My System Upgrade

Brewing all-grain, although an enjoyable process, is often time consuming. The brew day is considerably longer than an extract brew day but setting up all of the necessary equipment is often as time consuming as the brew process.  That is why I upgraded to a fully integrated brew system.
When I was looking at systems I considered a HERMS system but it just seemed a lot more complex than a RIMS system. While I was checking out the pros and cons of each system, a friend of mine told me that he was developing a fully stainless, tri-clamp RIMS tube and would appreciate me trying it out and giving him some feedback.
That's where everything began. I decided that I wanted a two-tier system so that I could use gravity during sparging instead of using a pump. I also wanted a PID controller for the mash and a pump to recirculate the mash during the entire conversion rest. I decided to add 3 large 10" propane banjo burners, one for the HLT, one for the Mash Tun and one for the brew kettle.
A lot of brewers choose to let the RIMS system do all of the heating during the mash. However, I decided to add the burner under the mash tun to facilitate faster step mashes. I've learned that with some beer the ability to do a step mash adds a lot of complexity to the beer that is not as prominent in single infusion mashes.
Over the next few posts I'll go over my entire system, explaining how everything works and the details of each part of the system.