Cheap & Easy 10 Gallon Rubbermaid MLT Conversion - Page 106

FlyGuy · 03-20-2010, 03:55 PM

I suspect nearly all of that loss is the temperature of the grain equilibrating with the water. It is probably not heat lost outside the cooler.

archiefl98 · 03-20-2010, 07:25 PM

I have a 10-gallon Home Depot cooler and a 5-gallon Igloo cooler. The Igloo only loses a degree over 90 minutes. The Home Depot loses about 4F over 90 min. I open once every 15 min to stir.

I usually pre-heat with strike water 10F higher than I need. I let it sit for 10 minutes before stir-cooling it down to actual strike temp, then dough in. Are you using any sort of brewing software? BeerSmith has a section to input temp of grains. I think default is 72F, but mine are always stored at 60F so I correct that.

Optimal · 03-21-2010, 04:39 AM

Maybe it's just bad luck or what but I've gone through two of these coolers now (10 gal) due to cracking just from tap hot water.

I just want to brew!

**Reno_eNVy** · 03-21-2010, 05:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Optimal

Maybe it's just bad luck or what but I've gone through two of these coolers now (10 gal) due to cracking just from tap hot water.

I just want to brew!

What kind are you rocking? I found a Coleman at Savers for $6.... it must have been at least 10 years old. Works like a friggin' champ and I've been using it for almost two years.

Optimal · 03-21-2010, 08:22 PM

The 10 gal rubbermaid ones.

Homebrewtastic · 03-21-2010, 10:12 PM

I just finished building one of these in an ice chest! Going to break it in next weekend.

**Dave46382** · 03-22-2010, 12:04 AM

What size and kind of tubing do you need from this MLT to the boil kettle?

**Dave46382** · 03-23-2010, 03:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dave46382

What size and kind of tubing do you need from this MLT to the boil kettle?

bump ... inside diameter and outside diameter?

bbbrew · 03-23-2010, 04:10 PM

Dave,
I'll been looking into this myself. If you can afford the silicon tubing, I understand this is the best. Someone posted that McMaster had it cheaper than your LHBS but its wall is thinner and hence less expensive (under $2 / ft). Right now, I'm leaning toward 3/8 ID but 1/2" would probably be better.

I'm using a Keg with a weld on 7/8 coupling, gravity feed. Yesterday, when I was trying it out, I ran into a problem that Bobby M has talked about in the past. Because my draw tube is only 3/8 ID, there was so much air in the tube line (1" OD) that it had to be purged before I could get it to flow. Kind of a pain, so I'm thinking of reducing down right out of the coupler to 1/2 or even 3/8 ID going into the ball valve and then a barbed fitting, hence reducing the volume in the tubing line.

Would anyone else like to comment?
BB

**gunner65** · 03-24-2010, 12:13 AM

Not quite as cheap as it was when the original post was started. I just got back from home depot and scored a 10g (37.99) and all the exact parts as listed for a total of $70. That did not include the fender washers I already had. Damn, plumbing parts are high these days.