Ebiab + wort stir motor = success

[haeffnkr]

Hi All,
I finally fixed my wort temp stratification issues today.
I finally got my stir motor up and running.
My temps were finally the same at the top of the pot and the bottom with the PID.

I got the motor listed in this thread -
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f170/ehlt-recirulation-pump-stir-motor-262170/

I welded a short 1/2" iron nipple to one of the gears that came with the motor.
Then I used a copper for the rest stir contraption and screwed the 2 together.
1/2 copper female - 1/2 pipe adapter, then a short piece of pipe then made a propeller contraption from a old cheap stainless bowl.
I cut it out with a tin snips and soldered it to the pipe with the harris liquid solder listed in the "solder stainless" thread... that liquid flux is awesome BTW.
The prop is about 7" across x 3.5" tall and it moves the water !!

I just sat the motor on a piece of plywood with some holes in it for the mounting bolts and shaft... not even bolted tight.
I just hand tightened the copper shaft assembly to the motor-1/2 nipple assembly for easy cleaning ... it ran for an hour and did not fall off or get loose.

My efficiency went up 3% also.
It worked GREAT.
My ebiab setup never worked better than today.

FINALLY no stratification... my temps were the same all through out my kettle.
No stuck grain bed bed in my bag, no burned elements when the pump was to fast, no issues at all.
I can finally mash in for an hour and leave my setup with no worries and nothing to monitor or run downstairs and check.

Who wants to buy a like new chugger stainless pump ??

enjoy the pics
thanks Kevin

 

[acidrain]

That's awesome! I've been working on something similar... I started out with a ice cream maker motor. It fits the tun perfectly, but proved too week.
I looked at the specs for your motor... 10 in-lbs. That's not a lot. My stir bar/rake is bigger than yours, but not by much.
Does that motor labor? Does it seem really strong or what?

Do you run it continuously?

Thanks for sharing.

 

[haeffnkr]

That's awesome! I've been working on something similar... I started out with a ice cream maker motor. It fits the tun perfectly, but proved too week.
I looked at the specs for your motor... 10 in-lbs. That's not a lot. My stir bar/rake is bigger than yours, but not by much.
Does that motor labor? Does it seem really strong or what?

Do you run it continuously?

Thanks for sharing.

Seems like it has plenty of power to me.
The motor has a heavy cast covering/heatsink.
I ran it continuously for 60 minutes and it really moves the water and grain.
(I taped the start capacitor to the outside of the motor ... not sure what the original plan was for that... )

The motor came with some 3 gears on it, 2 that looked like it was for a bike chain, so I guess it was turning something big and heavy.

Your welcome.
Nice that I can add something to this awesome forum.

thanks Kevin

 

[Doed]

How does the bag keep from getting caught in the propeller?

 

[haeffnkr]

I used 3 clamps to hold it tight around the top and side...and the grain holds the bottom down.

Believe me...I expected it to get caught in there but it did not happen

 

[kzimmer0817]

How does the bag keep from getting caught in the propeller?

I see where you answered this question. I've been trying to think up a similar idea that would either:
1. have a rod attached to the bottom of the bag to a cam on the lid such that the bottom of the bag were simply pumped up and down a few inches in order to stir up the mash or . . .
2. some sort of propeller idea as you have.

I'm not concerned about the top of the bag getting caught as I would clip it to the side of the kettle. I'm more worried about the bottom of the bag floating up a bit along with the grains that are being lifted by the current and thereby becoming caught in the propeller. OTOH, if the propeller doesn't necessarily stir the bottom of the grain, but starts in the middle, the current at the bottom might not be sufficient to lift the bottom of the bag.

I had wondered about having some sort of rack attached distal to the propeller that would swivel such that it would remain stationary, holding the bag down, while the propeller rotates. Perhaps I'm complicating things.

I'll be interested to hear how your idea continues to work. Thanks for posting,
Keith

 

[haeffnkr]

Hi Keith,

I thought about using a steamer basket of some sort.
The prop would spin inside of it, thus making sure the bag would not get caught.
I never went forward with the idea though.

Yes, sorry you seem to be complicating things a bit

I will run this thing again soon and post back my findings.

I dont see to many using stir motors, especially for BIAB... not sure why it seems like a great idea so far.

thanks Kevin

 

[jleiii]

This is a very interesting idea. I was looking to do the same thing with my immersion chiller, and now it is a dual purpose idea!

I was looking at your typical paint stirrer rather than the slice and dice propeller in the pics! It looks scary. Home Depot has a number of stirrers under $10. The material it's made of has to be carefully considered in this case. A quick search online and I found this one Stainless Stirrer for $16.73 on Amazon.

Another thing on my DIY list....

 

[haeffnkr]

Hi All,

I used this a few times now it works great, consistent temps and all.
I did snagged the bottom of the bag once, I now put 2x4 spacers under it to keep it higher and avoid that issue.

As far as the metal used for the stirrer/prop, it was just an old big 30 quart mixing bowl I had laying around from my failed exhaust hood idea (See this link for pics https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f170/exhaust-fan-condensation-drips-help-pic-423021/
It was very easy build, hammer and cut.

I burned a batch of beer before I started using this, since using it, no more burned beer either, this biggest benefit so far

thanks Kevin