hoptimal
Member
Just wanted to share my unconventional build. It is not complete, but has kicked out one crude IPA. I hope you enjoy. Always follow the electrical code of your location. I have about $300 invested so far.
Here is an overall shot of the stand, which was fabricated from mild steel then painted orange:
The boiler is a 15 gallon keg, top cut off, inverted, handles cut off, with a bead of food grade silicon around the inner crevice to seal the vapors. A bathroom fan and dryer duct vent the boil off:
The heating element is a 4500W unit threaded into a welded lock nut arrangement. The element seals directly against the lock nut, and the connection box is held in place by welded studs:
Flexible conduit is used for connection to the kettle:
Another 1 NPS fitting is on the bottom for easy cleaning:
A custom plug was created for to interface with the bottom lock nut, as there were too few tapered threads for a good seal. A 1 NPS plug is welded into another 1 NPS jam nut, then a rubber seal was added:
Overkill socket weld ball valve on the exit:
This is an original design counter flow heat exchanger. The idea was to have an easy to clean design. The NTU's are a bit lacking with only 6 ft of transfer length total, but a decent cool down time was achieved at the expense of much cooling water. A third pass may have to be added:
Control box:
Inside:
Here is an overall shot of the stand, which was fabricated from mild steel then painted orange:
The boiler is a 15 gallon keg, top cut off, inverted, handles cut off, with a bead of food grade silicon around the inner crevice to seal the vapors. A bathroom fan and dryer duct vent the boil off:
The heating element is a 4500W unit threaded into a welded lock nut arrangement. The element seals directly against the lock nut, and the connection box is held in place by welded studs:
Flexible conduit is used for connection to the kettle:
Another 1 NPS fitting is on the bottom for easy cleaning:
A custom plug was created for to interface with the bottom lock nut, as there were too few tapered threads for a good seal. A 1 NPS plug is welded into another 1 NPS jam nut, then a rubber seal was added:
Overkill socket weld ball valve on the exit:
This is an original design counter flow heat exchanger. The idea was to have an easy to clean design. The NTU's are a bit lacking with only 6 ft of transfer length total, but a decent cool down time was achieved at the expense of much cooling water. A third pass may have to be added:
Control box:
Inside:
