Deans ebrew area and slow build

[redarmy990]

So after what seems a lifetime. I am finally back on homebrew talk. Took a hiatus as I was constantly bombarded with pop ups that made the site unusable.
During that time. I have finally got all my spike kettles put together and finally last Friday had the waterproof non slip floor coating installed in the basement brew area.

Now comes the most daunting part putting every back together and the finally getting back to brewing again

I share the space with the laundry as you will see in the pictures. I have the table roughly in place for kettles. The sink will be to the left of the table. The ebrew panel will be mounted on the wall to the right of the table. Boil kettle has a steam slayer installed. Hopefully when I get everything back into the area I will take more pictures

I am thinking of installing FRP board on the wall behind the kettles and where sink and laundry area is.
I can finally see light at the end of the tunnel but due to work and illness it’s been a long process.

 

[redarmy990]

resureccting as tomorow will be brew day finally.
Still things to do but at least i can get to brew a batch.
Went with FRP boards on the wall behind table and to the right hand side.

 

[danimal92sport]

I’m planning something similar in the next year or two in a shared laundry space. Take some pics during brew day!

Dan

 

[redarmy990]

Some pictures from 1st brew day
didn’t do too well hitting my numbers. This is going to be a good learning curve. OG should have been 1.049. I came out at 1.042. I did get a mash efficiency of 74% Definitely my fault. Too much water in boil kettle and with the steam slayer didn’t boil off too much. The wort going in to boil kettle looked so good.
1 question for the seasoned pros. It took nearly 55 minutes to transfer wort from boil into fermenter through the counter flow. Did get wort down to 60 degrees though. Is 55 minutes normall for 6.5 gallon I’m thinking not.
I have some cheap pumps from Amazon. I’m thinking that was the issue.
Thanks all.

 

[Tobor_8thMan]

Looks very nice. You've got things together and, apparently, working well. Good job! Let us know how the brew turns out. BTW, whom but you will know/realize 1.049 vs 1.042?

 

[redarmy990]

You are correct about the OG. Just been transparent. And thank you for the kind words. Will definitely post a pic of final beer. Not sure how fermentation will go. I’m using a old vile of Hanson ale yeast I found and made a starter with. It had a use by date of September 2019. Made a starter and will see if it takes off. Starter looked good. If not I have some dry yeast or some Kveik to pitch.

 

[jcav]

Congrats on your rig and the maiden voyage! After another brew day or two you will have it dialed in and can predict your brew house efficiency. Then you will know how much grain to use for your recipes and be able to hit your numbers more effectively. Good luck in your brewing endeavors!

John

 

[madscientist451]

I like the image of the brewing gear in the B/R.....gives a new perspective about "adult toys".

 

[Sammy86]

1 question for the seasoned pros. It took nearly 55 minutes to transfer wort from boil into fermenter through the counter flow. Did get wort down to 60 degrees though. Is 55 minutes normall for 6.5 gallon I’m thinking not.

Yes and no...it all depends on your ground water. My water here in CT from my well is 60° in the summer and 52-55° in the winter. I let the CFC run and check after 5 minutes. Last brew day i was down to 64° in 8 minutes. Once it hits the desired temp I move the hose into the fermenter. I wouldn't wait for the whole thing to be down to temp in the kettle...waste of time and water.

Edit: Congratulations on the new brew area and getting back up and running!

 

[kevy]

I would love to see more pictures of your set up. I’m in the middle of build my HERMS controller now.
what size is your table?
I’ve now seen the braided power cable from the panel to the elements a few times, where did you source that?
Thanks

 

[redarmy990]

I would love to see more pictures of your set up. I’m in the middle of build my HERMS controller now.
what size is your table?
I’ve now seen the braided power cable from the panel to the elements a few times, where did you source that?
Thanks

Kevy i will post more pics next time i have my phone in there.
The stainless table is 5ft long x 30 inch wide. Bought from Amazon

I bought the cable and the sleaving from Kal at The electric Brewery website

 

[kevy]

Kevy i will post more pics next time i have my phone in there.
The stainless table is 5ft long x 30 inch wide. Bought from Amazon

I bought the cable and the sleaving from Kal at The electric Brewery website

Thanks for the info

 

[tommy24a]

Yes and no...it all depends on your ground water. My water here in CT from my well is 60° in the summer and 52-55° in the winter. I let the CFC run and check after 5 minutes. Last brew day i was down to 64° in 8 minutes. Once it hits the desired temp I move the hose into the fermenter. I wouldn't wait for the whole thing to be down to temp in the kettle...waste of time and water.

Edit: Congratulations on the new brew area and getting back up and running!

So do you just let wort run back into BK until u get the temp u want and then put hose in ferm?

 

[Sammy86]

So do you just let wort run back into BK until u get the temp u want and then put hose in ferm?

Correct...pause the pump, move the hose to ferm, turn the pump back on and good to go.

 

[tommy24a]

Correct...pause the pump, move the hose to ferm, turn the pump back on and good to go.

Ahhh...thanks!

 

[marc1]

Some pictures from 1st brew day
didn’t do too well hitting my numbers. This is going to be a good learning curve. OG should have been 1.049. I came out at 1.042. I did get a mash efficiency of 74% Definitely my fault. Too much water in boil kettle and with the steam slayer didn’t boil off too much. The wort going in to boil kettle looked so good.
1 question for the seasoned pros. It took nearly 55 minutes to transfer wort from boil into fermenter through the counter flow. Did get wort down to 60 degrees though. Is 55 minutes normall for 6.5 gallon I’m thinking not.
I have some cheap pumps from Amazon. I’m thinking that was the issue.
Thanks all.

So the transfer itself took 55 minutes?

I made a counterflow, and thought that it would gravity drain, but that worked poorly. I tried a cheap hot water pump, and that worked OK, but it died after a couple of brews. I thought, screw it, got a Riptide, and it's awesome. You can adjust the flow at the pump, and it disassembles easily for cleaning. If you get one, get some extra if the tiny washers, they are easy to lose.

 

[redarmy990]

So the transfer itself took 55 minutes?

I made a counterflow, and thought that it would gravity drain, but that worked poorly. I tried a cheap hot water pump, and that worked OK, but it died after a couple of brews. I thought, screw it, got a Riptide, and it's awesome. You can adjust the flow at the pump, and it disassembles easily for cleaning. If you get one, get some extra if the tiny washers, they are easy to lose.

Yes the transfer from kettle to fill fermenter took 55 minutes. As our ground water is cold this time of year, I didn't have to pass it back into kettle, got it from 170 to 60 degrees in one pass

 

[marc1]

Yes the transfer from kettle to fill fermenter took 55 minutes. As our ground water is cold this time of year, I didn't have to pass it back into kettle, got it from 170 to 60 degrees in one pass

That's a long time. I get 11 gallons from kettle to fermenter in one pass to low 70s and it takes 10-15 minutes maybe? I built a parallel tube counterflow, so it's maybe a little different.