Dedicated Herms Guide, Problems And Solution Thread

[jfinney]

Hi there Chappo and other HERMS brewers.

I thought I'd post a pic of my finished HERMS system, ready for it's maden brew tonight! Thanks to all the generous brewers on this site who have shared valuable knowledge and advice, it just wouldn't be possible without you.

My only issue with my system when running water trials, is despite a 7.6 litre pot for the HEX, 2400 watt kettle element, about 8 metres copper coil, I just can't get better than 1-1.5 C per minute ramping, with a flow rate of about 5 litres per minute. Any suggestions on how I might improve this performance? Or is this ok? Does water and wort perform very differently, does one heat faster than th other??

Cheers guys.

 

[jfinney]

And some more photos.....

 

[Crusty]

Hi there Chappo and other HERMS brewers.

I thought I'd post a pic of my finished HERMS system, ready for it's maden brew tonight! Thanks to all the generous brewers on this site who have shared valuable knowledge and advice, it just wouldn't be possible without you.

My only issue with my system when running water trials, is despite a 7.6 litre pot for the HEX, 2400 watt kettle element, about 8 metres copper coil, I just can't get better than 1-1.5 C per minute ramping, with a flow rate of about 5 litres per minute. Any suggestions on how I might improve this performance? Or is this ok? Does water and wort perform very differently, does one heat faster than th other??

Cheers guys. View attachment 43469

Nothing wrong with 1-1.5 deg C a minute, seems to be what everyone is aiming for.

Looks good.

 

[prongs_386]

Just thought I'd share my recent experience of trying to extract a kettle element...

I bought a $16 kettle from target of the brand 'Cheif'. It had a 2200 watt element and quite honestly was a really poor/unsafe design (good thing I'm only using the element and not the kettle).

In order to get the element out I pretty much had to go at it with a hack saw... it probably ended up being in 10 or so pieces by the end of it but I managed to get the element and the plug for the other side of the wall. I ended up just cutting off the power LED and there was a switching mechanism that involved a bit of spare insulated wire getting pushed in and out of a hole that broke the circuit which I removed. The end result I think was good and even though it was a pain to get it out, this kettle is definitely a viable option for a cheap element.

I should have my copper pipe coming next week, but I still can't find a suitable pot. All of the pots I can find seem to be either shallow (more like a sauce pan) or they have a thick bottom and are expensive. Can anyone suggest any cheap option that I can find in melbourne somewhere or order online with cheap postage?

Thanks.

 

[sav]

Just thought I'd share my recent experience of trying to extract a kettle element...

I bought a $16 kettle from target of the brand 'Cheif'. It had a 2200 watt element and quite honestly was a really poor/unsafe design (good thing I'm only using the element and not the kettle).

In order to get the element out I pretty much had to go at it with a hack saw... it probably ended up being in 10 or so pieces by the end of it but I managed to get the element and the plug for the other side of the wall. I ended up just cutting off the power LED and there was a switching mechanism that involved a bit of spare insulated wire getting pushed in and out of a hole that broke the circuit which I removed. The end result I think was good and even though it was a pain to get it out, this kettle is definitely a viable option for a cheap element.

I should have my copper pipe coming next week, but I still can't find a suitable pot. All of the pots I can find seem to be either shallow (more like a sauce pan) or they have a thick bottom and are expensive. Can anyone suggest any cheap option that I can find in melbourne somewhere or order online with cheap postage?

Thanks.

I got my 10lt pot from Kmart glass lid gott 9metres of copper in it with jug element 1deg a minute no overshoots.

sav

 

[gava]

I got my 10lt pot from Kmart glass lid gott 9metres of copper in it with jug element 1deg a minute no overshoots.

sav

Where is your probe placement?

gav

 

[sav]

Where is your probe placement?

gav

Right at the top of my mash tun I made a t piece with the probe in it just as it enters the mash.
sav

 

[Cannibal Smurf]

How did you seal the probe into the compression fitting? I've had my HERMS almost ready to go for ages now but can't work out how to mount my probe, this looks like a good setup but not sure how you got it to seal.

 

[asis]

OK mate

do you have any specs on that ?

temp control, differential etc..

Dave

Sorry Dave I haven't looked at this thread for ages.

I am currently using an auber 2352 which works perfectly but am considering upgrading to the 2352P and using my old one for my new HLT for even lazier brewing. :blink:

My HX only holds around 7 litres with a 3/8 SS coil and 2400w element. I have never measured the coil. It ramps at around 1 degree a minute, obviously the grain bed lags a bit til the whole mash has been exchanged.

 

[sav]

How did you seal the probe into the compression fitting? I've had my HERMS almost ready to go for ages now but can't work out how to mount my probe, this looks like a good setup but not sure how you got it to seal.

I cut a small piece of sicone hoseand put inside the plastic olive its only finger tight works a treat

 

[egolds77]

I have noticed in a lot of the photos of HERMS, the silicone flow tubing un-insulated. Bunnings has dark gray foam plumbing insulation that fit silicone tubing perfectly, it's only a couple of $$$ and it stops a good portion of the heat lose from the tubing from MLT - PUMP - HEX - MLT.
Every little bit helps I figure, and for just a couple of $$$.

 

[prongs_386]

Hey guys.

How did you cut the hole for the element in your hex? I've got a hole drilled of about half an inch but I'm not sure how to get it out to over an inch without paying 50+ for a large bit (which I don't know you can even get).

Thanks.

 

[razz]

I used a step drill bit Prongs, if what you are drilling into isn't too thick then a basic job from the hardware store will do the trick. I think there is a thread a while back on drilling stainless steel.

 

[_HOME_BREW_WALLACE_]

Hey guys.

How did you cut the hole for the element in your hex? I've got a hole drilled of about half an inch but I'm not sure how to get it out to over an inch without paying 50+ for a large bit (which I don't know you can even get).

Thanks.

Get a step drill off ebay, use a small drill and drill heaps of holes around the diameter of the circle you want to cut, punch the hole out and file the hole smooth, or use a hole saw.

 

[bonj]

Drilling stainless steel: High pressure, slow speed, lots of lubricant, and keep it cool.

Should work equally well with the ladies

 

[hsb]

This might be a better place to ask. Has anyone got any tips on how to shield the base of an element in my H/EX?

This picture might explain better than I can, what to use to hide the (mains voltage) contacts ?

 

[_HOME_BREW_WALLACE_]

This might be a better place to ask. Has anyone got any tips on how to shield the base of an element in my H/EX?

This picture might explain better than I can, what to use to hide the (mains voltage) contacts ?

Dick smith or Jaycar should have a box of some sort to fix your problem, just cut a hole for your element and drill a couple of holes for your wires to slide through. Just remember to silicone up the holes and put a couple of zippy ties on the cables inside the box so if the wires are accidently pulled, nothing comes out.

Cheers

 

[gregs]

This is how I did it and it was a box from J-Car, it worked well.

My element fitting is 50mil BSP so I cut a 50 mil hole in the box and used the fittings to sandwich or port hole the pieces together. I hope that makes sense.

 

[hsb]

That makes perfect sense, thanks guys.. Off to Jaycar...

 

[hsb]

Wired it all up and did a maiden test run last night (water). Worked! Very chuffed. Got quick ramp times, well over 1C a minute.
Will try and get some pictures happening over the w/end.

Still waiting on my BCS-460 temp probe to arrive then I can start getting confused trying to get SSRs happening. (Any tips on (other) good resources for that process?)

For the moment I'm just going to recirculate constantly throughout the mash and turn the H/Ex on and off manually to balance temperature.
Love that little whirrrr of the pump and the hum of recirculation, sweet sounds to my ears.