Not enough power?
Posted: Wed Apr 11, 2012 9:54 pm
I fired up my new RIMS system for the first time today, and I am disapointed. The 5 gallons of water in the mash tun never got above about 75 degrees. I used a 3800 watt 220 volt element on 110 volts, switched with my BCS and a 110 volt pigtail I bought from BCS. My brother says I should run it at 220 to get the immediate heat I need to raise the temp. I plan to heat the water to strike temp in the HLT, and then put it into the mash tun, but when I go from the firtst set point to the next, I don't want to have to wait 30 minutes for it to raise 10 or 20 degrees. I used the RIMS tube from Brewers Hardware, and a March pump. I was able to raise the temp by slowing the flow rate accross the element, but that seems counter productive, and I had to REALLY slow it down. I would like to brew Friday, (2 days from now), so that I can meet a competition deadline... HELP!
Don
Don