Switch for PID

[Down_Home52]

First let me say I am not an electrician. I am not trying to automate my still. I sit in front of my still and use the controller in manual as I watch the temp at the top of the column. I acquired a home made controller with a bunch of carboys and SS kegs. I was using it tonight and it quit working in the middle of the run. The SSR 25 relay went bad. The 120v side of the relay breaks the ground leg of the 120v going to a receptacle where the element plugs in. The low voltage side of the relay I measured at 9 volts out of the PID. Question is could I break the negative side of the wire from the PID with an on/off switch so I can power the PID up without powering the element? Working with DC power on my race boats we use relays for everything that operates in the rear of the boat so light wire can be ran from rear of boat to dash for both safety and weight purposes. Was just wondering if i could treat the low side of the SSR in the same way ? This is a 7.5 gallon set up and the 1500 watt element does a decent job. When I am running time to get up to temp is enjoyable.