RoatanBill
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Mar 5, 2017
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I just checked the Blichmann site and they have recommendations for sizing their pots for a given quantity of beer production. For example, 7.5, 7.5, 10 (HLT / Mash / Boil) for 5 gallons of beer. They suggested 10, 10, 10 for high gravity beers.
Then I saw a Spike Brewing video with 3 identical pot sizes set up for their complete systems approach which includes the HERMS subsystem; all electric. What I don't understand is why the HLT is so large when it's primary job is to provide the hot side to the HERMS coil to heat the water for the Mash Tun.
Knowing nothing about brewing yet, I thought maybe the hot water from the HLT is pumped directly into the Mash Tun to get it up to the proper level and only then does the HERMS coil come into play to maintain and adjust temperatures during the mash. But that can't be right as the HERMS coil would be in air if the water was drained out of the HLT and therefore would be useless to do anything till the coil was again covered and the HLT water was at least slightly hotter than the Mash Tun requires. The Mash Tun water would have cooled off by then.
So, I reasoned that ambient temp water is added to the Mash Tun and is circulated through the HERMS coil to get it to temperature which means 1 coil is heating 2 pots of water. But that can't be right either. The heat losses in all that exposed metal would be huge.
#1 - How does this work?
#2 - In videos, it appears that the HLT is full AND the wort circulating in the Mash Tun is at a given level during the mash process. What is the point of all that hot water in the HLT when only a fraction of it will be used as sparge water? What's the rest of the hot water for?
If the HERMS coil were configured as 2 or possibly 3 cylinders of tubes, they could be much lower in height requiring much less water to cover them. The heat in the electric element heats a smaller quantity of water which means faster temperature rise. That smaller quantity of water IS the sparge water and no or little hot water is wasted.
What have I got wrong?
Then I saw a Spike Brewing video with 3 identical pot sizes set up for their complete systems approach which includes the HERMS subsystem; all electric. What I don't understand is why the HLT is so large when it's primary job is to provide the hot side to the HERMS coil to heat the water for the Mash Tun.
Knowing nothing about brewing yet, I thought maybe the hot water from the HLT is pumped directly into the Mash Tun to get it up to the proper level and only then does the HERMS coil come into play to maintain and adjust temperatures during the mash. But that can't be right as the HERMS coil would be in air if the water was drained out of the HLT and therefore would be useless to do anything till the coil was again covered and the HLT water was at least slightly hotter than the Mash Tun requires. The Mash Tun water would have cooled off by then.
So, I reasoned that ambient temp water is added to the Mash Tun and is circulated through the HERMS coil to get it to temperature which means 1 coil is heating 2 pots of water. But that can't be right either. The heat losses in all that exposed metal would be huge.
#1 - How does this work?
#2 - In videos, it appears that the HLT is full AND the wort circulating in the Mash Tun is at a given level during the mash process. What is the point of all that hot water in the HLT when only a fraction of it will be used as sparge water? What's the rest of the hot water for?
If the HERMS coil were configured as 2 or possibly 3 cylinders of tubes, they could be much lower in height requiring much less water to cover them. The heat in the electric element heats a smaller quantity of water which means faster temperature rise. That smaller quantity of water IS the sparge water and no or little hot water is wasted.
What have I got wrong?
