Electric keggle HLT build - Part 2

[Brett Mason]

A quick update on the HLT build which is now mostly wrapped up and been through its first batch.

The lovely insulation is courtesy of a warehouse camp roll and a bunch of duct tape.

I was concerned about usability with the large gap between the tap, thermometer and sight glass and it has been a minor nuisance since the thermometer isn't easy to read from an angle. I played it safe with a fairly large gap to avoid cross over between the probes and element but was probably a bit too conservative and should have just coughed up for a different thermometer with a shorter probe.

Another issue has been the amount of waste water below the tap, about ~13 litres - a lot of waste for my typical 20 litre batch size. I ended up bailing the remainder since I'm too cheap to heat the extra water. A jug shaped element mounted in the very bottom of the rounded keg bottom would have been better.

So I've ordered a float switch from aliexpress to turn off the element when the water is low so I can add in a dip tube without worrying about blowing the element.

Which brings me onto the next brewery upgrade - a control panel. The STC-1000 has been co-opted by my keg fridge so what better excuse to switch to a PID, SSR and control panel. Again it is going to be modelled on theelectricbrewery.com but cut down since it will be HLT & pumps only - still gas on the kettle and running from a standard 10a supply.