It has been a good day...

SWMBO let me hang a shelf for my glassware in the dining room next to the door that leads out to the keezer:


AND I bought the materials for this:


And all I had to do was buy her diamond earrings. This is why she likes my brewing hobby. I've trained her such that she gets excited when I buy brewing equipment because it means she gets a present too. Or is it "she has trained me"...I get those mixed up...

Usually the present isn't nearly that big, like candy or flowers, but she's been looking at these earrings for a while and they went half price plus another 5% military discount.

Sucker! Brewing I can understand. Jewelery, except for very special occasions, is just worthless.

[youtube]5Ur2er-STls[/youtube]

Because she'll pretty much have to.

Chad

Chad said:

Because she'll pretty much have to.

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This is no joke.















I'm taking a lunch break from working on the brew stand as I type this. It's going to be looking pretty nice by the end of the day. Pics to follow.

I swear this stuff is at least as much fun as actually drinking the beer...



Not bad considering it has only been two days since pencil touched paper.

There is going to be a shelf level with the kettle for the propane and chiller, and one level with the cooler as a work space for laptop/ingredients/cold one.

I bought an RV water supply hose in light of the recent thread on using a garden hose, and also a barb T and two ball valves. The hose will be a part of the stand so that opening one valve will fill the HLT and opening the other valve will run the chiller. Low tech compared to some of the crazy stuff you guys have done but I think it is going to be nice for sure.

Next I think I'll get a 60qt kettle. The on you see there leaks a little when I turn the flame up.:cross:

how much did the materials cost and where did you find the materials?

I've been buying the stuff at lowe's.

It has been two shopping trips now and both totaled just under $200. I've been buying some unrelated items too, so we'll call it $350. That includes the fittings and hose for the plumbing, the fasteners, and the steel. I made the mistake of buying fine thread cap screws on the first trip so that probably cost me a few unnecessary bucks.

That doesn't include the cost of the new kettle, another burner, the weldless fittings for the HLT, a step bit, cutting oil, etc. There are related costs and things that I've had to buy that aren't actually a part of the stand.

A few things I have left to buy that will be part of the stand: Sheet steel to block wind/shield the cooler, the boards for the shelves, and the wheels.

For anyone considering this, you can do it, this really isn't that tough and not that many tools are needed. By making the stand 24" wide I've been able to avoid enough cutting that I've done the rest of the cuts with a hacksaw. I've probably only needed to do about 6 cuts.

As I look at that now I realize I could easily lose a good bit of the steel sticking up by the HLT there since it isn't really doing anything for me at all, but I might rig up two coat hangers onto the pot handles and the cart for a little insurance. Nothing like having 5 gallons of 180 F water hanging over your head.

I knew Erector Sets had value!


Er....I wouldn't runoff into a trash can tho...


Jes me...

Looking good.

That's a nice work area you have there. Is it the permenant brewery location?

I have a nicely finished shed that will house the rig when not in use (and maybe while in use if the weather ever demands). I try to keep brewing equipment out of sight when I'm not using it. I could take all of my brewing out there but it would need a window a/c unit and it doesn't have water, so why bother when I already have a dedicated room in the house.

Now with sweet shelves, wheels, and deluxe aluminum foil heat shield!

Also, I drilled my 7 gal aluminum pot (used to be kettle, now will be HLT) using a step bit. I know the step bit costs a bit of money, but that was so easy. I used a close threaded nipple, a ball valve and fender washer on the outside, some kinda piece to screw on to the inside, and a few plastic/rubber hose washers to make a seal on the inside. I know those aren't food grade, but I couldn't find anything better. I'm gonna go with the "wait and see" method.

Hose washer aside though, I can't believe I didn't do this sooner. I did a bunch of brews using gravity to pull through my CFC, which meant trying to get a siphon going. Autosiphon will melt and you don't want to put your mouth on the wort-out line, so that meant getting a little creative. Now I have a pump, but I just should have drilled the damn pot.

you need a California Brewing Company pint glass to add to your collection.
JJ

Jaybird said:

you need a California Brewing Company pint glass to add to your collection.
JJ

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I'm sure he wouldn't mind if you sent him one over!


I think I may go this route fora stand as well. Look pretty simple to construct. I have a grinder I can use for any cut, and a socket set, holy crap that looks like the only tools necessary! vHere's to your stand and my future whatever.

Spyk'd said:

I knew Erector Sets had value!

Click to expand...

Now all that is needed is some sort of crane built on to it.

My 60 qt aluminum pot came today. Man that thing is big. It is very wide, which should make 5 gallon batches interesting. I think I'll be getting considerably more evaporation, but hey, no more boil overs.

I did the plumbing and electrical today, and also mounted the HLT burner and the pump. My bayou burner will arrive tomorrow, hopefully get mounted, and then I'm all ready to burn off the zinc and oxidize my pot. I'd also like to put up something to block the heat from some of the chiller tubing, and some flashing around the kettle to trap heat/block wind, but that's not really essential.

On an unrelated note, I got a little uglier today. I was doing some martial arts training and we were grappling. I caught the back of my opponent's head to my face, and my nose is a little left of center (my left) now. It didn't break, no blood, nothing too tender, it just moved. Go figure. Good thing I'm married.

She's all done. Gotta burn off the zinc, oxidize the alum kettle, and brew. Bee Cave IPA will be her maiden voyage. Pics of that.