my personal victory (and new solution) to boilovers

[ak47clown]

So i brewed my 4th beer today (a #9 clone) and had forgotten to buy fermcaps the last time i ordered stuff. I just started doing full boils my batch with a turkey fryer. I was not expected the boilover i had last time and pretty much had to sit there the entire hour with my hand on the "throttle" and kept varying the gas to make sure it didn't go over.

Not wanting to do that this time, I looked for some alternatives-i read in here someone recommended throwing in a few marbles but i couldn't find any and then i read about someone using a fan. Genious!

I was able to keep a full rolling boil for the entire time without worrying about boilover at all. This was defintely my best boil yet except for the minor boilover i got in the beginning before i had set the fan up. I'll defintely use this from now on-it works like a charm!

 

[culaslucas]

nice solution! I just squirt it with a water bottle if it's about to boil over.

 

[Coastarine]

Fan pwns. I try to spread that trick as much as I can.

 

[Big Piggy's Brewery]

I have a Brew Buddy that says he uses a "clip-on" fan. I think your idea is a lot safer and better than a clip-on fan. I would worry to much about the fan falling into the nectar of the gods!

 

[ak47clown]

nice-coastarine. It was your thread i probably saw but at that point, I was just frantically searching for a solution because i was so pissed about the thought of having to go through what i went through last time. Many thanks!

The one thing i wonder is if this increases the rate of evaporation. At about 30 minutes in, i added close to half a gallon of water to bring me back up to my 5 gallon mark...

 

[Bartman]

I don't see any homebrew in a glass on that table...looks like you missed the most crucial step!!!

 

[llazy_llama]

Or a sexy brewbabe in the chair. Missed step #2 also.

 

[chillHayze]

I don't see any homebrew in a glass on that table...looks like you missed the most crucial step!!!

Point and shoot camera only takes 1 hand. Maybe beer's in the other...

 

[Coastarine]

The one thing i wonder is if this increases the rate of evaporation. At about 30 minutes in, i added close to half a gallon of water to bring me back up to my 5 gallon mark...

Good question; I would guess no, but I've never tried it with and without to see the difference. Doesn't really matter to me, I always use a fan and I've got my evap dialed in.

I do use a clip on, but I clip it to the brew rig, not directly to the kettle.

 

[CiscoKid]

Or a sexy brewbabe in the chair. Missed step #2 also.

Bah, I got my girlfriend over for exactly one brew day. She was rather bored and unimpressed with the whole thing. Doubly so when it came time to bottle. "Too many steps." "Too much waiting for it to finish boiling." *shrug* I notice she hasn't minded the finished products, and I put a slew of wheat beers in the early line up because I know she likes them.

So, short of finding a replacement brewbabe... I'm going to end up missing step #2 on any pictures I turn up for you all.

 

[ak47clown]

well as far as step 1 i unfortunately did not get to that until after the boil. Didn't have one cold handy... I'll try harder next time-i promise!