Finally starting to rebuild - my wip HLT

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

ScottD13

Well-Known Member
Joined
Aug 9, 2005
Messages
294
Reaction score
4
Location
Jersey
Back in April I moved to a new house and became an outdoor brewer. As a former indoor brewer my system was set up for small spaces and when I moved outside I was liberated! However, I started upgrading this and that with absolutely no direction or plan of action and eventually ended up with a crappy contraption of a brew system that worked but not to the level of efficiency (not mash efficiency over all brew day efficiency) I wanted. In the end I don’t have the ability to brew for a few months so I flushed everything and have begun anew.

A few months ago I picked up a 50qt Igloo Ice Cube with the intention of bumping up to 10 gallon batches. After hours of research, deliberation, and designing I’ve come up with a plan that I think will work; I’ve designed my two cooler set ups to work interchangeably as HLT and MLT.
This is the beginning of my Hot Lickher (liquor) Tank.


Now I’ll preface this with this statement, I’m a wanabe DIYer. Can't cut a straight line or hammer a nail in without bending it to save my life. I’ll insert little comments on my mistakes here and there but over all I’ve been relatively successful so far.

The build started out relatively easy, or so I thought.
Here are the bits and pieces.
IM003721.jpg


I had drilled the sight glass hole a few weeks ago and didn’t really place it right, the hole is too low for a washer and it’s been leaking. I was able to get the leak to stop and have a plan to improve the fitting. One problem was the brass elbow that I was using (in the pics) has crappy tolerances and bumpy surfaces that did not allow for a smooth fit. I swapped it out for a hard 90 elbow and it’s much better. About a drip every 5-7 seconds but I can fix it later.

IM003723.jpg


IM003725.jpg


My previous HLT/MLT had a 3/8” fitting and a Brewmomter that I had jury rigged through the wall with lots epoxy and cutting. I’ve decided to go with the through the valve thermometer idea with the ball valve off to the left. I’ve temporally capped the end with some fittings I had until I order the thermometer. The real issue I’ve had with installing this fitting is that I don’t have the proper washers. The ¾” washers from the big box stores are just a hair too small. I recently picked up some 11/16” washers for my 3/8” fittings from Grainger but they were out of stock on the 13/16”. So the valve is far from complete.

IM003726.jpg


IM003727.jpg


The final install of the night was the hot water in port. I’m aware that some people have excellent results pumping water into their main ball valve and filling their HLT that way. In my experience, and I’m not alone on this I’ve seen others with the same issue, that hasn’t worked for me so I decided to install the port. It’s a ½” barb that reduced to a 3/8”. I don’t have to lift the lid and can use the sight glass to monitor the water level. This elevates any height issues should I go with a partial gravity fed system later on and will also allow me to option to recirculate if I go RIMS or HERMS later on.

IM003729.jpg


IM003728.jpg


All in all I’m very happy with the results so far. Still have some work to do but it’s on the right track.

Final dry fit.
IM003731.jpg
 
lookin good man. i ended up taking the sight gauge off my MLT and plugging the hole, it just grew nasty stuff in the elbow and i never really used it to gauge anything...

edit: sorry, just noticed this was your HLT, not MLT...
 
lookin good man. i ended up taking the sight gauge off my MLT and plugging the hole, it just grew nasty stuff in the elbow and i never really used it to gauge anything...

edit: sorry, just noticed this was your HLT, not MLT...

Thanks!
About your sight glass was is plastic or glass? I am planning on putting on one in my MLT; never head of one getting funky before. Was it mold or wort residue?
 
The only reason to put one in your MLT is if you direct fire and fill it with cold water directly. It's not really going to accurately show you the water/wort level when you have grain in there.
 
The only reason to put one in your MLT is if you direct fire and fill it with cold water directly. It's not really going to accurately show you the water/wort level when you have grain in there.

Hadn't thought of that.....interesting.
 
Long time no update....Christmas was good to me. Got a new pot and a new MLT. No work in progress pics just the results.

Picked up a 40qt aluminum pot after getting the stainless steel valve kit and thermometer from Morebeer. No pics of the internals but I added a 90 elbow and a nipple to extend the internals. I've been able to reduce my deadspace down to 1 qt and she's tight as a drum!

IMG_4327.jpg


New 10 gallon cooler MLT to complete the set. I've only installed the valve, I'll upgrade to ss eventually. I still need to decided on/install the manifold.

IMG_4328.jpg


So now I have all three the kettle, the HLT, & the MLT; once complete I'll pick up a pump and the quick disconnects. At least I can brew once the manifold is installed.
 
Back
Top