Is it possible to convert a kettle from steam jacketed to something I can use with a burner? My brother has 4 he pulled from a job site. I'd love to have one of them, but I'm not going to waste my time if I can't use them.
Converting a steam kettle to gas burner
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Post a pic? Might make a good mash tun. Or It would be very efficient (and super neat) having the burner exhaust go through the jackets and out some vents.
You have 4 of these? wow.
you'd probably have to ruin them to use them as a direct fire, and kettles that size (~40-60gallons) sell on ebay for around 2K. They could make a great open fermenters for big baches. You could pump water through the jacket to control temp. Or try to find a used steam boiler and set your self up with a 1-2bbl system.
If I where you and are not sure what to do with them, I'd try to sell them and use the money to buy exactly what you want.
you'd probably have to ruin them to use them as a direct fire, and kettles that size (~40-60gallons) sell on ebay for around 2K. They could make a great open fermenters for big baches. You could pump water through the jacket to control temp. Or try to find a used steam boiler and set your self up with a 1-2bbl system.
If I where you and are not sure what to do with them, I'd try to sell them and use the money to buy exactly what you want.
Dadant Beekeeping has a steam generator used to power decapping knives. It uses an electric heater and a repurposed propane tank. Not sure if it has the power to bring that large of volume to a boil, but it should make a keen mash ton. And plumbing water through the jacket with a cooler would make for a large fermenter. I wouldn't ruin them; I'd sell one and use the money to accessorize the others. Heck if you can get $2k for one, you could buy a proper steam boiler.
You could use them with a steam source for boil kettle, mash, and HLT. You need a properly sized steam boiler, either gas, electric, propane, or oil fired, depending on what's cheapest and most reliable to operate in your area. Plus condensate pumps and lots of plumbing. The manufacturer of the kettles should have specs on the kind of system needed to power them.
I don't believe such a system should be jerry-rigged. There are a lot of safety considerations. You should have a competent contractor design a system and build it.
Find the section of this page with heading Steam Source Needed for a Small Jacketed Kettle for some good basic info.
I would say no. In that article, the question about direct firing is addressed, and the writer said it isn't feasible:
I don't believe such a system should be jerry-rigged. There are a lot of safety considerations. You should have a competent contractor design a system and build it.
Find the section of this page with heading Steam Source Needed for a Small Jacketed Kettle for some good basic info.
I would say no. In that article, the question about direct firing is addressed, and the writer said it isn't feasible:
Great article. Thanks for finding that. If I can get a grand or two for each, I'm going to definately convert these things. Cept, I'll be converting them into cash, which will then be converted into a brew structure.
How many Gallon are they?
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