How close is your panel to your brew kettles?

[Dgonza9]

What do you guys look for in an ideal spot for your brew panel? Do you want it away from your kettles in case of spills? Mounted up high?

I have a few options with mine. Obviously, no location ensures an accident won't spray it with water, unless it's in another room or something. But where are most folks putting their panels?

Right now, I'm thinking of putting it more or less on my sculpture, below a table that I often use for mashing in a cooler. I can recess it right into the table to save some space.

How did you guys determine where to put your sculptures?

 

[pvtschultz]

My GFI panel is 5-8 ft away from my brew cart and the control panel is mounted about a foot away from my keggle at keggle height. The control panel is sealed though so I'm not really concerned about water splashing and the GFI will get in the way should anything too funky occur.

 

[Brew52]

I'm currently building a 2 kettle electric system that will be 100% CIP (clean in place) and will be mounted on a custom brew stand and I plan to place my control panel in the middle of the stand centered between the two kettles but above them and at the back of the stand. I'm not worried about steam from the mash tun because the cover stays on during the mash and I figure if steam is a problem from the Boil Kettle, I can either install a fan or make a heat shield that goes on top of the BK during the boil. My control panel will be 14x16x8 and made of fiberglass and also will have a wash down canvas cover over it during water hose use. I chose this method of mounting so that I can hard wire everything using liquid tight conduit from the control panel to the kettles and pumps. This system will be mobil and completely washable. That's just how I'm doing it, of course you have to do what best fits your needs, but I like the idea of having "Mission Control" at my fingertips on brew day and not have to spend the extra money on all those twist-lock plugs and connectors. Cheers!

 

[MoesTavern]

Mine sits on top of the dryer in my laundry room. B-station is the next room over, about 15 feet away.

 

[mabrungard]

My panel is about 3 ft away from the kettle, 5 ft from the HLT. Its NEMA 13 rated and I am not very concerned with spray. I never really splash and don't pump with much pressure. I don't really think there is much opportunity for fugitive wort or water getting on the panel.

 

[gunmetal]

I originally had a control panel mounted under my stand. The panel was done and I even had an elaborate splash shield made for the top of it. It was a BCS 460 control box, so all I had was disconnects for the heating elements, pumps, and RTD's. I had an emergency stop switch mounted in a small Hoffman enclosure to the left of the rig away from the control box, everything else was controlled by laptop. I hated the fact that the box was under the rig in the splash zone. I ended up scraping the original and building a second box mounted to the left of the HLT. My rig is a single tier with HLt, MLt, boil kettle, all left to right. I figure the Hlt only has to go to strike temp, so I figure it is better to mount it to the left of the HLT than to go to the right of the boil kettle, where there are hop additions, and a chance for boilover. Eveything is pumped left to right away from the control panel, so it makes sense.

 

[castermmt]

Mine is about 30 inches maybe a little less away from the HLT. You can see it in my post by following the link below. It never comes close to getting wet. Castermmt

 

[mabrungard]

PS: My kettle is a 15 gal unit and I brew 5 to 10 gal batches. No chance of boil overs in my case.

 

[Lucky_Chicken]

my control panel is about 3' from my HLT about 6 or 7 from the boil (in link below). I think its a good distance far enough to feel safe but not so far that i cant watch the pots while im making adjustments... only 2 brews under its belt so far but thats what i know so far.

 

[kal]

Mine's about a foot to the right of the HLT and just above it. Purposely put the farthest away from the boil kettle since that's where most of the moisture comes from. That said, my panel is sealed and water resistant. I did once during testing once boil water with the room closed and no fan just to see what happens. The panel was dripping with condensation but after all turned off it was completely dry inside.

Kal

 

[Lucky_Chicken]

I like the dips you have on your cords Kal!

 

[acefaser]

PS: My kettle is a 15 gal unit and I brew 5 to 10 gal batches. No chance of boil overs in my case.

Famous last words.
Mine is about 12 inches from the HLT. 5 feet from the BK.