Stainless Wiki Conical under $100?

[chippy_23]

So I am at home today working on my house and up pulls the UPS guy and drops off the bucket ring from Gemplers. Guess what the funnel and ring fit almost perfectly, (but not water tight)

I am thinking a bead of food grade caulk around the inside of the ring and a chunk of tubing where the ring has a gap for the latch and it would be very water tight.

Now Where can we find a stainless pail that has the same opening as a brew bucket?

Lg

Bonwit,

there is the fitting it comes with that female "nut" on it. It may be a PVC connector but again any 3/4 inch fitting with a shoulder will work.

Lg

 

[Bonwit]

Well, I tried making a gasket using silicon sealer between the two oiled surfaces. Fail. There just isn't enough surface area to make a wide enough gasket that will survive disassembly. Also, I had the same issue with the handle rivets leaking.

I am rapidly approaching the point where I'm going to weld this thing together. A side benefit would be being able to weld some studs on the pot to attach legs.

It would have to be welded from the outside and one concern is filling the inside valley where the two parts come together. This would be the perfect location for bacteria to hide. My first thought was to fill w/ silver solder (I'm planning to cut a hole in the bottom of the pot (top of fermenter) to install a corny-keg lid, so that's the size hole I have to gain entrance through). Not sure I could solder in that tight a confinement. Wonder if epoxy would work?

Any ideas?

 

[Egbert]

Ok, so the contact area between the 2 is too small to get a good seal.
Lets take another tack.

Try taking a flat sheet and sealing it against the pot with a gasket.
Take another flat gasket and use it to make a seal with the sheet against the funnel.

That you re now making a seal against the sheet steel would be easier than getting a seal against the 2 round surfaces.
Who cares about any difficult to clean edges in this scenario because it will be taken apart to clean.

 

[Marquez]

Any updates on the project guys?

Please post latest finds, if any.

Thanks!

 

[Bobby_M]

I get the desire to try to get something for less but this project is inviting disaster. Relying on 36" of sealing surface is foolish especially without a purpose made gasket. You also have a 1/2" dump at the bottom which is too small to dump a hearty yeast plug. I tend to think you're overstating the benefit of a conical but if you really wanted one, you'd probably be better off with a part time job with all the time spent. You still have to put a racking port in and build a stand.

I know, I know, I'm the grumpy downer just poking holes in dreams.

 

[Bonwit]

I haven't given up. . . It's just on the back burner for now. Really, you'd be amazed how secure the pot and the funnel are. The steel clamp band works amazingly well and I wouldn't worry about it coming apart.

Sealing it is another matter, and I think the answer is going to be a purpose made gasket stretched around each surface. What I envision is like a wide rubber band that will form itself around the lip of each vessel. Just have to find such a band.

 

[milldoggy]

What about a edge grip seal. Mcmaster has them. Let me see if I can find the part number.

Edit: http://www.mcmaster.com/#edge-grip-protective-edging/=epsckg

12335A62 or 12335A63

 

[nduetime]

Wow...have the price for the pots risen that much in less than a year? The cheapest 20 qt stainless steel pot on their ebay store is $39.99 (but I'm not sure it's the same pot as the model you listed). I found their website and they list the model number with a MSRP of $49.99. Am I not finding the same product as you listed?

 

[Bonwit]

What about a edge grip seal. Mcmaster has them. Let me see if I can find the part number.

Edit: http://www.mcmaster.com/#edge-grip-protective-edging/=epsckg

12335A62 or 12335A63

This looks promising. Wish I had a sample of sizes to try out. Sealing the ends looks like it will be a problem, as I doubt there's enough room to allow an overlap.

 

[milldoggy]

I used RTV 108 silicon to adhere it to my blichman false bottom. It is curing now, but seems rock solid.

 

[nduetime]

any updates?

 

[nduetime]

So I'm not sure anyone else is still trying to find a way to make this work, but I came across this while still searching for more options. Nice easy approach but I'm not sure it would provide the sealing power of something more flat. A little more searching and I found something else. Using a router with the appropriate bit, a jig, and a piece of wood like in this to make a mold might accomplish the gasket needed to make this work.

 

[Rb1972]

I'm going to try the same thing with SSF6 silver brazing rods from muggyweld. You can braze with these rods at 1150° and they are cadmium free, so it's food safe.