I did my first brew tonight with the assistance of a March pump, a bunch of tubing, and a ton of quick disconnects.
WOW. This is a new era of brewing for me.
That is all.
WOW. This is a new era of brewing for me.
That is all.
New March Pump
- Thread starter passedpawn
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OP
OP
Also, I have two ripple elements, two keggles with valves and QDs installed, and a Therminator waiting in the wings. I am so close to going critical.
Pol, I have drawn much from you. Thanks. Hopefully I'll be able to give back to this forum in a reciprocal way someday.
Pol, I have drawn much from you. Thanks. Hopefully I'll be able to give back to this forum in a reciprocal way someday.
The quick disconnects are great. Quite a few posts imply that you only aririve in home brewing when one's stand is hard plumbed. As for me, the QD way is fine. Congrats on the new pump and setup.
Hawgbranch
Well-Known Member
I just read the article in the newest BYO where the March Pump was installed in a plastic toolbox. Pretty neat idea for someone who has a somewhat "Mobile" brew setup.
I was wondering which is the best hose to buy using quick disconnects.
I see the silicone is rated for 500 degrees. I am now using a Counterflow Chiller (Gravity fed) and I think the March Pump would make a big difference....
I was wondering which is the best hose to buy using quick disconnects.
I see the silicone is rated for 500 degrees. I am now using a Counterflow Chiller (Gravity fed) and I think the March Pump would make a big difference....
OP
OP
Tubing: Brewmaster's Warehouse sells the silicone hose at a decent price. They were out of stock, so I bought some nylon tubing at home depot. They have your standard 1/2" ID thin-wall tubing, but the stuff I bought is much thicker and has a mesh of reinforcement in the wall. That stuff worked very well. I might even have gotten away without hose clamps.
OP
OP
I used the pump for a bunch of things.
- transfered hot water from my HLT to the mashtun for mash-in and sparging
- recirculated in my mashtun for about 5 minutes for a great vorlauf
- transfered my hot wort to the boil pot
- during boil, recirculated boiling wort through my Therminator, then back to the pot, in order to sterilize it,
- recirculated the cooling wort through the therminator to cool the wort. I also used a IC in a bucket of ice water to drive the temp down.
Put the male QDs on all the hardware. Put the female QDs on both ends of at least 3 sections of tubing. It went really, really well.
Here are the Part Numbers I used from McMaster Carr. Remember, I did not buy their tubing because of cost.
Hawgbranch
Well-Known Member
Very nice description.
I am about to procure another keggle and I wanted to use it as an HLT. Now that I have a CFC I thought of using my old Immersion Chiller "Inside" my HLT and configure it some way to allow me to recirculate my wort in my mashtun through the Immersion Chiller to achieve better and more accurate Mash Temps. Maybe even dabble with step mashing in the future.
Is this something that you have considered?
I am about to procure another keggle and I wanted to use it as an HLT. Now that I have a CFC I thought of using my old Immersion Chiller "Inside" my HLT and configure it some way to allow me to recirculate my wort in my mashtun through the Immersion Chiller to achieve better and more accurate Mash Temps. Maybe even dabble with step mashing in the future.
Is this something that you have considered?
The Pol
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Basically a HERMS? I hear it can be done, but it is not easy to step mash with a HERMS. Steps can take too long, making it more of a ramp mash. Highly modified malts convert so fast that any delay in reaching the temp. step will make it more of a ramp mash.
That is all I have to say on the subject, but there have been tons of threads on HBT started concerning step mashing with HERMS. One guy claims that he can do it, but he has a dedicated HERMS HEX that is much more eff. than an HLT.
OP
OP
Yea, but I am in the process of converting to all electric and I think a better way of tackling the heat exchange is an inline heater element. It is simply a piped loop with a heating element right in the pipe. Tankless.
Tell ya the truth, though, I can hit my mash temps, and hold them, pretty well in my cooler right now. So that part of my system is a ways off. I need to build a cart for my 2 keggles and a cooler first.
Hawgbranch
Well-Known Member
That is a good point. Right now the March Pump would prolly make the biggest difference in my Brewing World. And maybe a 14.5gal conical....
OP
OP
It's not a conical, but an uncut keg can make a mighty nice 15.5 fermenter. And check out this little gadget to make it the cat's meow. Or, you can shove a size 10.5 stopper in there.
BrewBeemer
Well-Known Member
Yes I agree 100% passedpawn; the pisser is I want 3 corny's filled for the keezer at a full 15 gallons nothing less hence trub, yeast and losses in the lines would put me below my goal using standard kegs. Just a thick headed demand on myself on the next brewery build specs I want with the stouts on my mind. Think about the MLT volume needed? Maybe it's the heavy pain meds on the mend has the brain thinking with too much spare time or it's a "just me thing". Stubborn and harsh German that's all.
That's a trick cap and get one with a temp well being also a must have item from Derrin as it's one simple and sweet addition to any keg fermenting system vs the cost of manufactured fermenters. Derrin (yeah sorry if i'm sticking your neck out on this one) also has it down using a LM34 temp probe that would fit perfectly in the cap deep well. I would pot the probe in a dab of transistor heat paste call it overkill but with almost instant positive readings on your digital meter. Seal the cable output from the plug and be done. This also will allow for remote readings as well free up your brewery system and controller. JMO's on this one.
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