SS braided hose

Just wondering how do you get the plastic hose pipe out once you cut the ss braid? And is that a better method than a manifold?

Pull the braid back and grab a pair of needle-nose pliers. Grab the rubbery inner tube and pull it straight out.

Edit: stupid question, but you did cut both ends, right?

You need to make sure you are not pulling on the SS braid. The harder you pull, the tighter it gets. I had better luck pushing the braid off of the tubing.

RichBrewer said:

You need to make sure you are not pulling on the SS braid. The harder you pull, the tighter it gets. I had better luck pushing the braid off of the tubing.

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Indeed... the Chinese handcuffs of the plumbing world.

By the way, you might want to wear some leather gloves when you do this. It really hurts when a single stainless wire impales your finger.

Hold the rubber tube with some needlenose pliers and grab the braid right at the end you're holding and pull it towards the other end. You'll open up the braid that way and it will almost FALL off of the hose.

Yes, it's like those "Chinese handcuffs/fingertraps" of days of yore (not sure if they have another name now, or even if they really were Chinese).

Grab the braid about three inches from an end. With your other hand, push the end of the braid (but not the tubing within--just the braid) towards your other hand. The braid should be compressing, getting wider.

Then, pinch the end of the braid that you just moved down against the tubing within. Then, release the other hand (the one that was holding it initially). The braid should pop down the tubing a little. Follow that pattern until you can just pull out the tube.

Is an SS braid-filter better than a manifold? I'm not sure, but it's quicker to make. I would think that the manifold is more durable but have been assured that the SS braid is sufficiently durable for the amount I will mash. I'm quite sure that, if you were to brew batches consistently larger than five-gallon batches, a manifold or false bottom would be preferred at those scales.

NB: Palmer suggests nothing narrower than a 1" diameter braid for durability reasons.

Cheers

ayrton said:

Edit: stupid question, but you did cut both ends, right?

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No! I was planning on using the connector at one end. On to plan B

I was looking at the assembly the same way thinking hey, it would be great to connect the braid with the connector but you have to have a way of getting the hose out which is crimped on the end. No way. In fact if you had a way to pull the hose out from that crimp, the braid would pull out too!

Bobby_M said:

By the way, you might want to wear some leather gloves when you do this. It really hurts when a single stainless wire impales your finger.

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Very good advisory. I ended up getting blood on my tools when I made a SS braid

Then again, I don't feel like I've accomplished anything until I draw blood or create a golf ball sized blister on my hand.

I inserted a razor blade between the braid and cut the tubing inside. I worked my way around untill I seperated it and slid the hose out of the braid.
A bit of a pain, and it mangles the braid at the connector a little, but it still worked great. Bettter than the Bazooka-T

D*Bo said:

I inserted a razor blade between the braid and cut the tubing inside. I worked my way around untill I seperated it and slid the hose out of the braid.
A bit of a pain, and it mangles the braid at the connector a little, but it still worked great. Bettter than the Bazooka-T

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That's a great idea. Using a pointed blade exacto knife I could puncture the hose in enough places to weaken it to the point where it would easily break

nkonkie said:

That's a great idea. Using a pointed blade exacto knife I could puncture the hose in enough places to weaken it to the point where it would easily break

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Just.....might....work!

That's certainly one way to save $2.50. In most cases you'd use a female NPT to hose barb fitting $1.75 and a stainless hose clamp ($.75). As long as it doesn't take you more than 10 minutes to get the hose out, you'll feel like you've come out ahead.

I used compression fittings when I made my braid (in a loop configuration). It looks neater and there aren't any SS wire bits to get stuck in your hand once it's put together.

How does the compression nut actually hold onto the braid? Do you have the reinforcing inserts stuck inside to provide a backing? Wasn't the compression tee like $10?. I would have used a copper Tee with hose clamps to go cheaper. The clamps actually cover the fraying ends of the braid quite well. Maybe with the inflated price of copper it would be a break even deal.

I don't remember how much it cost, I just lumped it in with a bunch of other stuff I was buying at the time. The reinforcing inserts are in there. The hose braid was from a 1" diameter hose, so when compressed in the nut it holds pretty tight - I can't pull it out without unscrewing it.

I wasn't trying to go cheap as possible, I just wanted something that would work and look neat and wasn't paying as much attention to price. My setup is probably a little pricier than a system that would work just as well done another way.

Buford, how did you connect your compression joint with the bulkhead.. You have a closeup picture of that? I tried to do the same thing recently and I certainly proved that I am a better brewer than plumber.

There's a little piece of plastic/vinyl tubing slipped in the compression tee part that connects to the hose barb on the bulkhead. Although the OD of the tubing piece is almost the same as the ID of the compression nut it's not a tight fit and will slip out if you pull on it, but it doesn't need to be watertight. The braid is compressed a little when it's in the mash tun so it stays in place when connected to the bulkhead due to the pressure against it. You can turn the tun upside down and it won't fall out.

Ok, when I wasn't able to get a tight seal around my vinyl tubing (same setup as yours), I was certain that I had screwed up the build instructuctions. Thanks.