EBREW2.0: E-Brew Rig 2.0 Build

So I knew I wanted to do an all electric rig for the numerous benefits. Absolute temp control, over time power savings, possibilities of brewing indoors, and better measurements and controls around the brewing process, etc. I am lucky enough to have a buddy at work that had walked this road before, Mike Carr... That stated, Mike sold me on E-brewing and all-grain and really I could not have done this journey without him. Mike and I had numerous conversations around building the rig, what it would require, and how best to engineer. I decided on building off a 50 amp panel so i could run 2x 5500 watt elements simultaneously, I also wanted something that afforded me the possibility of brewing 5 gallons up to 15 comfortably... For the base kettles, I narrowed in on 3 Blichmann 20 gallon pots (1HLT,1MLT,1BK). I was exposed to the Blichmann products quality in my first extract rig boil kettle as it was a Blichmann 10G kettle and burner. I loved the quality, thoughtfulness of there products, they are a bit pricey but in my opinion worth the investment. I easily pumped out 30 or so brews on the old 10G gas fired system in the short time I had it, and it looked practically new when I sold it. I put together a spec diagram of what fittings and parts I would need in the rig and worked from there. I decided to go the HERMS route, with a 25' stainless coil in the HLT. Another key design decision was using silver soldered / welded fittings w/ a dimple for the best mechanical bond for all connections. This was a relatively new process and I was a definitely nervous there, but hind-sight I am glad I went that route. I torque on these fittings pretty good, and really like the stability of the welded fitting vs a weldless design. Nonetheless, I knew what I wanted, sucked it up and put the money out... I have always been a believer of:

"If it is worth doing, it is worth doing right, and if it is worth doing right, buy it once and cry once..."

This was my fittings / parts list and my initial design diagram.

Number	Connection Description	Parts
1	HLT Thermo Probe	1/2" NPT HALF coupling Stainless
2	MLT Thermo Probe (bottom)	1/2" NPT HALF coupling Stainless
3	BOIL Thermo Probe	1/2" NPT HALF coupling Stainless
4	BOIL Whirlpool Arm	1/2" NPT Coupling Stainless (FULL) 1/2" NPT STREET 90 elbow 1/2" NPT Hex nipple Stainless Whirlpool / Side pickup fitting kit 1/2" SS Camlock F style fitting Quick Disconnect 1/2" NPT SS 2 piece ball valve
5	MLT Thermo Probe recirculation input(top)	1/2" NPT Coupling Stainless (FULL) 1/2" NPT Tee 1/2" NPT Hex nipple Stainless 1/2" NPT SS 2 piece ball valve 1/2" SS Camlock F style fitting Quick Disconnect 1/2" NPT STREET 90 elbow Whirlpool / Side pickup fitting kit
6	HLT Whirlpool Arm	1/2" NPT Coupling Stainless (FULL) 1/2" NPT STREET 90 elbow 1/2" NPT Hex nipple Stainless Whirlpool / Side pickup fitting kit 1/2" SS Camlock F style fitting Quick Disconnect 1/2" NPT SS 2 piece ball valve
7	BOIL Element	1" HALF coupling - NPT Stainless
8	HLT Element	1" HALF coupling - NPT Stainless
9	HLT Blichman output	1/2" SS Camlock F style fitting Quick Disconnect
10	MLT Blichman output	1/2" SS Camlock F style fitting Quick Disconnect
11	Boil Blichman output	1/2" SS Camlock F style fitting Quick Disconnect

I sourced most of my fittings from bargainfittings.com and stanlessbrewing.com. Here are all the fittings when they came in.

So here is a pic of the pots before I started modifying them.

I built up a wooden stand with some spare lumber to fit all the pots nicely on a single tier.

I worked with Ryan over at Ebrewsupply.com to fabricate a 50 amp BCS panel, elements and thermal probes. Here are some pics of the panel. I opted to go the BCS Route, as I thought it added some benefits. I am an IT engineer by trade, so as I started looking more into the BCS solution, I thought with my basic javascript and web experience I could further develop into the interface, which I since have.