another condensation issue

[paulg]

I brew in my store room it is 8 metres by 3 metres but is all concrete and only has a door in it no windows.
i installed an inline fan on the wall high up next to where the boiler is, this is connected by 5 metres of 5" pvc pipe that exits out through the wall next to the door.My idea was that air would be drawn in via the door and extracted out by the fan.
But it doesnt work well .Everytime I brew the walls and ceiling are running with condensation (the inside temp was 14 degrees c today) the fan casing was dripping water but when I checked inside the fan and pipe was dry so I am thinking it was condensation on
the outside of the fan/pipe
I need to improve something as everything in the store is going rusty.
what to do
1 I could try making a hole in the wall at the opposite end of the store so the fan pulls air from in the door and out the hole
2 I could try to fashion a chimney aka barnsley brewer/boingy and connect it to the inline fan sucking the steam out
3 as above and just run pipe from the chimney downhill and out the door no fan
4 move the fan to pull instead of pushing the steam and make so sort of cooker hood arrangement

what are your experiences please

[stu1001]

I would go for the chimney/flue idea. I brew in a 5' x 7' shed insulated and lined with laminate flooring, filled with 'shed stuff'. It used to get really wet in there when boiling, water dripping down the walls. I installed a small bathroom fan but did nothing to help.
Then I installed a chimney so steam is sealed in from the boiler to outside.
Steam is no longer an issue!
All made from waste pipe and fittings.

[JamesH]

Hi Stu,

That sounds like a really good solution.

Any chance of some photos of it? I was thinking about going down the Velux route but a sealed flue would be ideal.

Cheers,

James.

[Fil]

how about sticking the boiler next to the door and sticking a fan behind the pot to blow the steam out of the door? it works a treat for me, tho i do have a window i can open to allow air back in..

[JamesH]

I might end up going with a simple solution like the door being open but I do really like the idea of the shed being closed while I brew on cold days with the steam being piped out. Presumably I could put the pipe out of the side instead of the roof. That would be easier for me.

[Sean P]

This is my set up. Cooker hood was 99p second hand It's sent up in the garage and this is the only form of ventilation. Only used it once so far on a 60 min boil and although there was some condensation on the underside of the fan the remainder of the room was ok

[stu1001]

I've uploaded some pics to my webspace.

http://www.mkhitmen.talktalk.net/images/flue1.jpg
http://www.mkhitmen.talktalk.net/images/flue2.jpg
http://www.mkhitmen.talktalk.net/images/flue3.jpg

They're a bit big!!

[JamesH]

Cheers for the pics Stu. That looks like my best option. I reckon I could knock that together if I knew what all the pieces were called. I've got a few questions for you before I take the plunge:

1 - How much do you think it would cost to but all the pieces for it?
2 - What type of saw did you use to make the hole in the boiler lid?
3 - Is it easy to remove the lid to check for the wort boiling over (I guess i must be as you must be adding hops during the boil)?
4 - What is the smaller black tube for (the one that points downwards?
5 - Is it set up so you can store the tubing set somewhere else and bung up the hole in the shed wall when you are not brewing?

Looks like a cracking way to get around the condensation.

James.

[masterosouffle]

That looks great! I have a 1500mm extraction canopy / fan which keeps the room pretty free from condensation , however dripping is a nightmare!
Going to copy this chimney design, as above a list of parts would be excellent, especially the grey suction cup on the lid.
Cheers!

[stu1001]

Hmmm. I brought along the bits and pieces with an idea in my head trying to visualise what I wanted to end up with. I can't take all the credit as the idea came from another thread on the forum.

Anyway- the hole in the lid was cut by a friend who used a small jigsaw type thing. The hole is not that tidy but is covered so im not bothered.
The thing on the lid is a sink thingy -http://www.toolstation.com/shop/Plumbin ... 299/p27934 - £6.81

Then a small 10cm piece of waste pipe into which the grey hose (caravan waste pipe) sits. This is not a tight fit but no steam seams to escape and is easy to remove for cleaning.
This hose then goes to a shallow waste trap -http://www.toolstation.com/shop/Shallow ... eal/p96502 - £1.69.

The black hose (smaller caravan waste pipe) is for the condensate which will run back down the long pipe- we don't want that running back in to the boil. You will need a washing machine waste connector to attach this - thing mine was from wilcos, I thing screwfix do them as well.
Next a 90degree compression fitting, waste pipe, 90 degree fitting then pipe out off the shed.

Hope this makes sense!

[tourer]

Hmmm. I brought along the bits and pieces with an idea in my head trying to visualise what I wanted to end up with. I can't take all the credit as the idea came from another thread on the forum.

Anyway- the hole in the lid was cut by a friend who used a small jigsaw type thing. The hole is not that tidy but is covered so im not bothered.
The thing on the lid is a sink thingy -http://www.toolstation.com/shop/Plumbin ... 299/p27934 - £6.81

Then a small 10cm piece of waste pipe into which the grey hose (caravan waste pipe) sits. This is not a tight fit but no steam seams to escape and is easy to remove for cleaning.
This hose then goes to a shallow waste trap -http://www.toolstation.com/shop/Shallow ... eal/p96502 - £1.69.

The black hose (smaller caravan waste pipe) is for the condensate which will run back down the long pipe- we don't want that running back in to the boil. You will need a washing machine waste connector to attach this - thing mine was from wilcos, I thing screwfix do them as well.
Next a 90degree compression fitting, waste pipe, 90 degree fitting then pipe out off the shed.

Hope this makes sense!

stu, i am thinking of doing something similar does this eliminate the need to remove the lid on a rolling boil????
thanks

[stu1001]

Yes, the lid stays on just lifting when adding hops, which is where my little wall extractor fan becomes useful!

I haven't had any problems with beer taste.

At the moment I don't chill, so don't know how well it would work with an ic sitting over the side. That's a future project!

[tourer]

Thanks stu.