new mash tun copper manifold.

[treeak]

Hello All.

So i built myself a 1/2" copper manifold for my square mlt this weekend. I was excited to try this instead of my old braided stainless set up. Construction went well. I soaked the new manifold in some oxyclean to help loosen the stickers. I scrubbed then off without a problem and i still had some time as the strike water heated. I boiled the new manifold parts in another pot to help oxidize things out. No problem there either. The parts came out looking like my seasoned copper IC. However, after an hour mash and the subsequent sparge i was able to break down the manifold and clean the mlt. The parts were like a new shiny copper penny. I believe that i am reading that the oxidation from the preboil went into my wort. Do you folks experience this with your copper manifolds?

thanks,
Scott

 

[BendBrewer]

I built one for my MLT this weekend as well. The parts were pretty shiny after a good scrubbing but I too noticed they were even more shiny after the mash.

The best thing I noticed though was NO MORE TILTING!!!!! That manifold sucked that MLT dry.

 

[treeak]

Yes, they make brew life a bit better at this budget stage. I liked the ball valve on the regulation of flow. My mash was for an imperial stout. I understand about the acidity of the mash and why it removed the oxidation from the manifold. I just am wondering if a petina forms that stays like the IC has on it. I believe Palmer stated that the oxidation from copper was fairly benign in the wort. I was just wanting to see if the copper manifold folks had some input about this happening all the time, and potential off flavors, etc.

 

[rockytoptim]

I have a copper manifold and right after mashing its bright and shinny. It starts to get a patina between brews but shines right up after the next mash. I haven't noticed any off flavors in my brews. Plus there is so many people here using copper manifolds that if copper was causing issues there would be a lot of post on HBT about it.

 

[GreenMonti]

I have found it best to just rinse my copper items with fresh water and nothing else. I sometimes have to take a rag to the MLT manifold to get stuck grain particles off of it. But my IC has never seen soap after the initial cleaning. I rinse it with cold water as fast as I can after pulling it from the kettle, and I don't touch any of it that enters wort in the kettle. My IC will stay pretty bright for months, which is odd for copper to do. That's just my experiences anyway. Hope this helps.

Happy brewing.

 

[Shaggyt]

Couple of questions on your manifolds...did you sweat any/all the pieces or just put them together for easier cleaning/disassembly?

I'm about to build a copper manifold to replace my cpvc. The cpvc was just pieced together but the joints are starting to not hold together as well as they did in the past. Has this been a problem with your copper manifolds at all?

Cheers.

 

[rockytoptim]

Couple of questions on your manifolds...did you sweat any/all the pieces or just put them together for easier cleaning/disassembly?

I'm about to build a copper manifold to replace my cpvc. The cpvc was just pieced together but the joints are starting to not hold together as well as they did in the past. Has this been a problem with your copper manifolds at all?

Cheers.

I sweated the manifold in sections so I could still take manifold partially apart for cleaning.

 

[treeak]

No i just dry fit mine together. I have the square cooler. So i first decided to just do the square set up and a "t" linked to the ball valve. Not being satisfied i only did one all grain and then got more "t"s and sections so i have 3 longer runs, 2 med runs, 6 short runs, 5 "t"s and 4 corners. I used a cutting disc on a dremel to slice slits about 0.25" throughout. Pretty happy with the result. There is enough of a good fit just pressing them together and the clean up is just fine. I think i have 12 or so batches done since then and always i see the petina as i get stuff ready and the shiny new penny look after the mash. whatever, been drinking some good brew and quit worrying so much.

Cheers fellas,
Scott

 

[Shaggyt]

No i just dry fit mine together.

This is what I did with the CPVC, but after time, the fit became too loose. So the copper seems to retain it's original shape enough to keep a dry fit that's solid, no issues with bumping it around when doughing in?

 

[treeak]

no issues so far with bumping around. when i used the cutter to make the sections i did not clean them up other than obvious debris. ( i didnt use extra tools like i was sweating for a plumbing connection ) There must be enough roughness to still keep enough friction to hold all those pieces together and in the proper orientation with the dremel cuts down. i just did another all grain this past labor day. Im pretty aggressive with the metal spoon when i dough in but the manifold is laying on the bottom of the cooler of course. I dont make much contact at all on the manifold i just swirl and mix above it. I guess if the pieces were getting too loose and stuff was moving i might use a set of channel locks or whatever and give it a bit of a crimp.

when i dump the spent grains from the mt during clean up i notice the manifold swings toward the trash bag but its swinging from that "t" that i helped crimp to the inside fitting.

 

[AiredAle]

I dry assemble my manifold too. I gave each fitting a pinch with a pair of pliers so that the fit was tighter. Never had a problem with them coming apart at the wrong time, but if you over-pinch, they can get hard to pull apart for cleaning.

 

[Homercidal]

I think that a certain amount of copper is ok as the yeast use it as a nutrient. Too much is bad for the yeast, and you should not introduce copper into your beer after fermentation because the yeast won't be consuming it and it's not that good for you.

 

[extra_medium]

I think that a certain amount of copper is ok as the yeast use it as a nutrient. Too much is bad for the yeast, and you should not introduce copper into your beer after fermentation because the yeast won't be consuming it and it's not that good for you.

if you are telling me that copper is bad for me then we all need to redo our plumbing!! i'll take everyone's copper...so i can cash it in that $h!t is worth some dollars!:fro:

 

[adam01]

I'm surprised that with all the posters admiring their shiny copper that nobody
has posted a picture of their artwork.