beerthirty makes a porno

[RonRock]

Beerthirty, what exactly is a "next ex missus"?

Fun at first.

 

[blackheart]

We looked at the brewtroller and it looks pretty good. Its just that hey, building the system is half the fun. And we want to add some additional features like network connectivity and a tie in to a recipe creator that we are creating so we are making things a bit more difficult. The hardware side is the same regardless of what controller etc we use though. Any info, pics etc etc on what your doing is a huge help in generating ideas and decide on what we want to do. I know how hot the weather can be down there so I understand not wanting to head out to the garage. Whenever you get the chance pictures would be great.

So if I understand correctly, all 13 electronic devices (motors + valves) are wired in such a way that each receives the correct voltage via a SSR thats triggered by (im assuming) a 5v source which you have wired so that can be a manual 5v, off, or 5v from a micro controller. almost like a mini circuit breaker.

I was thinking of going with 12v solenoid valves for everything as it would be easy to create a 12v power supply and use a lower DC voltage to trigger everything with less expensive and bulky 5->12v relays and only use the 5->120v relays for the motors.

Did you hard wire everything together like the pump AC plug or did you create outlets or plugs to disconnect and move things?

We like the tippy dump idea and using hi temp tubing for everything but want to leave as many hoses in place as possible. Keep up the great work. We're looking forward to seeing the finished system!

 

[kladue]

If you use Ignition modules for gas system the solenoids will need to be 24 VAC, others can be 12VDC, but the 24VDC valves are more readily available.

 

[Simphoto02]

If you use Ignition modules for gas system the solenoids will need to be 24 VAC, others can be 12VDC, but the 24VDC valves are more readily available.

Listen to this guy.... SMART guy. Knows his stuff!!!

Thanks again Kevin, I will email ya about mine

 

[Whut]

I must be the last person in Arizona to see this. Awesome job man. If at some point you hear a noise at night, don't come out. It's just me hooking your rig to the Tahoe. Also don't bother coming over and looking in my garage! ! ! ! ! I met Wild at the Leo Bash, were you there?

 

[beerthirty]

Yorg, The next ex is the curent GF.
Blackheart,
All control voltages from the BT board run relays that then switch the higher voltage for the valves, pumps and ignition modules. I have a small 12 volt transformer inside the control box that powers the BT board and the manual side of the switches. I'm still working out the wiring. I may need to add another relay board with diodes on the high voltage side to allow it to be switchable manually. I'm hoping to get with Kevin after my vacation to design the wiring. I'm a half decent builder but not very good when it comes to designing.
whutever,
be warned the attack kitty you see guarding the mill station in my gallery is particularly sensitive about the brewtrailer. No I didn't make it to the LEO bash. I was busy ripping the wiring out of the control box and pounding my head on the floor.

 

[kladue]

BeerThirty,
Would be happy to give you a hand with taming the control box, I am really looking forward to watch your system operate. If not this weekend then after the 2nd week of september as I am headed back to Oregon till the 14th and will try to finally fire my system up in full auto mode.

 

[Gumbys_Brew]

truly amazing rig man. My father and I are in the process of making a fully automated HERMS system and I am very impressed with your work.

 

[Dog House Brew]

You suck.

..

+20000000000000000

 

[beerthirty]

Update time. I know its been awhile But had other issues that took a front seat to brewing. I know down right sacrilegious. I brewed to day for the first time on the rig. Last weeks wet run was very promising. I'm currently having computer problems so I decided to brew in manual mode. I swapped the temp sensors back to thermometers so I could read temps and instead of swapping out the pressure sensors decided to use the flow meter into the HLT and a stop watch to determine volume. Beersmith was roughly adjusted for the extra dead space and chiller/trub loss and the brew began. It was a modified Centennial Blonde recipe(using bits of this and that of left over hops). I felt this would be a good recipe to use as long as I kept IBUs close to the same. The burners worked great. the intermittent pilot systems lit up instantaneously when the switch was turned. I had a little trouble priming the pumps. I removed the auto air vents from the intake side of the pumps because last weekend they began to draw the float down and leaked a little air. This was a mistake. I will reinstall them and install tire valve stem caps to prevent the air leakage and still allow me to bleed the air out. once the pumps were primed everything went smoothly. doughed in, mashed and recirc with no problem. I had to kick the MLT burner in for about 15 minutes to maintain mash temp, but was quite happy with everything at this point. Midway through the boil I began to recirc the plate to gauge chill flow I would achieve. Chilled and split to 2 different fermenters. ok now the trouble begins. I began the cleaning cycle and had problems getting the pump to prime. since I had left the pumps and tubing with liquid in them this was a surprise. I tracked it down to the solenoid controlling chiller flow. it was stuck open. It must have gotten stuck moving all the hotbreak. I paln on cleaning it next weekend and installing a BK screen as well as limiting chill recirc to 10 minutes next brew.
All in all went well except for clean up. I have a couple pics to post if I can ever get these damn phone drivers on my pc.

 

[Dalarast]

Put a smoker, kegerator, and a stripper pole on that thing and you will really SUCK THE BIGGEST ONE!

Fixed...

oh and you still stuck!

 

[dudasaj]

You should take it to Alabama, then break the speed limit and brew at the same time. Breaking the law twice!!!! Nice!

 

[ForRealBeer]

That thing SUCKS!

(Because I don't own it.)

Seriously, that's one of the most awesome brewstands I have ever seen. It's the sort of thing that you see people put together on a reality show on History Channel, except surely this one won't burn up or fall apart in two uses.

WELL DONE!

 

[CenCalWorthog]

sucks... major.

 

[RegionalChaos]

Was the gas manifold already mentioned? Are you worried about plumbing loosening up as you travel? Looks cool for sure though. Super neat.

 

[iconic]

sucks sucks you suck as for the pics just email them to yourself like a text, rig looks awesome

 

[beerthirty]

Chaos, the manifold is securely mounted to the trailer and all tubing connections are Swaglok. I have never had a leak but always carry a crescent wrench with me as a precaution.

Iconic, that is assuming that I have data capability on my phone which I don't. Verizon still hasn't returned my email about usb drivers for my env3. I have had no luck searching the web for them. Hopefully will have them up soon.

 

[beerthirty]

I finally figured out how to get the pics from my phone. Damn new technology. Here are the pics as promised.

The basic rig during boil recirc.


Basic plumbing pic


the control box before installed on to the rig. This is modular using two 40 pin connectors so it can be removed from the rig during transport. I didn't want the electronics taking road bumps while mounted on the trailer. It takes only a minute to mount and connect to the trailer. Once I have my software problems corrected I plan on adding a few more switches to allow automatic O2 injection and a hop dropper.


another rear veiw shot with control box in the background. Some of you may notice only two air vents in this pic. During the the wet run I had a little trouble with the intake side air vents sucking air through the float so decided to remove them. This caused more priming difficulties so I will be reinstalling them but capping the auto vent ports with valve stem caps. The caps that came with them were drilled to allow them to vent with the caps on. I have determined that once the plumbing is full of water/wort priming is not needed. The next brew I plan on prefilling all the plumbing by opening all valves and vents to push the air out. This should result in a near automatic brew.

 

[beerthirty]

The barbecue has been chosen and the 5 pass cold plate purchased. Maybe after income tax time these upgrades might be completed.
My primary concern at this time is correcting the brew computer problems. I plan on working with the designers over the next couple weeks to correct those issues.

 

[GreenMonti]

That thing is REALLY SWEET. Nicely done.

 

[beerthirty]

Thank you Monti, maybe one day I'll change out the HLT for a flash boiler. Its been on my mind.

 

[mordantly]

i was kinda especting to see a keezer on there too.

 

[GreenMonti]

Thank you Monti, maybe one day I'll change out the HLT for a flash boiler. Its been on my mind.

Do it. If you build it they will come.

 

[beerthirty]

i was kinda especting to see a keezer on there too.

Its a class A trailer and I'm pulling it with a Cobalt. To keep weight down I decided to go with a cold plate.

 

[thorongil]

Looks to have evolved considerably since I last saw it back in May. When can we locals expect to see it in action?

 

[beerthirty]

When its DONE! or at least after the first auto brew. Once autobrew is fixed I will have all the time in the world, even during cleanup to answer questions, pour beers and cook barbecue.

 

[Yambor44]

Any challenges with the heat from the burner and the reflective tape/insulation on the kettles? I just added a burner under my MT and have the same tape/insulation as yours set up the same way. I haven't used it yet with the insulated tun as I was concerned about that. Thanks.

 

[beerthirty]

The MLT was insulated from top to the bottom skirt since I only fire it to maintain temp during recirc. The HLT and BK are not insulated on the lower 6 inches for the same concerns you have. At this point I have had no problems with either kettle. Once I cut the skirts to vent exhaust it has worked even better. The skirts maintain temps of 450-500* but the kettles themselves stay fairly cool due to the wort/water. The vented skirts actually move wasted exhaust heat away from the kettles while directing the main brunt of the flame to the bottoms. With a solid skirt exhaust heat acts as a barrier to the flame and forces it outwards applying more flame heat to the skirts, once the skirts were vented it removes the exhaust heat barrier and allows the flame to concentrate on the bottoms of the kettles giving me faster boils with cooler rig temps. The burner sheilding also creates a convection affect to help remove heat buildup from the rig while maintaining direct flame contact to the kettles. This is what I have found, but perhaps someone with a thermal- dynamic background can explain it better.

 

[Yambor44]

Thank you. I need to trim my tape up to expose the skirt.

 

[nwmarach]

Not to revive an old thread, but how did the BYO mag turn out? What back issue is it?

 

[kevmo]

Don't know anything about BYO but I know this rig (and all the dude's brewing equipment) was for sale a few months ago. I'm fairly certain it sold.

 

[johnnyc]

Looks like the OP hasn't signed on since 09-22-2010.

 

[arin]

The rig was sold and brought down to Tucson. It is currently for sale from the new owner. I guess they bit off more than they could chew with its complexity. I have their contact info if someone is looking to buy it.

 

[wolfareno]

Oh man, I'd love to see it. Too bad I'll be away from home (Tucson) until May...