Polysulfone QDs - flow problems?

[brewon]

I just put together a new system and incorporated the polysulfone qd's. While moving the liquid from the kettle to the fermenter for the first batch, the qd's got clogged once with some hop and break material. Has anybody drilled out the little cross that is cast into the fittings? I'm thinking on using a dremel tool to get the job done and then try to get it as smooth as possible.

Thanks,

Bill

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

Yup. Dremel tool with that gnarly ball head shaping bit. Avoid temptation to use a drill bit, it'll only end in tears.

 

[flananuts]

i second this. I drilled out on all my QD's and noticed dramatic improvement even when just cycling liquid.

 

[ibrewit]

Those QDs are made in both straight-thru and shut-off versions. The little cross and knob in the center is needed to open the poppet valve on the shut-off versions. If you are using only straight-thrus, you can remove the little cross.

 

[brewon]

I'll give it a shot on a couple of "high profile" qd's and see how that works out. I'll probably do it to all of them based on what I heard here.

Thanks.

Bill

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

I'll give it a shot on a couple of "high profile" qd's and see how that works out. I'll probably do it to all of them based on what I heard here.

Thanks.

Bill

Really only absolutely necessary on MLT output valve and, maybe, kettle output if you get a huge break.

 

[SCWells72]

For those of you who did drill out the crosses on your polysulfone QDs, can you give more detail on exactly how you did it without damaging the remainder of the QD? I see a comment about using a dremel and a ball head shaping bit instead of a drill and a standard drill bit, but what size did you use and how did you approach it?

I also recently updated my system with a march pump and a bunch of hoses connected with these QDs, and the first batch I brewed was going great until it was time to transfer the wort into the fermenter. At that point the QD on the ball valve for my kettle clogged and I had to work things to get it unclogged. As a result I got a pretty short yield if I wanted to avoid transferring too much trub.

Thanks in advance!!!
Scott

 

[flananuts]

I used a scroll saw drill bit inside the QD and took my time. I too had clogging problems until I removed the cross from the QD on the male ends.

 

[mariojr]

I used a forstner bit and it did a fantastic job.

 

[flananuts]

yeah, a forstner bit would have been a better choice now I think about it. And I have a full set of them...doh...

 

[SCWells72]

I successfully drilled out the crosses on the female connectors using a dremel. VERY clean! Didn't work as well on the male connectors because of the shape of those. I'm going to use a forstner bit (picked one up the other day) but need a table vise to lock them into place so I can do so. I'll try that this weekend perhaps. Thanks for the tips!

 

[jcaudill]

Hey guys - what size Forstner bit did you use?

 

[flananuts]

I think it was a 1/2 inch however you can use a std drillbit. I may have used just a razor blade to cut it out.

 

[Catt22]

Hey guys - what size Forstner bit did you use?

Match the bit size to the ID of the fitting for best results.

 

[Gremlyn]

How does one clean up after using the Forstner bit? There is a little bit of plastic from the cross piece that the bit didn't get on my test run. Any concerns with scratching the plastic and harbouring microbes after drilling these pieces out?

 

[Gremlyn]

How does one clean up after using the Forstner bit? There is a little bit of plastic from the cross piece that the bit didn't get on my test run. Any concerns with scratching the plastic and harbouring microbes after drilling these pieces out?

Bump... I drilled out the centers using a 1/2" Forstner bit, but there is some extra plastic. I have a diamond grit Dremel bit that is long and skinny, I was planning on using that to get the majority of the excess plastic out and then finish off with some ultra fine sand paper to try to smooth it as much as possible, then cross my fingers I don't get an infection!

 

[jcaudill]

After the forstner bit, I went through each quick disconnect with the skinny drum sander attachment on the Dremel and carefully took out all the leftovers. It goes very fast, you just have to be careful not to go too far. I have a variable speed dremel and set it about midway. After this, I finished it off with a felt polisher attachment. They make a drum that fits into the opening almost perfectly and it will make it pretty darn smooth.

I would still think one needs to be judicious about cleaning and sanitizing after all the cutting. The above will help but there will still be some places for bacteria to hide.

 

[Gremlyn]

I didn't think of the polishing disks for some reason... thanks!

 

[jcaudill]

Welcome!