Recent content by tmyoung

Highdyho!! ;-)

I've come to learn that the apartment I live in was built by criminals. I'm a structural engineer, and I've done some work for the owner to address some structural issues. Through my involvement in his projects, I've learned that there is shoddy workmanship in almost every aspect of this...

I made a typo - the wiring behind the sockets is the white Romex, which is 14 gauge wire rated for 15 Amps, but the breaker is a 20 Amp breaker. My 1500 Watt element should draw around 12.5 Amps (about 83% of the 15 Amp socket), so as long as I can come to a boil in under a couple of hours I...

I had to put the project on hold so I could finish up grad school. I follow on that last post before I dropped off I wired the switch just as in the wiring diagram, but with the 15 Amp switch. Its not in the pictures, but I've put a note to self in the box to remind myself to up-rate the switch...

My idea was to place the switch between the PID and the relay that controls the element. There is no way the PID will have more than 15 Amp output, the PID is fused at 0.75 Amp.

Thanks for sharing the diagram. The plan is to run 1500 Watt element, until I can move somewhere with 20 Amp sockets, at that point I will change out for a 2000 Watt element. I intend to place one 15 amp toggle switch inline with the pump circuit, and the other between the PID and the SSR. If I...

Hey guys, If anyone would be so kind as to take a look, I'm hoping to get feedback on my circuit diagram. I'm feeling fairly confident about it, but this is not an area where I want to screw around. The system will be a small counter top system very similar to jkarp's. My control box will have...

Thanks for the wisdom. I'll check my gauge and install the outlet if I can. I'll probably do a discrete outlet so my property manager doesn't notice.

I'm setting up a small electric brewing system for use in my apartment. The breaker board in my unit has three 20 Amp circuits labeled "Kitchen," but all of the sockets in my kitchen appear to be 15 Amp sockets. I have been setting up my system for 20 Amps. Would it be safe to use the 15 Amp...

Hey folks, I went to bottle my red ale today, my third five gallon homebrew batch. I measured out 2/3 cup of sugar, or so I though, and boiled it in two cups of water, as per John Palmer's "How to Brew." In any event, I usually go through filling a bottle, then leaving a loose, sanitized...

If you have trouble getting labels off, I've found that an overnight soak in PBW will often get the labels to fall off on their own.

Howdy, folks, My objective is to add a heating function to my Mother of Fermentation chiller. The chiller was great in the summer, but now I need heat! As suggested by another board member, I am going to use a reptile heater for this purpose. This type of heater is a 60W unit that plugs...

Well, I got pretty distracted by school, and have yet to put a heater element in my box. The term just ended, and I'm hoping to brew some beer real soon, so it's time to put the heat in. I haven't had time to act on any ideas yet, but I've thought of several over the last two month or so. Here...

I love that idea. How do you have it mounted in yours? Were you able to wire it through the thermostat? I was about about to buy a belt heater at my local homebrew shop, when I realized that the belt will stay hot for a period of time after that thermostat shuts the belt off. This period of time...

Hey folks, I recently built a son of fermentation chiller, the weather has been hot and it seems to work great. However, fall has hit hard, and when I checked on my fermentor this morning it was a couple of degrees below temperature. I think it's time to ad heat. Has anybody done this before...