Super Simple 15G Plastic Conical

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Here is a pic of what I did for cooling mine. I couldnt decide if I wanted to use a bulb or reptile heater so I decided to look into a small space heater with a fan on it. The little white box on the bottom is the space heater which I ordered on Amazon for $30 or so.

conical in fridge.jpg
 
A buddy sent me a link to a craigslist ad and before I new it we both had 16 gallon conicals in our garage, each conical has a 110v pump, stand and a box full of oversized stainless quick disconnects, fittings, an oxygen regulator, a homemade heat exchanger of some kind, and both conicals were fitted with a stainless coil inside. Not a bad score for $150.

They looked a bit more used than I was hoping for but I figured if I couldn't get the holes on top sealed up and cleaned up then i'd sell off the extra fittings and conical and get a new one to put in the stand.

Now to build a chamber to house it so I can keep the temp controlled!

Conical1.jpg


Conical2.jpg


Conical3.jpg
 
A buddy sent me a link to a craigslist ad and before I new it we both had 16 gallon conicals in our garage, each conical has a 110v pump, stand and a box full of oversized stainless quick disconnects, fittings, an oxygen regulator, a homemade heat exchanger of some kind, and both conicals were fitted with a stainless coil inside. Not a bad score for $150.

They looked a bit more used than I was hoping for but I figured if I couldn't get the holes on top sealed up and cleaned up then i'd sell off the extra fittings and conical and get a new one to put in the stand.

Now to build a chamber to house it so I can keep the temp controlled!

Do you happen to know what they used that for? To me that looks like a home bio-diesel setup.
 
If it was biodiesel I would take all the stainless and do a good soak in simple green and then run it in the dishwasher. Then I wouldn't hesitate to brew with it. The plastic might be ruined but that is the cheapest part of the set up!!

Looks like a good find.
 
Do you happen to know what they used that for? To me that looks like a home bio-diesel setup.

He said his company was using them and it was all food grade liquid that was put through them.

It most certainly looks like a bio-diesel setup now that i've searched google. No odd smells coming from the tank or hoses though. I'll see what I find when I take it apart, I know there's some liquid in some of those lines/hoses. The two lines connected to the stainless coil inside are labeled as "glycol"

I'll let ya know what I find.
 
If it was biodiesel I would take all the stainless and do a good soak in simple green and then run it in the dishwasher. Then I wouldn't hesitate to brew with it. The plastic might be ruined but that is the cheapest part of the set up!!

Looks like a good find.

Thanks for the info! How would I tell if it was in fact bio-diesel? What smells should I be looking for or liquid odor/color?
 
Thanks for the info! How would I tell if it was in fact bio-diesel? What smells should I be looking for or liquid odor/color?


I've never done Bio diesel but have been reading a little about it. NOT AN EXPERT!!!

There are multiple base ingredients that are used to make "bio diesel" that everyone calls bio diesel. One of the more common ones is used grease from fry vats. Then they add some chemicals, let it sit and presto you saved the earth. (Not poking fun because my wife wants me to build an antique pick up with a bio diesel engine.)

I would think grease smells would be the only

Like I said though Simple Green is awesome. We use it in the military to clean everything and it cuts through every petroleum product I've ever seen. The nice part is its non toxic and rinses off really well. My dishwasher has a sanitize setting and if that isn't enough for you just boil it all. 210 degrees isn't' going to hurt stainless or the silicone washers.

Good luck
 
I've never done Bio diesel but have been reading a little about it. NOT AN EXPERT!!!

There are multiple base ingredients that are used to make "bio diesel" that everyone calls bio diesel. One of the more common ones is used grease from fry vats. Then they add some chemicals, let it sit and presto you saved the earth. (Not poking fun because my wife wants me to build an antique pick up with a bio diesel engine.)

I would think grease smells would be the only

Like I said though Simple Green is awesome. We use it in the military to clean everything and it cuts through every petroleum product I've ever seen. The nice part is its non toxic and rinses off really well. My dishwasher has a sanitize setting and if that isn't enough for you just boil it all. 210 degrees isn't' going to hurt stainless or the silicone washers.

Good luck

Thanks for the info. After cutting off most of the old hoses and disassembling most of the fittings i'm still not sure exactly what was in there but the odor was somewhat similar to bio-diesel from what I could tell however it was clear and not yellow/tan/brown in color. Was also a bit greasy on the hands. I'll get a picture of the quick disconnects up, they are by far the beefiest connects i've ever seen, way industrial. I'll do a simple green spray down and soak then multiple rinses and maybe a boil and call them good. Most of them we'll be selling off to help fund the new conicals. You can see the female ends of the quick connects in the upper left and the male end of connects in the lower left.

photo(34).JPG
 
I got my tank today. I'm pretty excited. Plus got it at the local farm and ranch for $80. The problem is my fridge is too small. Guess I'm selling the fridge for another bigger one.

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I can tell you right now that the ball valve you have on there will not work. I have a 1.5 valve on one and a 2 inch on the other and they both can plug easily if I wait to long to dump. I would never go smaller then a 1 inch but bigger is better.
Oh and no brass, use stainless or plastic.
 
Brass and copper are not cool to be in contact with fermented wort. Someone else can rattle off the science. stainless or plastic only.
 
fpweeks said:
Brass and copper are not cool to be in contact with fermented wort. Someone else can rattle off the science. stainless or plastic only.

I believe the acidity of the fermented wort in contact with brass for long periods of time will start to make it corrode. Which means not-so-great to drink beer.
 
I've seen brass all over this thread and other plastic conical threads, as well. I have not heard any reports of not-so-great beer. Have you?

Don't get me wrong - I do agree to stay away from brass (and copper) inside fermenters.
 
What about the copper coils for temp control. Ive seen a few pics here with that in there conicals. How would you use a cooling coil in it other than copper and who has a supplier?
 
Found in BYO:

"Copper is a double-edged sword in brewing. It is beneficial before fermentation, but detrimental afterwards. Copper ions react with the hydrogen sulfide produced during fermentation and reduce it to insoluble copper sulfide, which is left behind with the trub and yeast cake. Switching to all stainless steel brewing equipment can lead to noticeable quantities of hydrogen sulfide and sulfur off-flavors and aromas in the beer. The use of copper wort chillers will provide all the copper necessary, as will including a short piece (1 inch) of copper tubing in the boil.

Copper is a problem post-fermentation because it catalyzes staling reactions, including the production of hydrogen peroxide and can oxidize the alcohols to aldehydes. Finished beer should not be stored in contact with copper, although serving beer with copper tubing in a jockey box should not be a problem, because of the short contact time immediately before serving."

:mug:
 
Here is something I was thinking about with an immersion chiller inside the Ferm tank. I have 25' of copper, which I will switch out once my special order stainless comes in. I used 1/4" ice maker line with compression fittings. I have my keezer right next to the Ferm tank and will keep a 4 gallon closed system. I am using a small aquarium pump that can lift to 4'. The major problem was chilled water lines into the lid of the tank getting tangled when the lid is removed. So I had a quick disconnect in the "extra" box. So I bought another one... And a few other items.

Here is the list
2 - Watts 1/4" Compression Union with Insert - $5.47
2 - Watts 3/8" x 1/4" Compression Connection - $4.34
2 - Watts 1/4" x 1/4" Brass Compression x MIP Elbow - $3.29
2 - PreciseFit 3/8" Quick Disconnect Adaptor Set - $9.98
2 - Watts 1/4" x 20' Polyethylene Tubing - $2.82
2 - Watts 1/4" Lead Free Female Pipe Coupling - $3.87

I cleaned all the brass with the super anti lead hydrogen peroxide. (Look it up when you get all the parts.)

I drilled 1/2" holes in the lid I tried to make a face, who doesn't like a funny face. The 1/2" is perfect for threading the 3/8" through the lid. Then I put the female quick disconnect Teflon taped 3/8" x 1/4" compression connection. Attached the coil along with 17" of poly tube on the other side of the quick connect. It hangs perfect at the bottom do the Ferm tank. I measured it so it would be just above where most of the trub would be, more of a guess. I used the rest of the poly tube to run from the quick disconnect to the coupling to the elbow to the water tank. I have a special tube That connects the pump to the poly tube. I have an eBay aquarium kit attached to plug and long cord to turn the pump on/off to cool/heat the tank.

I took a couple pics when I thought about it.

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image-3729031468.jpg


image-2049865876.jpg
 
Here is something I was thinking about with an immersion chiller inside the Ferm tank. I have 25' of copper, which I will switch out once my special order stainless comes in. I used 1/4" ice maker line with compression fittings. I have my keezer right next to the Ferm tank and will keep a 4 gallon closed system. I am using a small aquarium pump that can lift to 4'. The major problem was chilled water lines into the lid of the tank getting tangled when the lid is removed. So I had a quick disconnect in the "extra" box. So I bought another one... And a few other items.

Looks good but you should switch out the copper tubing for stainless for the reasons mentioned by others. Brass fittings won't be a problem since they are just on the lid and most likely won't have much, if any, contact with the beer. Here's a couple of photos of what I did for my 60 gallon plastic conicals.

The photos aren't great but I'm using swagelok stainless bulkhead fittings to connect the stainless coil to the lid. The main problem I have right now is that the silicone o-rings I've used (show in the last photo) get squished and don't hold a good seal. I've looked around for flat/squared food grade rubber washers of the appropriate size, but they seem really hard to find. If anyone has ideas for this, I'd love to hear about it!

immersion_cooling1.jpg


immersion_cooling2.jpg


immersion_cooling3.jpg


immersion_cooling4.jpg
 
The main problem I have right now is that the silicone o-rings I've used (show in the last photo) get squished and don't hold a good seal. I've looked around for flat/squared food grade rubber washers of the appropriate size, but they seem really hard to find. If anyone has ideas for this, I'd love to hear about it!

What about this?

http://www.stainlessbrewing.com/12-Silicone-Gasket_p_111.html

I ended up buying these based of another guy's build
http://www.stainlessbrewing.com/12-Bulkhead-Connector-with-Gasket-and-Washer_p_109.html
 
Here is something I was thinking about with an immersion chiller inside the Ferm tank. I have 25' of copper, which I will switch out once my special order stainless comes in. I used 1/4" ice maker line with compression fittings. I have my keezer right next to the Ferm tank and will keep a 4 gallon closed system. I am using a small aquarium pump that can lift to 4'. The major problem was chilled water lines into the lid of the tank getting tangled when the lid is removed. So I had a quick disconnect in the "extra" box. So I bought another one... And a few other items.

Here is the list
2 - Watts 1/4" Compression Union with Insert - $5.47
2 - Watts 3/8" x 1/4" Compression Connection - $4.34
2 - Watts 1/4" x 1/4" Brass Compression x MIP Elbow - $3.29
2 - PreciseFit 3/8" Quick Disconnect Adaptor Set - $9.98
2 - Watts 1/4" x 20' Polyethylene Tubing - $2.82
2 - Watts 1/4" Lead Free Female Pipe Coupling - $3.87

I cleaned all the brass with the super anti lead hydrogen peroxide. (Look it up when you get all the parts.)

I drilled 1/2" holes in the lid I tried to make a face, who doesn't like a funny face. The 1/2" is perfect for threading the 3/8" through the lid. Then I put the female quick disconnect Teflon taped 3/8" x 1/4" compression connection. Attached the coil along with 17" of poly tube on the other side of the quick connect. It hangs perfect at the bottom do the Ferm tank. I measured it so it would be just above where most of the trub would be, more of a guess. I used the rest of the poly tube to run from the quick disconnect to the coupling to the elbow to the water tank. I have a special tube That connects the pump to the poly tube. I have an eBay aquarium kit attached to plug and long cord to turn the pump on/off to cool/heat the tank.

I took a couple pics when I thought about it.

Very similar to our current set up. (https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/15-gallon-conical-fermenter-cooling-system-333151/)

I personally would wait for the SS coil to come in before you try it with a batch of fresh wort. Fermentation and copper don't get along very well. Let us know how it works out as we are about to hook our system up using a dorm fridge for our water chiller. :tank:
 
Modo I'm really curious to see what kind of temps you can keep with the dorm fridge. Can't wait to see how it goes

Yeah hoping to get that going before our next brew day. Going to try to brew this recipe of mine. Just transferred the Kolsch we had in the conical with the chiller. Nailed our FG and it tasted great. No off flavors that we could detect. Seems like the chiller did its job. I'll keep everyone posted on the dorm fridge experiment. :ban:
 
Those bulkheads look almost identical to mine... I'm guessing stainlessbrewing gets them from Swagelok. That picture is not very clear. Are those gaskets nice and flat? I think I would also need the washer that his fittings come with. Also, I'm pretty sure mine are 3/8 inch...
 
I bought a 13 1/2" inside diameter (-456) red 70 euro FDA silicone o-ring from orings-online.com to fit on the lid assembly. It costs $9.87 each plus shipping. No nasty airborne particles - flying, crawling or otherwise - are going to get inside!. The lid itself seems to tighten on the assembly well enough on its own.


b5da2cc2.jpg

Found a better deal at oringwarehouse.com, 2 for $9.62!

-456 70-durometer Silicone, Red, FDA

Compound: 1200-70 2 $4.81 $9.62
Subtotal $9.62
Tax (7.75%) $0.75
Shipping $5.30

Order Total $15.67
 
chapusin said:
Found a better deal at oringwarehouse.com, 2 for $9.62!

-456 70-durometer Silicone, Red, FDA

Compound: 1200-70 2 $4.81 $9.62
Subtotal $9.62
Tax (7.75%) $0.75
Shipping $5.30

Order Total $15.67

Awesome thanks for the sweet find
 
Found a better deal at oringwarehouse.com, 2 for $9.62!

-456 70-durometer Silicone, Red, FDA

Compound: 1200-70 2 $4.81 $9.62
Subtotal $9.62
Tax (7.75%) $0.75
Shipping $5.30

Order Total $15.67

Nice find! Thanks!

I like the price of the 70 durometer buna o-rings even better, at $1.90 each. Isn't that the same stuff used for Cornie keg lid o-rings?
 
Squeeky said:
Just a heads up on my completed stand. You will likely see a detailed how-to in an upcoming BYO ;)

Thats awesome. I used a moving dolly from harbor freight and aded it to the bottom of mine for easy moving. Make sure your floor is level where your keeping it.
 
This project is amazing!!!!! I am thinking about buying two 15 gallon tanks. Because I hate using carboys.. I was wondering who has the best deal on these units?
I been looking around a few websites seems like the 30 gallon one is only pennies more but not sure if I will need that big. I could possible make 20 gallon batches but not sure if I am ready for that.
 
I would definitely add a couple of 2x4's to that setup. It looks a little flimsy. I would hate to lose any beer, I would cry.
 
It's confirmed; my wife bought me one for Christmas. Sad part is that it is in a box and wrapped, waiting to be unwrapped on Christmas. I already bought my 1.5 ballvalve, bulkhead for racking port, and all of my camlocks fittings. I don't know if I can wait that long though.

Forgive me...that is some funny sheeot. Just not fair!
 
Try spraysmarter based out of indianapolis got mine from them for under 60.00 and shipped fast look them up on web they have a website id call to order though to make sure u get the complete drainout version

Ditto for me. I ordered mine from Spraymaster last night. Got UPS notification this morning it has shipped and should be delivered (to Eastern North Carolina) Thursday. It was almost $10.00 less than Ohio Valley.
 
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