Single tier questions

[nyer]

After seeing al of the new builds going on I decided I have to build a brewstand. I'm in the planning stage and I want to make sure that I can upgrade the stand later.

Right now I'm only planning to use two burners with the ability to add a third later. I also want the ability to add a temp. control in the future. I don't really know what it's called or how it works yet though. I've read a little about love controllers and some kind of valves. I will be using propane and probably hurricane burners. Will they work with temp. control when I update later on?

Is there anything else I should keep in mind while building and welding so I don't screw myself for the future?

The search function doesn't seem to be working very well, can someone point me to a single tier build that uses these controls?

 

[BargainFittings]

I would plan for the biggest kettle you can see yourself brewing with. Be sure the width of each burner area is wide enough with a bit of room for future growth.

The controllers will work with the right solenoids to fire the burners. You will need a pilot light or a click start system to ignite the burners. Love controllers can handle this.

Here are some links I found on google
Single tier Home brewery
Single Tier Brewing System Links | CHEM - Circulating Heat Exchanged Mash
TheBitterBrewer.com • View topic - My Single Tier Brew Stand Build
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/single-tier-build-106349/

 

[Bobby_M]

I'd recommend that you do as much reading as possible in all the build threads and start listing a bunch of pointed questions. It's hard to give you a one paragraph summary with all the heavy details.

 

[sigmund]

The best thing for you to do is build yourself a brew stand that will do just what you want it to do now and start brewing. If you can weld and fabricate, you can add to it in the future. Without knowing what you truly want to do in the future you'll spend more time now trying to design in things you'll never need, less time brewing and finding out what you really could use to make your stand more brew friendly.

 

[nyer]

Thanks for the info, I printed a bunch of stuff to read while on vacation. I'm more excited to get home from vacation to start welding than I am to go on vacation.

 

[nyer]

I have been reading up on pumps and burners. I'd like to make sure I order the right stuff. Is the pump everyone uses the march 809? How about burners, I was thinking of using the hurricane burners since I'm on propane.

 

[Boerderij_Kabouter]

I highly suggest writing everything down and drawing out your system on paper. I have gone through several iterations of my design and am finally collecting parts for it. My build record (only a design record at this point) is in my sig. I wasted a lot of money on my current setup because I didn't have a clear vision of what I needed. Knowing exactly what you need WILL save you money and you can work out kinks before buying parts.

 

[datamike]

I agree with Kabouter. Figure out as much as you can now, before you buy stuff. Think about electronic controls, wiring, switches, etc. Consider natural gas now. (no more running out of propane, ever!)

I am just finishing my system. It's taken about two months to build, but many months in the planning stage.

Good luck!

BrewDevil Build

I highly suggest writing everything down and drawing out your system on paper. I have gone through several iterations of my design and am finally collecting parts for it. My build record (only a design record at this point) is in my sig. I wasted a lot of money on my current setup because I didn't have a clear vision of what I needed. Knowing exactly what you need WILL save you money and you can work out kinks before buying parts.

 

[nyer]

I'm not going electric, I'm building a single tier with 1 pump and 3 burners. I have to use propane because that's what my house runs on. I'm curious what everyone likes for pumps and burners. I want to order them so I can plan the mounting when I weld up the frame.

 

[Lil' Sparky]

March pump 809 HS. That's standard issue.

I'm using these cheap $8 cast iron burners and they work great. http://www.agrisupply.com/product.asp?pn=30295

If you hard plumb the burners, you'll want to use an orifice like this one from morebeer. Burner Jet - 1/8 in. x 1 in. | MoreBeer.

 

[nyer]

March pump 809 HS. That's standard issue.

I'm using these cheap $8 cast iron burners and they work great. http://www.agrisupply.com/product.asp?pn=30295

If you hard plumb the burners, you'll want to use an orifice like this one from morebeer. Burner Jet - 1/8 in. x 1 in. | MoreBeer.

I love the price on those burners, do you think they are strong enough for 10 gallon boils? I'd rather not pay for 3 hurricane burners if I don't have to.

 

[Cape Brewing]

+1 on the March 809s.. they're "standard ussue" for a reason. They're perfect for the application.

Here's mine (although this is an old picture before it was cleaned up a bit)

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/attachments/f45/9823d1234763255-drunken-ramblngs-rig1.jpg

For burners, I went with two 32 tip jer burners and I have 'em plumbed into my house's natural gas.

32 Tip Round Nozzle Jet Burner - CHINESE WOK RANGES - RANGES - EQUIPMENT

I also have nine solenoid valves for controlling the flow of water/wort through my system.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Electric-Soleno...h=item300302928913&_trksid=p4634.c0.m14.l1262

(you can ask for the viton seals in these for no extra charge and the will handle the temps no problem)

If you notice on the floor of my rig pic you can see a grey control panel tethered tot he rig by a few wires (again.. it's been cleaned up since).

I plug a hose into one end and then plgu in the gas through a natural gas quick connect and then everything is flip-a-switch.

I have two Auberin PID's that control temp in my HLT and BK (I'll explain why).

1/16 DIN PID Temperature Controller (SSR control output) [SYL-2352] - $44.50 : auberins.com, Temperature control solutions for home and industry

... and the way my rig works is:

- Fill HLT and BK: flip two switches
- Bring HLT and BK up to temp: punch in temps into two PID's and the burners automatically kick on via two gas valves my father grabbed for me
- Pump mash-in water from BK into MT - flip switches
- add grain
- constantly circ water through false bottom and manifold in the MT, into a 25 ft coil suspended in the HLT and back up through a sparge arm to the top of the grain in the MT - flip a switch.

... what I did, on suggestion from Pol, was mount a 25 ft 1.2 copper coil in my HLT and I constantly circ my MT through that... and then maintain temp in my MT by applying heat to the HLT... that way no direct heat is every applied to the MT.

When I'm done mashing...

- pump wort into BK - flip switch
- raise temp in HLT to sparge - type in temp
- sparge - flip switch
- boil - type in over "212" on my BK PID... and it boils
- whirlpool - flip switch
- chill - flip switch and it runs through a 30 plate chiller hooked up to a hose
- finish - open valve on other end and pour wort into carboy.

WOW... sorry for the really long post... just wanted to give you some things to think about in terms of possibilities.

 

[nyer]

+1 on the March 809s.. they're "standard ussue" for a reason. They're perfect for the application.

Here's mine (although this is an old picture before it was cleaned up a bit)

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/attachments/f45/9823d1234763255-drunken-ramblngs-rig1.jpg

For burners, I went with two 32 tip jer burners and I have 'em plumbed into my house's natural gas.

32 Tip Round Nozzle Jet Burner - CHINESE WOK RANGES - RANGES - EQUIPMENT

I also have nine solenoid valves for controlling the flow of water/wort through my system.

Electric Solenoid Valve 1" 110VAC, Water, Diesel (B21N) - eBay (item 300302928913 end time Apr-23-09 10:07:26 PDT)

(you can ask for the viton seals in these for no extra charge and the will handle the temps no problem)

If you notice on the floor of my rig pic you can see a grey control panel tethered tot he rig by a few wires (again.. it's been cleaned up since).

I plug a hose into one end and then plgu in the gas through a natural gas quick connect and then everything is flip-a-switch.

I have two Auberin PID's that control temp in my HLT and BK (I'll explain why).

1/16 DIN PID Temperature Controller (SSR control output) [SYL-2352] - $44.50 : auberins.com, Temperature control solutions for home and industry

... and the way my rig works is:

- Fill HLT and BK: flip two switches
- Bring HLT and BK up to temp: punch in temps into two PID's and the burners automatically kick on via two gas valves my father grabbed for me
- Pump mash-in water from BK into MT - flip switches
- add grain
- constantly circ water through false bottom and manifold in the MT, into a 25 ft coil suspended in the HLT and back up through a sparge arm to the top of the grain in the MT - flip a switch.

... what I did, on suggestion from Pol, was mount a 25 ft 1.2 copper coil in my HLT and I constantly circ my MT through that... and then maintain temp in my MT by applying heat to the HLT... that way no direct heat is every applied to the MT.

When I'm done mashing...

- pump wort into BK - flip switch
- raise temp in HLT to sparge - type in temp
- sparge - flip switch
- boil - type in over "212" on my BK PID... and it boils
- whirlpool - flip switch
- chill - flip switch and it runs through a 30 plate chiller hooked up to a hose
- finish - open valve on other end and pour wort into carboy.

WOW... sorry for the really long post... just wanted to give you some things to think about in terms of possibilities.

That is what I want to have in the future. I'm looking at getting the system put together and then using it about a year while I collect parts to upgrade to what you have later. I'm hoping I will have things planned well enough so that I add on to my stand later.

 

[Lil' Sparky]

I love the price on those burners, do you think they are strong enough for 10 gallon boils? I'd rather not pay for 3 hurricane burners if I don't have to.

Just get a 0-20 psi regulator, and they put out more BTUs that you'll need. I've used them on 2 stands and they work fine for 10 gal batches. I've never wished I had bigger burners.

 

[nyer]

Thank you, you just saved me some cash.

 

[gifty74]

+1 on the March 809s.. they're "standard ussue" for a reason. They're perfect for the application.

Here's mine (although this is an old picture before it was cleaned up a bit)

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/attachments/f45/9823d1234763255-drunken-ramblngs-rig1.jpg

For burners, I went with two 32 tip jer burners and I have 'em plumbed into my house's natural gas.

32 Tip Round Nozzle Jet Burner - CHINESE WOK RANGES - RANGES - EQUIPMENT

I also have nine solenoid valves for controlling the flow of water/wort through my system.

Electric Solenoid Valve 1" 110VAC, Water, Diesel (B21N) - eBay (item 300302928913 end time Apr-23-09 10:07:26 PDT)

(you can ask for the viton seals in these for no extra charge and the will handle the temps no problem)

If you notice on the floor of my rig pic you can see a grey control panel tethered tot he rig by a few wires (again.. it's been cleaned up since).

I plug a hose into one end and then plgu in the gas through a natural gas quick connect and then everything is flip-a-switch.

I have two Auberin PID's that control temp in my HLT and BK (I'll explain why).

1/16 DIN PID Temperature Controller (SSR control output) [SYL-2352] - $44.50 : auberins.com, Temperature control solutions for home and industry

... and the way my rig works is:

- Fill HLT and BK: flip two switches
- Bring HLT and BK up to temp: punch in temps into two PID's and the burners automatically kick on via two gas valves my father grabbed for me
- Pump mash-in water from BK into MT - flip switches
- add grain
- constantly circ water through false bottom and manifold in the MT, into a 25 ft coil suspended in the HLT and back up through a sparge arm to the top of the grain in the MT - flip a switch.

... what I did, on suggestion from Pol, was mount a 25 ft 1.2 copper coil in my HLT and I constantly circ my MT through that... and then maintain temp in my MT by applying heat to the HLT... that way no direct heat is every applied to the MT.

When I'm done mashing...

- pump wort into BK - flip switch
- raise temp in HLT to sparge - type in temp
- sparge - flip switch
- boil - type in over "212" on my BK PID... and it boils
- whirlpool - flip switch
- chill - flip switch and it runs through a 30 plate chiller hooked up to a hose
- finish - open valve on other end and pour wort into carboy.

WOW... sorry for the really long post... just wanted to give you some things to think about in terms of possibilities.

Cape, did those PIDs come with a temp probe, or what did you use? How did you plumb them into your lines to monitor the temps?

 

[Cape Brewing]

Cape, did those PIDs come with a temp probe, or what did you use? How did you plumb them into your lines to monitor the temps?

They did come with temp probes but they are pretty crappy... I bought two Type K probes and two thermowells from McMaster.

The thermowells are mounted directly into the pots and then the temp probes simply slide in and out of the wells.

I then have thre brewmometers (as you can see in the pics) as a double-check on the HLT and BK and then to make sure my temp is accurate in the MT.