1 inch square tubing enough for 3 keggles?

I've been looking around for some steel lately and just got a good quote on some stainless steel 1" x 1" x 11 gauge (.120) for $226 cut and shipped. I figured mild steel would only be $50, plus at least another $100 for powder coating, so for $75 more, i'd rather just get stainless steel.

My question is, will 1" x 1" x .120 be enough to hold the filled weight of 3 keggles on a single tier system?

thanks.

As long as the welds are done properly, I don't see why not. Will there be supports in the middle, or just on the corners?

ReeseAllen said:

As long as the welds are done properly, I don't see why not. Will there be supports in the middle, or just on the corners?

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here's the world's fastest Paint rendition. The red bars are cross bars to hold the kegs and the blue circles are my burners.

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BucksPA said:

here's the world's fastest Paint rendition. The red bars are cross bars to hold the kegs and the blue circles are my burners.

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Seems OK to me. And you can always weld in an extra pair of legs in the middle if it ends up seeming flimsy.

When you get the steel cut for this, make the top a miter-cut frame and then weld the legs on like in the attached drawing. The legs should be a continuous piece with square cuts on both ends. Everything other than the top frame and the four legs can then just be cut with square ends and welded together how you'd imagine.

edit: I also recommend getting some 1x1 pieces of 1/2" plate and welding them to the bottom of each leg. After welding, flip the stand upside-down and drill and tap a hole in the center of each plate for a swivel foot or caster.

ReeseAllen said:

Seems OK to me. And you can always weld in an extra pair of legs in the middle if it ends up seeming flimsy.

When you get the steel cut for this, make the top a miter-cut frame and then weld the legs on like in the attached drawing. The legs should be a continuous piece with square cuts on both ends. Everything other than the top frame and the four legs can then just be cut with square ends and welded together how you'd imagine.

edit: I also recommend getting some 1x1 pieces of 1/2" plate and welding them to the bottom of each leg. After welding, flip the stand upside-down and drill and tap a hole in the center of each plate for a swivel foot or caster.

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thats a huge help. thanks for pointing that out. i planned on casters and that was my next question regarding the plates, but you answered it for me. 1/2" thick.

thanks

3/8" would probably also work, or even 1/4", depending on the thread on your swivel casters. Generally, you want to tap into a plate that's at least as thick as the diameter of the thread on your caster.

score. over the holidays i did some more shopping on steel and ordered 40 feet of 1.5" x 1.5" x 11 gauge (.120) for $215 cut into 4 cross bars, 4 legs, and 10 kettle support bars at www.pasteel.com

Another site to check I remember from my blacksmithing days is http://www.onlinemetals.com/index.cfm No affiliation, they just seem competitively priced and support hobbyists. Also the last question of their FAQ is apropos.

stainless is a very sexy metal. only drawback is the additional requirements to weld it compared to mild steel. should last your kids lifetimes!

mordantly said:

stainless is a very sexy metal. only drawback is the additional requirements to weld it compared to mild steel. should last your kids lifetimes!

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+1 That's exactly why i'm doing it. Plus, if you do the math, mild steel may only cost me $50-$75 for 40 feet, but powdercoating will be another $100 give or take, so for the extra $75, i'd rather have it look great cosmetically and also be able to withstand years of abuse (good abuse that is).

The size is fine. You could set a house on it if you weld it right. Not sure why everyone has to be so over-kill when they build their rigs.

Dog House Brew said:

The size is fine. You could set a house on it if you weld it right. Not sure why everyone has to be so over-kill when they build their rigs.

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Because most people have never designed anything out of a material much stronger or stiffer than wood, and mild steel is 30+ times stronger and more stiff. A little bit of steel goes a long way, especially when it's formed into an angle, channel, or tube.

ok, just picked up the stainless steel and 1/2" plates for the casters. went shopping just now at home depotg and noticed the only threaded casters they had had a load capacity of 150 pounds. There will be 4 casters, with a total load bearing of 600 pounds. That's fine. I think the steel weighs around 85 pounds, plus weight of burners, plus 3 keggles, plus wort, plus sparge water, plus grain. Estimating the total weight on casters to be ballpark top of my head 450-500 pounds all said and done. Should be alright with the casters right? i'd hate to have my stand come crashing down with hot wort.