Automatic temp control Mash Tun

Hey guys,
I saw this like a month ago. A homemade mash tun that had a heating element in it with a thermostat hooked up to it with a 10 gal cooler to automatically control the mash temp. Does anyone know where to find this project. I really want to make one tomorrow.

This was constructed from a 5 or 10 gallon picnic cooler. Can someone please help me find the "how to" page on it?

Sticking a heating element directly into the mash sounds like a pretty bad idea to me, unless it's a very low-density element and you're stirring constantly and you're only using it for very small temperature changes (ie - maintaining a temp reached with infusion)...

Are you so sure you want to make one if you don't even remember the details?

I wouldn't do it either. IMHO, temp adjustments of a mash using electric would be best handled by an external heat exchanger and by pumping the mash through it.

I started my voyage with AG and electrics in the mash tun. For a 5 gallon batch with a simple grain bill and lots of stirring, you can make small temp adjustments with the element in the cooler. Going to larger batches or any recipes with wheat or oats in them will cause localized boiling at the element, scorching and a burnt element.

If you want to use electrics, you'll need to go with a pump and an external tube to put your element in for heating. This is where I ended up. I just realized this is a RIMS design.

While I like my electric system, I am realizing that for step mashes and mash out's, a gas system that directly heats the MLT will work better. Here is why.

When applying heat to the bottom of the MLT, you measure the temp of the liquid coming out from under the false bottom, your controller keeps this liquid from exceeding your set temp and puts the warmed liquid on top of the grain bed at the same time, some of this heat is radiating up through the grain bed from the bottom. This causes the total body of the mash to warm quite fast.

When using an electrically heated heat exchanger, you are limited to only putting wort at the set temp on top of the grain bed and waiting for it to get down through the grain. The speed at which you recirculate has a huge affect on how fast the mash heats.

So for me, I have decided to use the electrics to reach strike temp and maintain mash temps but for step mashes I use beer smith and boiling water.

As always your experience may vary from mine.

Linc

I use steam heat and am very happy with it. Check out Fly Guy's thread.

I have heard that you CAN scortch the grains. However, many say that this is hard to do if you just stir the grains minimally. Also, I was going to do it just to my 5 gal mashout cooler so there would be no wort in it just the 185 degree water for the mashout. Can someone point me in the right dirrection. I have been looking for 2 hours last night and can not find it. Basically I just need to see what fittings they used to mount the heating element to the cooler. I think I remember them making a big washer for the element out of metal and using sylicone.

All I can remember is that this setup had a black box with red LED temp readouts. And it was a push button system. I think the person even milled there logo into the box. Can someone please help me find this project?

Sounds like a lot of work and money if you're only going to use it for mash out... IMO, it's a whole lot easier to just mash out with boiling water, then you need a smaller quantity and you also don't have any trouble hitting exactly the right temp.

Or did you mean to say sparge water?

It is not difficult to mount a hot water heater element into a container. They come with a rubber gasket, and you can go to the electrical conduit section of home depot (or wherever) and get a 1" threaded locknut (which is a match for the heating element threads). Drill a hole, stick the element through, throw on the gasket, and crank down the locknut. Smear the whole deal with silicone before and after mounting for an even better seal. In a cooler, you'll probably want to cut away the outer wall and insulation around the area so you're bolting the element into only the inner wall.

With that said, like any electric water heating project used in brewing, it is NOT a great thing to tackle if you are not experienced enough with electrical safety. A couple thousand watts of electrical power, plus lots of heat in close vicinity to plastic, plus DIY mounting and seals being the only thing keeping water from reaching your DIY wiring, all adds up to a pretty dangerous combination if you don't do things correctly. No matter what you do, don't even CONSIDER skipping the use of a GFCI. I have no idea what your actual skill level is, but just take this as a disclaimer regardless.

I have built a heating element stick for my boiling of the wart and know how to properly wire and insulate from water. However, I do agree with you putting that disclaimer and advice with your response of a mini "HOW TO." As you could have prevented at least one person from burning down their house.
But still if anyone knows what DIY I am talking about please speak up. It might not have been on this website. It was a badass build, and I cant get it out of my head.

I use a 1500 watt element in my sparge tank. When mounting the element I used the mounting kit that is right next to the elements at Home Depot. $5.98 I think and then 4 stainless bolts with nuts. I used one of the nuts to ground the green wire I siliconed everything to make sure it didn't leak. Now that I've done a few of these, I think 1" threaded PVC coupling inside the cooler would be easier, but then it is harder to ground the green wire. On a 5 gallon batch, it heats the sparge water very quickly and there is about a 10 degree difference from the top to the bottom if I don't stir.

PM me if you want more info or step by step directions.

Linc