Search results

I understand. Good luck with everything and let us know what you hear from Blichmann on the subject. I'm brewing tomorrow night. I may put a stopwatch on the rig and see what my heating rate is based on my eyeballed settings. In any event, this statement from the manual gives me some...

Forgive my being dense, but Is the point of all of this to not overheat the wort or to avoid sticking the mash or both? The way I'm thinking about it, you're not going to overheat your wort by much (at least not by more than the system allows for in its initial overshoot cycling). So if I'm at...

This is the kit for the Blichmann Burner. http://www.williamsbrewing.com/FLOOR-STANDING-BURNER-CONVERSION-KIT-P2626.aspx Williams also has an orifice for a Hurricane burner that also will work for the 10" Bayou Classic Banjo burner (even though BC says it can't be run on NG). As for smaller...

This may be one instance where my having a kettle with a sandwiched clad bottom is an advantage over the Blichmann kettle's single ply bottom (might let me get away with a bit more heat), but the only way to know with your setup is to give it a try with the burner turned up a bit more. As far...

Do you have your shudder opened or closed on the burner? When I used to use a Banjo Burner with NG, I would need the shudder closed to light it and then would open it to get a blue flame. I use a pair of TOPs with 20 tip jet burners. The ASCO valves choke down the gas line enough on my...

My 20 tip burners have a hole that's probably meant as a spot for the pilot light. I have a cross piece underneath my wind screens. I just drilled a hole in that and bolted the burner to the cross piece. Other option was to attach all of the gas piping to the stand and let the burners be...

Either way will probably work, and it's only the cost of a t-fitting to try it one way versus the other. But I think the programming of the PID controller in the TOP is done with the idea that it is used to measure the wort after it passes the heat source, be it direct fired RIMS or HERMs...

When did you check the mash temp? There's going to be a little lag between your mash and the wort passing through the heat exchanger. How are you returning the wort to the mash? I have a flexible line that returns the wort to the bed and causes a slow whirlpooling action of the wort over the...

I don't think you need to do anything. I brew in my garage and have had no problems with condensation accumulating on the ceiling (or open garage door) from the boil.

By the time I get to whirlpool, I probably have 12 gallons in the BK. With summer groundwater in Texas (guessing 75 degrees F), I can get it down from boiling to between 90--100 degrees F in what I estimate is around 20. I have left it running longer and gotten down to 80. I'm usually...

I direct fire in one of those tri clad bottom kettles with a 20 tip jet burner underneath. False bottom is about 3" off the bottom and mash is probably thinner than most. I recirculate at what I estimate is 2--3 gallons per minute and no issues with stuck mashes or scorching. Did a rye ale...

I'll give the opposing product an endorsement. I run a convoluted CFC from Morebeer. I recirculate and whirlpool through it. No hop bags, spiders, or blockers. Absolutely no clogging issues and it chills quickly.

Man, those have gone up in price since I bought a pair several years ago. I think I paid $30 a piece for the ones that fit (barely) on the ventmatics.

I'm surprised someone hasn't written an app or software to make a "prettier" version of this software. I'm not a software guy, but it's just something that is talking to and graphing information from the PID controllers inside the TOP housing. Link software is fine, but it's extremely...

Any regrets (read extra money down the road to modify the stand) have been related to my not planning for the future well enough. Imagine your dream stand, with automation, big control panels, plumbing for gas and liquid, and sized to hold vessels about 2 times larger than you ever think you'll...

I have been using air hose for years. Rated for 200 psi. You can stand on it and it won't compact. Rock solid. Since it isn't hooked up 24/7, and I am always there when it is in use, I have no concerns with its safety. I have used a banjo burner with the Williams orifice as well as 3 20-tip...

I have been using the TOP in a direct fired configuration for approaching two years. In my configuration, I have the probe on the pump outlet (just south of the MLT). In a HERMs situation, you would want it after the HEX, i.e., after the point where heat is being applied. It will work great.

About 8 years ago, my wife and I were skiing. One morning, we burried two Fat Tire bottles in the snow next to the remote shuttle stop. At the end of the day, we and about 10 other skiers were waiting for the shuttle (usually about 15 minutes between arrivals). We found our beers and sat in a...

Plan the stand for twice the batch size you ever think you'll do. It's always more expensive if you have to modify the stand. Seriously, imagine the ultimate system for your budget and space and build the stand so that you can easily add the things you can only dream of now. I have had two...