Electric Kettles And Whirlpooling

[seravitae]

Hi Guys,

Just wondering for the electric kettle-rs out there, anyone running an immersion element, and if so, how do you whirlpool / what is your whirlpooling like?

 

[homebrewkid]

i could be wrong but my understanding of whirlpooling is to do it before you drain the wort from the kettle
and you couldnt possibly whirlpool while the wort is still boiling [well you could but it would not settle anything at the bottom]
i cant see a single reason for leaving an immersion element hanging over the side for this process, it would be in the way and risk breaking the thing
therefore i dont really understand why you are asking this

i dont currently do AG brewing so stand to be corrected on this but ive been looking into it and this is my understanding of the process :icon_cheers:

cheers: HBK

 

[seravitae]

hi hbk

thanks for the post.

what you say is true but perhaps i made assumptions as to what people thought I was asking.




I was actually alluring to the fact that an fixed/screw-in immersion element would disrupt whirlpool formation as compared to gas fired kettles, kettles with hidden elements (sheilded element urns) or simple stockpots on a hotplate.

 

[homebrewkid]

hi hbk

thanks for the post.

what you say is true but perhaps i made assumptions as to what people thought I was asking.




I was actually alluring to the fact that an fixed/screw-in immersion element would disrupt whirlpool formation as compared to gas fired kettles, kettles with hidden elements (sheilded element urns) or simple stockpots on a hotplate.

sorry mate i thought you meant over the side element now i see the point of the post my bad :lol:

cheers HBK

 

[seravitae]

All good mate, your post was not wasted.

Your 'reminder' of the existence of over-the-side elements is actually making me think that might be the better way to go, for many reasons, not just for whirlpooling.

cheers, seb

 

[Fat Bastard]

I run a 36 litre stockpot with a through the side type immersion element. While I've found it difficult to get a whirlpool going, it is possible, and now I've got the process nailed, I can produce enough clear space to not block my small strainer on the pickup.

While I was experimenting, I found that whirlpooling for about a minute would produce a whirlpool powerful enough to go through my perf s/s bag rest, and the element and make a nice little pile of rice or tea leaves underneath.

 

[QldKev]

I've always had a LPG burner under the kettle, but am currently converting to elements.

Never had issues with the LPG burner, but today I did my first brew with an element in it. The whirlpool still worked and had a heap in the middle, but just before I finished filling the last cube from it, it collapsed and I ended up sucking some **** into it. So not as good as the LPG burner. Also the type of element probably could make a difference. I have the thinner style, but if you had a thicker keg king style I could see it causing more turbulence messing up the whirlpool even more.


QldKev

 

[seravitae]

OTS elements I think wont be reproducible enough (different dimensions, availability - potentially looking at commercial operation) so i've decided to go for standard BSP threaded elements. These ones are the thinner style so I will just have to try my luck and report back I guess