Brewing System.
The brewing system is a Stainless Steel R.I.M.S system and can brew 45l beer at a time. It was built from three 50l Stainless Steel tanks. A Hot liquor tank, a Mash and sparge tun, and a boiler.
Hot liquor tank :
The Hot liquor tank is fitted with two 2300 watt heating elements. Both are individually wired for temperature control purposes. A 3/4 inch ball valve is fitted to the bottom as an outlet which is connected to a sparging arm. A 1/2 inch pipe up the side of the tank serves as a level indicator and is marked at five liter intervals.
Mash / sparge tun :
The tun is fitted with a false bottom as part of the filtration cycle while sparging. A 3/4 inch ball valve is fitted to the bottom of the tun as an outlet which is connected to a pump for pumping the wort through a heating unit for step mashing or else into the boiler.
Boiler : (Kettle)
The boiler is fitted with two 2300 watt heating elements. Both are individually wired for temperature control purposes. A 3/4 inch ball valve fitted to the side of the tank as an outlet which is connected to a counter flow cooling unit.
Pump :
The pump is a normal washing machine water pump that has been fitted with a speed controlling device to regulate the flow.
Counter flow cooler :
The cooler is made from two 8 meter lengths of pipe a copper inner pipe and a polypropylene outer pipe. It reduces the temperature of the wort from 98 degrees C to 20 degrees C.
False bottom :
The false bottom is made from two pieces of five millimeter thick polypropylene sheets which are drilled full of two millimeter holes. The two pieces are cut into semicircles and then hinged together so that they can be easily inserted into or removed form the mash tun.