Ghetto Brew Kit

[jerrodm]

Your local water company/utility should regularly publish the results of its water quality tests. That's a good place to start. If you want the specific profile of your own tap water (as opposed to more generally what is coming out of the main utility pipe) you can send a sample to Ward Labs (search Ward Labs water test) and they'll tell you all about your water's mineral characteristics, including testing for the presence of harmful metals.

Cheers.

 

[MarcusKillion]

Can I send some water to a lab to see if there's any zinc in it? I'll have to send a control sample as well.

yes you can . If you search for well water testing or similar you will find lots of places that test water for city and wells . Your local coop may do it as well .

 

[phoenixs4r]

I think folks also send stuff to a company called ward? I've seen them mentioned in water chemistry as well as an interesting thread on before and after water samples done in an e-brewery build when the OP added a magnesium diode (might be the wrong word there) to prevent rust yo his element. Would be interesting to see what your water is like out of tap vs after 1 hour if boiling.

 

[blacklab]

the ****?

 

[brewingmeister]

 

[cgherrington3]

Not too worried about the element rusting. It's chrome plated. Chromium doesn't dissolve in water like zinc.

 

[BadNewsBrewery]

So, OP - it's been fermenting for a week now - have you taken any samplings? Tasted it? Are you dead? :cross:

 

[jerrodm]

Not too worried about the element rusting. It's chrome plated. Chromium doesn't dissolve in water like zinc.

Famous last words?!

 

[phoenixs4r]

Not too worried about the element rusting. It's chrome plated. Chromium doesn't dissolve in water like zinc.

I didn't mention that because you would have rust issues, the test was about the magnesium an node and how much magnesium was introduced after an hour long boil. The reason i brought it up is because i thought it would be interesting to see a similar test done. Take your water from the tap, boil for an hour and have that water tested to see if anything is leaching from the bucket or the fittings.

 

[IslandLizard]

...and mail it to my son in San Francisco for Christmas...(don't be hatin' )

<shaking head>

I expect you're sort of playing with us in an unconventional unfunny ghetto-style way.

But the ungrounded, unshielded, unprotected, un-GFCI'd element is a life-threatening hazard. An accident waiting to happen.

Your son may, or may not be savvy with open, live electrical connections, but a few seconds of inattentiveness or an unaware friend pointing at it with "wass dat?" could cause a major mishap, possibly death.

Plus you may give someone else the wrong idea. Who knows where this picture will surface in the next 20-some years?

</shaking head>

 

[mjdonnelly68]

Just fooling around this morning with some ebrewing stuff I bought at Home Depot, when it hit me that I could make simple electric AG kit and mail it to my son in San Francisco for Christmas. I've been mailing him finished beer and thought he might like to brew his own.

So here's the the basics of the kit:

5 Gallon bucket $2.50
Lid $1
1500w 120v element $10
1" lockring $.50
5' cord $5
Spigot $3
Air lock $2
5 gal paint strainer bag $2

So I got ~$25 in the hardware

Here's a demo bucket action (don't be hatin' )

Include some grains and a pack of yeast.

Haven't worked on the recipe, but it should go something like this:

Add 3 gallons water to bucket and plug in
When boiling, unplug and add X amount tap water (to bring down to mash temp guess I could include a thermometer in the kit, but hey I'm cheap)
Add the grains and first wort hops cover with lid and sit for an hour
Remove bag
Boil for 1 hour
Let cool
Add yeast, lid, airlock
Let sit for 5 days in the cool San Francisco air
Add priming sugar to PET bottles and fill from spigot
harvest yeast and brew another batch
Wait 3 weeks
Chill and drink

So just so I'm clear, the opposite of 'Food Safe' is still 'Food Unsafe' right?

 

[IslandLizard]

So just so I'm clear, the opposite of 'Food Safe' is still 'Food Unsafe' right?

I'd say if it isn't "food safe" it is always "food unsafe."

Not quite an opposite, just anything outside the narrow boundaries of "safe" is considered "unsafe."

 

[tre9er]

PVC Cap is a couple of bucks. Drill a cord-sized hole in it and run the wiring through it, then place it over the element (might have to dremel PVC cap in a few places) with some JB Weld around it, then silicone around the outside. Now your connections are water-resistant and this is how many e-kettle guys do it (unless they're doing Kal clones), I know I do it that way.

 

[MarcusKillion]

tre9er ; Good idea . that connection is totally unsafe and being in close vicinity of liquid is even worse . Wonder if he ever thought about kids or people with not much common sense being around during brew time . Hell one shock and someone could jump and knock over the beer ! Now that is a tragedy for sure .
Oh well at least he can maybe have 5 gallons of beer to drink at his friends funeral service .

Hey other than that it is a nice setup I think .

 

[TheZer]

I would consider attaching your ground wire to the bucket handle...safety first.

 

[Ryush806]

So there's been a lot of talk about whether or not that bucket is food safe. I know many homebrewers use aluminum turkey fryers. Couldn't you just line the bucket with aluminum foil? You'd use that weird pinch technique your grandma used in her pie crust coverings to seal the aluminum shell so nothing would ever get to the plastic of course. See pic below for example.