Tips for insulating Kettle with Reflectix

[brewhokie]

I bought some reflectix to better insulate my kettle during mashing. My system is an 11 gallon eBIAB so I don't have to worry about burner heat. I ended up using 4 layers and made cut outs for the heating element, ball valve and sight glass. I think overall it turned out pretty good. I'll post some pictures tonight.

The fired up the system this weekend and noticed a problem with the foil tape used to secure the insulation to the kettle. The glue on the tape seemed to melt and started to lose it bond with the kettle. The tape glue also oozed out and made a sticky puddle at the bottom of the kettle.

How did you guys secure your reflectix? Any tips or lessons that might help out.

 

[outside92129]

Did the glue melt with mashing temp? I used metallic speed tape.

 

[Berniep]

I made a jacket for mine without actually attaching it to the keggle. I only taped on the outside of the material and it stays in place pretty good. I notice the stuff expands more than the keggle. Its really tight when its cold.

 

[brewhokie]

The melting started at boiling temps, but really didn't get bad until I set the lid on the kettle for the whirlpool. The good news is I was able to hold mash temps at 150 for a solid 60 minutes.

I read somewhere that the max temp for the material is around 140. I suppose I could make a sleeve that I could remove for the boil but that sounds like an extra hassle. I'll have to disassemble the material and retape, so I'll check the inner layer and see how its holding up.