Couple quick questions regaridng electric brewing, heating elements, etc.

Still playing with my new toys and everything looks promising. But I do have a few questions (observations) from my test runs.

1. I have yet to run an auto-tune on my 2352 PID, but I did do a boil/ice water test. I'm not sure if these are appropriate for an RTD but I figured what the hell. I set the Sv to 225F and let it go. The Pv maxed at 211F and dipped to 210F on an ocassion during a full boil. I then submerged the RTD in crushed ice and water for 15 mins. It held steady at 32F. Acceptable?
   
   
2. I am seeing a LOT more steam than I ever did with a propane boil. Is this normal with an element? It could be just because I have the BK in the back of the garage now where it would normally be closer to the garage door. It could also be because I had a much mnore agressive boil than I would normally have. Just curious if anyone else has had teh same experience.
   
   
3. I'm getting a slight odor from the water at mash temps and during the boil with the element that I can say I never had with propane. It's hard to describe...kinda metallic. Maybe due to the anode? Or is this just a by-product of the element. Any concerns?

TIA!

John

1: sounds perfect (more perfect than mine!)
2: 2 things going on here: 1, you are probably boiling off more than you did with propane, and 2: the flames and heat that used to rush up the sides of your keggle might have carried the steam away before; you don't have that now
3: Maybe the odor of the propane burning previously covered this metalic odor you're getting. I have not experienced any type of off flavor or odor or anything with my setup.

passedpawn said:

1: sounds perfect (more perfect than mine!)
2: 2 things going on here: 1, you are probably boiling off more than you did with propane, and 2: the flames and heat that used to rush up the sides of your keggle might have carried the steam away before; you don't have that now
3: Maybe the odor of the propane burning previously covered this metalic odor you're getting. I have not experienced any type of off flavor or odor or anything with my setup.

Click to expand...

Thx pass.

So, when it comes to auto-tune, do I have it right...

Fill BK with tap water...
Set Sv to mash temp (~155).
Apply heat.
Start AT.
Let it run.

Or do you bring the water up to mash temp first and then start AT?

Thx!

John

heat the water close to your desired set-point first, and then start the auto-tune process. i've done it a couple of ways, and that way worked the best and the fastest.

my PID worked much, much better after auto-tuning. I was surprised. I don't think it overshoots at all now.

Thanks again guys!

I performed my auto-tune last night. Added 8 gal. of water and set my Sv to 152 and recirculated for abolut 10 mins. I then kicked on the auto-tune and continued to recirculate the entire time since I will be doing the same with my mash.

Temp never overshot and held steady @ 152F for the length of the tuning. Only once or twice I saw it jump to 153F but it immediately came back to 152F. So, if I wanted to be nit-picky, I could probably say that I had a .75F swing when the element would kick on. I can live with that.

Auto-tune took only about 15 minutes.

First official electric BIAB session is scheduled for this weekend. Can't wait!!!

Thanks for the help.

John

ps. I have now run 4 fake sessions through my kettle with the anode and not a single sign of rust.

johnodon said:

I have now run 4 fake sessions through my kettle with the anode and not a single sign of rust.

Click to expand...

I've run at least 50 batches on mine without a drop of rust. I have an element in my HLT and BK. And, I keep them outside (but under a covered patio) here in humid Florida. Go figure.

passedpawn said:

I've run at least 50 batches on mine without a drop of rust. I have an element in my HLT and BK. And, I keep them outside (but under a covered patio) here in humid Florida. Go figure.

Click to expand...

Honestly, I never tried without the anode so I don't know what my results would be.

John

BTW...I haven't even brewed yet with my electric setup and I am already loving it!!!

You got it going on, man. Good job.

Going to throw one more question out there...

I see some discussion about running the element at 75% - 80% to control the boil. I'm not clear how this is done. I haven't played with the PID much so I don't know much more beyond setting the Sv to 212F. I assume taht this may cause to the element to be active the entire time and cause an aggressive boil.

Can some explain how to manage a 75% element rating?

Thanks!

John

Just put the PID in manual mode and then you can change the percent of power being delivered to the element. It is one of the really great features of your PID.
From the SYL-2352 manual.

4.2.2 Display change
Press the SET key to change the display mode. The display can be changed
between display modes 1 and 2.
4.2.3 Manual/Automatic mode switch
Bumpless switching between PID mode and Manual mode can be performed
by pressing the A/M key. The A-M LED will light up when the controller is in
Manual mode. In Manual mode, the output amplitude can be increased or
decreased by pressing ▲ and ▼(display mode 2).
Please note that manual control is initially disabled (A/M=2). To activate
the manual control, set A/M=0 or 1.

Click to expand...

Awesome! Had no idea it was that easy. Thx PJ.