2000W Hot Rod - Speed Control?

[bbohanon]

Got asked this by someone at work today who is considering getting a Heat Stick or one of Bobbys Hot Rods with a 2000w element..
His question is if he could you use a router speed control switch to control the output of the heat stick as a quick and dirty way of ratching down the element power?

I tend to think this may be an unsafe way to do this on the cheap and told him he would better off with using a SSR w/ PID in a small enclosure setup for this, but figured someone else here might have tried this and has some feedback on it as I honestly am not sure if this is doable safely or not.

 

[dyqik]

A Stilldragon SSVR boil controller kit would likely be cheaper, simpler than a PID system, and would definitely work.

 

[Onkel_Udo]

Not my words, but from a reliable woodworking forum:

"IRC those speed controls sense the "generated" back EMF during the portions of each half wave cycle when their controlling triac is "off" and use that voltage as a
feedback signal to help keep the motor at a constant speed in the face of varying
torque loads."

So unless that heat stick needs to maintain a constant speed at any load, probably not going to work.

 

[bbohanon]

Not my words, but from a reliable woodworking forum:

"IRC those speed controls sense the "generated" back EMF during the portions of each half wave cycle when their controlling triac is "off" and use that voltage as a
feedback signal to help keep the motor at a constant speed in the face of varying
torque loads."

So unless that heat stick needs to maintain a constant speed at any load, probably not going to work.

This is what I was thinking the case would be with this deal. I will also let him know about the SDragon solution as well which in my mind is the better choice for a power regulator "on the cheap" option and stay safe.

He saw my Kal brew panel and wants to switch over to electric for 5 gallon batches but does not have much $$$ so he is looking to cut some corners I personally would not recommend. I told him its hard to find good brew buddies and I need him to not get dead due to cutting e-corners as it will cause me to have to go find a new brew buddy.
Plus his wife(along with mine) will most likely kill ME for letting him see my new e-setup and putting crazy ideas into his head.

 

[wilserbrewer]

I have used one of these w/ a 2000w heatstick
http://www.rockler.com/router-speed-control

It would get warm, but never failed. I have come to realize that with only 2000w, there really isn't a need to turn it down. Having a few excess watts is fine as long as your kettle is large enough. I used to squeeze a 7.75 gallon batch out of an 11 gallon kettle, so wanted to turn the boil down a bit to keep it from splashing out of the kettle. Now I use a 15 gallon pot and have no need to turn it down, 4000w or, 100% works fine.

If your total wattage is appropriate for your kettle size and batch size, you can just run the elements full on 100%. This is what I have always done, but I started doing it years before we had all this information on e-brewing....old habits die hard I guess....cheers!

 

[AnOldUR]

I've used a router speed control for mash temperature. Helps control ramp speeds while not scorching and can be lowered once mash temperature is reached. Have used it for both direct heat and RIMS tube. Both worked well.

This one should work for 2000W.
It's a little cheaper than the Rockler.

 

[dyqik]

I've used a router speed control for mash temperature. Helps control ramp speeds while not scorching and can be lowered once mash temperature is reached. Have used it for both direct heat and RIMS tube. Both worked well.

This one should work for 2000W.
It's a little cheaper than the Rockler.

That's still more expensive than a SSVR and potentiometer though, either the StillDragon kit or component parts.

 

[AnOldUR]

That's still more expensive than a SSVR and potentiometer though, either the StillDragon kit or component parts.

$40 with free shipping thru Amazon Prime vs. Almost $50 with shipping from StillDragon for the kit.

Not saying there aren't cheaper options out there, but this is an easy, plug-and-play option rather than that kit. And I've found that Amazon's return policy has always been good if something fails as compared to possibly f'ing up putting a kit together and having no recourse.

The router control isn't for everybody, but it is an easy, fairly cheap option that works.

The one I use cost $22, but is rated at 15amps. It has worked fine with my 1650W element for years.

 

[augiedoggy]

I bought this $18 setup and it seems to be very nice quality... very simple to wire up and throw in a $15 electrical enclosure form the home depot....

http://www.ebay.com/itm/140553987088?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT