Whiskey
Well-Known Member
I figured I'd post a few pics of my brew rig. There are still a few tweaks and final touches to be made, but here ya go.
It uses a Gott and Home Depot 10 gallon coolers for the HLT and MLT. The stand is built from 2x4's and 4x4's I had lying around. I only had to purchase the 1/4 plywood top and some deck screws figured I'd keep it cheap. I lacquered the top to make it somewhat waterproof. With the exception of the inlet and outlet for recirculation and whirlpooling with the IC the whole system is plumbed with 1/2" copper tubing. Using 2 couplings and 5 Apollo "Pipe Master" valves the system can still be disassembled into a few major components. Sections that would not need to be removed use standard 1/2" full port valves.
I re-circulate the water in the HLT while it heats to; 1. Speed up the process a bit and 2. Stop any stratification. Works like a champ. From 70ish degree water to 185f takes about an hour. Here is a detail of the HLT lid with QD and port.
The HLT uses a 1500 Watt element. I installed a home built thermowell, made from a 1/4 compression fitting, and 1/4 copper tubing, this just allows the temperature probe form the Johnson A419 to fit inside. I also used a small amount of Artic Silver Ceramique thermal paste on the probe to ensure a good contact and provide as accurate a reading as possible.
To somewhat dummy proof the system while I batch sparge, I installed a float switch set right at the 3 1/2 gallon level in the system and approximately 1/2 inch above the tip of the element. Once the hot liquor reaches this level, it trips the offset function on the A419, dropping the set temp to 50F below the current setting, so 185 to 135. This immediately kills power to the element. As long as I kill power to the A419 before the temperature at the probe reaches 135 degrees the element stays off. It will kick back on after about 20 minutes.
Cont.....
It uses a Gott and Home Depot 10 gallon coolers for the HLT and MLT. The stand is built from 2x4's and 4x4's I had lying around. I only had to purchase the 1/4 plywood top and some deck screws figured I'd keep it cheap. I lacquered the top to make it somewhat waterproof. With the exception of the inlet and outlet for recirculation and whirlpooling with the IC the whole system is plumbed with 1/2" copper tubing. Using 2 couplings and 5 Apollo "Pipe Master" valves the system can still be disassembled into a few major components. Sections that would not need to be removed use standard 1/2" full port valves.
I re-circulate the water in the HLT while it heats to; 1. Speed up the process a bit and 2. Stop any stratification. Works like a champ. From 70ish degree water to 185f takes about an hour. Here is a detail of the HLT lid with QD and port.
The HLT uses a 1500 Watt element. I installed a home built thermowell, made from a 1/4 compression fitting, and 1/4 copper tubing, this just allows the temperature probe form the Johnson A419 to fit inside. I also used a small amount of Artic Silver Ceramique thermal paste on the probe to ensure a good contact and provide as accurate a reading as possible.
To somewhat dummy proof the system while I batch sparge, I installed a float switch set right at the 3 1/2 gallon level in the system and approximately 1/2 inch above the tip of the element. Once the hot liquor reaches this level, it trips the offset function on the A419, dropping the set temp to 50F below the current setting, so 185 to 135. This immediately kills power to the element. As long as I kill power to the A419 before the temperature at the probe reaches 135 degrees the element stays off. It will kick back on after about 20 minutes.
Cont.....
