Electric Cooler HLT

I built my mas tun awhile ago which is the same cooler but finally getting around to this. Its a Target Igloo Wheelie for $19.86. I screwed up and bought a kewler kit (ass)uming it would fit any coler and learned thats hardly the fact so I have a 3" nipple coming from bargain fittings soon(not where I bought the orig. I also installed a thermothingy in it. I also still have to get the electrical screw clamps for myu Johnson control and see if I can fit 1 on the PVC cap at the heating element.






More to come over the weekend.

Very nice

Yes, nice job. Pretty much what I have in the works, if I ever finish it...

Strongly considering going the same route. Didn't Pol just leave a similar setup?

Hermit said:

Strongly considering going the same route. Didn't Pol just leave a similar setup?

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Yes, yes he did...

Pol helped me out a bit with telling me what I needed as far as a heating element vrs, wattage. Why did you bail out on yours pol? Going for bigger and better or just like to play with building. I know Im having fun. I have to do some more work to my Mash tun know with a sparge arm. My keggle should ne here tomorrow!m :rockin:

Wade E said:

Pol helped me out a bit with telling me what I needed as far as a heating element vrs, wattage. Why did you bail out on yours pol? Going for bigger and better or just like to play with building. I know Im having fun. I have to do some more work to my Mash tun know with a sparge arm. My keggle should ne here tomorrow!m :rockin:

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You will see why, when it is finished... I will sell my new one to you for $3800

Um, I loved the ol HERMS rig, loved the electric coolers... it was time to move on.

I love to design, build, test... this one will be a "dream" system.

I actually ran into your system's new master while at the LHBS. It wasn't HER LHBS by about 800 miles or so. Long way to go to by a sack of grain.

Hermit said:

I actually ran into your system's new master while at the LHBS. It wasn't HER LHBS by about 800 miles or so. Long way to go to by a sack of grain.

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Yeah, she will be here in a couple days to take Brew Beast home...

ON TOPIC... you will love the electric cooler. I will miss mine.

Just finished her up today except for sealing it up with fish tank caulk if it is needed. I have to install a GFCI outlet down here where it will plug in also. Its done now. I couldnt find a sheet of copper that was worth buying for the little grounding washer that I needed so I bought a newel post angled cap for $2.34, cut the angled ends and then pounded it flat. I then pulled out my 1 1/4" hole saw and drilled a hole in it making sure there was enough room at one point to leave a tab for the ground wire. here is the end result of this and this little part is very important to this project if you anything about electricity! This copper washer goes in between the gasket and the heating element to ground everything. I then drilled a hole through the PVC end cap and attached a wire clamp to it so that the wires wouldnt be exposed that connect to the heater element. I finished connecting the wires, drilled a small hole through the cooler for the temp probe and little eye hook to keep the probe out of harms way of the heater element. I also soldered a few pcs of copper with an elbow so that I could get all the water out of the cooler(Dip Tube). Then I finished the wiring to the Ranco. Ill test it out in a few days and Im sure I have a learning curve as far as the Ranco goes as to how to use it and set it up for heating. Those directions arent very straight forward!!!!

Other than it looks way to 'polished' to be 'home made'? Not bad.

Question, how are you sealing everything? I was looking at doing this myself and I am a little stuck as to how I would seal everything well with the walls of the cooler being as thin as they are?

Also, how high of temperatures do you think this could handle?

Thanks,
Scott

Instead of the copper washer could you attach the heater element to a metal electical box on the outside of the cooler and ground it to that? I was thinking this one may work http://www.lowes.com/pd_71209-15527-14250_0__?productId=1098639&Ntt=metal+gange&pl=1&currentURL=%2Fpl__0__s%3FNtt%3Dmetal%2Bgange%26page%3D1?

Is that probe on the Ranco submersible? I have one and was under the impression that they are not.

ascha said:

Instead of the copper washer could you attach the heater element to a metal electical box on the outside of the cooler and ground it to that? I was thinking this one may work http://www.lowes.com/pd_71209-15527-14250_0__?productId=1098639&Ntt=metal+gange&pl=1&currentURL=%2Fpl__0__s%3FNtt%3Dmetal%2Bgange%26page%3D1?

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Nevermind found the answer here https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f170/electric-brewery-plans-need-help-183775/index31.html

Holy thread resurrection. I didn't realize.

Any leaks? Considering a build myself...