 gauge for additional safety.

That's a pretty big cable, but you're pushing a lot of juice. Better to be safe than sorry.

No im using 2 diffrent outlets for each element, i tested earlier now both elements on 10L water, got good boil, both wires got luke warm or so (little above) but that might be normal ?

Ingvaroo said:

No im using 2 diffrent outlets for each element, i tested earlier now both elements on 10L water, got good boil, both wires got luke warm or so (little above) but that might be normal ?

Click to expand...

Ideally, they won't get warm at all. They might be a little too small. A minimum size would be 16 gauge wire, better would be 14 or 12 gauge.

Where do i see that number ? i only see 1.0q on them

Not to mention, that these are elements from a water heating kettle (for noodles and such) and i have one here at home, on the wire on that kettle it sais 0.75q
So the wires im using are bigger than from factory.

Something worth noting is that I believe Iceland operates on a 240 volt 50hz single wire, with a neutral and an earth ground. Not like our 240 volt 60hz with two 120 volt legs.

Ingvaroo said:

Where do i see that number ? i only see 1.0q on them

Not to mention, that these are elements from a water heating kettle (for noodles and such) and i have one here at home, on the wire on that kettle it sais 0.75q
So the wires im using are bigger than from factory.

Click to expand...

There is probably some sort of voltage regulation on the heating kettle.

Draken said:

There is probably some sort of voltage regulation on the heating kettle.

Click to expand...

No... its exacly the same piece i have in my brew kettle...

No diffrence at all