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Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 3:39 pm
by T-type
I have a 1500 watt hot plate and seems like my 7.75 gallon stainless keg with water is taking forever to boil. Its going on 3 1/2 hours now.
the hotplate is a cast iron element btw,
Does it usually take this long to get that much water boiling.
Since im just testing out my equipment now, i just didnt think it'd take that long to bring it to a boil.

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 4:53 pm
by brewmaker1
If you're using the diffuser plate, it'll take several hours. I tried the hot plate two times and then spent $30 on a turkey fryer and Lowes. Now the hot plate is used for disolving sugar.

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 5:11 pm
by T-type
Diffuser plate? mine is a cast iron element commercial grade it says.

I have a a 1/2" thick steel plate on my welding table thats about 15" by 12" i dunno if i need it for my keg

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 5:58 pm
by inGOODspirits
atjones, brewmaker is right, get a turkey fryer and a propane tank. I have just switched to two 1500w hot water heaters but thay are inside of the boiler. One is hooked up to a on/off switch and the other is on a controller. A 1500w external heat source will not be enough.

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 6:00 pm
by T-type
Damn i guess i should of asked b4 i bought a hotplate...

You meen 1500 watt hotplate cant boil 5 gallons? hows come?

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 6:14 pm
by inGOODspirits
if you are using a sankey keg than the ring on the bottom will lift the boiler off the plate. Thoose hot plates i believe are for the presure cooker style stills and usually the boiler is about half that size. The turkey fryer is a good method but you have to watch the open flame. You can find them for about $50. Water puts out alcohol fires quite well but be prepaired. How come? volume and heat loose. I tried cooking a "hot bonnet" pepper sauce with a 1000W and the pan wouldn't even sizzle.

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 6:31 pm
by T-type
Well im getting rolling water in the middle so its real close to boiling after 6 hours...but i just added my other hotplate that gets pretty hot,...(used for melting lead for making fish weights.) now it seems to be boiling away....btw i just added it by using a small peice of copper pipe and set a corner of the hotplate on so its sitting verticle instead of horizontal and i rested my thick piece of plate (i use for welding stuff on my welding table) against it to keep it on the side of the keg.

Yea its a sanke keg so it only has like a small surface area thats actually touching on my 7-1/2" cast iron element...I may just get some stainless flatbar from work and cut a hole in the bottom and make it flat with bigger surface area

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 6:41 pm
by T-type
Whats involved in disabling the thermostat on these things? i've read around but im not sure what to look for or if i can just bypass it.

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 7:06 pm
by inGOODspirits
I am not sure. I would recommend not ruining a good hotplate. I would suggest using a hot water element (i got 2 for $50) and using a flange to attach it in the keg (I bought 2 flanges for $9 each).

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 7:26 pm
by Adverse Effects
the thing is a external heat supply you will lose at lest 50% of it to the air around it
with a internal heat supply 99%+ is going to heat the pot contents so there is almost no loss if any at all

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 7:54 pm
by T-type
yea im not ganna disable it on my new 1500 watt hotplate, i'd do it to the old one, but it seems like with 2 hotplates (one on bottom and one on the side) will work good.

Since it can boil water im sure it can boil mash right? since water boils at 212f and when running your mash it boils at like 172f right?
i know my column is working ;) i collected some water from it ;)
is the column suppose to be as hot as the boiling water because my thermometer read around 200f in the column...
remember im just testing it with water for now.

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 7:59 pm
by Adverse Effects
atjones44 wrote:is the column suppose to be as hot as the boiling water because my thermometer read around 200f in the column...
remember im just testing it with water for now.
the higher you go on the column the more the temp will drop but that is where letting it reflux for an hour or more befor you start to take off product will make sure everything is in balance

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sat Feb 14, 2009 8:05 pm
by T-type
how'd you wire your hot water elements?? are they 120v?

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sun Feb 15, 2009 5:13 am
by inGOODspirits
thay are easy to wire. But if you are not good at elecrical, cut the female end off of an extension cord. White wire to one side of the element and the black one to the other(there are two screws to attach you wires to). Be sure to use the ground(green) and attach it to the body of the keg for saftey.

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sun Feb 15, 2009 5:13 am
by inGOODspirits
thay are easy to wire. But if you are not good at elecrical you could use a 120V, cut the female end off of an extension cord. White wire to one side of the element and the black one to the other(there are two screws to attach you wires to). Be sure to use the ground(green) and attach it to the body of the keg for saftey.

Typically 120V and/or 240V

Re: Usual time for boil with 1500 watt hotplate

Posted: Sun Feb 15, 2009 9:55 am
by T-type
Thanks, that sounds easy enough. I might go that route and put one inside the keg by drilling a hole and welding a nut around it that the element can screw into.