New single tier brewstand

Just wanted to share my newly constructed single tier brewstand.
It's got an automated direct fired RIMS. My furnace valve is a HONEYWELL VR4300A 4502.
Cool thing about this valve is that it's controlled by a120 volt feed. This allows me to use a PID controller already have that has an SSR controlling 120 volts. Thats built up in my ammo can with a pump switch.
(Typically it controlled my fermentation chamber)
Less crap to buy.

It features two bg14 burners for the HLT and BK and a bg12 on the MLT

Gas is plumbed with 2 stage low pressure regulator. 3/8" black pipe feeds 3/8 copper flares. Plenty of capacity to run all the burners at low pressure. The outlet for the regulator was 3/8" and I couldn't see how going with 1/2" black pipe was going to help anything other than with availability in hardware stores.

Maiden run was a 10 gallon batch of pale ale. My efficiently was way higher than it ever was with my cooler infusion mashes.
The mash recirculation made for the clearest wort I've ever produced. Jays folding false bottom worked flawlessly with my grind. I was happily surprised to have no stuck mash.

Low pressure bg14 brought 13 gallons up to boil just as quickly as my old high pressure bg12 burner. I was totally satisfied. I needed to construct some heat shields for my sight tubes, but that was no big deal.

I think the biggest upgrade was cam lock quick disconnects. The larger diameter of those fittings drastically improved the efficiency of my pump.

I didn't weld the bare frame- I hired that out. More money than I wanted to spend, but I think this will make brew day easier. I'm really liking the RIMS - and the fact I don't have to mash in a plastic cooler. I'm looking forward to doing some step mashes in the future- without having to modify my grist to water ratio.

Wow!! 15 years in HVAC and I've never worked on a 110v gas valve, even in buildings. Do you know what it's used for? Your sistem looks great! I was in brew and grow and asked how much their brew stand cost. They said 7000$!!! yours is so much nicer/better.

mikescooling said:

Wow!! 15 years in HVAC and I've never worked on a 110v gas valve, even in buildings. Do you know what it's used for? Your sistem looks great! I was in brew and grow and asked how much their brew stand cost. They said 7000$!!! yours is so much nicer/better.

Click to expand...

Whoops I meant 120
It's this guy:
http://www.pexuniverse.com/honeywell-vr4300a4502-gas-valve

I found it on eBay new, for around $65

Um yeah I built this for well under $1000- but the keggles were in use before I made this stand
Thanks for the compliment! I still need to make a better place to put my ammo box controller

I want to run the same BG14 & BG12 burner setup. How did you do it? Are you using a adjustable regulator?

Very nice set up I'm building something similar but changed gears somewhat , I've decided to go all electric it's just been to cold to brew here in buffalo this winter so I'm building a complete new system and brewery in my basement


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

Very nice, so do you recirculate your mash the entire 60 minutes? I have yet to run a batch on my setup which is very similar minus automation.

I am wanting to use hard copper lines from my black pipe to the burners also.

BigChiefBrewing said:

I want to run the same BG14 & BG12 burner setup. How did you do it? Are you using a adjustable regulator?

Click to expand...

No adjustable regulator. As you can read from my build specs I use a 2 stage low pressure regulator.

My BK and HLT are on BG14 burners - and their gas supply is controlled by ball valves - I find that to be plenty sufficient.

My mash tun is controlled by a furnace valve that is actuated by my PID controller. Its a RIMS system.

30Bones said:

Very nice, so do you recirculate your mash the entire 60 minutes? I have yet to run a batch on my setup which is very similar minus automation.

I am wanting to use hard copper lines from my black pipe to the burners also.

Click to expand...

Yep, I start recirculating before that burner gets switched on. I don't want any scorching! I wan to be sure I'm getting a good re circulation before any heat is applied. But of course I'm not using cold water to strike my mash - I do an infusion calculation and add water to get the mash just below to the temp I'm attempting to mash at. Then I let the automated burner get the whole thing up to the temp my PID is set to.

Yeah, I like working with copper lines for the gas feed to the burners - if you have a tubing angle bender it works pretty easily. It's cheaper too than using the SS lines some folks use - and I think looks a bit better.

Wondering if I will attempt to recirc without being automated, but I have the pumps and can only imagine how it could ramp up efficiency if you could keep the grain bed in tact and not channel the hell out of it.

30Bones said:

Wondering if I will attempt to recirc without being automated, but I have the pumps and can only imagine how it could ramp up efficiency if you could keep the grain bed in tact and not channel the hell out of it.

Click to expand...

To be clear, my pump is not automated.
So you're saying pumping without an automated heat source? People do that all the time, but it's certainly labor intensive. You have to be johnny on the spot with your gas source, since you're the control. Easy to have overshoots in temp.

However, people do it. You could automate later. But I think if it wasn't controlled, I'd rather to a cooler infusion mash. Just easier and I made plenty good beer that way too.

I think the jury is out on if the a recircuation ramps up efficiency, in lieu of good mash paddle stirring. I haven't found my efficiency to go way up in contrast to an infusion mash. However, my wort has been much more clearn and that has to be because of the pump.

Awesome set up.

Thx for sharing

Do you have any more description or pics of your RIMS setup (I didn't see the heat exchanger in the pics, unless I'm missing it). Your RIMS tube/heat exchanger is gas fired? Or is it a HERMS setup with the coil in your HLT? I just finished building a single tier and am still cooler mashing, but looking into HERMS/RIMS setups, since that seems like the next logical upgrade.

Thanks!
Craig

cw_racefan said:

Do you have any more description or pics of your RIMS setup (I didn't see the heat exchanger in the pics, unless I'm missing it). Your RIMS tube/heat exchanger is gas fired? Or is it a HERMS setup with the coil in your HLT? I just finished building a single tier and am still cooler mashing, but looking into HERMS/RIMS setups, since that seems like the next logical upgrade.

Thanks!
Craig

Click to expand...

No RIMS tube, as I direct fire the mashtun. The mashtun has a screen and I re-circulate to keep the sweet wort from scorching.

MTHarrington said:

No RIMS tube, as I direct fire the mashtun. The mashtun has a screen and I re-circulate to keep the sweet wort from scorching.

Click to expand...

Gotcha, thanks! How are you distributing the wort back onto the top of the grain bed? Do you have a manifold of some sort, or?

cw_racefan said:

Gotcha, thanks! How are you distributing the wort back onto the top of the grain bed? Do you have a manifold of some sort, or?

Click to expand...

I just use a silicone tube that angles the flow to the side of the mash tun - it erodes some malt, but i find it works fine and a manifold would just be another piece of equipment I don't need.

now, i batch sparge though - not fly sparge, so if I did fly sparge, I'd rather have a nice maifold on top.