DIY Beer Engine on Wheels

[jsDC]

Not the first person to do a build on one of these, but it came out pretty good. Can hold two of the full cubitainers comfortably and probably three if I was creative.

Overall a really simply DIY for those looking to condition and serve milds, bitters, and stouts in a more authentic manner without dropping $500 on a beer engine.

 

[hot_carl]

Thats pretty damn cool, Are those just the collapsible water jugs filled from already carbonated kegs? What is it that you are using for the aerator piece where it pours into the glass?

 

[Rivenin]

How many pumps does it take to fill, lets say a 12oz glass?

 

[jsDC]

Thats pretty damn cool, Are those just the collapsible water jugs filled from already carbonated kegs? What is it that you are using for the aerator piece where it pours into the glass?

Ideally I'll condition in the cubitainers. The pressure shouldn't be a problem because this is designed to serve low carbed ales anyway and the benefit of the spigot is that you can vent as needed, mimicking the spile method used on a proper cask. I poured some commercial, low carbed stout in as a test last night because I didn't have any homebrew ready. It was still too carbed to really get a feel for it, but I imagine with a homebrew where I can control that factor it will work well.

The aerator is called a sparkler. Very common on taps in Northern England, not so much in the South or elsewhere in the UK. It basically forces the beer through really small holes, forcing the Co2 out of solution and into the head of the beer. It results in a very thick, creamy head similar to what you'd get out of a nitro tap.

 

[jsDC]

How many pumps does it take to fill, lets say a 12oz glass?

This is one of the issues or sacrifices you have to make. It takes about 8 pulls to get 16oz.

I'm thinking about building a second one with a manual marine bilge pump that would more closely match a proper beer engine in capacity.

 

[hot_carl]

Conditioning in the cubetainers might work well...however, carbing and conditioning in a keg at low levels might get a REALLY creamy head going for stouts and such (thinking guiness clone sans nitro setup) since it releases a large portion of the dissolved gas when served. I would be curious how much pressure these cubetainers can hold as even a very small amount of carbonation pressure (in PSI) created VERY large forces on the outside walls of the container and would definitely show any weak points. Are these sparkler bits available form places like norther brewer or more beer? I need to make something like this for a bitter that is in the works as we speak.

 

[jsDC]

Conditioning in the cubetainers might work well...however, carbing and conditioning in a keg at low levels might get a REALLY creamy head going for stouts and such (thinking guiness clone sans nitro setup) since it releases a large portion of the dissolved gas when served. I would be curious how much pressure these cubetainers can hold as even a very small amount of carbonation pressure (in PSI) created VERY large forces on the outside walls of the container and would definitely show any weak points. Are these sparkler bits available form places like norther brewer or more beer? I need to make something like this for a bitter that is in the works as we speak.

Yep and for $2.99 it's probably the most influential bit of serving equipment you can get for your money. (http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/sparkler.html).

I hear what you're saying about the keg and I think you're right. The deal is that I live in a small apartment, so I basically rigged up this system because I'm sick of bottling, but keg equipment isn't feasible.

 

[Rivenin]

This is one of the issues or sacrifices you have to make. It takes about 8 pulls to get 16oz.

I'm thinking about building a second one with a manual marine bilge pump that would more closely match a proper beer engine in capacity.

i've been looking into that as well (the bilge pump).
Another thing i've heard of as well ('cuz i've heard these take a bunch of pumps, but no one ever said how much) people hooking up 2 of the rocket pumps to one handle as well to get it going faster.

Also, for the cubitainers, people go up to 1vol or 1.2vol i think was the safe bet over in the homebrewer forums over the pond as they've been using these for cask beer for decades. i have some as well that i haven't used yet, but it's in the pipeline for an oatmeal stout that is fermenting away!

keep us posted if you find anything on that bildge pump good sir!

 

[Newsman]

I hear what you're saying about the keg and I think you're right. The deal is that I live in a small apartment, so I basically rigged up this system because I'm sick of bottling, but keg equipment isn't feasible.

Have you thought about the 2.5 gallon kegs?

 

[jsDC]

Have you thought about the 2.5 gallon kegs?

Yeah, I have. If I do go the Co2 route I think that's what I'll end up doing. It's not out the question in the future, but I wanted to go low-tech and improve from there.

Also, another issue is transporting Co2. I don't have a car, I rely on Metro and bus to get around, and I can't really bring compressed gas canisters on public transportation.

Anyway, in a few days my first batch (a low carb stout) will be ready to serve through the engine. I'll post and update about how it works.

 

[jsDC]

i've been looking into that as well (the bilge pump).
Another thing i've heard of as well ('cuz i've heard these take a bunch of pumps, but no one ever said how much) people hooking up 2 of the rocket pumps to one handle as well to get it going faster.

Also, for the cubitainers, people go up to 1vol or 1.2vol i think was the safe bet over in the homebrewer forums over the pond as they've been using these for cask beer for decades. i have some as well that i haven't used yet, but it's in the pipeline for an oatmeal stout that is fermenting away!

keep us posted if you find anything on that bildge pump good sir!

Yep, the whole idea is low carb/smooth beer. I'm going to prime for 1.5 vol and then chill them rapidly once they look/feel like they're going to blow. The nice thing about the spigot is that you can vent if it looks a little too bloated.

With that said, the cubitainers are actually pretty sturdy. The seams are heavy duty and the plastic is pretty thick. Of course, I could be eating my words (or more precisely scrubbing my floor and ceiling) next week but it seems like this has been done before with a fair amount of success.

 

[jsDC]

So it works well with a properly conditioned beer.

You even get a bit of the cascading effect you'll see on nitro taps.