induction

[bmathews]

Hi guys I live in a development and they will not allow us to have propane burners and my stove sucks. I would like to get a potable induction cook top but I cant find any reviews. I was hoping someone has some experience with them and coukd give some advice. O and I don't want to do a keggle with electric heating elements cause I already have the brew pot.

 

[AnOldUR]

Will a magnet stick to it?

 

[UofMontanaAlum]

I have a portable 110v Frigidaire induction unit in my brewery for making starters. I tried using it to boil 5 gallons of water once and it didn't have enough power to get the water past 180 degrees. I would assume that if you do partial boils (2.5-3 gallons) for extract brewing, you could make it work. But if you are ever wanting to do a full boil for extract or all-grain, you will want something more robust than one similar to mine.

I believe they do make 220v portable units but you would need to plug that into your dryer outlet. Something with that kind of power would probably boil 5 gallons.

As mentioned above, check to make sure your current brew pot holds a magnet. If it doesn't, it will not work with an induction cooktop.

 

[bmathews]

Ya I did the magnet trick thats all good. But thats what I was worried about whether it would be powerful enough. It looks like your model is only a 1300 watt unit and I know they make 110 models up to 1800 watts. Wonder if that would do it?

 

[pjj2ba]

I use induction cookers for part of my brewing. I use one to heat the water in my HLT and another to direct fire my mash tun. My units are ~1400 Watt units and DO NOT have the power to do a full boil (7 gal. initial volume) - I use propane for the boil. They work GREAT for my purposes

UofMontanaAlum is correct, if you can keep the volume you need to boil at 3 gal. or less, the cooker will work great. Maybe you could push it to 4 gal.

You can still do partial boils with all grain. Just make the wort with a higher SG and dilute it in the fermenter.

 

[Wynne-R]

I do half batches in 12 qt pots with 1300 W Induction burners. It works about as well as the electric range.

For a big pot, you need a commercial 240V unit, 3000W or better.

 

[LuiInIdaho]

Hi guys I live in a development and they will not allow us to have propane burners and my stove sucks. I would like to get a potable induction cook top but I cant find any reviews. I was hoping someone has some experience with them and coukd give some advice. O and I don't want to do a keggle with electric heating elements cause I already have the brew pot.

Could you do electric with the kettle you already have? Just a thought. Mark

 

[Leithoa]

I'd go with a well made heatstick using copper or SS pipe. Aquarium silicone works as does JB weld but personally I like to avoid plastics on the hot side of things whenever possible.
As an aside: Is the ban on propane burners wholesale or could you brew in your driveway/parking spot? Sometimes describing your intent(boiling liquid, not frying turkeys) to the management can get you an exception.

 

[bmathews]

No it has to do with open flames and storing flammables. We arent even supposed to have gasoline

 

[brettwasbtd]

The Avantco IC3500 is a powerful burner that can do 10 gallon batches. I am going to get one soon, although I will mostly stick to 5 gallon batches. It does require 20a 240v or you will need to make a pigtail cord from an electric dryer to plug into it. See this thread: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f170/will-cheap-3500-watt-induction-burner-work-301722/

 

[brettwasbtd]

Ya I did the magnet trick thats all good. But thats what I was worried about whether it would be powerful enough. It looks like your model is only a 1300 watt unit and I know they make 110 models up to 1800 watts. Wonder if that would do it?

I think with an insulated pot the 1800 watt burners can handle like 5.5-6 gallons starting boil so you can do a 5 gallon batch or so

 

[bmathews]

Ya I found the burton 6530 a 3000 watt burner on amazon for around 230

 

[baulz]

I use induction cookers for part of my brewing. I use one to heat the water in my HLT and another to direct fire my mash tun. My units are ~1400 Watt units and DO NOT have the power to do a full boil (7 gal. initial volume) - I use propane for the boil. They work GREAT for my purposes

UofMontanaAlum is correct, if you can keep the volume you need to boil at 3 gal. or less, the cooker will work great. Maybe you could push it to 4 gal.

You can still do partial boils with all grain. Just make the wort with a higher SG and dilute it in the fermenter.

How long does it take for you to heat your strike water with the induction cooker? I am considering using one to heat 3-4 gallons.

 

[fartinmartin]

I have an induction hobb, four heating positions, on a 13amp fuse, either one position gets all the watts and is at full power, or all the positions get the power but not all of the time ! I often prepare my water on it in 3 x4L pots, they get hot ok, it's not dynamic, my worry is that the glass unit won't take the weight of a 5 gals in one position and that it's likely to over heat or just bust !

I think you should have you brew days at a friends or family.