Cheap & Easy 10 Gallon Rubbermaid MLT Conversion

[pdm1982]

I built this last year and it has worked great! But now, after several batches, my 1/2" stainless steel braid is almost as flat as a pancake and I'm getting extremely slow sparges (no stuck sparges thank god). I was kicking around the idea of replacing it with a 3/4" water heater supply braid. It's bigger and more rigid but I wasn't sure if I would then have to replace any of the barb fittings? Anyone ever play around with this adjustment?

 

[bigwigg]

I put galvanized wire in mine after I wrapped it around a screwdriver to make it like a notebook spiral. Haven't used it yet but feels like it won't collapse.

 

[pdm1982]

After work I bought the 3/4" stainless steel braid I was talking about, cut the ends, installed it on the existing barb, and plugged it with the existing plug. You can see in the picture how it's tapered quite a bit but the clamps seem pretty tight. It isn't coming off. For scale purposes I left the old braid in the bottom of the mash tun.

Anyone this this will work correctly? I'd hate to mash in only to find out that I've messed it up.

 

[pdm1982]

Here's a better picture.

 

[Stealthcruiser]

Looks workable!

 

[levtbeas]

Finally had some time to test out my mash tun. I saw a post somewhere in here that suggested you buy 2 packages of that "create-a-bolt" thing. For those of you buying stuff from Home Depot, you only need 1. I followed everything else properly, but each "create-a-bolt" box comes with 4 SS washers. I put 3 on the inside and 1 on the outside. Didn't leak a drip! Thanks again for this awesome idea!

Edit: By "stuff from Home Depot," I mean the 10-gallon Home Depot cooler. They only had a Home Depot branded 10-gal cooler in the HD by me. For that cooler you only need one of those boxes.

 

[pdm1982]

Just brewed a KBS clone. The upgraded 3/4" water heater hose worked awesome! Had 14.5 lbs of grain on it and the flow rate was so fast. My sparge time flew by. Almost hit my OG but that was volume related. Mash/sparge went great. If your tube is crushed like mine was I'd say that the 3/4" water heater hose is a good option for this build.

 

[weekapaugh]

Sorry if this has been addressed but I couldn't find it. Is the inside rubber washer included with the cooler safe to use?

 

[msa8967]

Sorry if this has been addressed but I couldn't find it. Is the inside rubber washer included with the cooler safe to use?

yes...it is very safe to use.

 

[weekapaugh]

sounds good ... thx msa

 

[chobint]

I built one of these tonight. Just thought I throw another variation out there in case it hasn't been mentioned before.

I used a T and a 10 ft braided ice machine line (20$ vs 5$) to increase surface area a bit. I thought about winding the coil a bit tighter so it's not all around the edges. Thoughts on whether this matters?

 

[rldawson]

Built one last weekend based on the original post. $80 and 20 minutes later I did my first all grain batch, a Berliner Weisse. Thanks to the OP and to everyone else that has gone before !

 

[flippedcracker]

After work I bought the 3/4" stainless steel braid I was talking about, cut the ends, installed it on the existing barb, and plugged it with the existing plug. You can see in the picture how it's tapered quite a bit but the clamps seem pretty tight. It isn't coming off. For scale purposes I left the old braid in the bottom of the mash tun.

Anyone this this will work correctly? I'd hate to mash in only to find out that I've messed it up.

I went with your style and used that same thicker hose. It worked pretty well, except we did a brew with a ton of wheat and didn't use enough rice hulls, so it got stuck. I'm just wondering if using something this big for smaller brews would be ok. Smaller being 3-5 gallons. Anyone have experience?

 

[LJvermonster]

T

 

[LJvermonster]

So I went ahead with the Home Depot 10 gallon cooler and ended up needing 8-10 washers on the outside. Also, side note, those who are having issues with the stainless steel washer for the inside of the mash tun, Home Depot sells them in a combo pack and they have a ton of them in stock!

Awesome post!

 

[pdm1982]

Yeah I haven't tried a beer with wheat in it yet. I'm hoping to brew again in a week. I typically make 5 gallon batches so hopefully I get similar results as last time. I hate to think my last results were a fluke.

I did make 1 wheat beer with the smaller braid and I used 1 lb of hulls. Slow sparge but never stuck.


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[flippedcracker]

I only needed about 4 washers to get the handle to clear, but it's pretty close when the value is closed.

I'm thinking about making another smaller one for some 1 or 3 gallon batches.

 

[mrgrimm101]

I assume this all needs to be disassembled to clean and sanitize before each batch. Am I wrong in this assumption?

Also, considering I am only making 5 gallon batches at the moment, would I really need a 10 gallon cooler, or would a 5 gallon cooler work ok?

 

[Trippel-A]

I assume this all needs to be disassembled to clean and sanitize before each batch. Am I wrong in this assumption?

Also, considering I am only making 5 gallon batches at the moment, would I really need a 10 gallon cooler, or would a 5 gallon cooler work ok?

Cleaning is good, but sanitizing is unnecessary as all this is preboil. Different people are more or less anal about cleaning versus hosing down.

5 gallon coolers will generally be good enough for grain bills of 10 lbs or less. But if you want anything stronger than 1.05 OG or so, you need bigger coolers.

 

[taintsmasher]

Read through a lot of this thread and it seems to me the washers pictured in the OP are NOT fender washers, but flat washers...at least the ones on the outside. I can't really tell if the inside washer is fender or not.

 

[day_trippr]

Fender washers are flat.

From wikipedia: "A fender washer is a flat washer with a particularly large outer diameter in proportion to its central hole. They are commonly used to spread the load on thin sheet metal, and are named after their use on automobile fenders. They can also be used to make a connection to a hole that has been enlarged by rust or wear. Generally a washer with an outer diameter more than three times the inner diameter is called a fender washer."

Cheers!

 

[taintsmasher]

Fender washers are flat.

From wikipedia: "A fender washer is a flat washer with a particularly large outer diameter in proportion to its central hole. They are commonly used to spread the load on thin sheet metal, and are named after their use on automobile fenders. They can also be used to make a connection to a hole that has been enlarged by rust or wear. Generally a washer with an outer diameter more than three times the inner diameter is called a fender washer."

Cheers!

Yes, but the ones pictured appear to be a common 'flat' washer. Also, their outer diameter of the ones pictured is not 3x (or more) the inner diameter.

I raise this issue because people may be wasting a lot of time looking for a true 5/8" fender washer when what is actually being used is a 5/8" 'flat' washer.

5/8" Fastenal fender washer

 

[Eddiebosox]

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[Eddiebosox]

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[thaymond]

Is this real life?

 

[Trippel-A]

I think Eddiebosox's kid got hold of the phone... 😀

 

[azgolfer]

Is there a difference between using a 1/2" SS braid and a 3/4" one?
I would imagine the 3/4 inch would give more flow but would it be any
more noticeable and worth the extra money.

 

[Elicohen]

Please help troubleshoot my set up.

I got all the components listed and am finding:

1) The nipples and nozzle don't fully thread into the pipe. Is that to be expected?
2) I've got four washers (instructions said three were used) on the outside of the cooler and the whole thing is still loose (e.g. I can wiggle the spigot, turn it around, etc.). Is this to be expected? Or should it be affixed solidly?

Set up leaks - could be because of above. Thoughts?

 

[BigGoat]

You probably just need more washers to hold it tight. Could you post a pic?

 

[pdm1982]

Azgolfer - I've been using the 3/4" hose on my last 4-5 batches. My sparge time has been greatly reduced due to the added flow rate. Also because my 1/2" hose was crushed as flat as a pancake. As far as my mash efficiency goes, its stayed about the same.


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[mrgrimm101]

I'm sure that this has been addressed somewhere in the almost 300 pages of this post..but I thought I'd ask anyway.

The link that was included to Fastenal for the stainless steel washers takes me to a flat washer, not a fender washer. The photos above the "part list" also show a flat washer, not a fender washer.

Will it really make that big of a difference with a fender washer instead of a flat washer? Or vice versa?

 

[Trippel-A]

I'm sure that this has been addressed somewhere in the almost 300 pages of this post..but I thought I'd ask anyway.

The link that was included to Fastenal for the stainless steel washers takes me to a flat washer, not a fender washer. The photos above the "part list" also show a flat washer, not a fender washer.

Will it really make that big of a difference with a fender washer instead of a flat washer? Or vice versa?

Someone pointed out recently in the thread that a fender washer has a much higher outer diameter to inner diameter ratio. Fender washers actually wouldn't work in most coolers, because they wouldn't fit. The flat washers are what you want.

Aaron

 

[Fenduh]

I went with the 5 gallon as I tend to make 1.5 or 3.0 gallon batch sizes.

I actually used the threaded "nut" fastener as my spacer on the outside with one washer.

The hose I used attached to the valve is what came out of the braided SS hose that I used as my bazooka screen.

The cost of the parts was $47 but HD said if I opened a store card they would give me $25 off so the actual cost was $22.

Oh that leak you see was non existent after the first batch which was about 6-7 batches ago.

 

[Elicohen]

Please help troubleshoot my set up.



I got all the components listed and am finding:



1) The nipples and nozzle don't fully thread into the pipe. Is that to be expected?

2) I've got four washers (instructions said three were used) on the outside of the cooler and the whole thing is still loose (e.g. I can wiggle the spigot, turn it around, etc.). Is this to be expected? Or should it be affixed solidly?



Set up leaks - could be because of above. Thoughts?

Thanks @biggoat for the advice.

I threw on more washers. Could not find any more stainless ones, so I bought galvanized and used those closest to the nozzle on the outside. So, two stainless on the inside, three stainless in the outside closest to the cooler and then another three galvanized followed by the nozzle.

The added washers made for a tighter compression seal, I guess, and no leaks.

 

[Make_it_a_Belgian]

So i spent some time in Home Depot last night collecting all of the required parts, and put it together this morning. The issue I am running into now, is that the outside fixture (ball valve, nipple, etc) wiggles quite a bit. The issue isn't the amount of washers, but the size, it seems. Since the nipple (that runs from the inside of the cooler through the wall, to the outside) is 5/8", and the washers are also 5/8", the washers do not pass over the middle section of the nipple. They reach the beginning of the threading and stop. This leaves a gap between the washers and the outer wall of the cooler.

I'll be going back to home depot tonight to pick up some stainless steel 3/4" washers to fill this gap. Hopefully it'll solve the problem.

Other than that, it all seems great. I haven't had a chance to test it for leaks yet but it seems very solid! Thanks again for the post

 

[J-Wood]

By the way, you don't need stainless steel washers for the outside of the cooler.

 

[Make_it_a_Belgian]

I'm having trouble finding the SS washers that are bigger than 5/8" so I think I'll go with Plastic if I can get my hands on those easier.

I know you don't need SS washers if they're going on the outside, but I figure they're gonna get wet eventually, which means they are gonna rust eventually. Who wants to look at that on brewing equipment?