I've been using a 52 quart cooler with a bazooka tube for awhile, which has done pretty well, but I've never been one to leave a good thing alone 
The plan is to add a heating element and a control unit. I'll probably use a water heater element, most likely one which has a high surface area to power ratio in order to avoid scorching grain/wort. I am very familiar with micro controllers ranging from hobby quality arduinos to professional siemens PLCs. I'd most likely use a PIC18F because I've been working with them a lot recently and have some lying around. The idea is that I could easily set the desired temperature and maintain it running closed loop based on temperature probe(s). I could then just as easily program a stepped temperature routine.
The question I have is: will I have to worry about uneven mash temperatures? I'm concerned that in such a thick mixture as a mash, the temperature will not even out and any reading I get from a temperature probe couldn't be trusted.
Am I making this out to be a bigger deal than it actually is? Would it be worth involving some form or mechanical agitation (like a grout mixer type deal)? I could use two (or three or four) temperature probes and easily rig a mixer up on another circuit with a relay and motor so that it'll kick on when the temperature difference is above a certain threshold. Would this mechanical agitation be bad for the mash (release tannins)?
Maybe even a small high(ish) temperature aquarium-style pump with a filter to recirculate the wort but not agitate the mash?
Thanks for any and all advice and insight! I've been lurking here for ages, this is just one of the first problems I couldn't find a definite answer to through searching.
The plan is to add a heating element and a control unit. I'll probably use a water heater element, most likely one which has a high surface area to power ratio in order to avoid scorching grain/wort. I am very familiar with micro controllers ranging from hobby quality arduinos to professional siemens PLCs. I'd most likely use a PIC18F because I've been working with them a lot recently and have some lying around. The idea is that I could easily set the desired temperature and maintain it running closed loop based on temperature probe(s). I could then just as easily program a stepped temperature routine.
The question I have is: will I have to worry about uneven mash temperatures? I'm concerned that in such a thick mixture as a mash, the temperature will not even out and any reading I get from a temperature probe couldn't be trusted.
Am I making this out to be a bigger deal than it actually is? Would it be worth involving some form or mechanical agitation (like a grout mixer type deal)? I could use two (or three or four) temperature probes and easily rig a mixer up on another circuit with a relay and motor so that it'll kick on when the temperature difference is above a certain threshold. Would this mechanical agitation be bad for the mash (release tannins)?
Maybe even a small high(ish) temperature aquarium-style pump with a filter to recirculate the wort but not agitate the mash?
Thanks for any and all advice and insight! I've been lurking here for ages, this is just one of the first problems I couldn't find a definite answer to through searching.
