MDC Induction Cooktop. All I need is to install the vent hood and I am an indoor brewer! Can’t wait to brew while it’s raining.
Sweet. Indoors is handy, but “Big Deck” still sounds cooler than “Little Countertop.” 
Oh, I still have a Big Deck. [emoji41]
Brewing outside?
Ain’t nobody got time fer dat.
I question the need for even using the fan anymore. I boil off a half gallon now. A lot condenses on the hood and yes, the humidity levels go up. But I wonder if it’s necessary, especially in the winter with such low boil off.
Awesome. How many watts is that cooktop? It looks big.
I’ve always been a stovetop brewer. While I have a good stove, I have no hood in my little townhouse galley kitchen. No problem. Of course I target 4-6% reduction (~1.3L) in a 45 min (max) boil now, but I’ve boiled more aggressively in the past with no problem. No propane, no worries.
EDIT I’m also using the stove to mash and heat HLT. So lots of burners going and I’m still alive. If humidity is a worry there are other ways to ventilate the house. Again, no propane no problem; you’re golden.
Pro tip: Your mashtun holds significantly more grain/water when it’s right side up.
Whats the wattage? 120V or 240? I keep flipping between upgrading from a turkey burner…every time I try and talk to someone when I’m heating water I want to switch, and whenever I’m not I look at the price tag…Looks like a pretty serious induction burner.
It’s 3500W. I run it off the dryer outlet
I was wondering why I was getting crappy efficiency. [emoji2]
Very nice! I have been using an induction burner for my HLT for about two years now and I absolutely love it! I have a Waring 1800 watt, 120 V unit. I’m sure you’ll enjoy yours as well.
Looks pretty good. Just out of curiosity, where’d you source it? I’ve got a 3500W Advantco I use in the garage. On the couple of occasions I noticed some moisture build up on the car windows, I just cracked the garage door open a touch. There were several more brews where I didn’t notice anything, though. When it was 5F outside, it was a balmy 40F in the garage. Ain’t electricity nice?
And while I’m only doing 2.5 gallon batches, bringing just a little less than 4 gallons of wort to a boil with 3500W doesn’t take very long at all! I had tried an 1800W unit that just didn’t have the guts to get the job done so when we moved, I had a 220 line put in the garage and it’s worked out great!
I got it from Amazon. I looked at the Avantco which had a better price point but had poor reviews from what seems to be a recent bad batch. If you’ve had yours a while you probably have an earlier one which have been reportedly better. One guy has had his Avantco five years with only minor maintenance. …but the later ones seem less resilient. I rolled the dice on this one because the reviews seemed better. (Pay once cry once mentality.) We’ll see if I live to regret the decision.
I got mine almost exactly a year ago. I’ve got 25 batches on it and so far, it’s worked like a champ.
Josh Weikert has written quite a bit about his induction brewing setup. My Brew System: Josh Weikert, CB&B Contributor and Beer: Simple Blog Author | Craft Beer & Brewing
Yes I’ve read several articles in Beer and Brewing from Josh and I like his Beer Simple site (He wrote a feature article in BYO magazine about induction brewing as well). I considered his information, John Blickmann’s AHA presentation on setting up a brewery, Mainline Brewer’s Association’ page on induction brewing, the Electric Brewery, and several other sources as I was trying to decide what I wanted, how to remove steam and heat from my brew space (aka the laundry room), etc.
I used Josh’s sparge technique successfully this past weekend on Drew’s Enkel recipe and this year’s Cinco de Mayo Vienna Lager is a ‘Make Your Best’ recipe.
I too just got an induction burner to move indoors. Haven’t yet used it to brew a batch, but have tried out the condenser (design courtesy of Brundog https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/boil-kettle-condenser-no-overhead-ventilation-needed.636955/) that works well with boiling water. Mine is mounted to my kettle lid. I’m hopeful I can avoid installing a ventilation hood.
I saw that condenser. Ingenious design. …but I went with a hood. In the photo below I’ve not completed the duct work. I have to get the discharge out the window. I’ll finish it this weekend.
So I don’t suck out all the cooled/heated air from the house, I installed a tee in my dryer vent. When the brewery is operational I’ll unplug the dryer, plug in the induction plate to that outlet, and remove the flueblocker. When laundry ops are underway, I’ll plug the T with the flueblocker and plug the dryer in.
I’ll be doing something similar for a Spiedel Braumeister next week. I bought a 4" 120 CFM duct booster fan that I can attach inline with my dryer vent outlet in the basement. I think I have a mixing bowl that should be perfect.
Very ingenious setup, BrewBama!
+1
I’d considered doing something similar back when I lived in a condo, but I was concerned about putting moisture into the dryer vent. I didn’t like the idea of condensation building up in the line, it’d attract even more lint when the dryer runs, not to mention the chance of mold/mildew growth in the existing lint.
Perhaps running the dryer unloaded a for a bit after brewing would have helped with this, but I moved a different direction and didn’t spend more time thinking about it.