Going All Grain - Gas or Electric

[mattbass]

Hi all,

I have finally made the decision to go all grain . The only choice I have to make next is gas or electric. I have been in contact with Rob from The Malt Miller to enquire about installing electric elements into one of his SS pots. He came back to me suggesting that they used to do this however it proved to be unreliable and caused more problems than it was worth.

I'll be honest I would rather go electric rather than gas so not to have to worry about gas cylinders etc, plus having the ability to brew indoors is a big plus.

So, any pros / cons people wish to point out would be of great help.

Thanks,

Matt

[GrowlingDogBeer]

When I first went All Grain it was electric, I was brewing 5 gallon Brew Lengths in plastic buckets with a 2.4kW element in the HLT and a 3kW element in the boiler.

The pros,

I could do it indoors if I wanted, if it wasn't for the amount of steam produced and SWMBO hating the smell.
I didn't have to worry about gas.

The cons, no adjustability to the vigour of the boil
I could only plug either the HLT or the boiler in, never both at the same time as the Ring Main couldn't handle the strain.

I moved my brewery to the garage which is where I now am and upgraded to a 10 gallon shiny setup, mostly from Rob.

I had Rob cut a hole in the 70 Litre HLT for an Immersion element, the hole was perfect, but getting an Immersion element to seal in that hole was a complete nightmare. You need to use a mechanical flange as the side of the pan is not flat, and a hammer to try and flatten it, and lots and lots of LS-X, brute force and praying. Not fun, well it wasn't for me.

I always planned to fill my HLT with hot water from my combi boiler so knew the element didn't need to do too much work, I have a single 3kW Immersion element in there.

My boiler I decided to run on Gas, I have an 8kW burner under a 70 Litre boiler.

The benefits,

It's boiling by the time I have finished sparging
I can have the boiler and the HLT on at the same time
I can control the boil
I don't have to worry about the element packing up mid boil.
It's easier to clean the boiler

I think for 5 gallon electric is OK, except for the problem mounting them in the shiny pans, any bigger volume and I would certainly go with Gas, at least for the boiler, and if you have space for the HLT as well.

If you do want to go electric I would seriously consider not using Immersion elements, but use something requiring a much smaller hole.

My brewery in the garage is ideal as it is never in anyones way, except for mine when I am doing some DIY (I try to avoid that)

[mattbass]

Thanks!

Any suggestions on propane / butane for gas?

Matt

[simple one]

Propane every time. More power. Better in the cold. Hank Hill says so....

[strideredc]

i could only plug either the HLT or the boiler in, never both at the same time as the Ring Main couldn't handle the strain

Steve, you should check your ring final circuit if that is what it is? if it cant handle 23/24 amps then theres a problem, it should be protected by a 32 amp device (fuse mcb ect) sounds like it might be a radial circuit you have? i.e. protected by a 20amp?

[pantsmachine]

Gas works for me for the boiler although my HLT is electric fired. I prefer gas for controlability(is that even a real word). Plus with gas you don't risk the burning of the wort on the extraordinarily hot leccy element. Not sure about price difference but ye cannae beat the roar of a propane burner.

[themadhippy]

Steve, you should check your ring final circuit if that is what it is? if it cant handle 23/24 amps then theres a problem, it should be protected by a 32 amp device

But what about all the other stuff running of the same circuit? fridge freezer cutting in and out,maybe a kettle ,computer,radio,and all the other small incidentals that soon add up

[GrowlingDogBeer]

Steve, you should check your ring final circuit if that is what it is? if it cant handle 23/24 amps then theres a problem, it should be protected by a 32 amp device

But what about all the other stuff running of the same circuit? fridge freezer cutting in and out,maybe a kettle ,computer,radio,and all the other small incidentals that soon add up

Yes, I have loads of other stuff on the same circuit.

As much as I may have got away with it, I don't really like maxing out circuits. The wiring in my house isn't the most modern, or well designed so I have to treat it with respect.

I'm much happier now I am using Gas.

[liquidman]

I've gone from electric to gas in my shed, its much nicer with with gas as now the lights in the shed don't dim when I turn the boiler on!

[nobby]

Steve, you should check your ring final circuit if that is what it is? if it cant handle 23/24 amps then theres a problem, it should be protected by a 32 amp device

But what about all the other stuff running of the same circuit? fridge freezer cutting in and out,maybe a kettle ,computer,radio,and all the other small incidentals that soon add up

Yes, I have loads of other stuff on the same circuit.

As much as I may have got away with it, I don't really like maxing out circuits. The wiring in my house isn't the most modern, or well designed so I have to treat it with respect.

I'm much happier now I am using Gas.

Dont forget that a plug in the cooker switch should be on a diffrent circuit to the rest of your plugs.

[boingy]

Gas boiler and electric HLT for me. The HLT is only 2.2kW (for 50 litres!) but I heat it overnight on a timer. You can't beat the controllability of the boil. Best combo for me but as mentioned in the OP you can't do gas indoors (garage or shed is OK, assuming there is plenty of ventilation).

[nobby]

another option for Gas outdoors if you dont have a garage or shed is a popup gazibo

[GrowlingDogBeer]

Dont forget that a plug in the cooker switch should be on a diffrent circuit to the rest of your plugs.

If only I had an electric supply to the cooker. That has to run on Gas as well.

[testtube]

Gas with flam protection and plenty of air/draft for oxygen. Propane, butane will freeze up with a decent kg/hr.

[mattbass]

Wow, thanks for the advice guys. I'm having a bit of an eBay session in the hope of raising some funds for a gas set up. Probably just going for a boiler and mash tun first, possibly adding a HLT at later date.

Matt