wolfpackguy
Active Member
Just finished my diy 48qt cooler mash tun. Well, almost finished, just have to get the manifold cut and put in. Thanks to all the forums on here that offered the direction!
my new cooler mash tun
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wolfpackguy
Active Member
Oops. Here it is. Will add the manifold pictures when I get it done.
remthewanderer
Well-Known Member
I would love to see pics of your manifold. What cooler model is that? I have been looking at a lot of coolers. None of them seem to have a nice flat inside bottom.
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wolfpackguy
Active Member
Got a little side tracked with this, but finally finished my manifold today. Used 1/2" cpvc and 3/32" drilled holes.
Turned out ok. Defintely a learning experience. No leaks anywhere. Max flow rate out was about 0.5 gal/min, so hopefully I don't need more than that. I was kinda bummed that there was about .75 gal of water left in the bottom after it stopped flowing. I need to see if I can readjust it to get the level lower, but I think it will work nicely for my first batch sparging all-grains.
Thanks to the site for all the good ideas. Can't wait to use this.
Turned out ok. Defintely a learning experience. No leaks anywhere. Max flow rate out was about 0.5 gal/min, so hopefully I don't need more than that. I was kinda bummed that there was about .75 gal of water left in the bottom after it stopped flowing. I need to see if I can readjust it to get the level lower, but I think it will work nicely for my first batch sparging all-grains.
Thanks to the site for all the good ideas. Can't wait to use this.
bigbopper
Well-Known Member
when drilling the(3/32 in.) holes for the manifold,do you drill strait through or just the top of the pipe?
tjderrington
Active Member
Looks good but you might consider changing the pipe connect to the area just in front of the bulkhead. Speaking from experience, as your wort level decreases so will the vacuum and you will need to tilt the cooler to get all of the wort out. With the connection on the side like that you will not be able to get a full drain all the way to the bulkhead. Just my two cents.
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wolfpackguy
Active Member
bigbopper said:
I drilled through the top, but I did three holes for each interval. Figure a few more holes couldn't hurt.
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wolfpackguy
Active Member
tjderrington said:
Thanks. I kind of thought about that when I did my water run, but by that time I was fed up with the hacksaw and tape measure. I'm sure I will do some tweaking. I saw an example that had a middle cross-pipe, and I'm thinking of bringing the drain off a T from that cross pipe. I think I just read somewhere that longitudinal pipes (parallel to the long side of the cooler) made for the best flow. Thanks for the advice!
Ma23456
Well-Known Member
Are you Afraid of having off favors from the PVC pipe.. I guess im also asking why would people pay for more expensive copper when u can use pvc
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wolfpackguy
Active Member
Ma23456 said:
I used cpvc, which is what most on the forum have recommended. I think its also called 'schedule 80', and is used for most potable water applications and is for high heat. I suppose there may be a chance for off flavors, but I haven't read of many. Copper probably avoids off flavors, but I'd be more concerned with metals and oxidation. But copper does look fancy. Idk. 6 one way, half a dozen the other. More senior members might have more insight. I'm only on my third batch so I'm kinda talking outta my *** right now. =D
I use CPVC as well. Built 3 different manifolds now for different mashtuns. No issues with off flavor and CPVC or schedule 80 is rated for much higher temps compared to standard PVC. The max temp rating for CPVC is around 200*F compared 140*F for scandard schedule 40 PVC. This is why we use CPVC.
beerloaf
beerloaf
Ma23456
Well-Known Member
Does anyone have a good thread that lists all the parts to build a cpvc manifold and a mash tun out of a rectangular cooler
tre9er
Well-Known Member
BargainFittings.com cooler bulkhead kit is everything you need for the bulkhead/valve (be sure to select a valve option when ordering).
The cpvc manifold is easy, sketch it out. You want it not super close to the sides of the cooler, so somewhat evenly spaced from edge of cooler, pipe, dead space, next pipe, other edge of cooler.
If you're just making a rectangular one, my local home improvement stores sell the 1/2" cpvc in 5' sections for like $2. One of those should be plenty, buy two if you want to be safe in case of an accident, etc. Then buy four 1/2" 90* elbows and a 1/2" tee, plus a female or male cpvc to slip fitting. You can try the pieces on the 5' piece you get first, to make sure you're getting the right sizes. I'd suggest walking around with the 5' piece and a 1/2" brass NPT nipple so you can make sure everything is compatible.
Tell someone who has half a brain (might be hard to find at some home improvement stores) what you're making: a rectangle out of cpvc that attaches to a 1/2" brass/stainless nipple.
The cpvc manifold is easy, sketch it out. You want it not super close to the sides of the cooler, so somewhat evenly spaced from edge of cooler, pipe, dead space, next pipe, other edge of cooler.
If you're just making a rectangular one, my local home improvement stores sell the 1/2" cpvc in 5' sections for like $2. One of those should be plenty, buy two if you want to be safe in case of an accident, etc. Then buy four 1/2" 90* elbows and a 1/2" tee, plus a female or male cpvc to slip fitting. You can try the pieces on the 5' piece you get first, to make sure you're getting the right sizes. I'd suggest walking around with the 5' piece and a 1/2" brass NPT nipple so you can make sure everything is compatible.
Tell someone who has half a brain (might be hard to find at some home improvement stores) what you're making: a rectangle out of cpvc that attaches to a 1/2" brass/stainless nipple.
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