Help with Compact 3 Tier Brewstand

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Skystrider17

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Hi Everybody,

Been brewing a while and decided I want to build a stand. I am modeling my design off of the compact 3 tier system seen at halfbarrellbrewer (http://halfbarrelbrewer.com/). I would appreciate any advice or considerations before I begin my construction.

About the stand:

Approximately 41" high, 36" long, and 18" wide. I plan on using Blichmann 15 gal pots eventually, and the stand will be used for 5 gal and 10 gal brews. The stand will also accommodate keggles as well. The stand will be made out of 1" x 1" 11 gauge square tubular steel. Gas and beer plumbing will be outside the frame.

I plan on updating this thread as I make progress on design and fabrication, to include costs as well as any issues encountered. Just recently purchased a welder and chop saw and expect to begin building within the next week or two, depending on what time allows.

The second picture shows my latest and final model. I raised the second tier a little bit and cleaned up the design.

If you have any insights as I move along please feel free to let me know!

Cheers,

3 Tier Compact.jpg


3 Tier.PNG
 
Subscribed! This is exactly what I have been drawing out and wanting to build as well. Please keep this updated as I would love to see your progress. I'll be setting mine up more like a 1550 though, putting the BK on the middle tier and the MLT on the upper tier.

Do you plan on adding wheels for mobility?

:mug:
JER
 
Hey Jman,

I'll definitely keep this post updated with pictures and other important details. I'll be picking up the steel this week and beginning construction this upcoming weekend hopefully. I was originally going to use 1x1 steel tubing, however I've since amended my plan to use 1.5" x 1.5" A500 14 gauge steel. At ~1.8 lbs per linear foot I think it will strong enough to hold the liquid weight, but not ridiculously heavy (hopefully). The extra surface area should prove useful in attaching the hard plumbing eventually. I plan on putting casters on as well.
 
I may be way off track, but is there no worry about condensation on the 3rd tier by having the BK under it like that? I really like this design for it's space concerns!

-K
 
I'm with KJC on the love of the design. IF condensation is an issue I are no reason as to why the BK and mash be switched, right?
 
What's the depth on the rig? Also noticed that the HLT is on the bottom and not the BK. Condensation issue is solved!
 
I totally missed that the BK is on top in the drawing. So how does one sparge with only one pump? You would have to pump from HLT to MT and MT to BK at the same time.
 
Hey Guys,

Sorry for the delay in response, between grad school and work it's tough to find time. The length of the rig will be ~37". Approximate dry weight will be around 70 lbs. I picked up 72' of A5130 carbon steel 1.5" x 1.5" square tubing, .083 gauge at BMG Metals in Manassas, VA for only $105. Pic included:


As far as sparging is concerned only one pump is needed to recirculate the wort: and can be from either the Mash Tun back up to the boil Kettle, or from the HLT back up to the Boil Kettle. With flexible tubing you could set it up however you want, don't really see the need for two pumps; and in the event of pump failure gravity and siphoning mechanics are still in play (unless there's a black hole/time space disruption nearby). I currently use a 10 gal cooler as my Mash tun, and won't plan on doing RIMS immediately, but I believe this could be easily accommodated.

I'll be posting better pictures (not from the iphone) when I start building, hopefully this weekend!

photo (2).jpg
 
I still don't see how only one pump will work for fly sparging, but hopefully everything works out for you! I can see how one pump would work for a BK on the bottom, but with it up I don't see how you expect to get liquid from the MT to the BK and from the HLT to the MT at the same time.
 
kjc0011 said:
I still don't see how only one pump will work for fly sparging, but hopefully everything works out for you! I can see how one pump would work for a BK on the bottom, but with it up I don't see how you expect to get liquid from the MT to the BK and from the HLT to the MT at the same time.
Click to expand...

He's moving the hot liquor to the boil kettle, then with an empty HLT, he's gravity sparging from the BK (now temporarily the HLT), to the bottom kettle which is now being used as a grant. Once the BK is empty, he pumps the wort from the grant back up to the HLT.
 
Carlscan26 said:
He's moving the hot liquor to the boil kettle, then with an empty HLT, he's gravity sparging from the BK (now temporarily the HLT), to the bottom kettle which is now being used as a grant. Once the BK is empty, he pumps the wort from the grant back up to the HLT.
Click to expand...

Interesting. Thanks for the explanation!
 
This is something that matches what I'm looking for to fit my needs. Looking forward to updates and pictures of the build.
 
Unless I missed where he said he was fly sparging, he might be batch sparging. Only one pump required.
 
dcbc said:
Unless I missed where he said he was fly sparging, he might be batch sparging. Only one pump required.
Click to expand...

He's fly sparging with gravity feed from top kettle to MLT to bottom kettle. Then he pumps from the bottom kettle to the top one and boils in the top kettle.
 
Are you going with the RIMS shown in the half barrel brewery or direct fire mash tun or something else? Would seem like you could start out with a cooler mash tun and switch to kettle later. Maybe I still don't quite get it but I'm quite envious and look forward to updates.
 
Hey Guys,

Finally got some time to work on the stand this weekend, GTA V has been taking over my life a little bit recently. First step was cutting 2 36" pieces and 2 18" pieces with mitered corners. Welded everything together and luckily it stayed square (ish).

IMG_7864.jpg


IMG_7865.jpg


IMG_7870.jpg
 
Next I cut the vertical pieces: 4 x 39" and 2 x 22". Will weld those on tomorrow (along with copious amounts of grinding) and fit on the cross-braces as well.

IMG_7869.jpg
 
Been a while since I last posted to the thread, so thought I would give everybody (who cares) an update: see pic. Nearing the finishline with welding/grinding. Just need to add a few more diagonal crossbraces and then it's time to paint. Dimensions are fairly close to the sketchup model, however I have had some warping which has been frustrating. Can't way to paint some orange and maroon on!

photo.jpg
 
Close to finished!!!

I finished welding and grinding (mostly grinding though), attached the casters, painted, and attached the burners. Now I'm working on the gas side plumbing, and once that's done I'll be ready to brew! I'll be adding on liquid side hard plumbing after using it a few times, and also after picking up some additional components: plate cooler, water filter, pump, etc. Let me know what you guys think!

photo 1.jpg


photo 2.jpg
 
How far out do the burner intakes stuck out? Can you put an elbow on them so the flex line doesn't stick even further out?

Love the colors!
 
Carlscan26 said:
How far out do the burner intakes stuck out? Can you put an elbow on them so the flex line doesn't stick even further out?

Love the colors!
Click to expand...

The burners only stick out about an inch from the frame. I'll be attaching the hard plumbing tonight. I like the elbows idea, they're just tough to find, may need to go check out Lowes.
 
Added the hard plumbing for gas; spray painted it all gold, wasn't sure if black pipe was galvanized. But really, it just makes it look much more BA. Gonna be firing it up for the first time this weekend!

photo (3).jpg
 
kjc0011 said:
I totally missed that the BK is on top in the drawing. So how does one sparge with only one pump? You would have to pump from HLT to MT and MT to BK at the same time.
Click to expand...

You have your sparge water in the BK gravity draining. By the time it is all in the MT, you can briefly stop sparging and use the pump to pump about 2/3 of the runoff so far into the, now empty, BK. Your HLT is now empty, continue sparging the last 1/3 into it that is still in the MLT.
 

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