The Glacier Tanks Tri-Clamp RIMS Tube

Good day!

As part of my brewery upgrade, I am adding RIMS (recirculating infusion mash system) capability. Using my picnic cooler mash tun, I would lose several degrees over the course of a mash. I sort of resolved this by throwing a parka over top of it; this reduced the amount of temperature loss, but still looks bush league.

Since I am converting to electric anyways, I wanted to add a RIMS tube.

Initially I was looking at the tube from Stout Tanks and Kettles. It retails for $149 bucks; it looks pretty awesome.

Then I stumbled across the Glacier Tanks website. They list two versions - the 1.5" and the 2". Both are 304 stainless (though I didn't ask for any mill test reports to verify).

With the 1.5" listed at $89 dollars, I couldn't pass it up. This gets you the two piece tube and seals and clamps for all connections. I also purchased some hose adapters and a 1/2" NPT adapter for a temperature sensor. I was very excited to get my hands on my first legit stainless and tri-clamp brewing gear.

I was not disappointed.

When I unboxed the tube, it was very well packed. Everything was individually bubble wrapped, then surrounded by those annoying packing peanuts.

The tube itself is beautiful. Even my wife said it looks awesome. It is stamped "Glacier Tanks, SS304, China".

All welds are nicely ground down and look beautiful. The only defect I can see without going to the trouble of mag particle or liquid penetrant is one very small pore on the intake weld. This weld porosity looks extremely minor. I doubt it will leak, and will eventually have my weld inspector buddy have a looka at it to verify that it is no big deal.

Overall, I am initially impressed. It makes me what to have as much stainless and as many tri-clamps as possible in my brewery. When I put it into use I will provide an update.

Selecting a Brew Kettle

As part of my quest for a 1bbl (1 barrel = 31 gallons) brewing system, I need to select a brew kettle. This is proving rather difficult, because kettles of this size are generally very expensive. I should preface this by saying that I live in Canada, so the shipping costs are large. 

My requirements for the kettle are as follows:

• 40 US gallons (160 quarts) or larger
• Able to use 2 electric elements
• Drain port
• Sight glass
• Whirlpool return (used to get the wort to spin in the kettle so hot break and hops settle out in the middle in a cone - this makes it easier to get clear wort out)

I have been researching this for a while. I have found stock pots greater than or equal to 160 quarts, used stainless barrels, and purpose built kettles.

Up first, the stock pots:

Thunder Group Aluminum Stock Pots

Found on Amazon, this is a bare bones stock pot. For $229 for the 160 quart I'm not sure why I haven't made a snap decision to purchase it yet.

Cost:

160 quart: $125 + ~$104 shipping = $229 = 5.7 $/gallon capacity
200 quart: $258.51 + ~$114 shipping = $372.51 = 7.5 $/gallon capacity

Pros:

Low cost!

NSF Approved*

Cons:

Same diameter as a barrel, so why not buy taller to get more volume? The boil off rate should be the same.
Has no ports, valves, or other such accessories - I will have to do this stuff myself

55 US Gallon Drum from Bubba's Barrels
These are reconditioned stainless drums. They can be purchased with ports silver soldered on or just as the drum. At the time of writing they are not offering to weld on tri-clamp ports that can be used for electric elements. They have expressed the desire to do so however. I will update if this changes.

Cost

Plain: $189 + $142 = $331 = 6 $/gallon capacity
With ports: $424.91 + $128 shipping = $552.91 = 10.1 $/gallon capacity
With ports and accessories: $559.82 + $158.80 = 718.62 = 13.1 $/gallon capacity

Pros:

Mid-range cost
Largest of the three options
Can buy with ports already installed

Stainless Steel

Cons:

Unknown previous contents
More money than the aluminum stock pots
Still not as beautiful as purpose built

Still would have to add ports for electric elements myself

The beautiful purpose built Stout Tanks and Kettles 45 Gallon Kettle

With Tangential Inlet: $624 + ?
With Thermowell, tangential inlet, and sight glass: $800 + ? = 17.8 $/gallon capacity
With Above + 2 element ports @ $30 each: $860 + ? = 15.6 $/gallon capacity

Ultimate – with all above plus legs… $1099 + Shipping = 20 $/gallon capacity

Pros:

Dished bottom
Triclamps everywhere
Comes with ports
Beautiful looking piece of kit

Cons:

Cost is crazy compared to the other options
My communications with Stout have been spotty. Haven’t been able to get a shipping quote from them.

Summary

There are other options such as Glacier Tanks that I have not listed, but these are the main kettles I am considering.

At this point I don’t know what I want to do about this. As such, I have procrastinated on buying the kettle. I desperately want a fancy kettle, but we’ll see if I can fork out the cash when the time comes.

Any input would be greatly appreciated! If you know of other vessels I would love to hear about them!

*NSF is "an accredited, third-party certification body that tests and certifies products to verify they meet these public health and safety standards" as per their website

Making Coffee... Engineering Style

I love coffee. The two main ways I enjoy coffee are via drip (when I want quantity) and French Press (when I want quality).

My typical process for brewing French Press is as follows:

• Course grind 1 tablespoon per 4 ounces of water - 1 liter = 34 ounces -> ~8 tablespoons of course ground coffee
• Heat up water to 195 degrees Fahrenheit (using a digital thermometer) - I typically have to unplug the kettle at around 192 F to allow for overshoot
• Add the water to the grinds in the press
• Let steep for 2 minutes
• Stir
• Let steep for an additional 1 minute
• Press
• Pour immediately

It tends to be delicious.

However, there are drawbacks to the French Press that I currently own which have led me to discontinue its use.

• It is hard as hell to clean the press. The actual screen portion of it cannot be disassembled. If left for any length of time without cleaning, it gets moldy. Moldy such that I can no longer get it properly clean. This is why I have retired it.

The gross plunger from my french press

• The coffee must be poured off of the grounds immediately otherwise extraction continues. This means that even though I can make 1 liter, I have to give half of it to my wife, and have to go through the process again if I want another cup.

So what makes French Press coffee awesome?

The grinds are allowed to steep in water that is the correct temperature for the right length of time. The person (or Engineer in this case) has control over grind size, water temperature, and steep time. Fantastic.

To me, the ideal way of making coffee would allow the same control as a French Press, but allow me to produce more than 1 liter, and allow me to enjoy it over the period of a morning (and be easier to clean).

What I have in mind is basically a PID controlled kettle used with a steeping vessel which empties into an insulated carafe.

Having done some research while writing this, I have discovered the Softbrew device, which appears to be brilliantly simple. This looks like it takes care of the steeping and storage portion of my requirements; all I need now is a PID controlled kettle. I have purchased the Softbrew device in the 12 cup size - when it arrives I will review it.

We will see if the softbrew satisfies me or not. Otherwise I will be designing my own coffee maker. Please comment away!

My Next Step in Homebrewing

Homebrewing is a great engineering hobby. It is a hobby that allows one to build his own equipment, tweak and control the brewing process, and then of course enjoy the fruits of his labour.

Brewing up a yeast starter

In my day job I am paid to improve and make things better. Production is king. This carries over to my hobbies. This is part of the reason I am upgrading my brewing setup to produce over 1bbl (31 US gallons = ~117 liters) per brew session.

My rationalization for this is as follows:

·        Brewing 31 USGAL takes about the same amount of time as brewing 5 USGAL

·        I drink too much beer to brew in 5 gallon increments – the cycle time doesn’t work out so I end up drinking beer before it is ready to be consumed

·        Further to the previous point, I will be able to age some of my beer for proper lengths of time (I include dry hopping and oak aging in this, as they tend to add weeks to the process)

·        I am tired of having a half assed brew system where I have to lift and dump 5-10 gallons of wort

·        Actually brewing that much beer will be physically impressive – aka AWESOME

The future state of my brew system will be a 3 vessel single tier electric system with RIMS. I am planning on 9 or 10 kW for both the Hot Liqour Tank (HLT) and boil kettle with a 2000 W element in the rims tube.

Both the HLT and mash tun will be 55 USGal High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) barrels, while the boil kettle will be either aluminum or stainless, and be 40 US gallons or larger. I have yet to decide on what kettle I want, as my options are varied. I will dedicate an entire post to what I am considering for a kettle.

What I am currently brewing with

Current State of the Project

Vessels:

·        HLT – top is cut open and a drain valve is installed. I use this as a holding tank during my current brewing activities.

·        Mash Tun – currently sitting as an unconverted barrel waiting for me to find my jigsaw and get down to business

·        Kettle – unpurchased

Control Panel:

Many of the electronics are purchased and are on their way. Items remaining for purchase are the following:

·        Wiring

·        Fuses/breakers

·        Spa panel (GFCI for panel feed)

·        Enclosure

·        Heating elements

·        Plugs

·        Terminal Strips

Miscellaneous Hardware Remaining for Purchase:

·        Valves

·        Tubing

·        Tri-clamp adapters

·        Kettle

·        Ventilation for indoor brewing

So, in short, the current state of the project is a pile of parts and an alcohol soaked dream.

Box of parts and a glass of bourbon

I’ll update as things advance. I recently ordered a tri-clamp RIMS tube for this project, and will likely post in excitement when it arrives. Please comment with feedback and questions (although I'm sure no one will read this)!