rsklhm10
Well-Known Member
Here it goes... Like many, I recently jumped on the electric bandwagon. In short, I was fed up with my propane setup and was intrigued by Kal's setup (SWMBO not so much). Fortunately she is understanding and supports my brewing habits. After a good amount of research, I began ordering parts and putting things together about a month ago. The biggest decision to make was what exactly I wanted in the setup and how to go about it.
I decided for the time being to turn my keggles (HLT and BK) into e-keggles and continuing to use my cooler mash tun for now. As for the panel, I decided on a slightly more simplified panel than Kals, but that I could expand in the long run. The result is two 5500w elements being controlled by a single pid (the goal is to switch to blichmans and add 2 more pids at the first of the year). I chose an enclosure like the electricbrewery and incorporated a very similar switch setup as well as a volt and amp meter, etc. I plan on continuing to use my single pump and plate chiller for the time being.
So far I have completed the two e-keggles and have put together most of the control panel. The plan is to finish up the panel tonight if possible. Unfortunately, I put a dent in the panel door that needs to be fixed. After that all I have left is the main power for the panel. For the time being I am going to continue brewing in the garage and decided my best bet was the coveted "Home Depot Spa Panel." Based on my garage layout, I am going to mount the spa panel about 5 feet from the main panel and run conduit to the outlet location (this is what I have been most worried about/putting off).
Once the power is run I should be good to go. My goal is to brew a first batch on the setup this weekend. I have tried to take pictures along the way, but I am not near as consistent as some. When I get home from work this evening I will try to post some up. Any information, guidance, or comments are appreciated.
As a side note, I would like to give a special thanks to Kal and P-J. You guys are the only reason I was able to tackle this build...
I decided for the time being to turn my keggles (HLT and BK) into e-keggles and continuing to use my cooler mash tun for now. As for the panel, I decided on a slightly more simplified panel than Kals, but that I could expand in the long run. The result is two 5500w elements being controlled by a single pid (the goal is to switch to blichmans and add 2 more pids at the first of the year). I chose an enclosure like the electricbrewery and incorporated a very similar switch setup as well as a volt and amp meter, etc. I plan on continuing to use my single pump and plate chiller for the time being.
So far I have completed the two e-keggles and have put together most of the control panel. The plan is to finish up the panel tonight if possible. Unfortunately, I put a dent in the panel door that needs to be fixed. After that all I have left is the main power for the panel. For the time being I am going to continue brewing in the garage and decided my best bet was the coveted "Home Depot Spa Panel." Based on my garage layout, I am going to mount the spa panel about 5 feet from the main panel and run conduit to the outlet location (this is what I have been most worried about/putting off).
Once the power is run I should be good to go. My goal is to brew a first batch on the setup this weekend. I have tried to take pictures along the way, but I am not near as consistent as some. When I get home from work this evening I will try to post some up. Any information, guidance, or comments are appreciated.
As a side note, I would like to give a special thanks to Kal and P-J. You guys are the only reason I was able to tackle this build...