Final question on keggle and MLT...

Well, I think I'm all done with building and acquiring the necessary pieces of equipment for all grain brewing. There's one thing that's been bugging me, however, dealing with teflon plumber's tape. I've put the tape on all fittings outside of the MLT and boil kettle, like where the ball valves screw onto the nipples, and where the hose barbs and ball valves connect. However, I did NOT put any tape on the interior connections, such as where my hose barb connects to the bulkhead on the inside of my cooler, or where I connect my Bazooka T-Screen to the bulkhead on my keggle. I was afraid that the higher temperatures of the wort in the MLT would be bad for tape. I'm especially concerned about exposing the tape to boiling conditions in the keggle.

So, am I all wet on this? Every piece of equipment I've bought, be it bulkhead fittings, the T-Screen, weldless thermometer, you name it, says to seal all connections with teflon tape, with no mention of the risk of higher temperatures. This tells me that it's not a concern, but the voice in the back of my head tells me otherwise. I also figured that I really don't have to worry about leaking in these spots since they're completely contained and submerged anyway, but on the other hand, I'm worried about the fittings somehow welding together without the tape (galling, I think the proper term is?). Are these concerns warranted?

I don't use tape on any connections.
For the permenant connections I use plumbers tight.
"As tight as you can plus half a turn"

orfy said:

I don't use tape on any connections.
For the permenant connections I use plumbers tight.
"As tight as you can plus half a turn"

Click to expand...

The tape I'm referring doesn't serve the purpose of tightening the connections, but prevents leaking of fluids going through the threads of the fittings. I certainly didn't plan on putting lock-tite on the fittings, or anything like that.

"Plumber's tight" is what I follow as well. I never heard that term before.

I know the tape. I use it on domestic plumbing but not on my kettle.
Some of the fittings I use are tapered threads so tightening does stop leaks.

Got ya. I misunderstood your intent. So, you haven't experienced the problem of cold-welding without the tape? I've read connecting one stainless fitting to another stainless fitting is a big no-no without tape. If you've never had problems with it, I guess I won't worry about it.

greg75 said:

Got ya. I misunderstood your intent. So, you haven't experienced the problem of cold-welding without the tape? I've read connecting one stainless fitting to another stainless fitting is a big no-no without tape. If you've never had problems with it, I guess I won't worry about it.

Click to expand...

The connections I don't take apart I consider permanent. They are that tight I think they'd get damaged if I did take them apart too often.

NPT (National Pipe Thread) fittings seal on the threads; because of this, using teflon tape is actually recommended. You were right to use it externally. As far as the internal connections go, if your connections are nice and tight, there won't be an issue. Any leakage would be of no consequence. Teflon tape can easily handle temps up to 500 F.

I've got Teflon Tape all over the place inside and outside on all my connections. I have'nt noticed any problems yet. Maybe a issue such as the aluminum legend? I have noticed a slight irregular twitch when I get next to my beer locker maybe attributed to teflon tape?

"Teflon" tape or PTFE thread seal tape is good to 600 F dry heat, for a really long time. It will handle boiling water or boiling wort temps and chemical exposure, forever. The polymer doesn't degrade under these conditions, and there are no additives or plasticizers etc. to leach out. You can use it with impunity in our applications. I do. I use it not so much as a sealant, but as a thread lube and anti-seize so stainless to stainless threaded joints don't seize and get hard to undo.

I'm jumping in at the ground level here so sorry...

Does anyone have ilustrations / parts list for a hot brewer spigot system that does not require welding? I don't weld. I don't know any welders. IF I did, I'm not sure what I'd ask a welder to do for me. Now screwing things together (or up)...now that I can handle.

I don't want to begin the search for a keg to convert if I don't have specific ideas and plans for converting it. It seems a spigot system is almost required to make the unit practical.

Check this out - https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=14395&page=2

There's also an assortment of kits available online if you don't want to bother picking out the parts yourself. I know morebeer has them. http://morebeer.com/browse.html?category_id=1125&keyword=&x=1&y=1