Hot Water Urn

[Fish]

I've just purchased a secondhand 36 litre JOMACK Hot Water Urn which I plan to use as my HLT. Being secondhand it is a bit dirty and I need to calibrate the temperature dial, as such I have a couple of quick questions if people can help:

1. Cleaning:
I boiled some water in it last night and this removed a lot of the crud however I was thinking a soak in something might be a good idea. I was thinking about Napisan but not sure what effect this may have on the element and temp probe. I also want to clean the site-gaugue and the tap which should be straight forward as I'm sure I can remove these.

2. Calibrating the temperature:
I tested a few temps just by taking off the lid and dipping my thermometer in, it was close but not quite right and seemed to vary more the higher the temp that I dialed-up. In addition, holding your arm in hot steam is not ideal.

I poured some water off into a cup but this was way off (cup was cold so probably not a great idea).

I dialed-up 100C and it did not boil so it is slighlty off.

Maybe I should buy a cheap temperature probe from an electronics shop?

Finally - How vital is it that you get the mashing and sparging temps spot on? What sort of variation is acceptable?

Fish

 

[johnno]

Hi Fish,
I think you can get packs of urn cleaning stuff from suppliers like Birko. I have a Birko I picked up with the manual and that was the recommended way of cleaning the urn.

cheers
johnno

 

[GMK]

Use CLR

Mix up a strong solution and boil for 20 mins - let soak overnight and then use a SS Scourer.

Repeat process as many times as needed to get all the scale and stuff off.
I did this to my Urn - came up a treat - took about a weak and a few goes of CLR...

 

[Doc]

On the temp setting, I had a similar problem with mine.
Mine is a 30 litre Birko.
I find that if I set the temp dial to 95 deg then after about 1-1 1/2 hours it will be 80 deg on the dot. In my setup that is perfect for mash in and sparge temp.
I have the URN filled the night before and on a timer for 4:30am so all is ready for a 6am dough in.

Beers,
Doc

 

[AndrewQLD]

I have the URN filled the night before and on a timer for 4:30am so all is ready for a 6am dough in.

Gees Doc, I thought I was keen mashing in at 7.00 am saturday mornings , at least thats what my wife tells me . I was going to go the Urn way for a HLT but decided the heating times and temp variability was beyond my capabilities to handle at 7.00am. I gas fire my hlt and heat the mash in water in about 25 minutes.

Fish GMK is spot on with the CLR and a scourer, as a descaler it works a treat for one of the more safer h34r: products on the market.

Andrew

 

[jgriffin]

I found a phos acid mix broght my urn up like new.

As for the temp guage, who cares? I know that it's a few degree's under so always check with a thermometer anyway. I can quickly drop it by adding cold water.

Also, i check the temp of the mash and ajust as necessary, as long as the strike water is within a degree or two, you can easily adjust it.

 

[scott70]

I used Scalex which you can get from Bunnings. You put it in the urn with 10L water and boil it for 10 mins and it comes up spotless. I was going to use CLR but on the pack it said not to use it on heating elements.

 

[warrenlw63]

Also try coffee machine accessories and suppliers etc.

Espresso machine backflush powder works well on urns too. Just make sure to rinse it out thoroughly.

Warren -

 

[Plastic Man]

The pic on SOSMAN's web site of how well sodium percarbonate cleaned his expresso head was pretty impressive.

http://brewiki.org/wiki/homebrew/moin.cgi/...ngAndSanitation

I tried some ALDI nappy san on a sauceman that my wife had burnt dry. Was going to throw it out but thought I'd leave a sodium percarbonate solution in it overnight just to see hwo it went. With a small ammount of scrubbing the next morning it cleaned up well. Was pretty impressed. Maybe that's worth a try.

 

[Plastic Man]

Pretty good summary of cleaning and sanitising methods:

http://www.beer-brewing.com/brewery_cleani..._sanitation.htm

 

[Fish]

Thanks all,

Following the Scalex link I might give some of this a try:

http://www.hillmark.com.au/products/hillma...s/expressokleen

This is the last piece in my all-grain puzzle so I have no excuse now!

Now to find a nice simple all grain recipe to start with.

Cheers

Fish

 

[Plastic Man]

check John Palmers "How to Brew" on the web.

In his introduction to All Grain, (good step by step guide too with pics), he has a simple AG recipe.

www.howtobrew.com

 

[Fish]

Thanks Plastic Man,

For the record I also received this information direct from JOMACK:

Cheers

Fish

****************

We recommend citric acid (from the spice department at the supermarket) to clean the inside of the urns. You may need to use half the container for that size urn. Boil it up, let it sit for a while and then using a GREEN scourer, clean the inside of the urn.

As for the temperature dial - it sounds like you may need a new simmerstat or thermostat. The controls are differentiated by either numbers on the dial or temperatures (respectively).

We have a while you wait repair service if you can get the item to us.

Alternatively you can purchase the parts if you have someone that can fit
them. No wiring instructions come with the parts.
A thermostat costs $32 + gst + delivery
A simmerstat costs $30 + gst + delivery

 

[PhantomEasey]

I used Scalex which you can get from Bunnings. You put it in the urn with 10L water and boil it for 10 mins and it comes up spotless. I was going to use CLR but on the pack it said not to use it on heating elements.

An ancient thread I know, but;

Picked up a cheap 20ltr exposed element Birko over the weekend, filthy on the inside, but perfect for some small BIAB's to get my systems down pat. Anyway, scrubbed it with a green scourer and hot water a cpl times to pull off the loose chunks,one 375gm bottle of Scalex in 20ltrs boiled for 10 mins and she's come up sparkling. (no affiliation, just another big green shed purchase).

Great tip Scott.

PE