Control Box/enclosure For Herm/pid Etc

[Gout]

Brewers, after looking on the net and finding some large numbers for a metal control box/enclosure for my brew stand. I am not exactly sure what you call them, but something say 30cmx30cmx20cm ( somthing like that) to fit 2x PID controllers, 2 SSR's and some switches and lights on the front.

Does anyone have ideas on where to buy these or what others have used? I see some nice setups and lots of people have these box's but i cant find them

I could also use plastic, and a heatsink/fan inside for the SSR.

cheers for any help/links etc

 

[matho]

try electrical wholesaler's

edit: or if you have money to burn you could go here RS components

 

[schooey]

i found mine on ebay from a fella in Adelaide which led to a whole bunch of members sourcing the same... but I believe he has run out. If you wanted some serious brewery bling, this is the ducks nuts! and its cheap, even at that price....

 

[Gout]

Re : no money to burn so i didnt even look at RS or farnell, they have anything you want at a price :/

maybe i will look at building a wood box with mdf and sealing it in the joins and paint the wood until i win the lotto (and i dont buy lotto tickets so that may never happen )

 

[Gout]

i saw the ebay one, but its a lot more than i should spend ( currently not working and full time study so money is a big issue)

maybe ebay might have some cheap box's some day if i keep watching

 

[schooey]

If I were you, I'd send that dude an email, tell him what you're after and what your budget is... stranger things have happened

 

[Gout]

is plastic much cheaper than metal normally?

I was thinking $50 for a box, now i see the true value they hold i might do a mdf one first to ensure i am happy with the layout as i would be worried to drill and cut something that cost me so much at these sorts of prices. I can change it untill happy then spend the money on something like you guys have

 

[KillerRx4]

A plastic enclosure will do the job & you should be able to grab one from an electrical whosaler for $50 odd in the size you want.

 

[egolds77]

Dick smith sells a great rack mount aluminium box that I used to house my HERMS controller, SSR's, lights etc. It cost about $30 from memory.
Check out pictures of the box and installation on my photo album page if you like.

 

[Sully]

I picked this up from Ideal Electrical for ~$35 thereabouts. It measures 200x250x100

Cheers

Sully

 

[Thirsty Boy]

Dick smith sells a great rack mount aluminium box that I used to house my HERMS controller, SSR's, lights etc. It cost about $30 from memory.
Check out pictures of the box and installation on my photo album page if you like.

An old stripped out PC case might be a workable compromise?? And you can find them lying on the street any time you go for a bit of a drive..

Leave the power supply and the cd player in there and it could be your brewery stereo as well

PS - look on e-bay now... search enclosure electrical and an 80x60x30cm powder coated box with included DIN rails and a few compnents comes up. 14hrs finishing time and currently $30 with no bids

 

[raven19]

As per other posts, go to an Electrical distributor, a Dick Smith, Jaycar, or similar.

No affiliations, etc.

 

[crozdog]

this might be a good score for someone in VIC

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi...e=STRK:MEWAX:IT
Isolating distribution board. It has
- 9 x 15A outlets with individual cct breakers.
- a 32 amp plug with 5m lead of copper wire.

 

[Gout]

wow thanks guys, looks like there are some options for me to look at within my price range. I will post the results if they are not a total mess once i have finished

thanks

 

[MaltyHops]

G'day - reusing an old thread to pose a question for those who have PID control boxes containing SSRs.

I have an Auberins SYL-2362 with 25A SSR and 25A SSR heat sink that will be driving a 2200W element to heat up to 20L of liquids max for my Desktop brewery - 2 vessel system so was wondering whether it is necessary to mount the heat sink so that it is exposed to the outside environment or whether the heat resulting from mounting it fully enclosed in a control box would not be a problem?

Below is a pix of the layouts I'm considering - I guess small air holes could be drilled near the heat sink in the fully enclosed option but this would reduce the level of electrical insulation somewhat.

I noticed that the heat sink is coated with a non-conductive material but there are spots where the heat sink is dented and the underlying aluminium is exposed.

T.

 

[adryargument]

G'day - reusing an old thread to pose a question for those who have PID control boxes containing SSRs.

I have an Auberins SYL-2362 with 25A SSR and 25A SSR heat sink that will be driving a 2200W element to heat up to 20L of liquids max for my Desktop brewery - 2 vessel system so was wondering whether it is necessary to mount the heat sink so that it is exposed to the outside environment or whether the heat resulting from mounting it fully enclosed in a control box would not be a problem?

Below is a pix of the layouts I'm considering - I guess small air holes could be drilled near the heat sink in the fully enclosed option but this would reduce the level of electrical insulation somewhat.

I noticed that the heat sink is coated with a non-conductive material but there are spots where the heat sink is dented and the underlying aluminium is exposed.

T.

Interested in this also for a future development..

 

[raven19]

Malty,

My Control Panel has the SSR and heatsink located inside a plastic box. No air ventilation, and I have never had an issue regarding overheating - switching a 2400W element (10A) on and off over a large number of times over a mash period of 1 - 2 hrs.

25A SSR and heatsink in my control panel iirc, my build thread has some pics on it too I think.

 

[schooey]

One here for $84

 

[MaltyHops]

Malty,
My Control Panel has the SSR and heatsink located inside a plastic box. No air ventilation, and I have never had an issue regarding overheating - switching a 2400W element (10A) on and off over a large number of times over a mash period of 1 - 2 hrs.
25A SSR and heatsink in my control panel iirc, my build thread has some pics on it too I think.

G'day Ravs - figured on catching up at the case swap to chat about your
system. It would be good to have a fully enclosed option, much tidier
- and could always drill the air holes later if necessary.

One here for $84

Crikey, that one's almost bigger than my kettle-HLT!

T.

 

[mfeighan]

One here for $84

good find man, have been keeping an eye out for one recently, it is a pity postage is around half the cost of the item