BetterSense
Well-Known Member
Just an update on my cartridge heater rims setup... I recently pulled the trigger on a 36" long 1800w cartridge heater and am building a long 1" stainless pipe rims setup. I believe the longer contact time from the long ULWD element combined with the low 2gpm flow of my 24v dc pump should allow me to gently raise the temps quite a bit in one pass while still not denaturing any enzymes. I'm still waiting on a couple pipe fittings to arrive but im just lengthening my current rims setup...I does work fine but I want to be able to step mash quicker and I'm really curious if this will work better in the way that a longer plate chiller chills better than shorter chillers with more plates can...
BTW my current 24" 1000w cartridge heater is completely buildup free and clean with over 12 brews on it....hmm
You want lower power, more surface area, and higher flow, not less flow, if you are trying to minimize enzyme denaturing.
Since heating elements dissipate power more or less evenly along their length, the situation is not really comparable to plate chillers, where the heat is transferred proportional to the temperature delta between the media. Mi