Like most of us, I like doing things myself. So I used weldless fittings and have made most of my brewery myself, from inline O2 to a CFC to my Keggles, RIMS tube, and sanke fermenter. I finally decided I wanted a bottom drain HLT and BK. So this meant I had to get a coupler welded onto the bottom of my keggle.
I looked into welders on craigslist and read through the various threads on HBT about welding stainless. In the end, I decided to take it to a welding shop. Here's how it went.
I found a few very close to my town. The first shop I called, the guy didn't seem to understand what I was wanting him to do. Eventually he just said $100. I thanked him and hung up. I was only asking for one coupler welded to the bottom, so no way I was paying that.
The second welding shop the guy was very cool, actually a home brewer himself. He quoted me $40, but it turns out, that was the minimum shop charge. I brought two kegs in and a bunch of fittings to weld to see how much things would cost. In the end, he did the following:
Welded 1/2" coupler on bottom of one keg. Welded a 1/2 lock nut on the side of same keg (for thermometer and sight glass), welded four 1.25" lock nuts on two different kegs for elements to be mounted, cut the top off a keg and deburred, and even punched the 1.25" holes in my keg using my Greenlee Punch, though I'm sure he had his own punch the right size.
All this for $110. Not bad. Plus we talked some brewing while I watched him weld.
I suppose I could've done most of this myself, getting a simple dimpler together and trying my hand at silver soldering stainless. But considering how much revamping I want to do and like most of us, limited time, I'm glad I went to the welding shop. Plus, although weldless fittings work well, I like knowing I have those lock nuts welded on there, especially for the elements.
So if you're thinking about checking out a local welder and not sure what to expect or how much things might cost, here's my experience. Cheers.
I looked into welders on craigslist and read through the various threads on HBT about welding stainless. In the end, I decided to take it to a welding shop. Here's how it went.
I found a few very close to my town. The first shop I called, the guy didn't seem to understand what I was wanting him to do. Eventually he just said $100. I thanked him and hung up. I was only asking for one coupler welded to the bottom, so no way I was paying that.
The second welding shop the guy was very cool, actually a home brewer himself. He quoted me $40, but it turns out, that was the minimum shop charge. I brought two kegs in and a bunch of fittings to weld to see how much things would cost. In the end, he did the following:
Welded 1/2" coupler on bottom of one keg. Welded a 1/2 lock nut on the side of same keg (for thermometer and sight glass), welded four 1.25" lock nuts on two different kegs for elements to be mounted, cut the top off a keg and deburred, and even punched the 1.25" holes in my keg using my Greenlee Punch, though I'm sure he had his own punch the right size.
All this for $110. Not bad. Plus we talked some brewing while I watched him weld.
I suppose I could've done most of this myself, getting a simple dimpler together and trying my hand at silver soldering stainless. But considering how much revamping I want to do and like most of us, limited time, I'm glad I went to the welding shop. Plus, although weldless fittings work well, I like knowing I have those lock nuts welded on there, especially for the elements.
So if you're thinking about checking out a local welder and not sure what to expect or how much things might cost, here's my experience. Cheers.
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