Cheap & Easy 10 Gallon Rubbermaid MLT Conversion

[weirdboy]

Anybody ever try this instead of the braid? It's a bit pricier than I would like but it looks like it would solve some of the issues with the braid.

PS~ Apologies if this has been asked already, I have only read part of this thread so far.

That looks like a SS braid to me...

 

[weirdboy]

I'm sure its in here in the 117 pages somewhere, but I'm assuming you could also use these fittings to convert a rectangle coleman cooler? or is there a better/different method for that

I don't have a rectangular coleman, but I do have a rectangular igloo ice cube (bought for less than $20 at target) that I converted a long time ago. Basically the same procedure. There was no drain spout built in, but there was a place where one obviously was designed to go so I just drilled a hole there.

 

[Olddog]

That looks like a SS braid to me...

It's more of a screen than a braid taken from around a piece of hose.

I ended up buying one of the screens and I think it'll work great and won't collapse. Mine was too long to fit in my cooler so I had to bend the end a bit to get it to fit and it seems quite sturdy.

My only problem now is the valve tends to turn if I am not careful when I open/close it but it doesn't leak.

 

[AdamCanFly]

Thanks for the instructions. Mine works with no leaks.

 

[Hopfen_und_Malz]

Simply awesome!!!

I put it together this morning and brewed two 5 Gallon batches today. It worked just awesome and helped a lot to improve my efficiency. If you are ever near Madison WI, you will find a fridge filled with beer ready for your consumption!

Salut

 

[chask31]

Wow I just read this whole thing over the course of 2 1/2 days. Whew. I am pumped to make this thing soon, but the only concern I have is the post about the lead in the brass. Is this something to worry about? Does everyone clean their fittings with the solution before brewing? Should I just relax and build it with brass fittings? My other thought is to buy the stainless steel pre-made but I would much rather do this myself.

 

[DrawTap88]

Wow I just read this whole thing over the course of 2 1/2 days. Whew. I am pumped to make this thing soon, but the only concern I have is the post about the lead in the brass. Is this something to worry about? Does everyone clean their fittings with the solution before brewing? Should I just relax and build it with brass fittings? My other thought is to buy the stainless steel pre-made but I would much rather do this myself.

Dude. 2 1/2 days to read the entire thread! Crazy man. You'll make an awesome AG brewer for that fact alone.

As far as the brass in the fittings...you can do a, I believe it's called, acid soak. It's basically putting all of the brass fittings in a solution of vinager and water and letting it sit for a while.

On the other hand though, I did so much running around to find all the parts for mine, that it would've been cheaper by a few bucks to get the pre-maid SS bulk head.

 

[johnnybrew]

Dude. 2 1/2 days to read the entire thread! Crazy man. You'll make an awesome AG brewer for that fact alone.

As far as the brass in the fittings...you can do a, I believe it's called, acid soak. It's basically putting all of the brass fittings in a solution of vinager and water and letting it sit for a while.

On the other hand though, I did so much running around to find all the parts for mine, that it would've been cheaper by a few bucks to get the pre-maid SS bulk head.

I did the same. Made about 4-5 different runs to Lowes or Fastenal to get what I needed. If I could do it over again, I would just buy the SS assembly from Bargain Fittings (http://www.bargainfittings.com). In fact, I may just replace the brass with SS since I prefer the SS over the brass.

BTW - I soaked all of my brass fittings in vinegar/peroxide. I recommend you do the same. It's easy and you can visually see the brass change color to a buttery tone (which is when you know the solution did its job). This link must have popped up in this thread a ton of times, but here it is again: http://www.howtobrew.com/section1/chapter2-2-2.html

Good luck.

 

[Bdogg]

Thought I'd post a few pictures of what I did in case anyone was interested. Basically instead of using all the fittings I just fed vinyl tubing through the spout that comes with the cooler:

You can see the parts I removed from the spout. Wasn't too difficult - the white spout part was just glued on and the black button was easy to pry out with a jeweler's screwdriver. The tubing is 7/16" OD - to get it through the spout I soaked the spout and tube in decently hot water. Then, I cut a slit down the center of the tube for about 8" and overlapped it on itself (to decrease the x-sectional area) and slid it through. Then I pulled and it came without a lot of difficulty. After I was finished I just cut off the 8" of slit tubing and discarded it.

Inside the cooler. You can see that I just used the plastic bolts and seals that came with the cooler. Haven't had any problems with leaking.

View from the front. While mashing I put it close to the spout so that only a small amount of liquid pools into the tube (it is vorlaufed anyway). I was nervous that because the 7/16" tube was constricted through the spout it wouldn't flow well but it flows very quickly- quick enough that I was worried about getting a stuck sparge. I actually keep the clip on there in the last little nook to control the flow speed.

There you have it. It certainly isn't as sleek as the setup from the OP. Kinda ghetto looking, but it works fine, and I didn't need anything except the tubing and the stainless braid.

 

[DrawTap88]

So long as it works. That's all that matters.

 

[johnnybrew]

So long as it works. That's all that matters.

Agreed! Everyone's MLT in this thread is far better than the days of mashing on the stove and then lautering in the bucket-in-a-bucket false bottom (championed by Charlie Papazian in the Complete Joy of Homebrewing)!

Brew on!

 

[DrawTap88]

Agreed! Everyone's MLT in this thread is far better than the days of mashing on the stove and then lautering in the bucket-in-a-bucket false bottom (championed by Charlie Papazian in the Complete Joy of Homebrewing)!

Brew on!

The only thing going Zapap in my kitchen is the microwave. This is a great hobby. So many MacGuyvers out there.

 

[Centexbear]

Wow I just read this whole thing over the course of 2 1/2 days. Whew. I am pumped to make this thing soon, but the only concern I have is the post about the lead in the brass. Is this something to worry about? Does everyone clean their fittings with the solution before brewing? Should I just relax and build it with brass fittings? My other thought is to buy the stainless steel pre-made but I would much rather do this myself.

LOL, I did the exact same thing and it took me the same amount of time. A little reading here and there.

What a great thread and idea. I've ordered my cooler from Ace and am gathering up the parts.

Great stuff and thank you!

 

[Centexbear]

Woohoo, my cooler was delivered to Ace and picked it up this afternoon.

I purchased the all stainless valve kit from Austin Homebrew as I wanted all stainless and finding all the parts even in the big city required too much running around (got most of the parts from Home Depot/Lowes/Fastenal but will return them this weekend and get AHS all stainless kit.) and backordering items. Had to order a few other items too so shipping was free....the all SS kit was on sale for about $40 bucks. Parts I had collected were at $27 and that didn't include the 5/8 washers or SS washers from Fastenal. Then when you price in a SS ball valve & SS other parts, the $40 becomes very competitive price wise.

I'll report back when MLT is completed.

 

[fc36]

I just picked up a 10 gal rubbermaid at my local Home Depot for $40. Anyone in Chicago need not worry, they sell them year round regardless of season and there is enough demand to require stocking them at every HD in the Chicagoland area. Luckily, there also always $40, so no need to wait for any clearance sales.

I also made mine with the 1/2" fittings, which I picked up from HD. For those interested in using a false bottom and reducing the chance for slow or stuck sparges, I would highly recommend the switch to 1/2". The model numbers for the 1/2" fittings are as follows:
- 1/2” MIP x 1-1/2” brass nipple (Watts A-836)
- 1/2” male barb adapter (Watts A-385)
- 1/2” female barb adapter (Watts A-390)
- 1/2” female threaded ball valve

The washers and O-rings weren't available at HD, Ace, or True Value and I didn't get a chance to check Lowe's because I found everything I needed at Menards. I used two #15 O-rings for the inside and outside, one 3/4" SS flat washer for the inside (it fit a bit snug, but with a little teflon tape it screwed right into place), and it fit well with two 3/4" SAE flat washers on the outside (they slid right over the nipple and fit perfectly, but three will probably fit and may give you a little more room between the handle and the outside of the cooler).

I've got a 12" false bottom on the way, but unfortunately they all have 3/8" barbs on them, so I'll have to swap it out in favor of 1/2" fitting. I'll report back with the product number when I get it all completed and working.

So far no leaks and once again, I'll have to thank FlyGuy for the instructions and inspiration to switch to AG like so many others here.

 

[DrawTap88]

Which false bottom did you get?

 

[FlyGuy]

I haven't checked this thread in a while, so thanks to all who posted their successes (and solutions to difficulties encountered)!

One note of clarification, however -- this setup is meant for batch sparging, not fly sparging. Unless you are fly sparging, using a false bottom instead of a braid is a step backwards, IMO. False bottoms are meant for slow, evenly distributed run-off that fly spargers require. If you batch sparge, you want to just stir and dump your yeast, and that can often cause a stuck sparge if you are using a false bottom (lots of grumbling about this if you hunt around).

If you are worried about the durability of the braid, which has been an issue for a small number of people, then I suggest going with a copper or CPVC manifold. They are a lot more work to construct, but are practically indestructible and can also serve well for both batch sparging and fly sparging.

Also, if you are a batch sparger and want higher flow rates, you can certainly use 1/2" fittings (I have those on my 'twin' Rubbermaid cooler that acts as my HLT). But you will need a different design since mine presented in this thread since it was made to take advantage of the original seal that comes with these Rubbermaid coolers (the seal won't fit a 1/2" nipple, unfortunately). Honestly, though -- for a mash tun 3/8" fittings provide plenty of flow. And if you are a fly sparger, you won't be lautering fast enough to need 1/2" parts (3/8" fittings will provide more flow than you need).

Cheers!

 

[makisupa]

I just wanted to say thanks for providing easy and detailed DIY instructions for a mash tun. I built mine (following your directions in the first post), yesterday. I must have been lucky since all the parts and cooler were easily found at my local HD.

I filled the cooler with hot water and let it sit overnight. I just checked in on it this morning and no leaks! I also clocked the drain time (the cooler was completely filled) — 9 minutes, 11 seconds using the 3/8" ball valve.

Also, I modified it using John Palmer's, circular SS braid recommendation from "How to Brew."

Thanks so much!

 

[JimBell]

Mine is leaking still. I added two more stainless washers trying to get it to seal, no joy. Tuesday I'll try one more time and if that doesn't work I'll try the silicone.

If anyone is still having issues, I found washers that fit best in the build your own bolt kit at the depot, went back and found some larger ones that I used as a spacers at lowe's. They are in the drawers they call specialty fasteners.

 

[IPAAAA]

Anyone ever have their tun distort inside from hot water? I just used mine for the first time and it distorted the walls and the bottom. Hopefully it doesn't cause a problem.

 

[Tiber_Brew]

Anyone ever have their tun distort inside from hot water? I just used mine for the first time and it distorted the walls and the bottom. Hopefully it doesn't cause a problem.

I had that happen to the wall of my lauter tun, but have had continued success with it.

When that happened, I didn't preheat the tun before adding the hot water to it. Since I've been preheating it, no further distortion has occurred.

TB

 

[IPAAAA]

I had that happen to the wall of my lauter tun, but have had continued success with it.

When that happened, I didn't preheat the tun before adding the hot water to it. Since I've been preheating it, no further distortion has occurred.

TB

The issue is that I did preheat the lauter tun and it still did it. Hoping it doesn't get worse or not hold heat.

 

[Tiber_Brew]

The issue is that I did preheat the lauter tun and it still did it. Hoping it doesn't get worse or not hold heat.

As long as the plastic wall isn't cracked and no fluids soak into the insulation, I would say you'll be fine.

Any way to snap a pic of it and post it here?

TB

 

[DrawTap88]

Mine is leaking still. I added two more stainless washers trying to get it to seal, no joy. Tuesday I'll try one more time and if that doesn't work I'll try the silicone.

You could also try getting an o-ring to sandwich between the wall of the cooler and SS washer. I was having the same problem and that was how I fixed it.

 

[IPAAAA]

As long as the plastic wall isn't cracked and no fluids soak into the insulation, I would say you'll be fine.

Any way to snap a pic of it and post it here?

TB

I didn't inspect it to well but I will get a pic posted later today.

 

[FlyGuy]

Mine is leaking still. I added two more stainless washers trying to get it to seal, no joy. Tuesday I'll try one more time and if that doesn't work I'll try the silicone.

If anyone is still having issues, I found washers that fit best in the build your own bolt kit at the depot, went back and found some larger ones that I used as a spacers at lowe's. They are in the drawers they call specialty fasteners.

Are you using the large spigot seal that came with the cooler, or are you using a different seal? If you are using the original spigot seal that is part of my build in this thread, then you probably have over-tightened it. If you using a round rubber/silicone seal they can be more tricky to get sealed (but you can try taking it apart and putting it back together again but less tight).

 

[IPAAAA]

As long as the plastic wall isn't cracked and no fluids soak into the insulation, I would say you'll be fine.

Any way to snap a pic of it and post it here?

TB

Here is the pic. You can see how the wall is distorted now. Doesn't look like there are any cracks but it could get worse.

 

[Tiber_Brew]

Here is the pic. You can see how the wall is distorted now. Doesn't look like there are any cracks but it could get worse.

Interesting. Mine has just a "rib" of distortion running vertically up the wall in one place.

Mine has been distorted for about 6 months now and I've brewed many gallons of beer since with no problems. I would think (hope) yours will be fine too. From the looks of it, there are no sharp radii for stress concentrations in your distortion contour(s), which is promising.

I suppose that if you really want to be a boy scout and be über prepared, you could buy a spare cooler and just swap fittings in the event of a catastrophic failure.

TB

 

[IPAAAA]

It's odd that it would even do that. Wonder if it was the water I put in to prepare the tun or the water I added to the grains.

 

[Tiber_Brew]

It's odd that it would even do that. Wonder if it was the water I put in to prepare the tun or the water I added to the grains.

I would wager on it being the mash water. Much more thermal mass than the water used to preheat it. That is, of course, unless you fill 'er up with hot water to preheat it. (I just put a gallon or two of hot water in to preheat mine.)

TB