My Weldless Build Using Strut

I laugh every time I look at these pictures. There are Pugs everywhere. I'm assuming you have 2, but it looks like you have a Pug infestation going on at your house.

 

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Yea they are running wild around here . My brother has two pugs and I have two black labs . They are cool dogs just always want attention .

 

I also just ordered mine recently. I did have to wait a week for a few of them to come from Las Vegas in a separate pacakge...but things happen. The rest was here in a timely manner. I left them a note int he comments section explaining why they might be suddenly be getting a pile of the same orders. I didn't link the thread. Perhaps they should get a sponsor application?

Hoping to have my cross beams cut this weekend and bolted up for pics.

 

Hi all,

What an awesome thread :rockin:! Would just like to say "thanks" to the original poster as well as all the others on here sharing your builds and knowledge. Personally, I'm not much of a diy'er, however this thread has inspired me and I'm now in the very early stages of planning a weldless single-tier brewstand build. To start, I have a few questions....

1. What kind of software are some using to draw a 3D mock-up of their build (seen some complete w/ pumps, keggles, valves, etc) with so much detail? I just downloaded Google sketchUp (free version) and fumbled around and drew up a 2D sketch of just the frame w/ different views. I want to reiterate "fumbled around."

2. For those of you that have already been brewing on your galvanized strut stands - I'm curious to know if burn-off from the galvanized coating has had any negative effects to your brew day (or the beer)? As much as I would like to have all stainless strut, it's not in the budget. So, depending on feedback, I may order some 316 stainless (parts of stand exposed to flame and extreme heat) and galvanized.

Any and all feedback is welcomed and much appreciated.

Thanks,

Mike T

 

I just used my stand yesterday for the first time. It went flawlessly. I used the SS strut and SS bolts and washers too. I'm very happy with the SS. I'll put up some pictures as soon as I get a chance.

I had a problem with soot from one of my wok burners. Any way to eliminate that? More cosmetic than anything else. It's only happening on one burner when I lower the heat about 1/2 way.

 

1- every 3D model that i've seen on here has been a Google Sketchup. it takes a little getting used to and it helps if you're a "photoshop kinda guy/gal", but Sketchup can make some really great models.

2- i haven't built one yet, but based on others' experiences it seems that the galvinization burns off. i'm currently building a single tier using slotted angled steel as a prototype, but when i get around to building the final version with strut i'm pretty comfortable with just doing a few test burns (boiling water) to burn off the coating before brewing.

 

I went with a ball valve followed by a gate valve to each burner to help control the flame. Start it higher then needed and slowly work down to keep the blue flame. They are finnicky but are great and cheap burners. Im hoping to post some more pics soon.

 

I searched this thread and the forum but can't seem to come up with any answers. It looks like a few of you built stands with the powder coated green or black strut. Can any of you comment how it stands up over time? Does the powder coating just flake off after a session or two? I'm a little nervous about galvanized, but don't want to drop the money on SS, so I'm debating between powder coated or bare metal and letting it rust.

Thanks in advance!

 

Here are some pics of my stand (OP :rockin with 3 sessions on it to date. I went with the galvanized and glad I did. It holds up well wherever there is not direct heat. Where there is direct heat it basically burns off during the first session and leaves the steel a dull matte kind of finish, kind of rough feeling. I still does not rust. Sat all winter and these pics are from today before the 4th batch on this stand. Hope this helps you all who wanted to see some closeups after a few sessions on the galvanized. Btw, the rust you see underneath is from the crappy green powder coated fittings I used, because I had them. I'm going to replace with the galvanized ones I have in the corners. Once the powder coat burns off they rust like crazy.

 

Thanks. I am using a ball valve, which is pretty much all or nothing as far as gas-flow. There's not a lot of fine adjustments possible. I'm just confused as to why I'm only seeing the problem with 1 burner.

I could just keep it wide open, but that seems like a waste of gas. Plus my boil-off rate will go through the roof.

 

Might be some type of debris or restriction in that burner, at the main inlet?? My two 10 tips are the same, and I get the same performance out of them using a NG ball valve. I don't think a needle valve would help me much. They are made to run 50% to 100% (it seems) and anything less than roughly 50% flow makes for a yellow tipped flame, and the more I reduce the flow the more yellow it gets. The tips each need a certain amount of flow going through them to pull in the correct amount of O2 to burn properly. Once the flow is reduced they drop too low and start kicking off the yellow/orange flame.

 

Seems to be what I'm seeing. I may try lowering my burners a little, so I can turn up the flame a bit. They work great otherwise. I was very happy with the boil times I got, and not having to deal with propane tanks was a plus.

Using a stand makes the whole brewing process so much easier. I didn't have to move pots of boiling liquids around, swap out burners, or switch propane tanks. Everything was in one place and I had water and wort heating at the same time. I have a dedicated water line running through a filter, so no hoses were needed for filling pots or cooling wort.

Cleanup was a snap. I did eveything right in place.

It was great. Wish I'd built one of these 2-years ago.

 

What are your measurements from the left side of the stand to the crossbar to the right of the right burner? I like the spacing of your keggles and I'd like to use your design as a guide. Thanks!

 

Here is a quick sketch with the measurements . I wanted some room in between the keggles . Hopefully it works out how I planned I'm waiting for my fittings to be shipped from brew hardware I can't wait to try the system out . Let me know if you have any more questions . I don't know how to change the picture to right side up sorry

 

Thought I'd post up what I've been working on

 

Nice man . Looks good I like the burner mount design

 

Yeah, using the strut for the burner mount looks like it works great.

 

i did a similar mount for mine with the elbow brackets exactly as you have them, but i didn't add the extra pieces of vertical strut that allow for a lot more vertical positioning of the burner. great idea! i wish there was a way i could change mine to look like yours, but i don't think i have the space to add the struts in without entirely redoing the stand. things to think about for when i do ANOTHER stand, lol.

 

Thanks, it was a bit tricky to get adjusted and square, overall it works out well

 

That's what I liked about using the strut everything is adjustable with just loosening a couple bolts

 

Very true, my only issue was that my metal chop saw does not seem to cut very square, may need a new blade. I can weld but want to try something different, if I had it to do over I would have purchased all my fittings from http://www.strutchannelfittings.com as my local HD only had a small selection of brackets. Fun project and very cool material to work with.

 

Thanks!

 

I had the same issue I have a 10" miter saw with a metal cutting blade . It wanted to flex while cutting but it worked for sure . I went to hd as well and your right its slim pickings there , also at lowes. Strut channel .com was the way to go . I had a lot of fun with mine also and it was not very cheap build but cheaper than welding or buying a stand and I'm sure ill get plenty of years out of it .

 

Not a problem at all I hope it helped out. Good luck on your build and have fun building it

 

Just to make sure this didn't get buried, can anyone speak to long term durability of powder coated strut?

 

Shots of the control panel, let the wiring begin. For now I'm using one PID and a switch for each pump. I bought an auto light retrofit kit off of ebay, this will be controlled by the PID to lite the HLT burner. The retrofit kit came with everything but the pilot burner, basically when the PID calls for heat the brain box will initiate a spark sequence to ignite the pilot, then the honeywell valve will open lighting the burner. If the system does not sense heat it will shut down the gas at the honeywell valve. I'm considering adding another valve for the BK, it will be controlled buy a switch or a PID or both, this will allow me the control the BK, time heat etc, basically more automation. At the moment the BK will be lit by hand. If all goes well I plan on doing a water test next week, hopefully brewing in two weeks.

 

Just out of curiosity, for those of you who went SS on the main strut stock, what prices are you paying per foot, or 10 foot stick?

 

I think it was about $15 per 10ft piece.

 

$1.50 per foot for stainless? I don't think so!

Mark

 

I paid about $11 per foot. I ordered 5 ft sections from strutchannelfittings.com. It looks like the prices have changed. When I bought mine the longer pieces were more expensive. I think it's because of the shipping, which is built into the price.

My stand is about 50% SS, 50% galvanized. I think the SS added about $300 to the build. For me it was worth it.

 

B-boy, can you snap some pics of the SS and how it's holding up with the direct heat? I was going to say too, I got a price of $80 for 10' stick locally and just wanted to make sure that was decent.

 

That sounds like a good price. I couldn't find the SS locally. I went with SS bolts, nuts, and some fittings around the burners. Again, it was a little pricey, but I'm happy with the results.

I've only used it for 3 brew sessions so far, and a couple of trial runs. All I've seen is some discoloration due to the soot being spit out by my burners (that's another issue I'm trying to work through). My idea was to avoid any direct flames on the non-SS parts. My design worked, but it made the stand a little longer than I would have liked. Overall, I'm happy with the final product.

I haven't taken pictures yet, but I will try to upload some tonight.

 

When I priced stuff out for mine it is cheaper to order the pieces from strutchannelfittings in the correct smaller sizes than to order the stainless precut. Now I just need to skip a few brewing sessions to save the money for the stand.

 

I found mine on Craigslist. I paid $12.50 for 20' lengths.

 

Here are a few pics. It's a 2-tier, 2-burner system running on NG.

I also have a water tie-in that I hook up to an RV water filter so I have a dedicated water source. I have a QD on the water source so I can hook it to my immersion chiller, or add a hose to clean or fill pots.

I have 75 feet of PVC gas hose because the site I bought it from kept sending me hoses, even though I kept calling them and telling them to stop (I can now brew in the next county).

I'm setup with a single pump. I use it for fluid transfer and whirlpooling.

You can clearly see where my burners are and how far the flames spread. I'm having some soot issues with my burners. It cleans up with a scrubby and some barkeepers friend. I'm not too worried about it. The stainless is holding up fine. I've already burned myself twice because I keep forgetting how hot the top of the stand gets. The weiIrd thing is, anything 8 inches or more from the flames stays pretty cool.

The entire top of the unit is SS, as are any vertical pieces that are touched by flames. Likewise, all bolts, nuts, and bracket pieces that are touched by a flame are SS. I probably could have gotten away with using less SS strut with the same results.

I may put up more information on a build thread at some point. I think I stole ideas from just about everyone on this thread, so thanks to all.

 

Nice looking stand. You are right though, the SS really gets discolored. I'm not even sure that is a soot issue. My buddy has an exact Brutus 10 clone, with the 2" SS square tube and all. After just a few sessions his was looking exactly like yours, and he was not sooting much at all that we could see. It has gotten a good bit worse (he probably has 25 batches on it now). Not much you can do about it I don't think, just the coloring of the material with pretty high heat/temps. Just wondering if it's really worth the price difference. The galvanized I used burns off, and leaves that dull metal look, but it is not rusting and don't think it will, at least not for a few years. The SS seems to get a lot more discolored.

Are you having issues getting a good blue flame with your burners? I'm also running NG on similar burners and don't notice any soot on the frame or keggles.

 

I'm not too worried about how it looks. I like not having to worry about rusting. Everything metal in my garage rusts. The climate sucks here.

I am having sooting issues. I've found the first burner in line has issues when I run both flames. It's a pain because I have to wipe it off of my pots. If I keep the burners on high it's not too bad, but if I turn them down below 50% I get the yellow flames on the first burner. i'm thinking of lowering the burners a few inches. I am running a regulator as well. Maybe I can make some adjustments there as well. I'm thinking that if I can increase the pressure it might fix my problem.

 

Not much you can do about the discoloration now, but for anyone building one using a heat shield will take care of the discoloration. I use a single burner stand because I BIAB and there is a seller who makes stainless heat shields for the Bayou Classic burners. The heat shield gets discolored, and BRIGHT red when brewing, but the stainless on the stand looks great!

 

I decided to see what it would take to get rid of the SS discoloration. First off, I did some research and it's normal for SS to discolor at high heats. I got recommendations for BKF, white vinegar, and nitric acid (yikes). I passed on the nitric acid. When they mentioned chemical gloves and a respirator, I tapped out.

First, I got a green scrubby and some warm water - no soap. With medium pressure I was able to remove about 80% of the discoloration. That's more than good enough for me. If it were not for the sake of Science I would have stopped there.

Next I used the vinegar with the scrubby. Didn't seem to do much.

The BKF was last. It did a better job, but I didn't kill myself scrubbing either. I used the liquid, but I prefer the powder. I think it does a much better job.

Overall I'd say I took off 90% of the discoloration in about 10 minutes. This was from 4-5 1-hour burner sessions. Hope that helps anyone on the fence about the SS.

As for me, this is the cleanest my stand will ever be. I'm just too damn lazy to scrub it down every time, so thanks for that!