acommonsoul
Active Member
I love my spikes....the thicker metal will help for heat retention...I use it for my hot liquor tank and it works great. Also the dip tubes are much bigger on the spikes...it drains very quickly.
I like my SS BK but I had to do the math to ease my curiosity. The results kind of surprised me!
Using the heat transfer equation:
q = k A dT / s
where:
q = heat transfer (W)
A = heat transfer area (m^2)
k = thermal conductivity of material (W/m C)
dT = temperature gradient - difference - in the material (C)
s = material thickness (m)
Using a 20gal SSBT for my math below are the variables:
20gal kettle - 21.3" H x 17.7"
Area - .95m^2
Temp 1 - 155F (68C)
Temp 2 - 65F (18C)
304SS heat transfer coef - 16 W/mC
1.0mm
q = (16W/mC)(.95m^2)(68C-18C)/.001m
=760kW
1.2mm
q = (16W/mC)(.95m^2)(68C-18C)/.0012m
=633kW
% Difference
=18% difference
That actually surprised me a bit. I would have guessed a much smaller difference. However I use my SS kettle as a BK with a burner so no worries there I hate being an engineer haha Just wasted 15mins doing a dumb calculation!! Time for a home brew
I just received my spike 15g kettle. Haven't had a chance to try it out yet but I think I'm going to go for my first BIAB as a way to break it in. I did a test boil of a few gallons though and it seemed to retain the heat extremely well, to the point that the next day it was still significantly warmer than room temp.
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