illin8
Well-Known Member
I've been in the planning stages of my build for almost a year now...new house last year, wife got pregnant with twins (already have a 2.5 year old), etc. has kept me from pulling the trigger but I had it all planned out. Just received my order from Auber (PID, SSR, Heatsink, RTD) and some other stuff yesterday, I should be setting mine up soon. Like I said, I have thought this through every way and backwards, I continue to come up with revisions in my head but once I research it and compare price and effort with gain I come back to the same setup. The setup will consist of an HLT (keggle) with a 5,500 watt ULWD element, a Coleman xtreme Mash tun, and a BK (keggle) with another 5,500 watt ULWD element. Power will be coming from my 30-amp, 240v dryer outlet via a 30-amp GFCI extension cord into the control box to a distribution block. The block will distribute power to the PID and SSR/3-prong receptacle. The HLT & BK will have there own heating elements connected to the control panel with 3-wire dryer cord with plug. I will manually unplug and plug whichever keggle I need into the 3-prong receptacle in the control box. The only thing I'm up in the air about is the switch to the receptacle/element. Don't know if I want to go the switch/contactor route or just get the cheap 30-amp DPST switch from Home Depot and forget it. The control box will be mounted on a wall above and out of the way of the water/brewing process...just haven't committed to one over the other yet.
And to clarify, you absolutely need a thermocouple or RTD to connect to the PID for the PID to work. Even though it won't be using the sensor to provide power in manual mode, the PID needs that connection to run. In my system, I'll have the RTD located in the HLT...when I switch to the BK to boil, I'll just leave the RTD in place on the HLT (maintaining that connection).
For all the trouble, I think you'll find that being able to use the PID on the HLT will be a huge benefit. You'll already have the means to heat the HLT (element), you just need to switch the plugs. It may not be ideal but for the amount of $ and trouble, unplugging and plugging three or four times during a brew session shouldn't be much of an issue...particularly if you can cut power completely to the receptacle before you handle the plug.
And to clarify, you absolutely need a thermocouple or RTD to connect to the PID for the PID to work. Even though it won't be using the sensor to provide power in manual mode, the PID needs that connection to run. In my system, I'll have the RTD located in the HLT...when I switch to the BK to boil, I'll just leave the RTD in place on the HLT (maintaining that connection).
For all the trouble, I think you'll find that being able to use the PID on the HLT will be a huge benefit. You'll already have the means to heat the HLT (element), you just need to switch the plugs. It may not be ideal but for the amount of $ and trouble, unplugging and plugging three or four times during a brew session shouldn't be much of an issue...particularly if you can cut power completely to the receptacle before you handle the plug.