Element not working????

[lukedugan]

Hi,
I've recently decided to have a go at making my own AG equipment. First up was the boiler being made from an old chutney bin and two tesco value kettle elements. I attached the tap and elements to the bin with no problem. I bought two hot condition sockets and fitted this to the cable that came with the kettle after cutting it from the kettle stand,I had removed the whole wiring loom and plugged the element in whilst in water but neither of them got warm. I then tried plugging the two spade plugs from the element loom and connecting them but still no power. Can anybody tell from this info what causes there to be no power?? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!!!

 

[rickthebrew]

Hi luke and welcome to the forum, I built my boiler from this guide


viewtopic.php?f=30&t=3104

check a few posts in about linking out the switch / thermostat on these kettle elements, if this isn`t what is wrong maybe PM muddy as he is a lot better with electrics than me :lol: even better post a couple pics of what you have done :thumb:

 

[Dieseljockey]

Do you have a photo of what you've done with the wires....It mayby the auto cutoff.

I ask almost the same Q Here it may help....Mine now work ok

 

[rickthebrew]

just as dieseljockey said :thumb:

below is a pic with the linked out bit ( since tidied up :lol: )

hope you sort it out :thumb:

 

[lukedugan]

Ok, I will try and post pics but I'm at work at the moment. My wiring looks like th picture above however when I first plugged it in I had Removed that orange wiring so there was just the element pins. Also I wired the iec hot condition sockets from maplins myself, other than a fuse in the plug should there be one in the socket that plugs on to the back of the element. Will try and post pics asap!!! Thanks again

 

[Muddydisco]

If you have wired the plugs yourself you most likely have got something wrong. Looking at the above photo. Neutral is on the left earth is the centre and live is the right hand pin, make sure you haven't wired the plug backwards, or another way :thumb:

 

[lukedugan]

Just got home and played around with the wiring and the element, I had the element the other way up than in the photo whether that makes a difference or not. Also I took the socket apart rewired it, switched it on and the one element worked!!!! :thumb: I'll work on the other tomorrow. Thanks for the help : :

 

[Dieseljockey]

Which way the element is up...as nothing to do with your problem...It's the wiring.
This is where you have to be very careful...please don't take any risks....when they are up & running you don't want electric & water to mix..or to short out or you may be the first to know :nono:

All the guys who use kettle elements will see the job from a different angle..
When I did mine I left all the wires and spliced a length of wire so as to keep the switchs which I now have in a control box...safe :thumb:

 

[lukedugan]

I now have both elements working, I did exactly the same with the second element this morning but this didn't solve my problem. I removed the element and tightened everything up and it worked ,whether I hadn't tightened the element up enough to make a connection I don't know but both elements are working and it is now boiling!!!!! :thumb:

 

[rickthebrew]

:party: brewtime then - will it be your first AG? and what are you brewing?

 

[lukedugan]

Yes it will be my first AG, was going to do a light floral summer ale if anybody has any suggestions??? First I have to make my mash tun but all being well that will be this weekend!!!

 

[lukedugan]

Something along the lines of castle rock's Elsie mo and O'hanlon's yellowhammer

 

[Sean_Mc]

Glad its all working Luke :thumb:

Could I ask why people seem to go for the Tesco value kettles. I got mine from Sainsburys ( which they seem to no longer sell) and when I built my HLT I got the elements out of Argos kettles.
There all roughly the same price and seem to be equal in power, but there's no hassle with the wires, unplug them and they work.

 

[BarnsleyBrewer]

Which way the element is up...as nothing to do with your problem...It's the wiring.
This is where you have to be very careful...please don't take any risks....when they are up & running you don't want electric & water to mix..or to short out or you may be the first to know :nono:

All the guys who use kettle elements will see the job from a different angle..
When I did mine I left all the wires and spliced a length of wire so as to keep the switchs which I now have in a control box...safe :thumb:

Hi DJ
What did you use as the switches?

BB

 

[lukedugan]

Glad its all working Luke :thumb:

Could I ask why people seem to go for the Tesco value kettles. I got mine from Sainsburys ( which they seem to no longer sell) and when I built my HLT I got the elements out of Argos kettles.
There all roughly the same price and seem to be equal in power, but there's no hassle with the wires, unplug them and they work.

I used the Tesco kettles and that is what most people seemed to use and the guides that I'd read used them too. If I'd have known this to start with I probably would have used something different, but not to worry!!!! :grin:

 

[Dieseljockey]

Which way the element is up...as nothing to do with your problem...It's the wiring.
This is where you have to be very careful...please don't take any risks....when they are up & running you don't want electric & water to mix..or to short out or you may be the first to know :nono:

All the guys who use kettle elements will see the job from a different angle..
When I did mine I left all the wires and spliced a length of wire so as to keep the switchs which I now have in a control box...safe :thumb:

Hi DJ
What did you use as the switches?

BB

Hi BB.

This Post
shows the elements just out of the kettle..& you can see the wires and switch..

There's also a photo on this Post that shows again the wires and switch...the switch is held in the white bracket by a small screw...and all I've done is to splice a length of
cable useing block connectors....then fixed the two switchs to a board so now I can have 1 or 2 elements on..if 1 is enought for a rolling boil I'll knock one of them off...save elec..

 

[rickthebrew]

O'hanlon's yellowhammer

great beer :thumb: brewed a few miles from me - its hopped with first gold and even though the website doesn`t give much away i`d say its pale malt and crystal malt First gold is a great hop - i`d use some goldings as well

 

[lukedugan]

O'hanlon's yellowhammer

great beer :thumb: brewed a few miles from me - its hopped with first gold and even though the website doesn`t give much away i`d say its pale malt and crystal malt First gold is a great hop - i`d use some goldings as well

Too right, my sister lives near the brewery and had a couple of barrels for her wedding, lovely beer!!! What times and quantities would you use with the hops?? I think this is what I'll try for my first AG.

 

[Smokey.]

From Barley Bottom:

Carefully crafted as a very easy drinking Pale Ale hopped with First Gold and Fuggles. 4.3% ABV.

This AG kit includes the following (all grains come crushed):

4KG Maris otter
200g Flaked Barley
180g Pale Crystal malt (50SRM)

31g First Gold 6.2 90 min boil
15g Fuggles 4.8 90 min boil
20g First Gold 6.2 1 min boil
1 Protafloc Tablet 15 mins boil

1 pack of S-04 yeast.

Other yeasts available on request, Nottingham, Windsor or US-05.


5 Gallons
----------------
OG 1045
4.3% ABV
30.2 IBUs
7.1 SRM

 

[rickthebrew]

the above recipe will work quite well - i`d use US-O5 yeast for a pale hoppy brew as it really lets the hop flavour come through :thumb: Have a play with the forum recipe tool (top left of page) i`d go for around 5% abv and an IBU of around 40, plently of late hop additions from the first gold and some after the boil to steep for aroma If you have some hops to use and the alpha acid content it will help :thumb: