Brewhouse Vessel Lighting

[DeadArmadilloCB]

Hey all,

I am looking for vessel lighting for our brewhouse. We have a 10bbl 3 vessel system (HLT, MT, BK) that did not come with any sort of lighting. I finally found a good sanitary welder who could cut something in for us and our electrician is very capable, so this should be a simple project for us. The only problem is I'm having trouble finding light housings.

What I have so far is the Archon KA100-C http://www.archonind.com/ObsEquip/Li...100CL_Desc.asp. I sent a quote request as they don't publish pricing so I'm unsure if it's in my budget, but it is what I'm looking for (tri-clamp attachment, waterproof, switchable, and bright).

I'd love to see any other examples of light housings or assemblies that come well recommended!

Thanks
-Todd

[andrew_FSBC]

Your link is dead but looking on my Premier Brewhouse that is the exact model I have minus the CL at the end of the number. They work great. I highly recommend LED bulbs if they don't come with them. Incandescents will get too hot and the bulb will pretty much disintegrate when it fails.

[DeadArmadilloCB]

Your link is dead but looking on my Premier Brewhouse that is the exact model I have minus the CL at the end of the number. They work great. I highly recommend LED bulbs if they don't come with them. Incandescents will get too hot and the bulb will pretty much disintegrate when it fails.

Thanks for the heads up--link is now fixed. The "CL" model of KA100 light is the clamp model (as in tri-clamp) that can be removed from a sanitary welded ferrule.

I've heard the same thing about incandescents and will definitely be using LED. They are better all the way around and cost so much less to run on a 12hr processing day. I've also heard that many of the folks who have installed these lights have recommended using high-temp wiring to prevent shorts and failures that burn out bulbs. The high-temp wire is expensive but apparently it's a real necessity.

[andrew_FSBC]

Hi-temp wire would not be a bad idea. The last time I had an incandescent bulb in the fixture the base fused the the porcelain housing and I replaced the entire innards and wiring back to my Brewhouse panel. Since finding an LED bulb that fits I haven't had an issue in over a year.

[DeadArmadilloCB]

Hi-temp wire would not be a bad idea. The last time I had an incandescent bulb in the fixture the base fused the the porcelain housing and I replaced the entire innards and wiring back to my Brewhouse panel. Since finding an LED bulb that fits I haven't had an issue in over a year.

That's good to hear. If you have a chance this week, can you post what type of bulb exactly you're using? If you're getting a year + out of yours, that's what I want to use!

[andrew_FSBC]

Without pulling the housing apart I recall its a 50w equivilant PAR16 bulb, standard/medium base and short neck length. Sylvania brand purchased at Lowe's. I'll pull it out of the fixture and get a part number and verify specs if I think about it this week.

[DeadArmadilloCB]

Without pulling the housing apart I recall its a 50w equivilant PAR16 bulb, standard/medium base and short neck length. Sylvania brand purchased at Lowe's. I'll pull it out of the fixture and get a part number and verify specs if I think about it this week.

Man that's great! No worries about pulling it apart--you've already gone above and beyond. Based on this article (https://assets.sylvania.com/assets/D...2cfcd193a2.pdf) it looks like that light is 450 lumens. What size brew vessels do you have? Is that a substantial amount of light? Reason I ask is because we may decide not to add one to the HLT but use two in the MLT instead, but if 450 lumens is more than enough we will just save the money and order one less light.

Thanks again for answering all these questions!

[andrew_FSBC]

I have a 7bbl Premier System. These provide plenty of light for me but if you had a bigger kettle it might be an issue.