Single Vessel Electric Build: 1.5 to 5 gallon batches

[ScubaSteve]

Dude, that ain't too shabby! Don't go with the JB weld; a soldering iron is ~$15...but I understand what it feels like to be tapped of every last dime on a build and get sick of buying all those extras. You could probably leave as is, but if you do need more structure, I would highly suggest waiting a pay period and splurging on a soldering iron. JB Weld is just too messy and you kind of have to pack it into the screen.

 

[OEHokie]

Dude, that ain't too shabby! Don't go with the JB weld; a soldering iron is ~$15...but I understand what it feels like to be tapped of every last dime on a build and get sick of buying all those extras. You could probably leave as is, but if you do need more structure, I would highly suggest waiting a pay period and splurging on a soldering iron. JB Weld is just too messy and you kind of have to pack it into the screen.

Haha, ok... maybe. I haven't read the stainless steel soldering thread yet, so maybe after my homework that I forgot about/is late (d'oh... stupid distance masters degree), I'll look into it.

I was thinking the stitching by itself might work... it's pretty sturdy...

But I will have extra SS mesh to mess with... hrm...

 

[OEHokie]

Update... Made a home depot run today... And picked up some stuff... Teflon tape, a dermel tool, gfci outlets, etc.

I picked up the dermal because I've decided I'm going to put all of my heating elements, dip tubes, temp probe, etc on one half of the kettle. On the other half I'm going extend the steamer down but cutting around the bottom of the steamer and folding it down. Since I'm lining it with SS mesh anyways, I'll just fill in the gap with that. This will get at least half of the previously lost space filled, which should help with my smaller batches. I'm sure pictures will help explain this, but I'm not to that point yet.

I did cut my first hole for the heating element... It went relatively smoothly, need to widen it a tad with the dremel. Progress!

:rockin:

 

[OEHokie]

I've got all the pieces installed into the kettle (2 heating elements, dip tube and temp sensor).

Today's work:


The outside:


As described earlier... I put everything in the front half of the brew kettle because the back half will contain the "extended" steamer. I'm going to cut around the back half of the circumference of the bottom of the (of the... of the... of the, yeah lots of those) steamer and bend it down. Then I'll cover the open space with mesh. I'll cut it with the dremel... slowly.

EDIT: I also bought some reflectix to wrap around the kettle

More pics here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/martz/sets/72157624363961825/

Cheers

 

[HarkinBanks]

Nice. You are going to want to ground the elements. The best way I found, after several attempts, is to use a reducing washer like this one:

http://www.hardwareandtools.com/Thomas-Betts-WA143-2-1-1-4-Reducing-Washer-u437863.html

You can get them at HD or Lowe's very cheap. I drilled a small hole into it and soldered the ground lead through the hole. I went, from outside in, element, reducing washer, stock black rubber washer, kettle. I tried several different methods of grounding the element and found this one to be the best.

 

[OEHokie]

Nice. You are going to want to ground the elements. The best way I found, after several attempts, is to use a reducing washer like this one:

http://www.hardwareandtools.com/Thomas-Betts-WA143-2-1-1-4-Reducing-Washer-u437863.html

You can get them at HD or Lowe's very cheap. I drilled a small hole into it and soldered the ground lead through the hole. I went, from outside in, element, reducing washer, stock black rubber washer, kettle. I tried several different methods of grounding the element and found this one to be the best.

I was planning on grounding it. Could i ground it at one of the pre-drilled holes (at the heating element, temp probe, or dip tube) and use the contact between the washer/nut/whatever and the kettle to make the connection? That way I can avoid more holes.

 

[Walker]

I was planning on grounding it. Could i ground it at one of the pre-drilled holes (at the heating element, temp probe, or dip tube) and use the contact between the washer/nut/whatever and the kettle to make the connection? That way I can avoid more holes.

You can ground it just about anywhere. As long as the ground wire connects to some metal that ultimately is touching the liquid (meaning, there is an electrical path to the liquid), you are fine.

 

[HarkinBanks]

I just picked up another one of those 1500W ULWD elements for another build I am working on and man are they small! CAMCO changed them since my last purchase, they are much shorter now. The ones I use are about 7.5 inches. These smaller ones give a lot more flexibility for mounting. Pretty cool.

 

[HarkinBanks]

I was planning on grounding it. Could i ground it at one of the pre-drilled holes (at the heating element, temp probe, or dip tube) and use the contact between the washer/nut/whatever and the kettle to make the connection? That way I can avoid more holes.

Maybe I wasn't clear enough, I drilled a tiny tap hole in the washer, not the kettle. It was just to feed the ground wire through so I could then solder it. Even without solder, as long as it is wrapped into the hole, it is grounded because the washer contacts the element, which contacts the liquid.

 

[OEHokie]

Maybe I wasn't clear enough, I drilled a tiny tap hole in the washer, not the kettle. It was just to feed the ground wire through so I could then solder it. Even without solder, as long as it is wrapped into the hole, it is grounded because the washer contacts the element, which contacts the liquid.

Ah, yeah... THAT makes sense. I plan to. Probably doing the electrical stuff next weekend after I order some parts. But now for my progress (so far) this weekend:

First, I put together all the pipes and fittings using teflon tape:


Then I took the steamer outside and cut around half the lower perimeter:


And to check... I placed it in the pot:


Outside the pot with bend:


After dinner I will probably mess with the stainless steel mash/steamer setup and/or cover the outside of the pot in reflectix.

For the mesh I'm trying to figure out the best way to do it... should I leave it at an angle (like shown) or bend it down at a 90 degree angle til it hits the bottom? I would get more grain submerged doing the latter, so I'm leaning that way.
:rockin:

 

[ScubaSteve]

I guess I still don't understand what you're doing with the basket? Will it extend down on the side that has no elements, etc.? Wouldn't that affect your mash? How will you prop up the "regular" side?

 

[OEHokie]

I guess I still don't understand what you're doing with the basket? Will it extend down on the side that has no elements, etc.? Wouldn't that affect your mash? How will you prop up the "regular" side?

I'm trying to make the steamer fill as much of the kettle as possible, so extending it down the side without elements... yes. I don't think it would affect my mash... hope it doesn't... just kinda blindly trying it. As for proping up the "regular" side... I don't know what you mean by that.

So... basically the extended portion of the steamer (shown below) hits the bottom of the kettle where the heating elements and such aren't. This will allow the grain to occupy as much of the kettle as possible.

Maybe pictures will help...

With the bottom mesh in (took forever):

And on a separate note... installed the reflectix on the sides and bottom (still need to pretty it up):

More pictures of the construction here: http://www.flickr.com/photos/martz/sets/72157624363961825/

Haven't done any of the electrical stuff yet. That will probably be next weekend. Hoping to be done then so that I can brew something in time for my birthday.

Cheers,

 

[ScubaSteve]

Looks awesome! I guess I was wondering how it would be supported, and you answered that. It should work fantastic, I can't wait to see how it goes!

 

[HarkinBanks]

Holy ball valves batman, wow, I am lost. Why do you need so many? Do you not like high temp tubing?

 

[OEHokie]

Holy ball valves batman, wow, I am lost. Why do you need so many? Do you not like high temp tubing?

The tee before the kettle goes to the pump... so theres a valve for the kettle and a valve for an outside source... From the pump there are 3 valves to direct the flow... either through the CFC or straight back to the loc-line to sparge/recirculate/fill the fermenter/whatever.

 

[OEHokie]

Update... I'm about 95% done with this project! Still troubleshooting a number of issues though. It took me a while to realize that SSRs are not mechanical switches. I was originally testing mine by applying a 5V signal to the control part and then seeing if the two primary leads would let a signal pass through (via multimeter) they didn't. After a few minutes of cursing I figured out that they need the 120V to actually be present for them to work.

Hurray! The electronics work.

//Insert pic of pump running

IMG_0079 by mmartz, on Flickr

//Insert pic of toolbox construction

IMG_0080 by mmartz, on Flickr


IMG_0086 by mmartz, on Flickr
In this pic, you can see the switches I use to control things. The small switches enable the BCS460 to control the SSRs (so I can manually override the BCS). The big switches allow me to manually turn ON whatever is attached (bypassing the BCS/BCS doesn't even need to be hooked up). For both sets... the outer ones control the heating elements and the center controls the pump. I can have all 3 on at the same time w/no problems.


IMG_0085 by mmartz, on Flickr

Another bug I'm working on is the whole chillzilla issue. I ran clear water through it and it came out DISGUSTING. Apparently someone used this before (got it from ebay) and didn't rinse it very well. Has me a little concerned with whether I trust it or not (right now I don't). Not sure what I'm going to do there...

The last bug would probably be cleaning. Not as easy as I imagined. The kettle is hard to dump because of all the attachments (for the last bit remaining at the bottom) and I have no idea how to properly drain all the hoses.

I did a boil test and it brought a few inches of water up to boil.

What's awesome is the BCS460. I can control everything and see the temperature from my iPad anywhere in my apartment. I can turn on the individual heating elements and run the pump, check the temperature... all from the comfort of my couch.

I messed around with running the pump every once in a while to "stir" the water instead of doing it by hand. That locline is pretty awesome stuff.

I might try and brew tomorrow... at the very least I'll do a clean run and see what happens with the chillzilla. I haven't finished the steamer mod either... will probably just use a grain bag for now. I bought a brew kit (PSA IPA) just to try the system out. I've done enough thinking, didn't want to have to worry about recipes.

If you have any tips on my setup, I'd appreciate it.

 

[ScubaSteve]

I would see if you can CIP the kettle. Maybe recirc hot PBW, rinse, drain, and use a turkey baster to get the last bit of water out.

For the chillzilla, do a strong solution of PBW/oxiclean and leave it in there for a few hours. Rinse well.

What do you plan on using to keep the basket in the up position? A grill grate?

BTW, how does it heat? I'm interested to hear how those elements work.

 

[Sawdustguy]

What is the material those heating elements are made out of? I'm trying to source some 120v elements for a kettle, but I want to avoid zinc plating.

Also, why are you so intent on 1.5 gal batches?

You will be able to remove the zinc using a scotch brite pad.

 

[kappclark]

How did you mount the elements ? What models are they ?

 

[OEHokie]

I would see if you can CIP the kettle. Maybe recirc hot PBW, rinse, drain, and use a turkey baster to get the last bit of water out.

For the chillzilla, do a strong solution of PBW/oxiclean and leave it in there for a few hours. Rinse well.

What do you plan on using to keep the basket in the up position? A grill grate?

BTW, how does it heat? I'm interested to hear how those elements work.

Yeah, I'll try that for the chillzilla. For the basket, it's held up by the regular ridges that came with it. I extended half of it down (shown above I think) to go to the bottom of the kettle.

For the elements... I got them from plumber supply. They're extra low density elements 1500W. Mounted them by drilling a hole with a step drill bit and then using a nut and o-rings from bargain fittings

 

[ScubaSteve]

Re: the basket, I guess I wasn't very clear. You're going to need to suspend the basket over the kettle to drain it. How do you plan on doing this?

 

[mattd2]

You will be able to remove the zinc using a scotch brite pad.

Wouldn't that expose the carbon steel element, which would then rust?
Can you not get stainless or inconel ones or is the price to much?

 

[OEHokie]

Re: the basket, I guess I wasn't very clear. You're going to need to suspend the basket over the kettle to drain it. How do you plan on doing this?

Oh, I understand... Good question. I am going to have to build a stand of some kind with a hook... Most likely out of 2x4's initially. I'm not worried about that for the moment, Ill be brewing a kit beer first just to flush out the system,

CIP seems like it will work ok. After a dry run today... It brought 5 gallons of water from room temperature to boil in about 30-40 minutes. I also messed with the pid controller aspect and it held the temperature pretty well.

This week I'll be soaking the chillzilla a couple times (maybe twice at a day each) and then brew my kit IPA next weekend.

 

[samc]

Can't wait to find out how this works, will eventually build something similar.

Two points - I originally thought that my BCS had to have manual switches, was a big mistake for me as inadvertently firing the RIMS heater almost led to major disaster. Be careful.
Second, the two male plugs sticking out of your toolbox are iffy/dangerous, I'm not an electrician but it looks scary.

 

[OEHokie]

Can't wait to find out how this works, will eventually build something similar.

Two points - I originally thought that my BCS had to have manual switches, was a big mistake for me as inadvertently firing the RIMS heater almost led to major disaster. Be careful.
Second, the two male plugs sticking out of your toolbox are iffy/dangerous, I'm not an electrician but it looks scary.

The two major plugs (male ones I'm assuming you're talking about) are where the power comes in, so they are never uncovered/live at the same time. Extension cords hooked up to gfci plugs plug into them.

As for the switches... They all work great. The small runs only run off of 5V power, which is fine for what they're rated for. Those switches also don't interface with the BCS, they are in-between the bcs output and the ssr... So on order for the ssr to be on, the switch AND bcs have to be on.

 

[samc]

The two major plugs (male ones I'm assuming you're talking about) are where the power comes in, so they are never uncovered/live at the same time. Extension cords hooked up to gfci plugs plug into them.

As for the switches... They all work great. The small runs only run off of 5V power, which is fine for what they're rated for. Those switches also don't interface with the BCS, they are in-between the bcs output and the ssr... So on order for the ssr to be on, the switch AND bcs have to be on.

Good to hear that you know what you are doing!

Hopefully you will post a final parts list when the set up is rolling out the brews!

 

[OEHokie]

Good to hear that you know what you are doing!

Hopefully you will post a final parts list when the set up is rolling out the brews!

Ha, I know enough not to kill myself doing it...

Once I "finish" (will never truly be done with it) I'll post a parts list. I am not looking forward to tallying up the total cost. Definitely at least $1000

 

[OEHokie]

An update: I ended up sealing my heating elements inside the kettle with a silicone sealant to protect against the rust I saw after one use (in plain water). And if I could remember my ebay username I'd be ordering a set of 4 solenoid valves, since I've decided to splurge. I might give up on that though.

First brew should happen next tuesday (taking a day off after the boise state game)

 

[ScubaSteve]

Which silicone sealant did you use? I'll probably end up having to go that route myself....

 

[OEHokie]

Which silicone sealant did you use? I'll probably end up having to go that route myself....

See this thread: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/he...od-safe-silicone-recommendation-other-191181/

In short, I bought a $4 tube of silicone rated for food and 400 degrees. Looks like it's working pretty well. Letting it cure for a full week though and then I'll do a water run to rinse everything.