My Brutus 10e build

John G · Post by **John G** » Thu Apr 07, 2011 12:37 pm

I've just started assembling my new brew setup, starting with the stand. It's going to be a single tier eHERMS setup with a Brutus 10 style stand. I'll be using 4500w elements in the BK and MLT. My heating elements are both controlled by 40A SSRs (ordered from China) with a PID for the HLT and a cheap PWM kit ($8) to control the BK. I'm using March 809 pumps to move liquids around. I'm starting with this basic setup for now with the intention to work some more automation in there down the road.

I've just chopped the brew stand metal up and tack welded it at a friend's house last night. I've never welded before, so it was fun to learn. It's not stainless, but I'm going to paint it pretty as I'm not concerned about heat from my eKeggles ruining the paint. More posts/pics to follow as I progress through this build.

Post by **mr x** » Thu Apr 07, 2011 5:24 pm

Nice.

JohnnyMac · Post by **JohnnyMac** » Thu Apr 07, 2011 9:13 pm

Looking good John.

moxie · Post by **moxie** » Wed Apr 13, 2011 12:25 pm

Lookin' good.

John G · Post by **John G** » Fri Sep 07, 2012 10:05 am

Ok, it's been a while but I've been slowly collecting up parts to finish off this system. I think I have just about everything now and I am currently assembling my control panel so I thought I'd post some pics for interest's sake. I used an old clear plastic front enclosure just for kicks so I can see the wiring in behind (and to remind me I'm working with electricity and should be careful while brewing). It will also mean I have to clean up the wiring once everything is connected. I still have to wire up the SSRs and temperature sensors for controlling the heating elements.

I have a spa panel with an external plug that I'll connect to my dryer outlet during brew day. The control panel will connect to the spa panel for ground fault protection. Most of what I've assembled is a direct copy from theelectricbrewery.com site other than I am using a PWM to control the boil kettle element and I've left out some components that were more nice-to-haves rather than must-haves. I hope to get all the wiring completed this weekend and give the thing a go with just water sometime early next week. I have a vent hood and fan, but they are not yet installed so once everything works as it should with the system I'll brew with it outdoors for now (as long as it's not raining!).

I'll post up some more pics of the kettles, stand and plumbing once I get the control panel finished.

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Post by **RubberToe** » Fri Sep 07, 2012 11:33 am

Way to go John! I can't wait to see this in action!

What are you using for probes and where did you find them? I'm not too thrilled with my cheap ebay Chinese RTDs.

John G · Post by **John G** » Fri Sep 07, 2012 9:11 pm

Thanks Rob, I can't wait either!

I have generic thermocouples in stainless thermowells. I don't know how well they'll do but I will report back to the forum. I'll definitely calibrate them prior to brewing. Only one is needed for mash temperature control. I had a second PID that I decided to add to the system to see what mash outlet temperature is compared to inlet from the HLT. Likely in and out temp readings from the Mash Tun will be very similar once I insulate all the vessels.

CorneliusAlphonse · Post by **CorneliusAlphonse** » Fri Sep 07, 2012 9:28 pm

very cool. how many amps does a system like this require (at 240v)? is a standard dryer plug breaker enough, or did you have to make some wiring changes? how much did it cost as a rough estimate?

John G · Post by **John G** » Mon Sep 10, 2012 3:00 pm

30 amps 240v (standard dryer plug breaker) but I've put in a GFCI between the dryer plug and the control panel. 30 amps means I can only use one burner at a time since they are 5500W 240v elements that will draw roughly 23 amps. I have a 3-way switch in my control panel that will only allow me to power up only one of the burners that either runs the HLT or the Boil Kettle. I did a lot of scrounging of old projects I had on the go so it's hard to get a true cost. I'd say about $400 - $500, but it will totally depend on what you can get in terms of used or cheap gear. I picked up most of my control panel gear from ebay at a decent price. Vessel parts came mostly from McMaster Carr. I would call mine the "no-frills but the same degree of safety" version of theelectricbrewery.com unit.

Jayme · Post by **Jayme** » Mon Sep 10, 2012 3:33 pm

Looks good! I really wish my living situation would allow me to do something like this..

Seems like you've got the panel done mostly, but if you need any more parts feel free to send me a PM - I've got access to random scrap electronic things at work which can be obtained for free.

Post by **mr x** » Mon Sep 10, 2012 5:23 pm

And talk to me about switches and lights etc....

Sent from my Nexus S

sleepyjamie · Post by **sleepyjamie** » Mon Sep 10, 2012 5:38 pm

im thinking of going electric next year. after using rubbertoes system its just so much nicer.

John G · Post by **John G** » Mon Sep 10, 2012 6:47 pm

Cool, thanks for the offer guys. I may call on some brewnoser resources if I plug the thing in and find something not working right or I end up frying something.

Post by **GillettBreweryCnslt** » Tue Sep 11, 2012 3:23 pm

Can you send me the link for the ebay seller from whom you acquired your relays? I'm in the process of gathering parts for a very similar build. Also, where did you get your enclosure?

I've got everything priced out and I'm looking at $1400 right now so I'm trying to get things down.

Jayme · Post by **Jayme** » Tue Sep 11, 2012 3:30 pm

Dave - not sure what you need all for parts, but I may have some things that could help you out. I'm guessing if you've got the cost worked out, you probably have a parts list. If you e-mail it to me, I can take a look and let you know if I have any of it!

John G · Post by **John G** » Tue Sep 11, 2012 9:08 pm

by Fishdisease » Tue Sep 11, 2012 2:23 pm
Can you send me the link for the ebay seller from whom you acquired your relays? I'm in the process of gathering parts for a very similar build. Also, where did you get your enclosure?

I've got everything priced out and I'm looking at $1400 right now so I'm trying to get things down.

The Heater SSRs were from this seller: http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Solid-State-Rela ... 2933wt_906" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
You can probably get these from any high rated ebay seller with free shipping, but I know this one worked out pretty good for me. They are all around the $12-$14 range with heat sink and free shipping. Mine arrived in an envelope with the string & button closure and was well wrapped in bubble wrap inside.

The DPDT power relays I have between the switches and higher voltage stuff were from an online retailer at newark.com. Here's the link: http://www.newark.com/magnecraft/w92s11 ... tt=10M6366" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
Shipping to my door was $12.00.

The enclosure was a cast off. I have another one if you want it, but it's metal, not fibreglass. PM me if you're interested.

$1400 is pretty steep. If I were going to have to pay that I'd just buy the $1420 kit from theelectricbrewery.com since it would save you the headache / time of sourcing all the parts from all over. However, I'd actually probably go the brewtroller route and virtualize all the switches and lights instead.

Hope this helps

Post by **GillettBreweryCnslt** » Mon Sep 17, 2012 12:12 pm

Well, $1400 isn't just for the controller. Here's what the breakdown is as of today (it changes every 10 minutes really!)

Controller (including dual pole 30 amp GFCI breaker and RTDs): $750
Keg Hardware (including elements with cables/plugs and I'm cutting the bottom out of the kegs and using tri-clover fitting for the drain): $250
SS float switches for kegs: $35
2 x March 809 pumps: $450

So I'm trying to whittle that down even further. But some things like the tri-clover fittings and pumps will always be expensive. The enclosure I'm looking at is $150, so getting a cheaper one will definitely help cut down the controller cost!

Thanks

Post by **GillettBreweryCnslt** » Fri Sep 21, 2012 3:45 pm

Oh, and I PM'd regarding the enclosure. Thanks

Dirt Chicken · Post by **Dirt Chicken** » Fri Sep 21, 2012 4:00 pm

sleepyjamie wrote:im thinking of going electric next year. after using rubbertoes system its just so much nicer.

And same here brother!

John G · Post by **John G** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 10:14 pm

Ok, as an update on this marathon of brew builds, here are some photos. I have to get the SSRs in my panel, put plug ends on my pumps and elements and install the ends on my thermocouples. I also have to wrestle the HERMs coil into place in the HLT. It's been properly coiled, but needs some persuasion to get it into place on the compression fittings. I picked up some casters today for my stand (thanks for the info on local source for these Jimmy). Ventilation is going in as soon as I receive my hood.Hopefully I can brew on this thing soon - it's driving me crazy seeing it half built in my basement.

IMG_0733.jpg

IMG_0734.jpg

Post by **RubberToe** » Mon Oct 29, 2012 11:35 pm

Keep at it John. Persistence is key to a project like this, do a little at a time but keep going and push through the tedious bits! It took me over a year to do mine but when it "was done" (still not done, LOL) it was awesome.

Post by **LeafMan66_67** » Tue Oct 30, 2012 6:23 am

Looks good. I wish I had both the time and the space.

John G · Post by **John G** » Tue Oct 30, 2012 4:39 pm

RubberToe wrote:Keep at it John. Persistence is key to a project like this, do a little at a time but keep going and push through the tedious bits! It took me over a year to do mine but when it "was done" (still not done, LOL) it was awesome.

Thanks Rob

John G · Post by **John G** » Sat Nov 17, 2012 10:11 pm

Had a few wiring issues to clear up before the dry run. SSRs were giving me headaches when trying to use a multimeter to test them when there was no load (ie before plugging in my elements). Now I figured out that SSRs are a current switch, not voltage. I was getting full voltage on the SSR that was supposedly off. Once the elements were plugged in all worked as it should, so tonight was the night to give it a go with water and all went well - only 2 dripping fittings that needed tightening. Maybe tomorrow I'll finally brew something. Pictures to follow once I clean up my control box wiring that is embarrassingly untidy.

Post by **mr x** » Sun Nov 18, 2012 8:16 am

You can also measure leakage voltage on solid state switching gear with a digital meter. A wigwag is a better meter for those purposes.

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