High Gravity BIAB Electric Brewing System

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ScrewyBrewer

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I'll be moving to a new place and will be able to brew beer in my garage using the High Gravity BIAB Electric Brewing System, both of which I hope to buy sooner than later.

I've been brewing all grain for several years using gas but the move has me seriously considering using a 62 quart kettle with a 4500 watt heating element that requires a 200volt 30amp ground fault outlet.

I was just wondering if any brewers out there might be willing to share with me their electric brewing knowledge, about heating and boiling 10 gallons of 1.060 or lower wort. I already planned on using some form of mechanical lifting device to raise the wet grain before the boil.
 
It takes less than 20 minutes to heat the water up to mash temp, then another 10 or so to bring it to a boil after mashing. I mounted an eye bolt into one of the studs in my garage ceiling. I added a simple ratchet pulley system that locks as you pull the rope. My entire setup is on a rolling cart so I just roll out my system and brew directly underneath the eye bolt. When it's time to remove the grains, I just hook up the ratchet to the bag and pull away. I squeeze the grain bag then just let it sit over the pot until the boil starts. I roll the pot away and lower the grains into a bucket. Then it's just a simple, dump and rinse out the bag.
 
What size, how many cfm, would you recommend to exhaust the boil vapors outside and prevent the garage from becoming a steam room? I know the guidelines used for a sizing bathroom exhaust fan recommend changing the air 8 times an hour.

To calculate the CFM's needed to comply with the ACH guidelines you're supposed to multiply the length times the width times the height of the brewroom, to get the total cubic volume of air in the room.

Next multiply that number by eight, to represent the number of air changes per hour, and then divide that number by 60 to get the number of cubic feet per minute needed. I wonder if this formula works as good for hot wort vapors and hop aromas as it does for bathrooms.
 
Wouldn't a better guideline be to size for a range hood? I think that would be based on BTU rather than air exchange.
 
I'll be moving to a new place and will be able to brew beer in my garage using the High Gravity BIAB Electric Brewing System, both of which I hope to buy sooner than later.

Although this isn't an answer to your question . . . I would greatly appreciate it if you would post your experience using the High Gravity system. There was another thread a little while back discussing it.

Thanks,
Keith
 
Although this isn't an answer to your question . . . I would greatly appreciate it if you would post your experience using the High Gravity system. There was another thread a little while back discussing it.

Thanks,
Keith
I'm still in the planning stages, this is the system I'm looking to buy so can't contribute any experiences with it yet.

A range hood is a good idea, it''ll help to funnel the rising hot vapors into a central collection point on the intake side of the fan. But realistically if the fan's cfm isn't sufficient the hot vapors will spill out from under the range hood and steam up the garage, which is what I want to avoid.
 
ScrewyBrewer said:
I'm still in the planning stages, this is the system I'm looking to buy so can't contribute any experiences with it yet.

A range hood is a good idea, it''ll help to funnel the rising hot vapors into a central collection point on the intake side of the fan. But realistically if the fan's cfm isn't sufficient the hot vapors will spill out from under the range hood and steam up the garage, which is what I want to avoid.

Sorry, let me be more clear. I don't mean that you have to use a range hood, but rather size the blower as if you were sizing a range hood. For example, my range at home puts out a maximum of 120,000 btus across all burners. That dictates a hood that can draw 900cfm.
 
Sorry, let me be more clear. I don't mean that you have to use a range hood, but rather size the blower as if you were sizing a range hood. For example, my range at home puts out a maximum of 120,000 btus across all burners. That dictates a hood that can draw 900cfm.
Thanks for the feedback, but I wasn't able to find a conversion formula that calculates btus directly to cfms.

The closest I could come up with as follows:

A btu equals the energy needed to raise 1lb. of water 1F
A gallon of water weighs 8.35 lbs.
A watt is equal to 1 volt times 1 amp

With that said 220 volts * 30 amps = 6600 watts and the High Gravity's heating element is rated at 4500 watts, the circuit has a 33% buffer in it.

Heating 70F water to boiling 212F requires raising the temperature another 142F higher.

Where 10 gallons of water weighs 83.5 pounds and is raised 142F the btus needed are 11,857

As you can see according to the formulas I've found, there is still a gap between converting btus to cfms.
 
ScrewyBrewer said:
Thanks for the feedback, but I wasn't able to find a conversion formula that calculates btus directly to cfms.

The closest I could come up with as follows:

A btu equals the energy needed to raise 1lb. of water 1F
A gallon of water weighs 8.35 lbs.
A watt is equal to 1 volt times 1 amp

With that said 220 volts * 30 amps = 6600 watts and the High Gravity's heating element is rated at 4500 watts, the circuit has a 33% buffer in it.

Heating 70F water to boiling 212F requires raising the temperature another 142F higher.

Where 10 gallons of water weighs 83.5 pounds and is raised 142F the btus needed are 11,857

As you can see according to the formulas I've found, there is still a gap between converting btus to cfms.

Not original - I copied and pasted from another site:

If the range hood is attached to a wall, you should have 100 cubic feet per minute(cfm) per linear foot. So if you have a 30" wide range, you should have a hood rated at 250 cfm ((30/12)*100 =250). If the hood is over an island, you'll use 150 cfm/linear foot. In this case that same 30" cook top, would require 375 cfm ((30/12)*150 = 375).

Next we'll determine the minimum capacity based on British thermal units(BTU)/hour, by dividing the BTU/hour by 100. For example, if we had a cooktop that produced 40,000 BTUs, we would need 400 cfm. If you are using an electric range (measured in watts), simply multiply watts by 3.41214163 to determine BTU/hr.

The final calculation, will be based on the size of the kitchen. The air in the kitchen should be cycled 15 times per hour, so our formula will be ft³/4. If we have a 10ft x 10ft x 8ft kitchen, (10 X 10 X 8)/4 = 200 cfm.

We'll then choose the largest from these three calculations, and that will be the minimum size hood we need. If you are doing more cooking than the average person, or just want a little more air movement. You can always get a larger hood, this is just the minimum size you should consider.

That should give you a pretty good starting point for sizing.
 
Range hood is more critical IMO for an enclosed room or basement. A two car garage is much larger than a bathroom or kitchen so you might get away without ventilation or just opening the garage door.

Use the 5500W ULWD element, it is still under 30amps.
 
I have an electric BIAB system fashioned after the one described in the following Instructable: http://www.instructables.com/id/Simple-all-grain-electric-beer-brewery-BIAB/

The heating element is 5500 watt and I used a 62 qt Bayou Classic with a steaming basket.

I made my own controller designed around a $20 part I bought on ebay from China that worked but seemed really fragile, vulnerable to breakage and I was afraid to seal it up due to the potential for heat build up so I ended up using a 240V controller from kegkits.com (Tom Hargrave). It has a built in fan and works really well. I highly recommend it.

After using the electric kettle I don't want to go back to propane because the electric kettle is so much faster to heat and bring to a boil. Also with the electric kettle the temperature is much easier to control and prevent boil over. I live in an area with a fairly mild climate (Oregon coast) so I brew year round outside and although the wind often blows it is not a significant factor as it is with propane.

I had a bag made by someone in Portland, OR (bagbrewer.com) that fits my kettle perfectly and works really well. I have a cheap two pulley bicycle storage hoist mounted above where I brew that I use to pull up the bag full of saturated malt, I pull it out of the kettle and let it drain while the kettle comes up to a boil (or longer).

With a 62 quart kettle you may not be able to get all of the water you need for a 1.060 batch using the BIAB system but I don't think that is a significant issue, just add additional water after you remove the bag.

Without a RIMS system maintaining an even mash temperature in a kettle outside can be challenging. I bring mine up to the desired temperature, turn off the element, wrap the kettle in an old sleeping bag and just let it sit for the desired time.

The only disadvantage I have seen with the electric kettle set up I have is cleaning. It takes a few minutes longer to clean the element but it is not a big deal.

Let me know if you have any questions or need additional information.

Ron
 
Do you have a picture of the controller you are using?

Or do you have a link to the controller?
 
Ronsonn,

How much do you think you spent on making your own eBIAB system, minus the controller aspect? I'm contemplating copying the High Gravity system but am also considering just buying theirs as it would be simpler.
 
Why not KISS and just crack the garage door open when brewing?

I have an 82 qt eBIAB system and I brew in the garage as well. I have an eyebolt in the ceiling, set my table up underneath it, and just hoist the bag of grain out when I am done with the mash. Currently I have to muscle it out, but looking to get a wench. Those 30lb grain bills easily double in weight once wet!

Anyways, back to the matter at hand. I just crack my garage door when brewing and it stays aired out very well. Of course, I do not have cold winters here in Florida.

As for heating and boiling water, DrHops hit it exactly. I have a 5500w element and it takes me less then 20 to heat to mash and from mash-out (168*) it takes 10 minutes to boil. No time whatsoever. I would recommend getting the 82 qt kettle, it is worth the price. This allows you to brew bigger batches. I am easily able to brew 14 gallons 1.06 OG beers in one batch, that's two full kegs and 25 bottles. Allows you to throw a keg on tap, let another age, and have 25 bottles to submit to competitions or give out to friends. You're already spending your time making the beer, why not get more out of the process. This is of course for a beer you have already critiqued. I do 2.5 gallon test batches for any new beers.
 
With a 62 quart kettle you may not be able to get all of the water you need for a 1.060 batch using the BIAB system but I don't think that is a significant issue, just add additional water after you remove the bag.
Ron

I just want to make sure I understand what you're saying correctly. Are you saying that you can't do many 5 gal batches with OG's above 1.060 in a 15 gal pot using the BIAB technique without some sort of sparging added? This would definitely be a deterrent to me for switching to the BIAB technique from my current batch sparging that I do. I'd say half of my beers are in the 1.060 to 1.080 range.

thanks:mug:
 
My comment about adding extra water for a 1.060+ gravity batch is in regards to making a 10 gallon batch in a 60 - 62 qt pot using BIAB. No limitations for a 5 gallon batch. Once I have over about 20 lbs of grain I have to add 1-1.5 gallons of additional water to get a 10 gallon batch, I also do a 90 minute boil.
 
Ronsonn,

How much do you think you spent on making your own eBIAB system, minus the controller aspect? I'm contemplating copying the High Gravity system but am also considering just buying theirs as it would be simpler.


The cost of the kettle with element installed totaled about $230
Here is a breakdown of the significant items:

Stock pot with basket $145
Water heater element $23
Dryer cord $10
weldless bulkhead with valve $30
electrical box and misc. items to attach element to pot $15

You could probably save $20-$30 by shopping around in a big discount place but I live in a small town so it is either internet or my local Ace hardware.

You will also need a 1.25" knockout punch which cost me $77 that I intent to sell one of these days (should get back 75% of the cost). The knockout punch is not the typical size that electricians use for 1.25" conduit so beware and order the correct part.

Additionally you will need a drill and bit for hard steel as well as a step drill bit to drill through the kettle to install the bulkhead.

It takes some time to assemble this but I like to make things. Dealing with the kettle and element only took a couple hrs making the controller took a lot of extra time because I am not real comfortable with electricity.

If you are concerned with $ a deal breaker is whether or not you have a 30 amp 240V circuit available. I did but I ended up making a couple of major extension cords to allow me to brew where I really wanted to.

The bag cost $35, it is tapered so it drains perfectly into the pot and it is really well reinforced.

For BIAB using an electric kettle the steaming basket that comes with the Bayou Classic is awesome because you can install the element below the basket and the bag never gets near the element. The 62 qt kettle is the largest one that Bayou Classic makes with a steaming basket elevated above the bottom of the pot.

If you have additional questions let me know you will get a quicker response if you email me directly [email protected].
 
Just my two cents, you can save a little bit more money by opting out of getting the steam basket. I use an 82 quart Bayou Classic kettle and purchased it with the basket, ended up not even using it. I make very big beers and my home-made bag has endured over 50 pounds of soaking wet grain. The basket helps a little with keeping the grain in a uniform shape, but just an area you can cut costs on. Another place you can save is just buying a step bit, instead of the hole punch. I used just my step bit and then a dremel to sand it fine before installing my weldless bulkhead fittings.
 
Why not KISS and just crack the garage door open when brewing?

I have an 82 qt eBIAB system and I brew in the garage as well. I have an eyebolt in the ceiling, set my table up underneath it, and just hoist the bag of grain out when I am done with the mash. Currently I have to muscle it out, but looking to get a wench. Those 30lb grain bills easily double in weight once wet!

Anyways, back to the matter at hand. I just crack my garage door when brewing and it stays aired out very well. Of course, I do not have cold winters here in Florida.

As for heating and boiling water, DrHops hit it exactly. I have a 5500w element and it takes me less then 20 to heat to mash and from mash-out (168*) it takes 10 minutes to boil. No time whatsoever. I would recommend getting the 82 qt kettle, it is worth the price. This allows you to brew bigger batches. I am easily able to brew 14 gallons 1.06 OG beers in one batch, that's two full kegs and 25 bottles. Allows you to throw a keg on tap, let another age, and have 25 bottles to submit to competitions or give out to friends. You're already spending your time making the beer, why not get more out of the process. This is of course for a beer you have already critiqued. I do 2.5 gallon test batches for any new beers.
Thank you, I'm convinced on getting the larger 82 quart pot now and an exhaust hood with 300 cfm fan to vent the vapors out of the garage. In the Northeast summers and winters can get to extreme temperatures so cracking the garage door won't be practical as I see it now.
 
I agree with you. We don't have the extreme cold in the South East like you do in the North East but we get extreme humid heat in July August. A electric setup in the garage with a good exhaust vent is the way to go!
 
Screwy,

wondering if you completed the move/brewery upgrade? hopefully you stayed in Jersey....:rockin:

been looking at the same system meself, wondering how it goes for you.

Donal

a.k.a HairOdaDog
 
My two cents again, for what it's worth. My typical brew day is about 3 - 3.5 hours long. 10 minutes to get everything out and set up, 10 minutes to bring to strike water, 60-90 minute mash (depending on recipe), 60 minute boil, 30 minute cool down (looking to reduce time with plate chiller), and 15 minute clean up and pack away.

Compared to my buddies who do typical 3 system AG brewing, they average 7 hours. Between setting up 3 kettles, the transferring, lautering, clean up, etc.

I don't know about you, but my time is money. I don't have to extra money to spend on additional equipment and storage, nor do I have the time to spend on long brew days! BIAB was a simple decision, which I have been doing for over a yr now. eBIAB was the most cost effective decision, which I've done numerous brews with now. A bigger initial investment, but pays off in the long run.
 
My two cents again, for what it's worth. My typical brew day is about 3 - 3.5 hours long. 10 minutes to get everything out and set up, 10 minutes to bring to strike water, 60-90 minute mash (depending on recipe), 60 minute boil, 30 minute cool down (looking to reduce time with plate chiller), and 15 minute clean up and pack away.

Compared to my buddies who do typical 3 system AG brewing, they average 7 hours. Between setting up 3 kettles, the transferring, lautering, clean up, etc.

I don't know about you, but my time is money. I don't have to extra money to spend on additional equipment and storage, nor do I have the time to spend on long brew days! BIAB was a simple decision, which I have been doing for over a yr now. eBIAB was the most cost effective decision, which I've done numerous brews with now. A bigger initial investment, but pays off in the long run.

I appreciate the time savings also, using BIAB on propane. I also switched to no-chill, and have cut more time from the brew day. :)
 
I stir for a whirlpool and let the temperature drop to 190F (the rating on the Winpaks I use). Then I drain into the Winpak. Works great. Dropping to 180F would be fine too, as that is still a high enough temperature to prevent any type of infection. E.g., the pasteurization time for milk at 161F is 15 seconds.
 
Nevermind, I just checked my carboys can not exceed 140*. So I have to cool. Do you pitch your yeast at those temps? I usually cool ot 90-100* and pitch at that temp. Haven't found any problems with it.
 
My brewroom will be ready for setup by the middle or end of July, I'm ordering the High Gravity 82 quart model. The 220 volt 30 amp 4 wire GFI line is already run and I plan to add a sturdy winch overhead to lift out the heavy grains. The thought of getting splashed with hot wort keeps me up at night so I'm going to use two stainless steel angle iron pieces on top of the kettle to keep the perforated basket flatly seated as it drains.

I'm also tossing around the idea of using a new larger immersion chiller and a pre-chiller instead of a plate chiller too, someone scared me off of plate chillers some years ago because of infections they got in their beer, so even if unfounded the fear of blowing away an entire batch of beer using one has me worried.
 
Well I ended up ordering the High Gravity 62 quart BIAB system and it arrived the other day. There's a lot of parts that need to be assembled yet probably changing the orientation of the chugger pump's head will be the first thing I'll have to do. It's easy enough just remove the four screws holding the stainless steel head, give it a quarter turn and screw it down again. I'm copying the layout in the High Gravity Brewing video to get started and that's how they've done it.

I did get a nice 780 cfm range hood that has three speeds, a couple of bright led lights and carbon filters that I'll be using to exhaust the boil vapors from the garage. Once the hole's been cut in the wall and the hood mounted I'll have to figure out a way to setup a lift of some sort to hold the wet grains. Life would be easier if I mounted the lifting pulleys directly over the kettle and rigged the exhaust hood so it moved out of the way when lifting the grains.
 
Well I ended up ordering the High Gravity 62 quart BIAB system and it arrived the other day. There's a lot of parts that need to be assembled yet probably changing the orientation of the chugger pump's head will be the first thing I'll have to do. It's easy enough just remove the four screws holding the stainless steel head, give it a quarter turn and screw it down again. I'm copying the layout in the High Gravity Brewing video to get started and that's how they've done it.

I did get a nice 780 cfm range hood that has three speeds, a couple of bright led lights and carbon filters that I'll be using to exhaust the boil vapors from the garage. Once the hole's been cut in the wall and the hood mounted I'll have to figure out a way to setup a lift of some sort to hold the wet grains. Life would be easier if I mounted the lifting pulleys directly over the kettle and rigged the exhaust hood so it moved out of the way when lifting the grains.

I'd like to see pictures of your build out and hear how well your first brew day goes! I'm interested in builds something with an e-biab system of some sort. Do you have any opinions on the Speidel Braumesiter?
 
I like my HB BIAB electric system and have used it for over a year. I found if I use a squeeze type clamp on the pot rim, I can tilt the internal grain basket to drain without danger of it splashing back in. Tricky to get it up and add the clamp solo but easy with one more pair of hands.

I recently added a second stage to my internal cooler and used it this week to brew an Ardley Brown Ale. Post boil temps got below 80 in under 30 minutes and that is outside in south Florida in August.

Enjoy!
 
Life would be easier if I mounted the lifting pulleys directly over the kettle and rigged the exhaust hood so it moved out of the way when lifting the grains.

It'll be way easier to move the pot than the exhaust hood. Put the pot on a wheeled cart of some sort and move it over a couple of feet under the pulley, then slide it back under the hood for the boil.
 
It'll be way easier to move the pot than the exhaust hood. Put the pot on a wheeled cart of some sort and move it over a couple of feet under the pulley, then slide it back under the hood for the boil.

To me anything worth doing is always worth overdoing so I went with mounting the hood on a swivel mount and connecting it with flex duct to the wall vent. Details for the build can be found in an article I published here this week titled Indoor Brewing - Clearing The Air, its working perfectly to solve the issue.
 
I brewed my first 10 gallon batch using the High Gravity eBIAB system this Saturday and it was a joy to use. Everything worked out exactly as I had planned and I was so happy to finally have answers to the questions that came up throughout the design phase.

The biggest concern was lifting the 60 something pounds of wet grains out of the kettle but using the grain hoist turned out to be a great idea. I brewed solo this first time because I wanted to stay focused on all the new processes involved and I was able to hoist the wet grains out of the wort and then tie them off to the wall cleat as they drained. To make things even better the garbage trucks here use a mechanical lift to empty the trash cans so now grain disposal is one less huge headache too.
 
Glad to hear your brewing went well on the new system. I recently moved too, so having to wait to close on the house before wiring back up my electrical system. Back to the old propane BIAB style for the time being!

Just a thought, I trade my grain with local chicken farmers for fresh eggs. They get happy, drunk chickens and I get fresh farm raised eggs! I had chickens at my old place, but here the quarters are a little closer and the neighbors a little nosier.
 
After a year of using the High Gravity BIAB system, how do you like it? Is there anything you would do differently?

You've got an awesome setup and I really enjoyed reading about the process. Thanks for sharing!
 
Take a look at post #23 in this thread:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=542320&page=3

slams the High Gracity Brewing system pretty hard..

yup.... still waiting for someone else whos brave enough to take the cover off theirs and take pics to post here.... So far I go by one owners claims who did take theirs apart. He claims they didnt even use Solid state relays.
That and the fact that you can easily price all the parts out (I have everything in their system including the 50cent switches and $12 home depot enclosure... The only thing I dont have laying around is the pump they use ($120) and the auber pid ($50)

Theres maybe 3 hours of labor for assembly so they are getting what $200 /hr to assemble.... Chances are they pump these out in an hour by now.

That said if your happy thats all thats important right? HG sure is.
 
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