1" Half Coupler on Penrose Kettle, Welded backwards?

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hatfieldenator

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I received my penrose kettle today that I ordered custom to have a 1" half coupler on the side so I could use it as an electric boil kettle. Well, when I tried screwing in the element, the threads wouldn't even begin to screw in. I'm worried that they may have welded the coupler on backwards? Does anyone know if this is this possible? Can they only be welded on one direction? Or is it possibly the wrong size or something. Here's a pick of the end of the coupler to see what I'm talking about.

Its hard to see, but there is a smooth, even lip around the outer most part of the fitting. The threads don't appear to start until you get beyond that smooth surface.
DSC_0813-1.jpg
 
this doesn't make any sense.

threads are threads. get a tap and ream it out from the other side.
 
this doesn't make any sense.
threads are threads. get a tap and ream it out from the other side.
Not necessarily in this case. The half coupler is most likely NPT, which is a tapered thread. You can't just ream it out from the other side.

Back to the OP: It's hard to tell from the picture. Can you try to thread the element on from the inside, just to confirm your suspicion?

We can't tell you if it's the right size. Does it look like the right size? Can you measure the inside diameter of the threads?

-Joe
 
yeah, you're right. and it probably isn't threaded all the way thru.

but if it's a female to female coupling it should be able to accept 1" NPT on both sides.
 
That's what I was wondering, whether or not half-couplers are blind on one side. Thanks for clarifying that.

I've tried threading it in from the other side, but the way its welded there's a small slice of the kettle wall blocking it from getting to the threads. In otherwords, the hole in the kettle is off center with the coupler so you can't get anything into the threads past the kettle wall on the other side.
It does appear to be the right size, just like my HLT which has a half coupler on it too.
Darn it this sucks! I've been waiting for weeks for this kettle to arrive and I was hoping to brew on it this week since I'm off work:(
I've emailed Dale Penrose about it to see what they say.
Here's a pic of the inside to show what I'm talking about
DSC_0815-1.jpg
 
When I was doing my first build I bought a few half couplers just in case I needed them, never used them because of the one way threads.

If you have a dremel and a grinding stone you could carefully grind down the inside of the kettle to clear room for the threaded fitting to go in from that side. Obviously if you are not careful you could damage the threads.

They should probably pay for you to take it to a local welder and have it taken off and redone.
 
Yeah, I'm going to have to see what they say. I'm worried that trying to take it off and get it re-done will result in a very weak kettle wall. It already appears that the kettle wall is quite thin around these welds. But, I'm not a welder, so I don't know.
 
It appears from the photo in the first post that those threads don't come all the way out. If you bought the unit from Penrose, I'd hope they'd QC fittings before welding them in. If not, this will be a costly blunder for them. Poor kettle...
 
I think that the easiest resolution would be for them to send you an 1" Tap, you could ream out the fitting and be done with it. Probably cheaper/easier than any other options I can think of...
 
It appears from the photo in the first post that those threads don't come all the way out. If you bought the unit from Penrose, I'd hope they'd QC fittings before welding them in. If not, this will be a costly blunder for them. Poor kettle...

I would guess this is not an issue with the coupling quality but the guy that welded it on not concentrating and putting it on backwards. It happens... a lot aparently. There is a tank at work here that has a slip on flange welded on backwards, and the engineers accepted it like that but was found later after the tank was delivered to site. They basically said it didn't matter though as it was only on a water line and the raised part of the flange that is meant to be welded would give enough flange area.
So the point of the story is I would think the welder most likely put it on backwards. I would email Penrose and ask for THEM to fix it, you shouldn't have to dick around to fix their mistake. Hell they might just send you a replacement kettle... very slim might :cross:
 
To be honest, I don't think I would be real happy with the weld either. It does not appear that it was back purged when welded which lead to the roughness or "sugaring".

I'd point out the poor weld quality and the problem with the coupling and have them fix it.

Good luck.

Ed
 
Thanks everyone, I got a reply back from them this am. They are going to be sending out a new one asap. They said they would triple check it themselves to make sure its right this time.
They've been very helpful throughout the whole ordering process and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend them or their products in the future. I just wanted to make sure that everyone knew this.
 
Dale Penrose here. Got in this morning at 5:30 and saw the email. (I work from 5:30-2:30). I sent him an email right away saying we would be shipping him a new kettle tomorrow. I don't keep one inch fittings in stock. My welder is not a plumber and did not realize that half couplers are a one way street. He does now.
Luckily our airport is open again, so shipping won't be delayed.
 
Great customer service. If I needed a fifth kettle I'd buy from them for sure - made in USA !!!!
 
Thanks again Dale. You guys have been great and the kettle looked good otherwise!
Again, I highly recommend them to anyone looking for a solid kettle.
I may be ordering a Brewhemoth fermenter in the near future too:)
 
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