RIMS - do we think it's something it's not meant to be?

[shaunous]

I then did some slight tubing/valve changes and ended up having a system where either the HLT or mash tun can feed into a pump and then it goes back to the top of the mash tun. So you can pump hot water into the mash tun as an infusion, but also recirculate the mash liquor at any stage using the pump. This of course gives a big step in efficiency and wort clarity as well as saving effort, so is worth doing.

I can do this, and im sure many others can also. My HLT is gravity fed to the Mash Tun though, but I have a pump set up so I can recirc after infusion mashing in the Tun untill wort clears, before then transferring by T-Piece over to the kettle.

I dont really have a name for it, I figured alot of others done it this way also. I have toyed with the Idea of permanently having a coil in my HLT and then turning my system into a HERMS type set-up, but havnt been arseed as yet.

 

[shaunous]

Wow - I can't believe I only just saw that. If you have a Separately Producing Energy for Recirculating Mash System, make sure you are Recirculating the Infusion Mash Mostly Into the Next Grainbed while you have a mouthful of both acronyms...

Not trolling, though reading the above quote you might be convinced otherwise...

Seriously, my points are in post #9 and post #36. At the end of the day I'm happy with my setup - I will probably move to HERMS or RIHMS at some point - and hope that Still waiting on the $10 cult signup fees from everyone though...

This isn't in operation but it's set up about to be. There is a line from the HLT (left) down to the LBP (bottom middle right) which then gets fed to the top of the mash tun. There is also a drain line from the mash tun (yellow valve) which feeds into the LBP. With this I do infusion step mashes but can also recirculate automatically.

If you're wondering about the lack of valves, I have a simple voltage regulator setup giving variable speed on the LBP.

Whats the line from the HLT to the Mash Tun for???

 

[MaltyHops]

The key is that RIMS still needs a separate source of hot water to raise temperature, but still has recirc.

This is just plain wrong. To me the key aspects to RIMS & HERMS systems is to have a wort recirculating system from your mash tun to a controllable heat source (be it direct RIMS or heat exchange HERMS) and back to your mash so you can control/ramp up mash temperatures ... and doing it in a convenient and efficient manner.

... and ended up having a system where either the HLT or mash tun can feed into a pump and then it goes back to the top of the mash tun. So you can pump hot water into the mash tun as an infusion, but also recirculate the mash liquor at any stage using the pump. This of course gives a big step in efficiency and wort clarity as well as saving effort, so is worth doing.

Now I would claim this is a RIMS - Recirculating Infusion Mash System. That is, an automated mechanism (pump) to recirculate the mash liquor, but still relying on infusion of hot water for stepping the mash temp.

This is not a RIMS/HERMS system in the usual sense since you are not heating the wort in your HLT and you have to manually select the input source for the pump - fails the convenience test.

You could, in principle, turn this into a RIMS system if you used gravity to drain from your mash tun into the urn, then drain urn to the pump which then pumps wort back to the mash tun. You would need to have very fine control of the urn's heating element (through PID control say).

 

[Adr_0]

Bingo - I would still call that HERMS. The key is that 'my' RIMS still needs a separate source of hot water to raise temperature, but still has recirc.

(I should start a cult... $5 to join)

Rephrase this to 'my' RIMS for MaltyHops.

I can do this, and im sure many others can also. My HLT is gravity fed to the Mash Tun though, but I have a pump set up so I can recirc after infusion mashing in the Tun untill wort clears, before then transferring by T-Piece over to the kettle.

I dont really have a name for it, I figured alot of others done it this way also. I have toyed with the Idea of permanently having a coil in my HLT and then turning my system into a HERMS type set-up, but havnt been arseed as yet.

That's what I want to hear! And yes, one of the main points of this thread is that this method is quite easy and gives you a good step change in convenience, efficiency, consistency and wort clarity (if you're into that). It's obviously not what you'd call RIMS if you are an avid BYO reader but it still has the key principles, i.e. Recirc and Infusion (and Mash :chug: ).

Whats the line from the HLT to the Mash Tun for???

It's just insulation sitting loosely on top. This photo would have been the day before I did a brew as I since put a few more things on in the meantime (such as insulation around the tubing), but shows you the main setup.

This is just plain wrong. To me the key aspects to RIMS & HERMS systems is to have a wort recirculating system from your mash tun to a controllable heat source (be it direct RIMS or heat exchange HERMS) and back to your mash so you can control/ramp up mash temperatures ... and doing it in a convenient and efficient manner.


This is not a RIMS/HERMS system in the usual sense since you are not heating the wort in your HLT and you have to manually select the input source for the pump - fails the convenience test.

You could, in principle, turn this into a RIMS system if you used gravity to drain from your mash tun into the urn, then drain urn to the pump which then pumps wort back to the mash tun. You would need to have very fine control of the urn's heating element (through PID control say).

That's all 100% ok with me. See posts #9 and #36 and my clarification at the top of this post.

 

[TheWiggman]

In post 9, point 1 you mention you can recirc the mash. In the photos, I can't see how you can draw out of the MT and return liquor back into it.

 

[Adr_0]

In post 9, point 1 you mention you can recirc the mash. In the photos, I can't see how you can draw out of the MT and return liquor back into it.

There you go...

The hot water comes in from the left hand side of the LBP. I typically do a quick drain of big grain pieces through the big drain on the right of this pic, then recirc through the LBP after 500mL or so.

 

[TheWiggman]

Well there we are, makes more sense now. I understand your point.
Do I agree? Only God will know.

 

[Camo6]

Wow - I can't believe I only just saw that. If you have a Separately Producing Energy for Recirculating Mash System, make sure you are Recirculating the Infusion Mash Mostly Into the Next Grainbed while you have a mouthful of both acronyms...

Not trolling, though reading the above quote you might be convinced otherwise...

Seriously, my points are in post #9 and post #36. At the end of the day I'm happy with my setup - I will probably move to HERMS or RIHMS at some point - and hope that Still waiting on the $10 cult signup fees from everyone though...



This isn't in operation but it's set up about to be. There is a line from the HLT (left) down to the LBP (bottom middle right) which then gets fed to the top of the mash tun. There is also a drain line from the mash tun (yellow valve) which feeds into the LBP. With this I do infusion step mashes but can also recirculate automatically.

If you're wondering about the lack of valves, I have a simple voltage regulator setup giving variable speed on the LBP.

Haha! Just another serious, contextual post by myself posted late in the night. Like you say at the end of the day, it's what works for you. Whether it's a RIMS, RIHMS, HERMS, SPERMS or RIMMINGS, like QLDKev says, it's just an acronym. What's in a name? AFAIK ATM there's no copyright on the acronym RIMS but maybe that could change. Think of all the money you could extract from a pack of tight arse HB'ers incorrectly naming their system RIMS (actually not that much - aside from Cocko I know of no other RIMmers and good luck squeezing anything out of him :icon_cheers: ).
But as an engineer it's good to see you're overcomplicating things for no real reason.
Yours Truly,
Layman


(All tongue in cheek as you've probably come to expect by now!)