Electric boil kettle control

[mr x]

I'll check when i get home at 4.

[jtmwhyte]

Cleaned up the kettle a bit and put my clean ball valve on. Looking good, working good, must be good.

[jeffsmith]

Well done, looks great!

[jtmwhyte]

I took a few minutes to mount the controller to a piece of melamine shelving to give it more stability. I ordered some L6-30 plugs on eBay today so I can detach the kettle for cleaning in the future.

[jtmwhyte]

[jtmwhyte]

Boil off was lower than anticipated so I ended up with a 1.055 Porter. RIDICULOUSLY faster brewday than usual. I started at 6:00 and was done and cleaned up by 10. My usual brewday before was 6-6.5 hours. Cleaning was a breeze too. Should have done this right off the bat

[bluenose]

@ jtmwhyte

I'm getting started on the controller section, then I'll move onto the element section... I see your controller box has two holes in the sides. Did you abandon those to go in through the back? If so, why? Was it too tight? If not, do you plan on using the holes for something else?

I ask because I was planning on coming in the sides too

I was also wondering if you secured the controller unit in any way or if it's just sitting on the bottom?

[bluenose]

suppose I wanted to add an outlet at the top of the box to power a pump and I wanted the outlet to be controlled by a switch... would this be the way to wire it?

would the switch and outlet need to be 30A?

[LeafMan66_67]

Switch should be on the hot side of the receptacle, not the neutral. Also, you should have an inline fuse ahead of the switch, so that you aren't exceeding the rating of both your switch and receptacle.

[jtmwhyte]

@ jtmwhyte

I'm getting started on the controller section, then I'll move onto the element section...

I see your controller box has two holes in the sides. Did you abandon those to go in through the back? If so, why? Was it too tight?
>>>yes, and yes... although you could probably do it on the sides if your holes were closer to the "floor" inside the box.

If not, do you plan on using the holes for something else?
>>> Yes, ventilation... though it does not get super hot I still like the piece of mind.

I ask because I was planning on coming in the sides too

I was also wondering if you secured the controller unit in any way or if it's just sitting on the bottom?
>>> no. the knob being secured through the outer wall in the right spot keeps it from moving. I'd recommend marking the inside and then taking a ruler and marking up the inside, over the top, and down the same distance on the outside to ensure this happens. I'd be sketchy of having it :hang" from the dial.

[bluenose]

Switch should be on the hot side of the receptacle, not the neutral.

I thought of that after I posted, but thought I'd wait for someone to confirm it.

Also, you should have an inline fuse ahead of the switch, so that you aren't exceeding the rating of both your switch and receptacle.

can you specify what type of fuse I should be looking for and how it might be installed in this?

Here's the update to my drawing:

[LeafMan66_67]

Fuse could be a bulkhead mounted inline style holder or even a fuse block mounted inside your control box. I just gave a bunch away earlier this year (bulkhead style). Just takes a small glass fuse. I can check tonight to see if I kept any and you are welcome to one if I have something.

[bluenose]

Fuse could be a bulkhead mounted inline style holder or even a fuse block mounted inside your control box. I just gave a bunch away earlier this year (bulkhead style). Just takes a small glass fuse. I can check tonight to see if I kept any and you are welcome to one if I have something.

what about something like this?

[LeafMan66_67]

Fuse could be a bulkhead mounted inline style holder or even a fuse block mounted inside your control box. I just gave a bunch away earlier this year (bulkhead style). Just takes a small glass fuse. I can check tonight to see if I kept any and you are welcome to one if I have something.

what about something like this?

That works.

[bluenose]

would 10 amp be enough?

[AllanMar]

would 10 amp be enough?

For a pump? definatly. A chugger/march is typically around 1A. Fuses should be selected to protect the wiring more so then the device though. As long as your wire is 16AWG or larger you'd be fine with a 10A fuse.

[bluenose]

so here's where I'm at at the moment. Does anyone see any mistakes?

[GAM]

Should your heat sink be out side the box?

Sandy

[bluenose]

Should your heat sink be out side the box?

Sandy

earlier discussions concluded it wasn't necessary, but I wouldn't want to fry anything. The outlet is for the future pump, so it wouldn't be operational while the element is. I may add a fan later if it feels like it's getting hot.

[jtmwhyte]

My heat sink is inside. It got warm during my test boil (from ground water temp) but is fine when boiling warm wort

[LeafMan66_67]

From what we can see here, wiring looks correct.

[jtmwhyte]

Got my plugs in the mail yesterday. All set up now.

[bluenose]

I've pretty much got mine together now, but I can't seem to drill through the keggle skirting at the bottom to connect the ground wire. My guess is that previous uses on a propane burner may have heat tempered the steel. Does this sound correct and if so what are my options? I put a piece of gore-tex gasket material between the metal box and the metal plat the touches the keggle, so there's a gap there for sure.

[RubberToe]

Keggle steel is hard as fuck as it is. You likely just need a better drill bit.

[LeafMan66_67]

I've pretty much got mine together now, but I can't seem to drill through the keggle skirting at the bottom to connect the ground wire. My guess is that previous uses on a propane burner may have heat tempered the steel. Does this sound correct and if so what are my options? I put a piece of gore-tex gasket material between the metal box and the metal plat the touches the keggle, so there's a gap there for sure.

You are probably right on the heat tempering, but keep trying. Get a good bit, use a centre punch and be patient.