HLT under $30

Hey all. So I was bored this weekend and decided to make a HLT. I spent just around $30 including the cooler. My supplies are as follows:
5g cooler ~22
pvc ball valve ~3
rubber packing material (to make o-rings) ~1
.5"x1.5" MPT brass fitting ~2
1"-.5" washers ~0.50
.5" conduit locknuts ~0.50
.5"x.5" male barb x MPT ~2

Side note: I decided to go with a 5gal cooler rather than a 10gal cooler because right now I am only brewing 5 gal batches and it was cheaper.

1) I started out by unscrewing the little push button from the cooler...just unscrewed from the front...and pulled off the nut from the back.

2) Take out the little rubber o-ring and set it aside. you will have to turn it inside out and trim out the interior so it will fit around the brass mpt fitting.

3)Fit the supplied o-ring around the brass mpt and put it in place in the cooler.

4) Take one of the washers and trace it on the rubber mat to make 4 o-rings

5) Take the 4 o-rings and put two each on each side of the cooler followed by a metal washer. Secure these in place with the conduit nuts. **make sure the conduit nuts are tight so they will create a good seal. I used a pair of channel locks to help tighten them**

6) Thread on the ball valve and barb fitting and you are done.

NOTE: I forgot to use some teflon tape the first time around and ended up having to redo everything.

I have had it sitting full of water for about two hours now and no leaks
This only took about an hour to do (including me messing up)

 

How food safe are a lot of those parts when exposed to hot water?

 

I'm pretty sure conduit nuts are *not* food safe. They're usually coated with zinc, which can dissolve in any kind of wort or star san and poison your brew. Not much wort in a HLT, but I still wouldn't recommend using conduit nuts.

 

blah yeah dude go get some brass or stainless you did it cheap but at what risk ehhhhh

 

I just looked at the packaging and it says steel but who knows if they are zinc coated. Thanks for the tips guys, Im going to look into what the nuts are plated with and get brass or SS ones if they are zinc coated

 

Says steel but nothing about coating

 

Just checked with the manufacturer and it is zinc coated steel. Ill be going back to the store tomorrow and getting a SS replacement

 

And if I recall, PVC releases a chemical/toxin or something like that when heated. Always use CPVC fittings/piping. But on a side note, I used zinc plated washers in my Mash tun for my first batch and noticed like a tarnishing on it when I dumped the grains out. Is it truly poisonous if consumed on a per bottle basis?

 

+1 on either going CPVC or brass on the valve.
Those washers are zinc plated as well and that rubber might not handle the hot temps very well. You certainly don't want rubber tasting water coming out of your HLT.

 

I use/have it on the out side..Doesn't come in contact with wort ..No problem..

 

Yea I am going to leave it on the outside but replace the inside nut with a SS one and get food grade o-rings. Its only a HLT but who knows what will dissolve in the 170 degree water