Help with budget contoller

[cridden]

I am trying to move from my current BIAB setup in a keggle with propane outside to a simple electric setup in my basement, and would appreciate some advice.
I am working with a very limited budget, but I also have very few needs. I want to go 240v using my dryer hookup, and I have no plans for a pump at the moment. My house is also rented, so I cannot do anything permanent.
I will be getting a 5500w element for the keggle, and have no problem installing and potting that, and I have an ammo box that will work fine for an enclosure, so I guess I just need advice on what I need to economically control mash temps, and control boil. I am only doing 5 gallon batches, but would like to go 240v for shorter heating times, etc.
Being new to the electric world, i would like to keep wiring and bells and whistles to a minimum...I just want to make some beer indoors
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[TexasWine]

My thoughts... If you're on a really tight budget and serious about eBIAB, skip the controller all together, get a real pot/kettle and a pizza screen false bottom, insulate the heck out of your kettle and control the mash temps manually by stirring and only turning on the element if necessary. If you insulate sufficiently you should find there's no need to turn on the element at all until you're ready to boil.

For the boil, plug it in and let it rip. And you might consider getting a lower wattage element if all you're doing is 5 gallon batches. Personally, I prefer my 2 x 1500 watt 120v set up to a 240v set up. But that's just my druthers.

 

[1MadScientist]

This one will control the boil, as 100% output is normally too intense of a boil. I hear that usually 65% works for a good maintained boil, but it varies.

http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2_30&products_id=444

MS

 

[1MadScientist]

Safety first ---

Check for four wires, two hots (black), one neutral (white) and a ground (green). Many dryer receptacles don't have a ground. I'm thinking that you can jump a ground wire from the washer receptacle, and of course a new 240v receptacle.

MS

 

[Nated2755]

If you are trying to go cheap check out http://stilldragon.com/index.php/diy-controller-kit.html.

You could also find these parts cheaper other places, but this will give you very basic control over your heating element.

I have one of these I use for 10 gallon batches. Crank it up all the way to heat up mash and sparge water, and to bring the wort to boil, then dial down till I have a nice rolling boil going.

 

[metric]

This has been my setup for the past year and a half. Multiple 5 and 10gal batches, it has been rock solid thus far.

If you are trying to go cheap check out http://stilldragon.com/index.php/diy-controller-kit.html.

You could also find these parts cheaper other places, but this will give you very basic control over your heating element.

I have one of these I use for 10 gallon batches. Crank it up all the way to heat up mash and sparge water, and to bring the wort to boil, then dial down till I have a nice rolling boil going.

 

[cridden]

That Stilldragon setup looks like exactly what i want....it looks simple to do and easy enough to stay low tech.
To supply power from my dryer hookup would this be a good choice?

http://www.cableorganizer.com/trc/gfci-extension-cords.html?gcssku=TRC-44720-012#features

The cord is a three prong nema l6-30, would it be possible to change it to a 4 prong?

 

[wysiwyg]

I built this one without the DPST switch (I unplug from wall to turn off) - http://www.instructables.com/id/Electric-brewing-system/?ALLSTEPS

Ghetto, but it does exactly what I need and wasn't difficult to build. This is V1 and I definitely plan to build a larger box in the future.

 

[mcgimpkins]

I built this one without the DPST switch (I unplug from wall to turn off) - http://www.instructables.com/id/Electric-brewing-system/?ALLSTEPS

Ghetto, but it does exactly what I need and wasn't difficult to build. This is V1 and I definitely plan to build a larger box in the future.

I was looking to do something like that before for BIAB, however I wanted to wire a Boil Controller into it. How would you go about doing that?

That Stilldragon setup looks like exactly what i want....it looks simple to do and easy enough to stay low tech.
To supply power from my dryer hookup would this be a good choice?

I got my GFCI from here: http://www.gfcistore.com/30-amp-inline-gfcis.html

The cord is a three prong nema l6-30, would it be possible to change it to a 4 prong?

From my understanding you can splice a neutral into a ground and have it work to run a 4 prong into a 3 prong however it is not up to code and can involved some risk. I am not an electrician and personally I would not do it. See:
http://diy.stackexchange.com/questions/9256/can-i-connect-ground-to-neutral-in-a-3-wire-outlet

 

[wysiwyg]

I was looking to do something like that before for BIAB, however I wanted to wire a Boil Controller into it. How would you go about doing that?

The Instructables article calls for the Aubers PID SYL-2352, which I used as well. It has both automatic mode to hold a temperature, and manual mode where you can set a % duty cycle. After using auto to mash and mashout, I switch to manual mode for the boil. Set it to 100% until boil starts and dial it back as needed. I find that 65% holds a good rolling boil that will boil off 1.5 gal of a 7 gal pre-boil volume in a 15 gal pot over a 60 min boil.

 

[snackson]

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00JJGMMPM/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Super Easy to wire up and use. Work great for boil control.