I made a long drive this weekend with the wife and kid, to the only Home Depot within an hour's drive which carried the 10-gallon Rubbermaid round beverage cooler. I got the last one and headed home. I had already purchased more than enough fittings, a 3-piece valve, and a false bottom so I was ready to assemble.
Well, I was thoroughly disappointed with the fit of everything. Apparently, Rubbermaid has recently changed their design somewhat. First off, the bottom of the cooler is not flat. The outer perimeter of the floor of the cooler is slightly recessed; exactly the opposite of what I expected. To better explain it would be that if there were just a small amount of liquid in the cooler, it would form a ring around the bottom perimeter of the cooler before the level is high enough to completely cover the bottom. I have read some posts that say the diameter at the bottom is slightly smaller making the 12" false bottoms fit nice and tight. This is NOT the case with my cooler.
If you think about this for a second, you will realize that this almost completely eliminates the ability to use a false bottom, not to mention increasing dead space beneath it. In fact, my
domed false bottom that I got from AIH does not sit flat on the bottom of the cooler. There are a few problems here; first the false bottom I received was warped, and rocks back and forth when set on a flat surface like a table. This of course is not the cooler's fault, I'll have to take this up with AIH. Secondly, the recessed perimeter on the floor of the cooler causes a domed false bottom to ride around on it like trying to balance on a saddle. Also, the diameter at the floor of the cooler is nearly the same as the top, and this false bottom is in NO WAY a tight fit. I can easily slide it back and forth as much as a 1/2" either way, and it easily clears my internal fitting.
I did however put together a slightly shorter fitting for the inside of the bulkhead using a 1/2" Female hose barb which fastens directly to the nipple, no coupler needed. I did this because everyone said it was such a tight fit and had to be disassembled to insert the false bottom. This is NOT the case.
Lastly, the spigot on the outside is recessed and the washers provided by bargainfittings.com are larger than the recessed area, and only one washer can fit on the nipple before barely threading on the valve; not three washers like bargainfittings.com claims.
I will take photos once I get home, although it may be difficult to see clearly. I'm afraid this setup fits so poorly, that as soon as I attempt to stir the mash, the grist will get under the false bottom and I will have a disaster on my hands.
Oh, and by the way... I'm not going to use a braid so please don't try to talk me into it. :cross:
Edit: By the way, this cooler has a "Home Depot" sticker on the front and has Rubbermaid printed on the bottom. Not the Rubbermaid logo on the front of the cooler.