Soldering wort chiller

I made my wort chiller the other day and was going to just bend the piping. Well after doing that and using once, I decided to solder elbows to make it look nicer. Not real reason why I need to do this but I just want it to look good.

I know I need lead free but want to make sure this stuff is what I should be using before I buy it, use it and then stick it in my boiling wort.

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

Is water-soluble ok?

Or would this be better since I don't have a propane tank either?

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

Also, how long so I wait to use it after building it? Is there a resting time for the solder or can I just stick it in to sanitize it and use it right away?

The link is to the right stuff, you're good on that.

The only "rest" time needed is the few seconds it takes for the last solder joint to cool down and crystallize...

Cheers!

Just in case this isn't obvious...give it a dry run before using it in your wort. Just in case there is a leak.

I found that solder joints fall apart after some use. I brazed mine with 15% silvphos rods. But yes the stuff you linked to will work just fine.

I found that solder joints fall apart after some use

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...? ive never seen that. unless you are overheating (aka- melting) the solder, it should be perminant.

I would soak it in vinegar for an hour or two after leak testing. The vinegar will remove any copper oxide on it. I do not want copper oxide in my beer but that is me... Rinse well with hot water... good luck

audger said:

...? ive never seen that. unless you are overheating (aka- melting) the solder, it should be perminant.

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I would assume the same. Once it is soldered, it shouldn't come off unless the solder is melted and boiling wort shouldn't make it melt like that.

BrewerinBR said:

I would soak it in vinegar for an hour or two after leak testing. The vinegar will remove any copper oxide on it. I do not want copper oxide in my beer but that is me... Rinse well with hot water... good luck

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The first time I used it I cleaned it well with hot water and soap. My friend used it first on his batch. We didn't use vinegar. I'll buy some vinegar and do that today before I brew my batch.

I would strongly recommend the solder/flux in your first link. It is VERY similar to Harris Stay-Brite Silver solder and Harris Stay-Clean liquid flux. It can be used on brass/copper/SS joints. Use it and then just buy a simple propane torch to do the job.

P-J said:

I would strongly recommend the solder/flux in your first link. It is VERY similar to Harris Stay-Brite Silver solder and Harris Stay-Clean liquid flux. It can be used on brass/copper/SS joints. Use it and then just buy a simple propane torch to do the job.

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Awesome, thanks for the recommendation.

I bought the kit that you linked to to work on some stuff for my brewery. In my limited experience, the solder and the flux it comes with is total crap. Get some solder that has a lower melting point (should be a little thinner than that stuff) and it will be wayyy easier to work with. You'll also need something to prepare your fittings and tube ends.

Zacharomyces said:

I bought the kit that you linked to to work on some stuff for my brewery. In my limited experience, the solder and the flux it comes with is total crap. Get some solder that has a lower melting point (should be a little thinner than that stuff) and it will be wayyy easier to work with. You'll also need something to prepare your fittings and tube ends.

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I went to Lowes instead of home depot and bought another kit. It came with flux, solder, sand paper, brush and wire brush. Wire brush was crap, too big. I just rolled the sand paper into a roll and used that for inside the elbows.

I think it came out good for my first try. No leaks. The solder is kind of ugly but the chiller works well. I think my probably was I used a pot to coil it and then bent the pipe to use it. Then I waned to use my keg to coil it and solder elbows. The pipe wasn't straight after that. I may sell this to a friend and make another one.

Any recommendations on how to clean up the solder? Some joints I have a small clump.

Zacharomyces said:

I bought the kit that you linked to to work on some stuff for my brewery. In my limited experience, the solder and the flux it comes with is total crap. Get some solder that has a lower melting point (should be a little thinner than that stuff) and it will be wayyy easier to work with. You'll also need something to prepare your fittings and tube ends.

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Actually, the Oatey solder and flux in the link works just fine. I just built a steamer manifold for step mashing in my cooler and had zero trouble using the same stuff.

Soldering - whether constructing circuits with tiny parts or assembling plumbing with heavy fittings - is all about experience and technique...

Cheers!

Make sure you heat the metal and not the solder directly. When the metal is hot enough, the solder will melt when touched to it then flow all around your joint. Have a damp rag handy and wipe the joint as soon as you pull the solder away. It will clean up any clumps or drips and make it look much nicer.

I should clarify as to which kit I was talking about; the one that comes with the torch and propane. It's fine for larger fittings and tuning, but for for 1/2 inch OD thin walled tubing and 3/8 fittings, it was a no go.
As for cleaning up clumps of solder, you should be able the heat the clumps and melt them or heat the whole connection, getting all solder off and do it again. If you get you connection hot enough fast enough and have properly prepped your surfaces and fluxed them, then all of your liquid solder should get sucked right in with very little visibly remaining.

I do prep them wth sand paper and then applied some flux to both parts. I think I just used too much solder.

It doesn't leak so I think I put enough around the connections, I just have some extra around the pipe that I want to clean up. I defintely kept the heat on when soldering so I probably just melted too much solder.

Will I be able to heat them up and remove extra solder or should I leave it alone?

I did boil it in water for 15 minutes before I used it to clean it...hopefully that worked ok lol. Im going to soak it in vinegar before my next use. I would like to clean it up first though. Maybe I can sell this one to my friend and make another one haha

If you've got a bucket of star san going, that works great for cleaning the oxidation off of the copper, too. Takes it from green to bright shiny copper in no time.