Show us your most ghetto DIY

[jimyson]

Call it what you want, ragged, ghetto, trashy, etc. Many of us have done it, whether it be for something last minute or potentially as a long term solution. Share your pieces of art.

Here's mine:

Backstory- I started making slants and plates for the first time. Reading the process in the yeast book, I found that a good way to get rid of condensation is to let them sit at 80F for a few days. Being winter and having all of my things in the basement, ambient temperature is around 60F. So I decided to rig up a little incubation chamber that brought the temp up to 80F on the nose. So the good news is that I am accomplishing what I set out to do. Who cares what it looks like!






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[jimyson]

Oops, wrong forum. Mods, can you move it to DIY?


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[thisisbeer]

I wouldn't call it a diy but it makes people looke twice when they walk in. My chest freezer wont fit two carboys in it. So I sit one in the freezer and one on the hump kinda hanging over. I habe a thermowel in the wort with a probe. The door wont close with the carboy on the hump so I just through a blanket over it. It actually works way better than I thought it would...

 

[mtnagel]

How's this for ghetto:

This was my first attempt at controlling the fermentation temperatures with a water bath. A year later and my method is still pretty similar, but a little more organized.

 

[mtnagel]

And my similar method for controlling the temp or my starters:

 

[Fishn-tin-sean]

Nice. Keep this thread going!

 

[jperry]

Here's my stir plate build. I used the bottom tray, of a medium sized plastic gardening pot.

 

[mtnagel]

That's awesome.

 

[masskrug]

A hop "spider."

 

[mtnagel]

Nailed it

 

[unionrdr]

I started a ghetto rig thread in the pic forum about a year ago. Look around!

 

[ChuckO]

Here's my contribution - ugly but it works.

In Use

Template

Finished Pump Guard

 

[jimyson]

I started a ghetto rig thread in the pic forum about a year ago. Look around!

You clearly have better luck with the search functionality on this site than I do.

You might want to share a link instead of telling me to look around. It's always better to help than tell everyone how it's wrong.

 

[jflongo]

Corona Mill and Spin Plate projects.

 

[ShadyBrewer]

I started a ghetto rig thread in the pic forum about a year ago. Look around!

The problem is that if you post in an old thread everyone gives ya sh*t about digging up an old post and "necro posting".



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[ShadyBrewer]

My "heat shield" which is an old license plate and "brew stand" which consists of cinder block to raise my kettle to the correct height. Hey, it works for me


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[unionrdr]

The problem is that if you post in an old thread everyone gives ya sh*t about digging up an old post and "necro posting".



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Most of the time,they're just pulling your leg. But these sort of threads are different,there's no "time limit". Necro posting isn't frowned on on here as long as you're contributing something,giving opinions,etc.

 

[MattGuk]

Mash tun made of copper hot water tank and my 21kw burner from a central heating boiler..... Can u guess what i do for a living lol

 

[unionrdr]

You clearly have better luck with the search functionality on this site than I do.

You might want to share a link instead of telling me to look around. It's always better to help than tell everyone how it's wrong.

Oops,make that 3 years ago. Anyway,it's cool to start another one,nothing wrong with that. We just like to point it out when there's a pre-existing thread. Here's the link; https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f85/ghetto-brew-setups-253999/

 

[mtnagel]

Mash tun made of copper hot water tank and my 21kw burner from a central heating boiler..... Can u guess what i do for a living lol

I think you win the thread

 

[MattGuk]

Lol its amazing how my job and homebrewing come together.
The only thing i need now is some sort of dispensing contraption lol.
Im brewing tonight so i coild post a quick video of the burner in action if ya want?

 

[Benedetto]

Lol its amazing how my job and homebrewing come together.
The only thing i need now is some sort of dispensing contraption lol.
Im brewing tonight so i coild post a quick video of the burner in action if ya want?

I'd love to see a video of that in action. Post it!

 

[MattGuk]

I'd love to see a video of that in action. Post it!

Will do, im brewing this weekend so will post a couple of videos

 

[roastquake]

My scapwood oast. For drying hops, and in this case, home-malted grain

 

[Benedetto]

How's this for ghetto:

This was my first attempt at controlling the fermentation temperatures with a water bath. A year later and my method is still pretty similar, but a little more organized.

What are those small black things? Space heaters?

 

[mtnagel]

These things?

If so, they are my stir plates. They are converted computer fans with a hard drive magnet. I attach them to the water bath to circulate the water. Without them, the water bath temp wasn't consistent. Works great.

 

[brewmcq]

Here's my stir plate build. I used the bottom tray, of a medium sized plastic gardening pot.

That's definitely awesome.

 

[Cyclman]

I would like to say this is ghetto, but it more reflects my poor woodworking skills.

 

[electrolight]

Didn't want to hold the bag the whole time it was draining...

 

[Ramitt]

That is awesome electrolight.

 

[mattbeer]

My wort chiller


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[Zepth]

Didn't want to hold the bag the whole time it was draining...

I had a similar setup, until my cheapo BIAB died. Imagination required: I have a walkthrough style kitchen. Took car roofrack from one counter to opposite side of kitchen, effectively blocking the walkthrough option. Only thing I had to hold the bag in place was a handful of vise grips.

Other one that I haven't got a photo of is the Barley Crusher malt mill with a 7.8amp dewalt hammer drill sticking off the side of it, with the mill resting on a 6 gal bucket and the drill resting on a kitchen chair. Milled 2 batches by hand then gave up on that party.

 

[electrolight]

That is awesome electrolight.

Haha thanks. Glad I have a fan!

 

[Benedetto]

Yeah, those things. That's cool. I have a stir plate, and I've done water baths for my fermenters, but it's never dawned on me to combine the two.

Very cool

 

[donovanmaxwell]

Great thread! I've actually got a water heater and some lids laying around that will work for a stir plate. Once I get some projects done I'll post up.

 

[evrose]

These things?

If so, they are my stir plates. They are converted computer fans with a hard drive magnet. I attach them to the water bath to circulate the water. Without them, the water bath temp wasn't consistent. Works great.

A small small submersible aquarium pump would do a better job.

 

[mtnagel]

A small small submersible aquarium pump would do a better job.

Possibly, but the stir plates work fine and I already have them so why should I buy something else?

 

[Agent]

I present my Boil Kettle! My answer to converting to electric for <$40. Plug those puppies into GFI outlets, and away you go. Still holding out to come across a Keg/Keggle for cheap somewhere nearby, but 3.5 years later, this guy is still in full operation.

 

[donovanmaxwell]

Agent, do you have any problems scorching the wort? I have thought of something similar, but I have reservations directly heating the wort. In my experience with heating up the heat transfer oil for machinery, the heating elements always have burnt oil on them. Though, your heating elements put out significantly less heat and I do realize there is a world of difference between heat transfer oil and wort. Just curious about your experience.

 

[Agent]

As the blackened element shows, I've managed to scorch the wort once. However, that was extenuating circumstances where I really wanted to push my limits. I tried to make a IIPA, but had to collect more wort than my little 7.5 gallon pot could handle, so I split it and put 5 gallons in the kettle, and 3 gallons on the stove top. In an effort to quickly reduce the volume, I boiled with both elements (normally I heat with both, but boil with one, which produces a nice lightly gurgling boil) which produced a extremely violent boil, and a finished beer that tasted distinctly burned.

It has not happened before that incident, or since. Even though I'm using fairly short 120V 2,000 watt elements, scorching the wort has never otherwise been an issue, even with the very light beers. I think the very low viscosity of the wort, and the ability to readily mix keeps the risk of scorching to a minimum. However, if one were to use something like this in conjunction with BIAB, I could see the potential for issues to arise.