Mash Lauter Tun from Coleman Xtreme 70 Quart Cooler

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alien

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After moving house I am rebuilding my brewing apparatus from scratch. I started with the MLT. Nothing too out of the ordinary here, but somebody planning a similar conversion might be interested in my design choices.

I used a 70qt Coleman Xtreme cooler, which is very good value for the size. I found that a 1/2" close nipple was just the right length for the bulkhead. I had bought a 2" nipple but it was much too long. I reused the plastic washer from the cooler drain to seal the inside of the bulkhead, and strengthened the cooler wall with a section of PVC pipe as recommended by Bobby M. The bulkhead was rock solid and sealed watertight. My thanks go out to the folks at Home Brew Talk who pioneered this design.

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I chose to make a 4-tube copper manifold with 1/2" slot spacing. The shape of the manifold is conventional, but I improvised a sliding tee arrangement to connect to the drain.

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There's a few more picture on my blog page, as well as assembly instructions and a parts list.
 
Thanks for posting this. I just bought the same cooler, since my 10 gallon round Rubbermaid just wasn't cutting it anymore now that I've moved up to 10 gallon batches. It's always nice to have a walk through and a parts list laid out so I can get this build done with one trip to HD.
 
This is great! I just decided yesterday that this was the cooler I would start with. I hadn't even thought about the hardware yet but this is perfect.

Question...I was planning on just using a single steel braided line for the manifold. What is the advantage of doing a copper manifold like the one you built? I'm planning on batch sparging if that makes a difference.

THANKS!!
 
Thanks Stewart! A stainless braid should be fine for batch sparging. Eventually I'd like to use this MLT in a HERMS and I have heard that a manifold is slightly preferable for that.
 
Alien -
I've looked at your web page and parts list, but I still can't figure out where the "T" fitting you show in this post comes into play.
???
 
I am sure it is just to show the slots in the manifold, but it will drain better if the slots face the bottom of the cooler. Other than that it looks great!

-G
 
stewart194 said:
Alien -
I've looked at your web page and parts list, but I still can't figure out where the "T" fitting you show in this post comes into play.
???

Also curious about this. Why the stainless T and not just straight to a ball valve?
 
I was thinking about putting a thermowell in the end of the tee, and having the valve hang off the middle arm. I decided against it. I need a new photo really, don't I? :drunk:
 
I also got the 70-qt

came up with this design for CPVC manifold, but thinking of redoing it to match yours. mine's way too convoluted and a pain in the a** to reassemble. yours looks much easier and covers more area. KISS

IMG_8297.jpg



also got this cooler bulkhead fitting + ball valve + hose barb from bargain fittings. did not need to drill or use anything to strengthen the bulkhead wall. used some plumbing putty epoxy around the opening and that's it.

coolerbh-500x500.jpg
 
Is there some trick I'm missing. I'm having a hell of a time getting the 2 T's filed out enough so they will slide over the tube. Any help would be appreciated.
 
Is there some trick I'm missing. I'm having a hell of a time getting the 2 T's filed out enough so they will slide over the tube. Any help would be appreciated.

shouldn't have to file out anything. make sure you have the same size tube as the T. 1/2 inch tube should slide into a 1/2 inch T
 
Is there some trick I'm missing. I'm having a hell of a time getting the 2 T's filed out enough so they will slide over the tube. Any help would be appreciated.

It depends on the tee. Some brands just have a rim that can be filed out easily, but others have a solid casting that needs to be removed all the way through. The ones I used were of the second type (Cello brand). I filed down the inner casting as much as I could, and then drilled through with a 16mm (5/8") bit. I wouldn't necessarily recommend using a spade bit but it was the only one I had that was the right diameter.
 
Thanks Alien. I have the ones with the solid castings and spent quite a bit of time grinding it out with my Dremel. It's frustrating because its filed down to the point where it feels flush all the way through but the pipe still wouldn't go. I didn't think about using a spade bit. I'm going to throw it in the vise and give it a shot. Everything else with this build has went smooth but these 2 T's are kicking my A$$.
 
Alien, nice build and great instructions. The first MLT I built back in '06 used a copper manifold very similar in design to yours that was inspired by John Palmer. The cooler was a 48qt Rubbermaid. Two years ago we moved and I upgraded to 70 qt Coleman. I extended the copper manifold and it works great. We regularly brew 10 gallon batches so the larger size works greats.:mug:
 
Thanks again Alien. For $1.20 I think I'll forget about drilling the ones I have and run to Lowe's for the easy fix.
 
GrogNerd -

I would definitely rather buy this fitting than risk screwing up the hole while drilling. What kind of plumbers putty did you use exactly? Any risk of it getting too hot and leaking into the cooler?

Anything else I should know?

Thanks!
 
have only used it once, 2nd time will be this Saturday, but it worked dandy for me

at HD, Rectorseal EP-200 2 oz. Epoxy Putty Stick

up to 500° and 1200 psi, I'd say our application is within tolerance

didn't use a whole lot of it. only enough to seal off the bulkhead around the hole, not enough to make a tighter fit for the nipple
 
alien said:
Thanks - hope it works out for you! :mug:

Have you used it yet? I was wondering what kind of efficiency you got. You will love the cooler. All of my mashes stayed the same temp or lost 1 degree.
 
Is there some trick I'm missing. I'm having a hell of a time getting the 2 T's filed out enough so they will slide over the tube. Any help would be appreciated.

I believe two short pieces fit into the T, one from each side, and not one piece sliding through the T. I am confused on why you are trying to file the T to allow one piece to slide through it???
 
I believe two short pieces fit into the T, one from each side, and not one piece sliding through the T. I am confused on why you are trying to file the T to allow one piece to slide through it???

You can do it that way too. It's a few more bits to assemble. Also there is more measuring:

1. The cuts on each side have to be equal.
2. The cuts on each side must match the length of the central tube that connects to the drain.

If you do it this way, make the central tube that connects to the drain first. It enters the drain connection at a slight angle and will be a difficult fit if it's too short.

@phuff haven't used it yet, I am waiting for a bulk delivery of base malt :)
 
How many of you have just used a long Stainless-Steel Braided Line instead? That's what I use in my 5 gallon Igloo Cooler, does that work well in the 52 and 70 quart XTreme coolers?
 
How many of you have just used a long Stainless-Steel Braided Line instead? That's what I use in my 5 gallon Igloo Cooler, does that work well in the 52 and 70 quart XTreme coolers?

I use this one:

http://www.brewhardware.com/false-bottoms-filters/139-screen

It fits nicely in the drain channel in the 77 quart extreme. I'm still learning my temps and mashing techniques but getting average 77% efficiency batch spargeing (range 69% - 83% over 7 batches so far).
 
For batch sparging I'd have no hesitation in going with a stainless braid. :mug:

It's always going to work out cheaper than 10' of copper pipe and a dozen fittings. And no sawing slots.
 
I batch sparge with this cooler using a SS braid. Have used it 4-5 times and love it. Last 3 batches have be 74-77%, but have been pretty big beers, 7.5+%.

I did have problems with my first couple of batches getting stuck mashes pretty quickly. Denny suggested that I barely crack the valve while vorlaufing and after a minute or so open till I get full flow, which is about 3/4. Been great since.
 
I batch sparge with this cooler using a SS braid. Have used it 4-5 times and love it. Last 3 batches have be 74-77%, but have been pretty big beers, 7.5+%.

I did have problems with my first couple of batches getting stuck mashes pretty quickly. Denny suggested that I barely crack the valve while vorlaufing and after a minute or so open till I get full flow, which is about 3/4. Been great since.

Yep, I belive it was Yooper that told me, vorlauf a couple of times slowly, then open it up, and let it rip :rockin:
 
I also have this cooler with a ss braid and batch sparge. It's a good cooler for batch sparging but I don't think it's a good design for fly sparging. It's very long and I expect you will get a lot of flow near the drain and no flow at the far end. With the fly sparge it's important to have even flow through the grains so they all get rinsed equally. Just my 2 cents.
 
I also have this cooler with a ss braid and batch sparge. It's a good cooler for batch sparging but I don't think it's a good design for fly sparging. It's very long and I expect you will get a lot of flow near the drain and no flow at the far end. With the fly sparge it's important to have even flow through the grains so they all get rinsed equally. Just my 2 cents.

I plan on batch sparging pretty much all the time. I have seen some people make pretty cool manifold looking fly sparge devices out of cpvc that sit above the grain bed and act like a sprinkler.
 
first time I used this MLT it lost maybe 2 or 3 degrees over an hour. today I rolled out some aluminum foil over the top of the mash and didn't lose any temp.

pre-boil volume was a little more than calculated but gravity was dead on

need to finish the boil and chill to see what OG will be.

EDIT: measured OG - 1.066 = 72.5% efficiency. I can live with that
 
The top is insulated but not as thick as the sides, so putting extra layers on top doesn't hurt.
 
I plan on batch sparging pretty much all the time. I have seen some people make pretty cool manifold looking fly sparge devices out of cpvc that sit above the grain bed and act like a sprinkler.

You can sprinkle any which way to Sunday. If all the flow is at one end of the cooler your not going to have a very efficient sparge. I'm not saying it won't work. I haven't tried it with this cooler so I don't really know. I'm just saying this cooler is not the ideal shape for fly sparge.
 
What's all this talk of filing? I didn't have to do any of that with my copper T's, and even in the same cooler. Just picked up plain solder T's from Lowe's.





It breaks down and rinses in under 5 minutes. Assembles in less than 5 minutes. No solder, no welds, no putty. 85%+ mash efficiency each time so far (single infusion).
 
Looks pretty good Thad. :D

I considered the silicone thang, but was too cheap to spring for the hose barbs. By the way no need to file with slip tee's.

The slot spacing looks similar to mine. I have since heard that for HERMS you want to maximize surface area versus flow rate so I might end up cutting more slots.
 
Slot spacing wasn't planned. I came home from the third consecutive 12-hour graveyard shift, and it happened to be a holiday Monday morning.

My brew buddy (father, in fact) was off that day and looking bored, so I asked him to cut the slots. I printed him a picture of somebody else's manifold and went the hell to sleep.

I woke up and had these slots. I think he tried a sawzall with a couple different blades, a hacksaw, and a jeweler's saw. They're all different widths, spacings and depths. At first I was worried I'd get bad efficiency, but when the first batch come out at 86%, I realized it doesn't really matter how ugly your manifold slots are. The wort doesn't give a **** either way.

However, this layout was chosen because I thought maybe some day I'd like to fly sparge with it. In that case, I could just replace the edge pieces with solid pipe and not have to re-make the whole darn thing. It worked out nicely that the two short pieces leading to the barb T ended up being within 1/16" of the rest of the short pieces, so it's all interchangeable.
 
Good job. I'll take 86% any time. I guess you can over think these things. I marked 1/4" spaces originally, but cut every 1/2" because it was taking a long time with a hacksaw.
 
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