Should I Move To Electric?

[fretbrner]

I have been designing my new brewery and the part I am stuck at is, whether or not to go stay at usng propane or move to electric. The issue that has me stumped is not the design, but with Ausgrid and every other electric utility company upping their rates, how much would this effect my bills if I went to all electric?

Any one here find that when they went to electric, it was even more than paying for a new tank refills every few brews?

 

[Phoney]

Unless you can rig it up to your home's natural gas system, electric FTW.

Electric may be more expensive to setup, but it will be cheaper than LPG refills and you don't run the risk of running out of gas mid-way through a boil. Yes, electric is susceptible to blackouts from electrical storms but at least you have weather forecasts for that, which is arguably more accurate than your "feeling the weight of the tank" assessments. Electric can also be automated down the track, while gas fired will always require you to be there and monitor it. I think there's pro's and con's to both, but electric is the winner....unless you hook it up to NG.

 

[Wimmig]

Hmmm

Are you wanting to get into the nitty gritty of it? I think for the most part, electric is fine. NG would be the best. But how much output are you doing for this to be a major problem? Maybe it's just me, but unless i was growing my own hops, buying everything in bulk buys and had exhausted all other cost saving measures..i wouldn't be thinking too much about it.

If you were that concerned with electric conversion, and didn't want to factor in the generic outlay costs then get a vertical axis wind generator and in the long run break even on it.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/10W-15W-MAX-WIN...=item3f0fcd741d

In short...

Much of muchness. Though electric for me.

 

[adniels3n]

Based on that wind generator you'd make a staggering 3 Watts average. (BOM averages for Newcastle http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/averages/tab...w_061055.shtml). Assuming your regulators, batteries, inverters & associated hardware lasts long enough to turn a profit & require no maintenance, it might save you a few cents per year.
Putting aside my personal dislike of small scale wind generation as a viable alternative, go for it.
I'm changing over from LPG to electric mainly for the ability to set & control temps more easily.

 

[milob40]

did a quick calc on this yesterday and it worked out about $1.10 a brew for electrickery and $5 a brew for gas. (biab set up, i have both as i just started using an urn) but really i'm now brewing carbon neutral as the solar panels pick up the bill.

 

[Yob]

Ive recently set up my HLT with an electric immersion element rigged to an STC1000 but use gas for the Keggle... Ive only got a 4.5kg gas bottle (9kg $30 @ the big green shed) but managed to squeese out of it 2 x AG and 2 or 3 (cant remember) extract/partials..

The last AG I did I also used the immersion element to bring the Keggle to the boil in a very quick fasion so I guess having both allows for some options if you did run out of gas mid boil, you can just use electric to finish it off..

Im thinking though that some of those stick on guages that tell you how much gas is in the bottle may be a good option too..

Like THIS

 

[Yob]

did a quick calc on this yesterday and it worked out about $1.10 a brew for electrickery and $5 a brew for gas. (biab set up, i have both as i just started using an urn) but really i'm now brewing carbon neutral as the solar panels pick up the bill.

whats the spec and cost of the solar panels mate? I was starting to think about this the other day... Ive got a massive roof area that faces the sun pretty much all day and may well go down the road of solar panels in the near future...

Yob

 

[fretbrner]

Thanks for that guys. I like the idea of electric brewing. I used to work with electronics in the military and I know am in IT, so going all electric gives me a chance to mix both of these into my brewery.

 

[kelbygreen]

I have one them lgp bottle things they are ok but once it said it was half full and it wasnt and ran out 10 mins before the end. I didnt care as just no chilled it and all was fine but it would of been better if it told me the truth lol

 

[lespaul]

did a quick calc on this yesterday and it worked out about $1.10 a brew for electrickery and $5 a brew for gas. (biab set up, i have both as i just started using an urn) but really i'm now brewing carbon neutral as the solar panels pick up the bill.

how big is the element in the urn? never actually thought how much it is to run 2 2200W elements... any idea?
Gas was costing me about 12 a brew though. Mongolian burner was an animal, but would just CHEW through the gas

 

[joshuahardie]

If your are doing modest batch sizes, say 50L and under.
I would go electric every day of the week.

Your Mileage May Vary

 

[Andyd]

I went all electric about two years ago and haven't looked back. Biggest challenge is getting enough energy into the boil - for me that's 4800W of low thermal load element.

Big upsides:

1) Can brew indoors in winter without blistering winds to provide ventilation
2) Can leave the mash/boil unattended when I'l chasing the kids etc...
3) Automation of mash steps etc.

reduced cost was a lower concern, but a bonus none-the-less.

Andy

 

[alfadog]

how big is the element in the urn? never actually thought how much it is to run 2 2200W elements... any idea?
Gas was costing me about 12 a brew though. Mongolian burner was an animal, but would just CHEW through the gas

Two 2200W elements is 4400W or 4.4kW, at 21c per kW/hr that equates to 92c per hour that the elements are running.

 

[raven19]

If your are doing modest batch sizes, say 50L and under.
I would go electric every day of the week.

+1

Never used gas in my brewing, went Electric and love it.

HLT on timer so you can mash in when you get home from work or first thing in the morning on the weekends.

 

[Yob]

HLT on timer so you can mash in when you get home from work or first thing in the morning on the weekends.

This is what sold me on Elec for the HLT... by the time I wake up the strike water is at temp... now just gotta get a pump lol

love it :beerbang:

 

[lespaul]

Two 2200W elements is 4400W or 4.4kW, at 21c per kW/hr that equates to 92c per hour that the elements are running.

never realised how much I was actually saving... could not recommend going to electric more!

 

[malt_shovel]

I went all electric about two years ago and haven't looked back. Biggest challenge is getting enough energy into the boil - for me that's 4800W of low thermal load element.

Big upsides:

1) Can brew indoors in winter without blistering winds to provide ventilation
2) Can leave the mash/boil unattended when I'l chasing the kids etc...
3) Automation of mash steps etc.

reduced cost was a lower concern, but a bonus none-the-less.

Andy

That's some interesting and pretty motivating points for me to consider. I am renovating a house and have an area set aside in the shed for brewing, and I thankfully had the foresite to get 3 phase power, so should have oodles of capacity to run a couple of elements. While not currently worrying about automation / mash steps, I can see it happening in the future and electric sure would make that a lot easier.

Having kids and trying to brew with gas always is a concern for me (one of the reasons why a lot of my brewing is done at night when they are asleep), so I am having a serious think about converting to electric.

Cheers for the post.
:icon_chickcheers:

 

[ledgenko]

I ordered 2 x 2200w heat elms from Ross .. yes .. they are a tad expensive .. but still a heap cheaper than buying a burner ... I put one into the old 40l stock pot to replace the old kettle elm ... a rolling boil ... with 35l in the pot ... and not too slow either.. I am mega impressed ... and so I am ordering three more to use in my Upgradeded brewery ...

They are the BOMB ... Gas has its advantages ... but .. electric .. kicks ass ....

thats my 2c ...

 

[iralosavic]

Some helpful info here. Although it will be a while before I can afford the capital outlay (pot and heating source), I have been trying to decide which path to take.

The pure convenience and temp controlability of electric is what trumps gas in my book. Being able to do an accurately controlled step up mash in a BIAB/single vessel setup sounds perfect. I personally don't think I'll ever feel the need to take things any further than that.

Is a 70L pot big enough to get 46L to the fermenter/s? Will 4.8Kw be enough?

Have you guys had any issues running 2 2200w elements off a single power point? (Think if the A/C and a kettle were on at the same time etc)


Cheers

 

[raven19]

Is a 70L pot big enough to get 46L to the fermenter/s? Will 4.8Kw be enough?

Should be perfect. if your preboil is around say 55L (with final volume say 46L) you still have 15L of headspace when it comes to the boil.

Have you guys had any issues running 2 2200w elements off a single power point? (Think if the A/C and a kettle were on at the same time etc)

Likely it will trip your fuse/RCD. I only ever run 1 element of that size per circuit.