Continuous Measurement of Fluid Density, Part 2: Parts and Plumbing

Tyler/ May 21, 2019/ Brewing Hardware, Electronics, Engineering/ 0 comments

Before the hiatus, I made an attempt at creating a Continuous Fluid Density Sensor. Here are the primary components: Two dip tubes in the fermenter MPXV7002DP differential pressure sensor ADS1115 16-bit analog to digital converter Generic, chrome plated brass, 2.5 mm hose barb to M3 adapters and 2.5 mm pneumatic hose Generic 12V aquarium diaphragm pump (model no longer listed

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Santos

Tyler/ August 1, 2016/ Brewday, Brewing Hardware/ 0 comments

My first brew day since the Core exam was spent making a beer with my buddy Cody. We took a shot at a clone of one of his favorite beers, St. Arnold’s Santos. They call this a Dark Kölsch and admit that this is very much a contradiction. Breaking brewing rules sounds like good fun to me. I couldn’t find

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Punch Out!

Tyler/ May 18, 2016/ Brewing Hardware/ 0 comments

I’m still a slave to the books, but I occasionally decompress with a little eBay browsing. I’m accruing material for projects I’ve got planned for my glorious post Core Exam days, but I couldn’t resist giving one cool little tool a test drive. A common need in making brewing hardware is a hole in sheet metal for a valve or instrument.

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Dark Strong

Tyler/ April 20, 2016/ Brewday, Brewing Hardware/ 0 comments

A couple of friends and I have been planning a brew day, and we’ve been looking forward to it for months. It was tough to wait this long between brew sessions, but it was well worth it. In building the recipe, we decided to be ambitious and attempt a clone of pFriem’s Dark Strong Ale. As far as I’m concerned,

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The Slow Burn

Tyler/ December 25, 2015/ Brewing Hardware, Electronics/ 0 comments

Merry Christmas, everyone! I just put My Lan to bed and am waiting for the family to get back from the airport, so I thought I’d provide an update. My study schedule has curtailed my tinkering but hasn’t extinguished it entirely. I’ve been slowly making little changes and cobbling together a RIMS (Recirculation Infusion Mash System). The past four weeks

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Heat Exchange Snobbery

Tyler/ August 25, 2015/ Brewing Hardware, Engineering/ 3 comments

The recipe for beer is pretty simple. One important step is boiling the wort, the sweet mixture that yeast will ferment into beer. Boiling sanitizes the beer so that yeast can work its magic, but not before the wort is cooled back down or the yeast meets the same quick, steamy end as its potential competitors. There are many ways to

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Splish Splash

Tyler/ August 3, 2015/ Brewing Hardware/ 0 comments

It’s ready for a test drive. The conical fermenter is assembled and in place, ready to make some delicious beer with the convenience of a commercial brewery. The last part needed was a clean-in-place system. Since my fermenter is so challenging to get in and out of its mounted position in my cabinet, I need a way to clean and

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Cabinet 2.0

Tyler/ July 27, 2015/ Brewing Hardware, Electronics/ 0 comments

Trang and My Lan were out of town over the weekend. While I’ve mostly forgotten what it’s like to have the place to myself, I did manage to keep busy working on an academic manuscript and, of course, the brewery. Between the broken cabinet fan, the conversion from thermoelectric chips to a tube mounted water heater, and the conical installation,

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Under Pressure!

Tyler/ July 13, 2015/ Brewing Hardware/ 0 comments

I finally pressure tested my fermentor!Several brewers have made conical fermenters using plastic tanks. These tanks have the benefit of a valve at the very bottom. This allows the removal of trub (dead yeast) without transferring to a whole new vessel. The disadvantage is setting up a conical fermenter takes a little more work. Using a simple ball valve on

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RIMS Heating Elements

Tyler/ June 3, 2015/ Brewing Hardware/ 0 comments

In designing my all grain setup, I decided to go the route of the Recirculating Infusion Mash System (RIMS). The Heat Exchanger Recirculating Mash System (HERMS) seems like the best route for most brewers, but it’s hard to beat a RIMS if the main objective is automation because RIMS is doesn’t suffer the lag time that a HERMS does. I’m

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