Have I killed my Burco?

[Lime Corridor]

OK, after reading this threadhttp://jimsbeerkit.co.uk/forum/viewtopi ... =6&t=51362 and taking a look at the bottom of the element again, I think I may have killed the element itself. It looks a little black and little melty around one of the contacts. Hands up, perhaps it is not as descaled as it should be and I have had at least 23 brews out of it – goodness only knows what life it had before arriving with me, so going to have to put my hand in my pocket I think?

I guess this is for themadhippy, but is there a test (i.e. with my shiny new mulitimeter) that I can do on the element to see if it is dead?

Any contibutions are most welcome.

LC

[Dave S]

OK, after reading this threadhttp://jimsbeerkit.co.uk/forum/viewtopi ... =6&t=51362 and taking a look at the bottom of the element again, I think I may have killed the element itself. It looks a little black and little melty around one of the contacts. Hands up, perhaps it is not as descaled as it should be and I have had at least 23 brews out of it – goodness only knows what life it had before arriving with me, so going to have to put my hand in my pocket I think?

I guess this is for themadhippy, but is there a test (i.e. with my shiny new mulitimeter) that I can do on the element to see if it is dead?

Any contibutions are most welcome.

LC

That's why I'm happier with the concealed element as in the Buffalo. Much easier to keep clean. If your element has popped, there's a good likelihood it's because you bypassed the thermal cut out causing it to over heat.

You can at least test it for open circuit with your multimeter by measuring between the brown and blue connections, (with it unplugged from the mains). If you get a very high reading then chances are it's gone.

EDIT: What seems to be emerging from this and other posts is that cutting out during the boil is coming down to gunge on the element. Exposed elements are by nature much trickier to clean than the plate of the concealed elements.

[Lime Corridor]

Thanks Dave S. I will give it a test tonight. Fairly confident that this is what has happened as I got it to work perfectly just one week ago. Keeping it clean is a lesson learned.

Thanks again.

LC

[Lime Corridor]

The element is dead However, I did get a free lesson on how to use a multimeter last night and my local appliance spares shop apparently has the exact replacement element and I am going to pick it up in half an hour.

All being well, I will get a brew on this weekend.

LC

[darkonnis]

very good times mate! My burco actually started smoldering earlier today and i thought, well [censored] it. If its dead its dead, I aint having it ruin my brew aswell. Looked on the underneath 2 melted crimp sleeves, cheeky b******s. Going to remove them and their charred wire counter parts and replace them. Not entirely sure why its done that as it's been fine since hippy & fbpointed out what i needed to do to bypass the thermostat. It isn't like i dont take care of it either, i completely clean the element and pan straight after use then rinse it through with water to get any bits of wort out, clean it with a sponge so the whole thing is shiny again and leave it dry, ready for use the next time around. Well can only try i guess

[Lime Corridor]

very good times mate! My burco actually started smoldering earlier today and i thought, well [censored] it. If its dead its dead, I aint having it ruin my brew aswell. Looked on the underneath 2 melted crimp sleeves, cheeky b******s. Going to remove them and their charred wire counter parts and replace them. Not entirely sure why its done that as it's been fine since hippy & fbpointed out what i needed to do to bypass the thermostat. It isn't like i dont take care of it either, i completely clean the element and pan straight after use then rinse it through with water to get any bits of wort out, clean it with a sponge so the whole thing is shiny again and leave it dry, ready for use the next time around. Well can only try i guess

Beware Darkonnis, this sounds a little like how my problems started. Anyway, through research keeping it clean seems to be the lion share of the battle, so good on you.

Fitted the new element last night, all went well. Rolling boil achieved with a few litres of water. Finger crossed for this weekend.

LC

[darkonnis]

Hopefully after the issues you've had it'll work again mate . I'm hoping that its just 2 dodgy wires and that I'll be able to replace em. I did notice when i cleaned it that there was a substantial amount of crap attached to the boil plate itself, more than usual. Perhaps there is a protective layer or something which wears a way in time? I might relegate it to HLT duties in the near future and sell my swan as its still untinkered with and in immaculate condition with only having water in it.
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