kettle element v immersion heater

sexysouthwest · Dec 16, 2009

Hi brew buddies,
I am in the process of making my HLT and Boiler and can now get hold of kettle elements and a immersion heater elementhttp://www.processheatingservices.com/immersion_heaters.php
http://www.hopandgrape.co.uk/catalog/detailV2_8.asp?itemid=ELE20206569&
the elements are to go into a 70ltr s/s pot so was going to use 2 elements rated at 2.4kw from Hop and Grape or should i just get 1 11" 3Kw immersion heater element and run that, I was thinking that the kettle elements are becoming very hard to get hold of now so in the future to replace the element would be very hard. And also the immersion element is with a waterproof enclosure and only 12.5Amps
But would 1 immersion element be man enough for 70ltr!!!
PLEASE HELP!!! I really wanna get it built over xmas and brew in the new year.
Thanks in advance

jamesb · Dec 16, 2009

I favour immersion heaters. For a start, as you say, they're going to be more readily available. The greater physical size will also help to keep unwanted caramelisation of the wort down too.

If you do go that route, you'll probably want 2 of them. It takes ages for one element to get 60l of wort to the boil, and when it's up there I didn't find that the boil was particularly vigorous - at least not to my personal preference. You could possibly put one on a burst fire controller so you have an element of control - a full 6kw would probably be too much.

You can also get the elements for about 7 quid from BES. Not quite as waterproof though, but I got some custom SS covers made for them.