Re: [compost_tea] Heat and tea

From: Michael Harvey <mharvey_at_westnet.com.au>
Date: Mon, 30 Dec 2002 23:06:42 +0800

Laura, Lloyd etc,
Lloyd you are probably right that it may not be necessary to use a
thermostat if you have the time to monitor the brew to reach correct temp
etc. However the thermostat does not cost much compared with the cost of the
heating elements and the set up.
This sort of thing may need to be done by an electrician and is not cheap,
the electrician should give you all the info you need.
The electrician that installed my set up had to install 2 X 15 amp circuits,
the elements went into the water and a temperature probe also went into the
water this temp probe goes to a switch box which turns the elements on and
off as temp goes up or down. Lloyds advice is good if you can get one
already built at 3000 watts this would be all you need for 300gal
(1200litres), but it would draw 15 amps so you will need to check power
supply.
It may be a better idea to use gas to heat the water, I did not as it did
not suit my circumstances. In most cases gas would be cheaper to run
depending on what you pay for gas compared with electricity it would also
heat the water quicker and as Lloyd says it will take a while to cool. Solar
is cheapest again but you need sunshine.
Hope this helps.
Regards Mike H.



                Try an electrical wholesale shop - the place where your
local
> electrical contractors buy their bulk supplies - look for an immersion
> heater with thermostat control - these are quite powerful - up to 3000
> watt - OR you can buy a couple of smaller ones with no thermostat - once
you
> get 300 to 500 gal of water up to temperature it takes a decent while for
it
> to cool - the microbial activity tends to generate some heat - and the
brew
> cycle is short anyway - but you need plenty of ooomph for the initial
> heatup.
> Cheers
> Lloyd Charles



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Received on Mon Dec 30 2002 - 10:16:28 EST

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