Show us your sculpture or brew rig

[SmokeHavel]

Ok, I really really like the Tri-clamps. Is there that much of a difference using Tri's over QD's?

 

[SS_Brewing_Co]

Ok, I really really like the Tri-clamps. Is there that much of a difference using Tri's over QD's?

I prefer tri clover because they are super easy to use and clean and the don't leak. QD's (from what I hear) leak over time. The down side to tri clover is they are expensive. Every connection needs two ferrules a gasket and a clamp. And if you get Barbed ferrules The price only goes up. In my opinion they are worth ever penny.

 

[SmokeHavel]

In the UK they often call boil kettles "coppers" for this reason. Even if they're no longer copper.

Kal

I thought "copper's" were the men that chased you during prohibition for drinking.

 

[hafmpty]

Ok, I really really like the Tri-clamps. Is there that much of a difference using Tri's over QD's?

I prefer tri clover because they are super easy to use and clean and the don't leak. QD's (from what I hear) leak over time. The down side to tri clover is they are expensive. Every connection needs two ferrules a gasket and a clamp. And if you get Barbed ferrules The price only goes up. In my opinion they are worth ever penny.

They are easy to clean and if you have them actually welded to your kettle like the Sabco Kettles (see www.brewmagic.com), you don't ever have to worry about grime and gunk in the teflon tape used in standard threaded fittings. For cleaning I simply detach the fitting, run a brush through the port and viola, it's clean. Nasties can't hide anywhere.

Some guys install NPT/tri-clamp adapters to their kegs and such, but in those instances, I'm honestly not sure why. The whole purpose of the tri-clamp is to be sanitary. That's why they are often called sanitary fittings. But with the threads, teflon tape, etc. they are not sanitary. They do look nice though. It could be like SS said, mainly for leak proofing. It seems to me that unless you're installing in a truly sanitary setup, the added expense doesn't seem worth it.

Don't mean to derail. Maybe those with tri-clamp adapters could chime in if they have something I'm missing.

 

[JesperX]

That is sweet- details?

The shelving is just some heavy duty adjustable chrome wire shelving I ordered from www.theshelvingstore.com. 4 x 44" posts, 2 x 34" posts, 6 x 4 inch swivel casters, and 3 x 24" square shelves. Came to about $225 after shipping and it comes with more clips than you'll probably ever need. The shelving is rated to 800 lbs evenly distributed so it doesn't even bow under the weight of an almost full 10 gallon rubbermaid mash tun.

Mash tun is your standard home depot cooler with a 1/2" stainless ball valve conversion kit. For lautering I made a CPVC manifold and connected it with a 1/2" threaded CPVC fitting:

The kettles I picked up from Spike Brewing, they have a couple small dents here and there but nothing game breaking. They get the job done for a great price. Both kettles have two horizontal welded couplers. HLT has ball vave on one, T fitting with 6" probe thermometer and sight glass on the other. The BK has ball valve and just an elbow fitting with a sight glass. I picked up all the fittings, thermometer, and sight glass equipment from brew hardware. Once I get a pump, I'll use it to pump from the HLT on the bottom to the mash tun and I won't have to do any lifting other than to clean the mash tun when I'm done.

Burners are just your average banjo burner and I've got a separate propane tank for each, although you can limp by with just one if you really need to.

 

[limulus]

My New baby

I've been trying to figure out what the source of the metal in this stand is. It looks like something I've seen many times and I can't put my finger on it. Enlighten me...please!

 

[SS_Brewing_Co]

I've been trying to figure out what the source of the metal in this stand is. It looks like something I've seen many times and I can't put my finger on it. Enlighten me...please!

Unistrut. It's common with electrical panels and such.

 

[limulus]

Unistrut. It's common with electrical panels and such.

Thanks. I've probably seen that stuff at HD

 

[Mike_]

I've been trying to figure out what the source of the metal in this stand is. It looks like something I've seen many times and I can't put my finger on it. Enlighten me...please!

Yes its Strut look up "B-Line"

http://www.cooperindustries.com/content/public/en/b-line/products/bolted_framing.html

its like an erector set for adults!!!

 

[SteveMillerTime]

My super simple solution to a gravity fed system

 

[AussieBrewerInColorado]

Just finished my new brew table. This is a picture of how it should lay out when i'm finished.

A couple other pic's

this is bloody amazing! I want one.

 

[freedombrew]

So many cool ideas in this thread. I got the inspiration for my build here, so thanks for sharing.

I went with two coolers and a shelf. You can see more of the build here.

 

[RoxtonBrewing]

 

[fermentinginpa]

Wow, great setup RoxtonBrewing!

 

[rekoob]

+1
love the looks of your stand. Well done.

 

[Hex]

My gravity powered pilot brewery!
Direct fire mash work good!
I call it a jiffy pop mash tun.
Ceramic insulated under five layers heavy duty aluminum foil.
Search forum for lauter cane construction.

 

[Im_Lars]

Just finished my new brew table. This is a picture of how it should lay out when i'm finished

A couple other pic's

Sorry I accidentally deleted the pictures. Thanks for the PM. Back up

 

[tally350z]

So I finally got around to getting my stand close to finished. I have to add some more fittings in the mt and bk, and put in the fb in the mt.

 

[justcopen]

It is almost time to retire old blue it has made a lot of good beer…


But sometime change is good. This is a little early I hope the rest of the parts come in this week and start some test on it and maybe a brew this weekend.

 

[EngineerByDay]

Blichmann kettles: 15/15/20
10" Banjo burners - 30 psi
Quick Disconnects everywhere
Stainless steel fittings throughout
March Pump Stainless Steel
75ft copper heat exchanger
15G plastic conical
Arctic Air 22cf upright ferm chamber with digital temp control (heat/cool)
Kenmore chest freezer with 6 cornies and 2 10lb CO2 tanks

 

[rekoob]

Nice setup, love the coil... you make that yourself?

 

[EngineerByDay]

Nice setup, love the coil... you make that yourself?

The coil is from Northern Brewer, but I made the bracket to hold it. I needed to keep the coil centered in the volume of water and off the bottom of the HLT. It is also quite rigid, so I can connect/disconnect one-handed no problem.

 

[Espi]

I am still working on mine and planned on doing a build thread after i got a bit further on with it.. But here are some pics.

Starting to go up.

Starting to clean up some of the welds.

Paint and casters on.

Burner shields just sitting in place.

Another burner shield mounting pic. I welded a tab to the back of the frame to hold it from twisting.

I hope to get a good amount of time this weekend and finish the trim work on the burners and start plumbing the gas.

I will take any input.

Cheers fellas.

Scott

 

[pfgonzo]

Espi (Scott), did you paint stainless steel? Is there a reason to put high temp paint on stainless (other than wanting to see the stand in a diff color)?

 

[Espi]

The stand isn't stainless. Just the burner shields are. Its just standard 16 gauge 2 inch square stock. I am sure this is the nicest this thing will ever look.

 

[Espi]

BTW thanks to everyone that posted up in this thread. I stole little bits from all the stands I liked and and going to use alot of them in the final product.

 

[pfgonzo]

The stand isn't stainless. Just the burner shields are. Its just standard 16 gauge 2 inch square stock. I am sure this is the nicest this thing will ever look.

Gotcha. Assumption on my part; it just looked super shiny after you welded it together.

 

[Kyled93]

Had to make a few adjustments last night. Tonight the SS pumps get mounted!

 

[rossi46]

Nice, 3 penrose kettles. I have one and love it. I was going to get 2 more in time to replace my keggles, but I guess that's not going to happen now.

 

[cyndysm]

Has anyone checked out globalindustrial.com for the wesco mini-winch stacker? It's pricey but it's the only thing I've found to lift those heavy carboys. Haven't bought yet.