Almost ready for run on DIY Herms system.

[Turfgrass]

I have everything setup for a trial run before this weekends first brew. The kettles all received a quick wash with soap and tomorrow I want to run PBW through the system. What else should I consider? I was thinking of collecting all loss potential from wort left in the hoses. Any suggestions or tips? Thanks.

 

[Sparkncode]

I measured all the losses but then found i ended up swapping hoses round but still close enough.
Measure all your losses under false bottoms, in plate chillers etc.

I went through the beersmith profile creation after my trial wet run and after gathering all the data for that my first all grain and first run on the herms hit all the numbers using other peoples typical efficiency figures for a herms system.

Do measure your boil off rate once you decide on the amount of power you want to run your rolling boil at. Good time to decide what your rolling boil should look like. Mine is a bit overkill at 80% power on a 4.5kw element for 5 or 6g batches.

I might remeasure the rate at a lower setting to save power but cloulds of steam on a cold evening are impressive.

Remember to close valves before disconnecting hoses LOL.

getting your pump priming procedure sorted is useful too.

 

[Genuine]

^^^

I'm setting up a T on my pump with an additional valve and it'll be my priming valve. My buddy has one with his system and it's by far the easiest way to get the pump primed. I put the T on the out side of the pump.

This is a good way to show you what I'm talking about

 

[Turfgrass]

I bought a couple spike kettles and the good people at spike said a lose of 1/4 gallon in the herms coil and 1/4 gallon at the false bottom.

I just use brewers friend right now.

Say I lose .6 gallons in total from the MT and .25 gal at the HLT. How are these losses computed?

 

[coy94]

^^^

I'm setting up a T on my pump with an additional valve and it'll be my priming valve. My buddy has one with his system and it's by far the easiest way to get the pump primed. I put the T on the out side of the pump.

Genuine,


Your tee is on the pump inlet side. You can read the “OUT” just below your three piece ball valve. I would recommend switching that tee to be in the outlet of the pump to properly prime the pump.



Coy

 

[Genuine]

Genuine,


Your tee is on the pump inlet side. You can read the “OUT” just below your three piece ball valve. I would recommend switching that tee to be in the outlet of the pump to properly prime the pump.



Coy

Hey Coy!

That's not my photo, just one I found on line! I agree though, it makes sense to have it on the out instead of the in.

 

[coy94]

Hey Coy!

That's not my photo, just one I found on line! I agree though, it makes sense to have it on the out instead of the in.

Got it. Sorry if it came across wrong. I brewed yesterday after finally making the addition that of a bleed. Made the day go by so easy.


Coy

 

[Turfgrass]

I practiced a bit today with 5 gallons in my MT and whatever was left in my herms coil from last time. Once I got the pumps running the water level dropped to about 4.75 gallons. Perhaps there was a half gallon loss bc of the herms coil already having water in it. Probably only a 1/4 gal loss from my HLT. How do these losses come into play?

You can also see the tee fitting on my pump setup. Check out the bottom pic.

 

[Genuine]

That’s awesome! I can’t wait to do a water run with mine.

As for the Losses - I don't know what you use for brewing software but I go between Brewers Friend and BeerSmith - Those inputs will be useful for the amount of strike water you'll need so you hit your volume amounts.