Show us your brewrig

[Adr_0]

Cheers.It'll just be for Sparge water so all good. I just remember a thread a while ago with a heap of links for them. Ordered one last night. $28 [emoji106]

They are actually a stunning pump for what they are marketed as and what you pay for. You will have zero issues with sparging. You can use a simple voltage divider or PWM to control speed if you wish - or throttle.

 

[Adr_0]

Looking at all these fancy rigs is making me feel a little underdone lol, don't know how to put up pics yet but my system as primative as it is consists of 2 10 gallon Rubbermaid coolers, one with false bottom, the other set up for fly sparging and both with ball valve taps and mash master round temp gauges, an 80 litre ally pot with ball valve tap and beer belly hopscreen and a 40 litre ally pot that I generally heat up mash and sparge water in unless I decide to do a single batch then I use it as a kettle but rarely, a big Rambo 4 ring burner that provides adequate heat and a few milk crates here and there for tiers, all gravity fed and you know what I love it[emoji106][emoji16] I generally brew 45-50L batches so it's perfect for me but probably a bit more work than some of the systems I've seen here, nice shiny kits guys[emoji106]

If you click on More Reply Options, then
Choose File (pick from the folder you want, pref .jpg or .tif) and then
Attach This File.

You then click somewhere in the post, and then click Add To Post on the bar where the photo should come up.

 

[Curly79]

Slowly piecing it together. Just waiting on a few bits and pieces from Ebay then gotta sort out my false bottom. Got my chugger the other day and was wondering how everyone goes about connecting to the 3/4" inlet? Was thinking of reducing straight to 1/2" then a 1/2" ball valve and cam lock or should I go 3/4" ball valve then reduce?

 

[dblunn]

ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1484212566.871649.jpg
Slowly piecing it together. Just waiting on a few bits and pieces from Ebay then gotta sort out my false bottom. Got my chugger the other day and was wondering how everyone goes about connecting to the 3/4" inlet? Was thinking of reducing straight to 1/2" then a 1/2" ball valve and cam lock or should I go 3/4" ball valve then reduce?

No mate, put the ball valve on the outlet which 1/2". You only need a reducer to the cam lock on the input.

 

[Curly79]

Cheers mate. Sounds good[emoji106]

 

[Nebes]

Looking good mate

 

[Curly79]

It's alive! Just gave it a dry run with water and Phosphoric. The gas fired HLT heated 45 Ltrs of water from 20c to 78c in about 1 Hr. pumped into Mash Tun and held temperature within 3 degrees for over an hour by wrapping it up with a few towels. Should do for now until I sort out a RIMS. One thing I couldn't understand is why the chugger wouldn't pump the last 3 Ltrs of water from the Mash Tun to the Kettle. Just pumped away without transferring the water?

 

[Curly79]

Forgot to say the little brown pump is circulating the strike and sparge water. Still need to source a sparge arm of some sort. Would love a Phil's sparge arm if anyone has one they want sell. Cheers[emoji481][emoji481]

 

[Moad]

Bcs controlled 1BBL or 120L.

 

[Tex083]

Forgot to say the little brown pump is circulating the strike and sparge water. Still need to source a sparge arm of some sort. Would love a Phil's sparge arm if anyone has one they want sell. Cheers[emoji481][emoji481]

Look at the Blichmann auto sparge, I got one about 6 months ago and it rocks. Never have to worry about sparge water level, just open the bottom valve and the autosparge allows water in at the same rate as wort flows out.

 

[Curly79]

Look at the Blichmann auto sparge, I got one about 6 months ago and it rocks. Never have to worry about sparge water level, just open the bottom valve and the autosparge allows water in at the same rate as wort flows out.

Would I need 2 chugger pumps for that to work? I'm trying to use my LBP for sparge water.

 

[DJ_L3ThAL]

It's alive! Just gave it a dry run with water and Phosphoric. The gas fired HLT heated 45 Ltrs of water from 20c to 78c in about 1 Hr. pumped into Mash Tun and held temperature within 3 degrees for over an hour by wrapping it up with a few towels. Should do for now until I sort out a RIMS. One thing I couldn't understand is why the chugger wouldn't pump the last 3 Ltrs of water from the Mash Tun to the Kettle. Just pumped away without transferring the water?

ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1485419436.158253.jpg

ImageUploadedByAussie Home Brewer1485419469.991046.jpg

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You suction line looks a lot longer than the outlet line, plus because your pump is only by looks of it 30cm below the mash tun and the hose drops farther than that below the pump you may not be providing adequate suction head for the pump... It shouldn't matter, but somehow there may be not enough suction head for the pump to overcome and it stalls/cavitates when it gets to the 3L point.

When it gets to the last 3 Litres does the sound inside the pump casing change? If so would suggest cavitation and confirm my above theory, try shortening your suction line hose greatly, or drop the pump location down to floor level (you can probably test this before permanently changing the rig by setting up on other benches etc.

Hope that helps Heath!

 

[DJ_L3ThAL]

Look at the Blichmann auto sparge, I got one about 6 months ago and it rocks. Never have to worry about sparge water level, just open the bottom valve and the autosparge allows water in at the same rate as wort flows out.

Would I need 2 chugger pumps for that to work? I'm trying to use my LBP for sparge water.

Its an expensive device for what it does. I just throttle my ball valves and balance as the fly-sparge goes on. Sure, I can't walk away from the rig during sparge but it is a process I like to be around for anyway, as is the rest of the brew actually.

Heath - no you could use two different pumps like you have for that! Wouldn't matter as the auto-sparge float valve controls the flow of the LBP. You would want to be draining the bottom of the mash into the kettle very slowly, as slow as you can so the fact the chugger has more guts doesn't matter for this.

 

[Curly79]

Cheers Nath. Yeah the sound changes but it's not screaming just a bit higher pitched. What do you use for fly sparging? Also, is it ok the throttle the outlet ball valve right down to a trickle without damaging the chugger?

 

[DJ_L3ThAL]

Cavitation won't be "loud", but a change in noise definitely suggests it!

My fly sparging is just two pumps, one sucking wort into the kettle and I throttle the ball valve on the kettle it goes in to. Then the sparge comes through the second pump and my RIMS (to flush it) and onto the top of the mash tun. I've got a ball valve on the top inlet of the mash tun and I throttle that too. It's a balancing act but I just tweak the valves here and there to keep an inch or two of sparge water above the grain bed for the fly sparge.

Yep, magnetic drive pumps like Chugger, Kaixin, Keg King and LBP can be throttle as long as it is on the OUTLET. You can actually even close the outlet and just push against a dead head, won't hurt the pump. If you restrict the suction that is when you can cause cavitation and damage the pump/impellers.

 

[Curly79]

Thanks mate. Appreciate the advice. Might even fire it up on the weekend. Was stoked that she held temp without a Rims. 3 V brewing here we come!!!

 

[Gregos]

Had an awesome day today

 

[malt junkie]

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Bcs controlled 1BBL or 120L.

Such a big awesome shiny bit of kit, and we get ONE tiny photo. You're a tease Moad!!!



Good to see you up and running mate!

 

[Moad]

Such a big awesome shiny bit of kit, and we get ONE tiny photo. You're a tease Moad!!!



Good to see you up and running mate!

OK OK fair enough. Here are some more, I also have a build thread but I haven't finished the rig yet so that is also unfinished. I just got my replacement pump, chugger NANO was sent back and replaced with a March pump equivalent. I need to hook that up and add a float switch in the HLT to automate the sparge process. I also have to hook up the electric valve to automate the chilling but any time I get is spent brewing at the moment. I'll get there.

 

[Tony121]

Mate, that look unreal!