Boil Time

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big d

Hopaholic
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just sorting out a few things for my ag set up and was wondering how long it would take to boil up about 40 litres of water?
ive only got a piddly 2 ring burner at the moment and it is doing a trial run as i type.its taking ages so will have to get a larger burner.

any thoughts on approx times i should expect.

cheers
big d
 
hi big d
i did the same as you
i boiled up 35-40L of water in a stainless steel keg (9gal size)
and it took 35mins with a cast iron 3-ring burner and a lid on top of the keg.

i thought that was pretty much on the mark.

cheers
crackers
 
struth
im gonna waste gas at this rate.
2 hours and still no boil
gotta get a three ring +

cheers crackers
good advice
 
Tough question.
I guess you are boiling water straight from the tap too ?

When I'm halfway through my sparge I light one of the rings on my three ring burner.
At the end of the sparge I put on the lid to my boiler and fire up the other two rings.

Then it takes about 20 mins to get 33 litres to the boil (up from around 60 deg C I'd guess from the sparge).

So anywhere under 50 mins for a two ring burner to get 40 litres to boiling (with a lid on the boiler) I would think would be acceptable when the ambient temp is also around 20 + deg C .

Beers,
Doc
 
sorry big d
i didnt tell you that the water was at 60deg c
out of the hot water tap.
i thought taht would be the approx temp from my sparge like doc said.

crackers
 
Yep try boiling 60deg water, I did the same thing as you (but using my BBQ) and it took ages to boil ... cant remeber how long. With the hot wort from the sparge it is usually only 20 - 30 mins to boiling for me.

Oh and I found that a lid makes a big difference for me (corrigated iron + brick! .....) Should be liberating a keg over xmas so I will find a replacemnt for my tin&brick lid then :)
 
sorry guys
shouldve mentioned it was straight from the cold tap.25 deg + up here.shut it down when i hit 2 3/4 hours and 68 deg.
gonna buy that new burner.
 
Bigd

You can buy portable ss heating elements - 1800-2000 watts.
I have one. Comes with a plug and an insulated handle.
You could buy one of these and use this in the boil with the gas.

That way, the element can also be used in your HLT and also for raising the MLT temp if need be.

Bought mine from Lou's Catering in Fyshwik in Canberra - ACT - 75.00.

Hope this Helps
 
I have a 2400 watt portable element, it reaches a boil in about half an hour, same as everything else it seems. It was about $70 I think from Ideal Electrical.
 
sounds good gmk and murray
are these what they look like.
if so may have to invest in one and see how it goes.

bucketimm_sml.jpg
 
there the one i think theyre talking about.
check out electrical suppliers first, you can find them for about $70 as murray said.

crackers
 
I used a similar thing on the weekend. 2400W immersion heater that hangs over the side of the vessel and has a small hook. We had a big brew day (5 people brewing all grain) and two of the lads had these heaters that they sourced from garage sales for about $5. After using one they are bloody fantastic for spiking your mash temp up a degree or two. I'm so envious and am now looking furiously for one, if need be I'll buy a new one. I love them. If your mash tun cannot take direct heat from a gas burner or equivalent then these elements are a god send. Takes about 20-30sec to spike a 16L mash up a couple of degrees (say 64oC-67oC). I will definitely purchase one somehow. High recommendations, with the added bonus of being able to drop it in you boil kettle to speed things along, particularly as I have a gas/electric system so the power is already there, why not use it.

Cheerio.

JD
 
Bigd

that is the sort...Mine is SS but the element is black.

Make sure you buy the SS version.
 
It is not only the number of rings of burners

For full wort boils you need a high pressure regulator

Do not do 90min wort boils in plastic buckets: that is only for heating spargewater.

Electric elements and wort boils: the elements should be shielded so that some hop debri does not get in between the elements and cause charring.



hehhehe I get like 3 partigyle batches out of one 9K gas bottle: use electric for the sparge water







Jovial Monk
 
thanks fellas
im sold.it will certainly help get the water to the boil.
jm as for shielding maybe i could try some fine s/s mesh over it.i reckon that would do the trick.
 
BigD,

Here is a picture of my boiler on top of my burner.
It is a three ring burner.
The burner is on top of six flat pavers.
The boiler is on top of four bricks on their side.
Sitting the boiler on the bricks also helps concentrate the heat on the bottom of the boiler.

Beers,
Doc

Note: This picture was taken on one of my first days with that boiler. I now make sure the tap is not over the gap in the bricks left for the gas burner (as there will be some flames coming out as well as heat that makes the tap very hot).
I now make sure the tap is at 90 degrees from the gap for the gas burner.

Keg_Burner.JPG
 
BigD

Use SS Fly wire - the SS stuff you put on your window screens.
That should do the trick.
 
cheers ken

doc great pic
question though.
being that close to the ground how do you get either the water or wort out?
im building a three tier eventually as i gather bits and pieces so will rely on gravity.

cheers
big d
 
At the end of the boil I turn on the immersion chiller.

After about twenty minutes the keg is cool and I lift it onto an old side table that is high enough that the fermenter fits underneath.

I'm working on lifting everything up one more level so there is not lifting required.

Beers,
Doc
 

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