Upgraded to 10Gallon SS Brewtech 2 vessel system with 1V controller

[ivndrago]

Been (all Grain) homebrewing on an 5G electric induction 3 vessel system for over 10 years.
Decided to make the plunge and upgrade to 10 gallon batches but only using 2 vessels. I ordered the SS Brewtech system. I installed a steam condenser onto the kettle lid to avoid the increased steam output.
Over the past two month I have fine tuning the use of the system; to me its been a huge adjustment. Temperature control has been a huge issue (largely in the mash tun). I did change out the thermowell and that has helped with better temp reporting. Yesterday brewed and (I think) everything went best of all in the past 2 months. I have notice one problem that I have not been able to find a thread for correction.
Since Im using a Steam Condenser, I dont loose as much liquid in the 1hr boil. I have noticed that my gravity numbers dont change much at all. For example, My post mash gravity was 1.064. After my boil and losing about .75gallons of water during the boil, my OG came in at 1.065. This is not making any sense to me and it has happened several times. Any ideas that I can try out would be a huge help as Im now just banging my head on the wall.

Other issues Ive had:
- increasing the temp in the mash for mash out has been challenging. Is this related to flow as I am recirculating?
- the thermowell was reporting 5 degrees from the actual. A thinner walled thermowell works a lot better and is more acccurate (~1 degree).
- Controlling the recirculation flow from Mash to Kettle back to Mash is also a challenge. Have two pumps valves, the mash tun valve, and also two ball valves into the Kettle. I use the Kettle ball valves to control as I seem to have better luck with the flow.
Thanks guys!
Ivan

 

[rburrelli]

Just spitballing here….I am thinking that your steam condenser setup might be effectively diluting your wort. If you are boiling aggressively perhaps you are generating more steam than the condenser can handle and liquid is then returning to the kettle. You are still concentrating the wort but then diluting it as well.
Does it make any sense?

 

[Beholder]

How are you sampling to take your gravity reading? I expect your volume loss will be pretty accurate, but if you are sampling at the top of your kettle, then very well could be water dilution at the top of your kettle from steam condensation that hasn’t mixed out.

Can you whirlpool and ensure fully mixed prior to taking samples? Alternately, you could sample from port at bottom instead? Though could very well be on the high side…

 

[Bobby_M]

I've experimented with 2 vessel kettle RIMS several times and the complexity and lack of any measurable benefit, I went right back to single vessel eBIAB. The only practical way to match flows properly is to install a Blichmann Autosparge in the mash.

from this article: What is a K-RIMS (Kettle RIMS)?

 

[Beholder]

- increasing the temp in the mash for mash out has been challenging. Is this related to flow as I am recirculating?
- the thermowell was reporting 5 degrees from the actual. A thinner walled thermowell works a lot better and is more acccurate (~1 degree).
- Controlling the recirculation flow from Mash to Kettle back to Mash is also a challenge. Have two pumps valves, the mash tun valve, and also two ball valves into the Kettle. I use the Kettle ball valves to control as I seem to have better luck with the flow.
Thanks guys!
Ivan

Will comment on suggestions for your other issues as well. On the first one, the temperature ramp rate is governed by your heating element size rather than your flow rate. With my half barrel 2V k-rims, I am underpowered with only one 5kW element in my kettle. To help accelerate ramps, I typically cut flow and push the kettle side to a temperature that when averaged with the mash temp will achieve close to target. You can use online infusion calculators for this, but I’m not terribly fussy about it. If I have my fluid split roughly 50% between each vessel, and I want to ramp by 30 F, I cut flow to push kettle to 60 F above mash run, then reinstate flow when I want to start the ramp.

On flow control, like Bobby suggested, I also have an auto sparge into the mash tun for helping to balance the flows, though tbh watching the site glass on each vessel and rate of change over 15 sec allows dial in provided you have linear flow metering somewhere in each line (mine are at outlet of each riptide), as the ball valve are very difficult to dial in.