Need Ideas For an HLT Stirrer.

[tracer bullet]

^^^ Looks like a reasonable setup. Double check the shaft and coupler dimensions, and plan on something (perhaps 2 x 4's and some pipe clamps) to mount the motor. And of course drill holes in your lid or whatever... But seems off to a good start.

 

[passedpawn]

Exactly what I'm planning, except I will use a stainless mash paddle cut to length. I know the mash paddle is completely food safe and should provide plenty of movement at 100 RPM. My plan is to use this at flameout to keep wort moving over my immersion chiller. None of my kettles are ported, so using a pump to recirculate is more difficult.

Here's the parts. I'll likely need to reduce the diameter of the mash paddle handle to fit the coupler. I also plan to build a mount that will slide over the side of the kettle so I can use it on all of my kettles.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072R57C56/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_2?smid=A18IHNL4DD28Y&psc=1https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07TTH283Z/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_3?smid=AGOSLUO29ZUJ2&psc=1https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N25GA98/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I think I have a 12v power supply in stock, but if not, this is the one I'll get. It can lower the voltage, which will lower the RPM. It also has an adapter to make connecting it to the motor simple.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N7RS0NG/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_1?smid=A2WETDVOSZN7JY&psc=1
~HopSing.

That'll look super-cool when it's done, but I sorta think it's a bit of overkill given the other options. I'm not trying to dissuade you - this is a hobby and if you like building stuff then it'll be fun.
For those less adventurous and without ports, I'd use the aquarium air pump output through some stainless tubing to the bottom of the HLT. I considered doing this for years, but I have an excess of pumps so no need.

 

[slayer021175666]

Thanks, esdill. I'll be doing something quite similar.

passedpawn, I ordered the pump you suggested and pumping is how I'm going to do it. Everyone here had good ideas but, your pump idea was the best balance of ease, expense, time and construction.
Just my opinion but:
The aquarium air pump idea is actually the cheapest and easiest but, ambient air would cool the water as it bubbles through it. I know the element would fight that and keep it where I want it but, that fighting each other is an unwanted inefficiency.
The electro-mechanical way will work for sure but, its more expensive, harder to collect all the parts for, more time to build and has to stay attatched to the tank lid. Even if you moved the whole lid and motor to the kettle for wort chilling circulation, you'd need another paddle because of the different levels of liquid in the HLT and the BK. Too cumbersome!
The little pump, for me, is the hands down way to go! Inexpensive and easy to install. No added cooling effect from air bubbles, quieter operation, sleaker looking, doesn't impead the use of the lid, swappable to the BK for wort chilling and can be used for wort transfer or other things later if I ever want to. I'm sold! And, thank you again passedpawn!

 

[tracer bullet]

It's a good pump for it. I go from tun to pump and back into tun.

Make sure you have the same size fitting at the tun outlet valve and whatever you plan to use to get it back in, some hose and some hose clamps, and you're good to go. I use the silicone tubing in 3/8 ID and it's perfect. Look for hose clamps with the little key things on them built in and you won't have to go hunt for a screwdriver every time.

 

[slayer021175666]

Thank you, tracer.
That pump comes with everything you really need except for some tubing. Quick disconnects are my way of making things quick to switch and swap. They are expensive fittings but its buy once cry once, ya know. Extremely quick comfortable to use!

 

[HopSing]

I'd use the aquarium air pump output through some stainless tubing to the bottom of the HLT. I considered doing this for years, but I have an excess of pumps so no need.

This is a really interesting idea. Surely worth a test. The cooling from the air would be beneficial in my use case and the additional O2 would help aerate for the yeast. I would definitely add some kind of in-line filter as I've seen oil slicks on aquariums from the air pumps. It's usually food safe lube, so it won't hurt the fish, but it would likely kill any head retention for a batch.

Thanks for the idea.

~HopSing.

 

[slayer021175666]

If you are still talking about using the aquarium air pump in your HLT, the O2 will not be beneficial to the yeast. The O2 is lost in the boil kettle anyway. Still need to shake or otherwise aerate the wort to replenish that lost O2.

 

[passedpawn]

This is a really interesting idea. Surely worth a test. The cooling from the air would be beneficial in my use case and the additional O2 would help aerate for the yeast. I would definitely add some kind of in-line filter as I've seen oil slicks on aquariums from the air pumps. It's usually food safe lube, so it won't hurt the fish, but it would likely kill any head retention for a batch.

Thanks for the idea.

~HopSing.

My original idea was to connect the air to the top of my sight gauge, which is connected to the bottom of my HLT. But then the sight gauge wouldn't work, even when I turned the air pump off (I don't think... these air pumps are diaphram pumps that don't pass air when off). So I never did it.

But you could put a tee at the bottom where the sight gauge connects, the somehow connect the air below the sight gauge.

Anyway, my basic point is that if you already have ports (e.g., sight gauge) on your HLT, one of those ports could also be used for the air.

 

[tracer bullet]

So for the pump that it looks like will be used here, connections just tun valve outlet into pump and back into tun. I ran hoseclamps to a bent piece of stainless tube in the past, but recently went w/ the "Infussion" from SS brewtech and now use the recirculation port built in.

For an aquarium pump though, I think you'd want to also put it into the tun valve, any tee relating to a sight glass would just have that air going into the sight glass and not into the tun, unless you had yet another couple valves setup. Maybe I'm just not picturing the idea correctly.

Generally speaking, I think moving water is going to create a lot more heat transfer and balancing than air from an aquarium pump trying to create the same motions.

 

[passedpawn]

For an aquarium pump though, I think you'd want to also put it into the tun valve, any tee relating to a sight glass would just have that air going into the sight glass and not into the tun, unless you had yet another couple valves setup. Maybe I'm just not picturing the idea correctly.

haha, you're right. Derp. back to the drawing board.

 

[slayer021175666]

What I was thinking about running the aquarium pump through the sight glass was, putting the air line in the top of the clear sight glass tube. No T involved. If done this way and only in the HLT, You would use the sight glass as normal for measuring your water but, once you start heating, you would send the air down the sight glass tube into the bottom of the tank. Simple! And, no need to pay and wait for a stainless T, either! To me, it just has my affore mentioned drawbacks such as the cooling effect it would give. No "biggie" really, for the right guy. The heating element and controller would compensate. The little pump is still the way to go though, IMO.

 

[passedpawn]

What I was thinking about running the aquarium pump through the sight glass was, putting the air line in the top of the clear sight glass tube. No T involved. If done this way and only in the HLT, You would use the sight glass as normal for measuring your water but, once you start heating, you would send the air down the sight glass tube into the bottom of the tank. Simple! And, no need to pay and wait for a stainless T, either! To me, it just has my affore mentioned drawbacks such as the cooling effect it would give. No "biggie" really, for the right guy. The heating element and controller would compensate. The little pump is still the way to go though, IMO.

As I tried to explain above, I believe the sight glass level wouldn't go down when the tank was emptied. I think that if the diaphragm pump was connected, it'd be like putting your thumb on the top of a straw and lifting it out of a drink.... with the top closed, liquid won't exit the column.

Easy to test, and if it comes to mind this weekend I'll do just that.

 

[slayer021175666]

I think I see what you are saying but, why not just disconnect the air tube from the sight glass? Or, just let the pump run the whole time until the HLT is drained?
I'm probably missing something here.

 

[passedpawn]

I think I see what you are saying but, why not just disconnect the air tube from the sight glass? Or, just let the pump run the whole time until the HLT is drained?
I'm probably missing something here.

You'd have to disconnect any time you wanted the sight gauge to show the correct volume. Sure, it'd work. That would be inconvenient I think. Just looking for the ultimate solution.

 

[slayer021175666]

AHH! I think I see what you mean. Your process must differ from mine. I just fill to whatever the water requirement of the initial mash is, heat it up and let it go into the MLT . I dough in and as the mash works, I again fill the HLT to the sparge requirement and fly sparge until it is drained. If, a different lautering process were employed where other water measurements were needed, sending the air down the sight glass wouldn't work.