Chek
Eagle's Feather Brew House
Hi all,
So like, I have a lot of time on my hands and have been creating beer gear.
I wanted a floating dip tube and the cheapest I found online was 12 bucks plus shipping which meant I would spend at least a hundred….
Well, my impatience is always the mother of invention. And I am a true believer in 90% thinking and 10% labour.
When I was younger I watched a design show on the Canadarm and the guy said take the “Farmer’s Mentality” I’m guessing he grew up on a farm. What he meant was design with what you have on hand first, keep it simple and then then move on to…
In my search for stainless steel balls other than my own nothing was easy to find on line…
I’m an avid fisherman so I thought a float from my tackle box, then I thought about how all yall would flame me for it not being food grade plastic, then I thought I don’t have that many floats…
So I wandered through my house looking for things that float. I was a huge David Letterman fan and it made me remember the grinder girls and the will it float segments, too funny. Do a search for the 50 pound bag of flour one.
As I amassed all things that would float in my house and discarded anything not food safe, it left me with a tiny tupperware container and a cork.
Taking the required buoyancy into consideration, the container was excessive and the cork was more than sufficient.
So as not to get flamed, I researched wine corks, and who woulda thought they are covered with stuff. Also, the cork screw entry point could possibly hide bacteria. Then it hit me like a keg of beer! *** I can use my food sealer and a 3 hole punch ***
The food sealer I always have end of the role FOOD GRADE scrap plastic.
A 3 hole paper punch hole should be big enough for the FOOD GRADE silicone tubing??
So now I have a food safe float and an idea for the dip tube.
A little more thinking while hydrating and I started proof of concept testing.
With my dollar store 4 litre juice jug [while I type this I realize I should have used my beer pitcher it woulda been cooler] remember I was hydrating so I can’t think of everything.
I tried it and it worked.
Then I tested it under strenuous conditions [I shook the jug and jiggled the line].
Well, the tubing had a tendency to sit perpendicular to the jug wall. Which made me think that this could possibly cause a beertastrophy, as it would limit proper flow into the tube and maybe induce clogging.
Hhhhmmmm
Then I had to think about a weight to give it a little depth, well I have lots of copper piping from a commercial coffee maker I have been converting into a HERMS. So I cut the copper tube and tested it out, eureka, it worked.
Now I moved onto the Corny Keg, with a 7/8” wrench I removed the post and pulled out the dip tube. With my copper pipe cutter I shortened the existing stainless steel dip tube to about 80mm.
I Re-assembled the Corny and had a hell of a time trying to get the tubing on the post inside the keg with one hand.
Constantly having food safe on my mind and hydrating, I slowly remembered I had keg lube. With that, it went on in a fraction of a second.
Done.
Now for actual testing simulation:
- Filled the keg with water
- Hooked up a pump, drew out all the water.
- No issues.
***The pump drew real slow and I thought it was due to the tiny diameter of the copper pipe [ then it hit me, I should cut a piece of the dip tube and us it instead]***
Next test:
- Add stainless steel port
- Fill via floating dip tube
- Empty via dip tube
- No issues
Total cost
- Food saver bag is no cost as it is left over and not usable for proper size steaks, FREE
- Cork, it is repurposed so therefore it is considered FREE
- FOOD GRADE Silicone tubing $1.53 CAD
Please see pictures below.
Let me know if you can improve my design or find a way to make it cheaper, consider it a challenge.
So like, I have a lot of time on my hands and have been creating beer gear.
I wanted a floating dip tube and the cheapest I found online was 12 bucks plus shipping which meant I would spend at least a hundred….
Well, my impatience is always the mother of invention. And I am a true believer in 90% thinking and 10% labour.
When I was younger I watched a design show on the Canadarm and the guy said take the “Farmer’s Mentality” I’m guessing he grew up on a farm. What he meant was design with what you have on hand first, keep it simple and then then move on to…
In my search for stainless steel balls other than my own nothing was easy to find on line…
I’m an avid fisherman so I thought a float from my tackle box, then I thought about how all yall would flame me for it not being food grade plastic, then I thought I don’t have that many floats…
So I wandered through my house looking for things that float. I was a huge David Letterman fan and it made me remember the grinder girls and the will it float segments, too funny. Do a search for the 50 pound bag of flour one.
As I amassed all things that would float in my house and discarded anything not food safe, it left me with a tiny tupperware container and a cork.
Taking the required buoyancy into consideration, the container was excessive and the cork was more than sufficient.
So as not to get flamed, I researched wine corks, and who woulda thought they are covered with stuff. Also, the cork screw entry point could possibly hide bacteria. Then it hit me like a keg of beer! *** I can use my food sealer and a 3 hole punch ***
The food sealer I always have end of the role FOOD GRADE scrap plastic.
A 3 hole paper punch hole should be big enough for the FOOD GRADE silicone tubing??
So now I have a food safe float and an idea for the dip tube.
A little more thinking while hydrating and I started proof of concept testing.
With my dollar store 4 litre juice jug [while I type this I realize I should have used my beer pitcher it woulda been cooler] remember I was hydrating so I can’t think of everything.
I tried it and it worked.
Then I tested it under strenuous conditions [I shook the jug and jiggled the line].
Well, the tubing had a tendency to sit perpendicular to the jug wall. Which made me think that this could possibly cause a beertastrophy, as it would limit proper flow into the tube and maybe induce clogging.
Hhhhmmmm
Then I had to think about a weight to give it a little depth, well I have lots of copper piping from a commercial coffee maker I have been converting into a HERMS. So I cut the copper tube and tested it out, eureka, it worked.
Now I moved onto the Corny Keg, with a 7/8” wrench I removed the post and pulled out the dip tube. With my copper pipe cutter I shortened the existing stainless steel dip tube to about 80mm.
I Re-assembled the Corny and had a hell of a time trying to get the tubing on the post inside the keg with one hand.
Constantly having food safe on my mind and hydrating, I slowly remembered I had keg lube. With that, it went on in a fraction of a second.
Done.
Now for actual testing simulation:
- Filled the keg with water
- Hooked up a pump, drew out all the water.
- No issues.
***The pump drew real slow and I thought it was due to the tiny diameter of the copper pipe [ then it hit me, I should cut a piece of the dip tube and us it instead]***
Next test:
- Add stainless steel port
- Fill via floating dip tube
- Empty via dip tube
- No issues
Total cost
- Food saver bag is no cost as it is left over and not usable for proper size steaks, FREE
- Cork, it is repurposed so therefore it is considered FREE
- FOOD GRADE Silicone tubing $1.53 CAD
Please see pictures below.
Let me know if you can improve my design or find a way to make it cheaper, consider it a challenge.
