Brewing setup question for busy dads

[grathan]

The Brew-Boss looks nice. Not too expensive. I would add chugger pump upgrade, camlock recirculation upgrade, auto hops feeder upgrade.

I do infusion mash in a cooler and walk away for hours sometimes before drain/sparge.

I also walk away during/after wort chilling, just letting stuff settle for an hour or more.

The biggest thing is not treating brew day like a race. Your family will see how irrational you are. Take time with them and brewing at the same time.

 

[rhythmsteve]

Yes, it's quite moronic for me to remind you all that you still need to live your lives for yourselves, that children are not the be all, end all of existence. Perhaps instead of calling me a moron some of you should sack up and tell your wives for 4 hours in a month you will be doing what you enjoy doing. For gosh sakes, you can throw a ball with little Timmy and Joey during the hour mash rest

 

[Gavin C]

@rhythmsteve
Speaking for myself and not being able to claim to represent the general consensus, I would say that I do not participate in HBT to receive marital or relationship advice. I'm sure you feel your advice is well placed and pertinent to this thread nonetheless.

Perhaps there are other outlets in your area; a nearby street-corner or club where eager recipients of your advice could be found. I just don't think you will find your target audience here.

Your approach to marital affairs is not one I would identify with.

Furthermore, I never called you a moron. I described your comments as being consistent with those of one. We all have our off days. The OP is a Dad looking for tips from others in a similar situation with a busy lifestyle; your remarks, describe them however you want, are entirely unhelpful and I will reiterate; entirely misguided in my humble opinion.

 

[Transamguy77]

Since we all have different obligations I have tried it a few different ways, I'm not an early riser so getting up and starting super early is not an option. I've tried after work, after the kids go to bed and during the day (usually the kids will help then) but no matter when I brew being prepared is key.

I moved a few months ago and haven't got to brew yet but where I used to live I had to lug all my crap to my yard and set up and when I was done lug it all back between 2 floors so in this house I made it that it is all in one place, should shave off an hour of set up an tear down.

Clean as you go helps save time too put stuff away as you are done with it them less to clean up after.

I have also found that including my kids helps because they want to help do things so they feel included and not like you are doing something without them. I have 5 so it's never a dull (or quiet) moment here and sometimes I need time to myself but I would rather brew with them than not brew at all.

 

[Marc77]

Rounding it back to the topic... First off THANK YOU..almost everyone for your hints and techniques. It gives me a bit of hope to see that Dad's out there are finding time to do brewing the way it works best for them.

To sum up most thoughts prep, prep and more prep seems to be the most helpful thing. Second seems to be BIAB or electric are the most helpful. I would absolutely LOVE to move to an electric rig but WOW are those expensive. In the mean time I'm thinking I'll use the Frankenstein approach in my original post and start saving money for an electric rig. I'm not an electrician but putting together a panel intrigues me and learning can be fun...after all it helped us make beer right?

All this leads me to another quesiton...since I do eventually want to move to electric what are everyone's thoughts on how much I'll end up spending to go electric? I'll have to start saving and I've been eyeballing the complete 30a bcs kit from ebrewsupply.com. I'm going to go ahead and assume I won't be doing that for several years because, kids.

The other expensive portion seems to be the pots. I never understood the stout tanks and blichmann obsession. They're awesome if you can afford them, but how much past "Oh, it's shiny" do you get? I'm thinking I can use the Bayou Classic 82qt pot for my HLT, but should I splurge for a more expensive option for my BK or is a kettle a kettle? If there is a benefit that I need to consider with the kettles please let me know. For now though it just seems like an added cost.

Thanks again for all the input! I really appreciate it and everyone on this site, I wouldn't be brewing beer if it wasn't for HBT.

 

[ChocolateMaltyBalls]

I built my eHERMS when my son was 2, spent a few long nights drilling holes etc. and assembling the control panel. Like everything else with kids you have to plan ahead, so I'd recommend spending a lot of time thinking about how you want to brew (process) and what features you want/need for your system so you spend your build time building instead of planning on the fly or redoing something. Brewing attracts a lot of DIYers and there's nothing about building an electrical system that requires memorizing the NEC, it's very doable. I recommend studying theelectricbrewery.com even if you don't build a Kal clone, and searching the electric forum a lot. It's only as expensive as you want it to be, but it's worth it (at least to me) to pay a little more for the time flexibility that come with using a controller.

As for kettles, well a pot is a pot. I like my cheap Concords, and I also use a beat up old keg as a bottom drain MLT. Stainless is worth it for kettles, especially big kettles, as some of the big alumunim pots are too thick.

Good luck!

 

[grathan]

I think going cheap is the best way to start with electric. You don't really need a Rasberry Pi to monitor kettle temps. Boiling can only reach about 212*F so it monitors itself.

The biggest expense will probably be your wiring.

240v is optimal. 50 amps would be all you ever need. But you could save some money by going with 30 amps , but may decide you want to run 2 elements at once one day.

-GFCI breaker $60-100
-wiring+ connectors $40-150 a lot depends on how far from the service panel you want to brew and whether or not you go with 50 amps or 30 amps.
-heating element + enclosure $50-70

So about $200 to DIY electric with 240v.






Another cheap option is 110V + existing propane. (A good way to get started)
Since electric code pretty much puts GFCI outlets in garages, kitchens, and outdoors receptacles, you probably already have gfci. So all you need is an immersion heater. There was one suggested on the first page. Or you could get a HotRod from here and an all stainless element.
https://www.brewhardware.com/category_s/1832.htm

Note that you are limited to what wattage your breaker is that you plug into (minus anything else that runs on that circuit while brewing).

So if you purchase 2000 watt element you would need:
2000 watts / 110V = 18.8 amps
So you would need 20 amp breaker (please note that your breakers are most likely 15 amps meaning you will probably be closer to 1500 watt element).









Once you get comfortable plugging in and using an electrical water heater you could automate with a temperature controller and relays. Additional $30-$100.