Temperature controller and power required by element

[Lemeshianos]

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Hi everyone,
I have built my first mash tun with a camco element for 5500W.
The voltage in my country is 240V.
I am trying to find a compatible temperature controller.
One of my options was a 240V temp. controller that i have noticed it has a max output of 2200W 10A.

Will using this burn the fuse or will the downside be that it will be operating at 2200W instead of 5500W?
And if it is operating at 2200W will it make that much of a difference for a 50L (15 gallons) tun?

[kal]

Hi and welcome to the forum!

Is your 5500W Camco element in the mash? Can you post a few pictures on how you did this? You can't have the element in direct contact with grain as it'll burn. You want something indirect. Normally HERMS or RIMS are used for this. Our design as per this website is HERMS. More on the two here: https://shop.theelectricbrewery.com/pages/faq-herms-vs-rims

A controller that is only rated to 10 amps cannot be used with a 5500W element that runs at 240V as that sort of element draws 22.9 amps. (Current = Power / Voltage)

You don't set the wattage of a controller. It's the device you're driving (the heating element) that dictates how much current is drawn. This is because current is pulled and not pushed. This is not something to do with brewing or controllers but just how electricity works in general. To stay under 10 amps at 240V you'd want a heating element that is maximum 2400W.

Less power means slower heating. For 15 gallons I'd recommend 5500W. 2200W will take more take 2.5 times longer to heat.

To build your own controller see our alternate control panel builds for 240V only countries here: https://shop.theelectricbrewery.com/pages/building-your-brewery

Cheers!

Kal

[kal]

Hi and welcome to the forum!

Is your 5500W Camco element in the mash? Can you post a few pictures on how you did this? You can't have the element in direct contact with grain as it'll burn. You want something indirect. Normally HERMS or RIMS are used for this. Our design as per this website is HERMS. More on the two here: https://shop.theelectricbrewery.com/pages/faq-herms-vs-rims

A controller that is only rated to 10 amps cannot be used with a 5500W element that runs at 240V as that sort of element draws 22.9 amps. (Current = Power / Voltage)

You don't set the wattage of a controller. It's the device you're driving (the heating element) that dictates how much current is drawn. This is because current is pulled and not pushed. This is not something to do with brewing or controllers but just how electricity works in general. To stay under 10 amps at 240V you'd want a heating element that is maximum 2400W.

Less power means slower heating. For 15 gallons I'd recommend 5500W. 2200W will take more take 2.5 times longer to heat.

To build your own controller see our alternate control panel builds for 240V only countries here: https://shop.theelectricbrewery.com/pages/building-your-brewery

Cheers!

Kal