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Pump, Stand, Plumbing
Somewhere along the way I decided to get a pump. It was a March MDX 3 which I got from Moving Brews. It's listed as model# 9544SS on their web site. Note: Moving Brews does not exist anymore. I built a wooden frame onto which I mounted the pump. Then I wired the pump to a switch and ran it through a GFCI outlet. This gives me some protection for the pump and also gives me an extra outlet to use if need be.
I thought I'd like to use quick disconnects on all the tubing connections, but after pricing them on various web sites at up to $20 per pair I was a bit skeptical. I ended up using the brass quick disconnects for garden hoses. They were much more reasonably priced, around $8 a pair including the extra connectors I needed to make them work. After many batches, I have no complaints about them. They don't leak even at almost boiling temperatures. Here's a picture of the whole System during the sparge process.
I added some plumbing to the garage. I now have both hot and cold water available to me. I think it makes things much easier and quicker. I can start out with warm water in the HLT instead of cold, which saves a fair amount of time. Cleaning up is also much easier with hot or warm water, especially during the cold winter months. I also installed a "whole-house" filter that I found at Home Depot for around $15, 2-pack of filters around $9. I set it up so that I can bypass the filter when I'm cleaning up or just washing the car.
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