Keeping the boil

Will a 2000wt ULD element keep 5 and 10 gallon batches at a boil?

I don't think so. You probably need about 3000-3500w to maintain a good boil.

Thanks. I did finally find that on here.

I'm doing an extract e-kettle for 5 and 10 gallon batches based on a 15.5 gallon keg. I'm using 1.5" Tri-Clamp fittings throughout the rig for sanitation and future modifications. I've looked over your build in the past days and am impressed.

I'm planning on meeting with the welder Monday morning. I was thinking of two element ports; one being 220 and the other being 110, but am now seeing the 110 is not going to keep a boil. Would you recommend staying with the two element ports and plan on running two 220 elements to get the boil on 10 gallons in a reasonable time, or just go with one 220 port? I can also cap a port off too.

Thanks for anymore feedback. Ron

I use two 2000 watt elements to establish the boil, then cut back to one element. Every now and then, I power up the second element for a few minutes to keep a jumping boil.

That is with up to about 12 gallons in the keggle.

So far, in my keggle, I have 2 5500w 240Vac. I turn them on full power and can boil 15 gallons from 70deg in about 35 minutes. I have it wired so that I can turn either element on, off, or have them wired in series. So possible powers are 11000w, 5500w, or 2750w.

I've found that I can keep a fairly good boil at 15 gallons with just 2750, but if need be I can bump it up to 5500, but I've found that doing that tends to make big enough bubles to splash out of the top of my keg.

Very well. Thanks gents...I'm going with two ports on the keg for elements and will get a big enough GFI to power two 220 elements. Going to the welder Mon morning. I've been collecting the hardware for years and am very excited to see the project moving forward. Ron

Hey Ron, 2 elements should get you heating pretty quick . Might want to take the elements with you to the welder so he can ensure they don't hit each other in the kettle. I suppose you could also bend them if you need to. Sounds like it's going to be really cool .

I'll do that. They will bend as well but too much and they do break. Found that out a couple of days ago. I'll put some pics up soon. Ron

Finally got the build back from the welder. He did an awesome job and only charged $100 for the service. This is the #1 micro welder in the area so $100 is very cheap. Here are the pictures. I still have a ways to go but budget constraints are putting the project on hold for the immediate future. Ron

Here is the link:

http://idisk.mac.com/mslmkllr//Public/TheKeggelator