How bad of an idea is this? PVC for burner leg extensions

Well, I tried to find a cheaper alternative but the metal option was over $40 to extend each leg by 24". I did not feel like spending more on leg extensions than I did on the entire burner so I looked for another way to do it.

I found pvc while walking through various aisles at HD for less than $10 total and decided to give it a shot. I know that PVC melts, duh but I was not sure if my legs on my burner would get hot enough to cause significant damage to the pvc.

What do you think? Does PVC degrade over time and should I not even bother? I did a 20 minute trial run and it seems to hold up pretty well but I wonder how this will work after 10, 20, etc boils.

Any pvc experts out there that can help me out? Anyone who has some better alternatives? Maybe a way to insulate the hot legs from the pvc?

You will wish you spent the $40 on steel when you have 5 gallons of boiling wort pouring over your legs.

Try using electrical conduit. Shouldn't be too expensive.

As bad ideas go - at least around this place - that one has the look of Darwin's Award all over it...

Cheers!

day_trippr said:

As bad ideas go - at least around this place - that one has the look of Darwin's Award all over it...

Cheers!

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Hey, at least I know it is a bad idea. I guess at the time of my brilliance in the store I thought that maybe the legs didn't get as hot.

I like the conduit idea so I am going to check that out, I didn't think of going down the electrical aisle. Think it would be sturdy enough to hold up?

barhoc11 said:

I like the conduit idea so I am going to check that out, I didn't think of going down the electrical aisle. Think it would be sturdy enough to hold up?

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Infinitly sturdier than molten plastic
Kidding aside metal conduit should work.

might be worth looking for a yard/metal reycling that will sell used steel. I can get steel for .50cents a lb.

Look in the fence aisle for either post or top rail. Not my idea, saw it here somewhere.
$15-20 for 8-10 feet depending on diameter.

Why do this at all? Why not just leave the burner at the height it was made?

If you are trying to raise it for 'gravity fed' reasons, why not just spend a few bucks at Lowes or Home Depot and build a small wooden stand?

I don't think you're in any danger of melting the pvc here but, that doesn't look very stable. One small bump and you're going to wind up with wort all over your floor...

Alright, thanks for the suggestions to use conduit, I took back the pvc and got 10' of 1.24" conduit for $10. I had HD cut it for me so it was almost no work beside putting it together.

I would have had no idea that this would have existed in the electric aisle but it works perfect for what I need. Pics below...

Thanks again!

They took back cut up PVC or did you buy them in 24" pieces?

Bobby_M said:

They took back cut up PVC or did you buy them in 24" pieces?

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They came in 24" pieces but HD takes back anything I have found.

jiggs_casey said:

Why do this at all? Why not just leave the burner at the height it was made?

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For moving cooled wort to the carboy. At the original height its just not tall enough.

That still doesn't look very stable. I suggest putting your pot on it filled with cold water and giving it a bump/shake test before using it to heat anything.

Yeah, Home Depot has a lenient return policy. It is amazing what people will return to stores. I have seen people returning stuff that they have obviously used and finished with, then return it.

I have heard stories of people buying something new and putting the old item in the box to return it. That is just plain theft.

And people complain about how much things cost.

LOL....this is the first thing that popped in my mind when I saw that picture!!!

I tested the burner with 7 gallons on top and it was plenty sturdy, I am not worried about it.

i used cinder blocks for the longest time. Cheap and sturdy. I think smoky the bear would frown at your setup...

I too wonder why not elevate the original legs with cinder blocks or a wooden box covered with sheet metal? seems much cheaper and safer.

Think of an empty soda can. You can stand on it and it is in fact plenty strong. Heck you can probably jump on it but as soon as something tweaks the side, boom flat as a pancake.

While better than the PVC, the conduit is still dangerous in the current scheme. The unbraced length on those legs combined with the angle of them will either cause the pipe to fail or the original burner frame to twist apart.

At minimum you've got to brace those legs to each other to keep them from spreading apart.

cobolstinks said:

i used cinder blocks for the longest time. Cheap and sturdy. I think smoky the bear would frown at your setup...

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Same here

That's flat out scary. At the very least I would build a wooden frame for the bottom. Maybe drill out spots for the legs to sit in. The last thing you want to do is screw around with 200 degree liquid!

Id say as long as you brew a few hundred feet from any structure, while wearing fire rated boots and pants with a very large fire extinguisher nearby.........you should be fine.


or just start working on that darwin award acceptance speech.

Maybe the picture is making it look taller than it is or maybe some of you are not familiar with the type of burner I am using. The metal conduit fits over the tapered existing legs to form a snug fit that angle outward and give it a bigger footprint than the standard burner.

The burner is only being raised 2 feet (once the original legs are overlapped) with METAL conduit, I do not think metal conduit is in danger of buckling at all. I get why some of you think it might be top heavy but its not something I would even worry about since I tested it out by bumping the stand with a full pot is on top. I would say the odds of this tipping over is no more than when it is on the ground.

Sure I could have spent more time and money and built a heavy wood stand and then put metal sheeting over it so it doesn't catch on fire but it's not needed in this instance, this is a great DIY to get the burner up off the ground.

Also, it helps while storing because I can set buckets or whatever underneath it while I previously couldn't.

No offense meant, but that's flat out ridiculous. No way should you be brewing on that. You're asking for trouble.

I move my kettle after cooling in order to gravity feed into my carboys. Sounds much safer, doesn't it?

No offense taken, the picture does make it look top heavy but its not going to fall over any more so then when it is on the ground up on blocks. It works for me so I am going to use it. I used to move my kettle after cooling too but now I wont have to, that's why I did this to begin with.

Sounds like you have rationalized it in your mind already. Good luck

kickrjason said:

Sounds like you have rationalized it in your mind already. Good luck

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Rationalized? I proved it to myself by putting a full pot on it and bumping into it with the results being that it didn't fall over or wobble

Should I get a running start and hit it with all my strength? Sure it would fall over, but so would any normal stand.

Trust me, I wouldn't use something I was scared of tipping over and spilling boiling wort on myself/others, that is the reason I scrapped the PVC idea.

This works, I am happy with it, hopefully someone else can try it out with the positive results I have had.

I took the legs off mine and set it directly on the concrete. Then I went out and bought a pump and never looked back. Pot is 6" off floor and stable. Easier to chill. I can drain MT directly to BP and start heating wort as soon as I have a couple gallons in the BP. I don' like elevated pots and I am too lazy to pick up BPs with wort in them.... To each his own, but be careful dude!

barhoc11 said:

Rationalized? I proved it to myself by putting a full pot on it and bumping into it with the results being that it didn't fall over or wobble.

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No offense, but I agree that you're rationalizing here.

- You came here to ask advice
- Everyone's telling you that this is a bad idea
- You're choosing to override everyone else
- Therefore, you don't want advice, you want everyone to agree with you

You might have filled the pot and set it on the burner as a test. However, that doesn't replicate the circumstances of brewing. Totally different set of variables.

- The burner will be putting out 200K BTUs
- This will heat up everything around it
- Everything will be heated for a period of time
- Liquid will be boiling and moving around
- You'll need to do things with that boiling liquid

You're taking a ridiculous risk.

Good luck, buddy.

I think there is another way of putting this, but it a bit hard to see the bigger picture.

All the naysayers are implying is that it is unsafe, which would imply a concern for your safety...not their own.

If it were me, I would get two more legs the same length as the ones in the last pick and place them on the bottom of the makeshift stand. Centered and drilled/screwed to the existing legs perpendicular to the lengthwise legs. At the very least, this will give you stability front to back, which is where the larger concern lies. Simple solution that will go a long way towards your own safety

Here's a test: grab the legs from the very bottom and try to pull them apart to test the resistance of the leg to bending at the top joint, I bet you will be surprised at how easy it is to bend now that the legs are twice as long. Also, keep in mind that when the metal is heated it will reduce its resistance very significantly.

Most tall lanky chairs have supports that connect all the legs at mid height somewhere to stabilize them and prevent this kind of failure.

I used to used this same stand, & know it looks horribly wobbly in his picture. In fact this was a very sturdy stand. What he has added is only extensions to the well secured legs. I wouldn't go this route but he says that it was tested.

here's a Scale . I know which side of the scale I want to be on.

<--insane------------------|------------------sane and safe-->
pvc---conduit----------------------wood---cinder block----floor

Barhoc:

Hope everything works out for you. Just know that no matter how well it works, no one here will ever say, "Well, I guess you were right"... My suggestion is to just forget about the thread and go on with life.

Just make sure your home insurance covers pvc / turkey fryer accidents. Sorry but if everyone was telling me that something wasn't a good idea, i would at least pause and consider it... I don't understand why you wouldn't just use a safer method. There isn't much cost in buying blocks... As long as your not my neighbor i don't care.

Wow. Keep the kids back. I'm expecting to hear more about his later.

Punx Clever said:

Barhoc:

Hope everything works out for you. Just know that no matter how well it works, no one here will ever say, "Well, I guess you were right"... My suggestion is to just forget about the thread and go on with life.

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Haha, yeah I am over it. The intent of this thread was regarding using PVC but I got the conduit tip and never looked back. I am not really asking if the conduit will work, I know it will and wanted to let others know it is a viable option.

It works for me and I am happy with it, not worried at all about it tipping over this way anymore than I was when it was sitting on blocks. Besides, they sell leg extensions from the manufacturer for much more so this is a very low cost alternative for those who want to raise up their burner. PM me if anyone wants more details!

barhoc11 said:

It works for me and I am happy with it, not worried at all about it tipping over this way anymore than I was when it was sitting on blocks. Besides, they sell leg extensions from the manufacturer for much more so this is a very low cost alternative for those who want to raise up their burner. PM me if anyone wants more details!

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Not saying it doesn't work, but...

That looks like a bayou classic 60,000BTU burner. If it is I have the same one with tapered legs. Is this We're Sorry an error occured that prevented this page from being displayed the conduit you used? My concern would be when dropping weight onto the burner the wedged legs will split the conduit given enough force, similar to using wedges to split wood. If it was me I would test it by finding something weighing twice that of your full brew pot and dropping it from a few feet above multiple times, not bumping into it. Personally I use concrete blocks We're Sorry an error occured that prevented this page from being displayedlike others have said. I only spent $8.50 plus tax... But, I viewed it as an investment until I get my health insurance back. The extensions sold by the manufacturer are probably a stronger and/or thicker metal, do you have a link?

barhoc11 said:

Haha, yeah I am over it. The intent of this thread was regarding using PVC but I got the conduit tip and never looked back. I am not really asking if the conduit will work, I know it will and wanted to let others know it is a viable option.

It works for me and I am happy with it, not worried at all about it tipping over this way anymore than I was when it was sitting on blocks. Besides, they sell leg extensions from the manufacturer for much more so this is a very low cost alternative for those who want to raise up their burner. PM me if anyone wants more details!

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I just hope that anyone else reading this thread and considering this option listens better to the realistic and reasonably thought out reasons why your approach is completely stupid.

Personally, I think its a great idea for YOU to use it, figuring that Darwinian processes might strengthen the human gene pool here. However, I wouldn't want others to think that your guidance is anything but ridiculous.

barhoc11 said:

Haha, yeah I am over it. The intent of this thread was regarding using PVC but I got the conduit tip and never looked back. I am not really asking if the conduit will work, I know it will and wanted to let others know it is a viable option.

It works for me and I am happy with it, not worried at all about it tipping over this way anymore than I was when it was sitting on blocks. Besides, they sell leg extensions from the manufacturer for much more so this is a very low cost alternative for those who want to raise up their burner. PM me if anyone wants more details!

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&#12288;Look on the bright side here. This thread has best title so far this year! Onlooker slow down!