Steam Injection Rig

[Hank Reardon]

I've built a wand that will transfer steam into my 40gallon SS BOP. It is made from 3/4" copper, and connects to my boiler through a closeout sale concentric reducer and adapater. The fittings are now all sweated, and I've put 4 unions into it so it will break down and fit in my tote.

Nothing earth shattering here, except I'm going to try AG. Probably a booners to start, and the sky is the limit from there. Good times lay ahead.

Special thanks to RG, Brutal, and the others who have done this and modeled the way.

The pic shows the blow off valve (ball) that will be open until we reach sufficient steam supply. The PRV is 15#, and will be inline on the crossover to the wand (facing away from me or others). The wand is a vertical drop into the BOP with some holes in copper pipe.

Can't wait to try her out, and will post a full picture at that time.

[BoomTown]

Looks good, what we see, but I suggest you add a vacuum release valve to prevent the 'suck back' of mash if you leave your valves open and cut off your heat. If at steam temp, you will suck mash back into your boiler as the steam condenses and the air space sucks back to the fluid . Good luck.

[MichiganCornhusker]

Get a keg and set it up like a thumper and you can use that to steam strip goopy ferments that might otherwise scorch, like rye or wheat or potatoes.

[rgreen2002]

Welcome to the steam club Hank(this welcome is of course from a guy dead in the middle of his first steam mash and ferment). That's a nice start you have there...it could probably run forever. John Galt would be proud.

[Hank Reardon]

Boom, thanks for the advice. I will figure out what to do to add the vac break. MC, also, thanks for the additional design material. I need the help as I blindly wander this path.

I've added some more photos. I put her all together tonight so folks could see it was more than a PRV and a ball valve. The BOP is something I found on Craigs List after looking for months, and is a 150L wine fermenter with the gasketed lid. I am pretty proud of it since I got it for $150, about 25% of the price you pay new, and cheaper than a stainless barrel in my part of the world by $100. The guy said he used it one time, but based on how it looks, he could've possibly used it twice. It also has a 1.5' ferrule on the bottom, and came with a SS butterfly valve and a spout that triclamps to the valve body. I doubt I will use the spout, but you never know. The pot will double as the mash pot & fermenter.

I also have picked up some EZ strainers in 400 & 200 micron. I will just put the bucket under the valve and hopefully be able to get most of the grain out. I still have to build a stand for the BOP to get it far enough above grade to put a 5 gallon bucket underneath the valve, and finish soldering the modifications + the additions suggested by you all.

I will be using my floor drill press & a mud paddle from the home store for the mixing apparatus.

More feedback is appreciated on this end.

[Hank Reardon]

Welcome to the steam club Hank(this welcome is of course from a guy dead in the middle of his first steam mash and ferment). That's a nice start you have there...it could probably run forever. John Galt would be proud.

Who is John Galt?

[Kegg_jam]

I like it. I like it a lot.

You already have the vacuum break. The ball valve on top. Just crank it open when you kill the power.

[rgreen2002]

Hank, how are you planning on holes for the head piece? Corn has a predilection for getting everywhere you don't want it to be.

[MichiganCornhusker]

That is a nice mash pot! I think the taller/skinnier will work well for steam heating.
I drilled the holes in my steam arm on the underside, pointing down. I have the arm very close to the bottom of my keg and I haven't had any clogging issues.

[Hank Reardon]

Hank, how are you planning on holes for the head piece? Corn has a predilection for getting everywhere you don't want it to be.

I was thinking about drilling holes parallel to the floor, but I see MCH did his face down. I'm thinking face down sounds good to me.

[rgreen2002]

Originally I wanted to make mine similar to brutal with the square head and the "H" crossover. I was planning on making holes in the copper and then using the SS from a water heater connection as a sleeve for the copper. I thought I could put whatever holes in the copper I wanted and then stick the copper inside the SS sleeve.

Then I just eliminated the copper. MCH also sounds like he has a workable plan. Just more fodder for ya.

I do think that BOP is quite nice...

[Kegg_jam]

I've had good luck with about a 4 and 8 o'clock orientation.

[shadylane]

Looking good hank
Have you considered using a TALL Manometer to measure the boiler pressure.
That way you will be aware of over pressure before the 15psi PRV vents.
The Manometer could be a super accurate and reliable PRV that uses water and gravity

[Hank Reardon]

Looking good hank
Have you considered using a TALL Manometer to measure the boiler pressure.
That way you will be aware of over pressure before the 15psi PRV vents.
The Manometer could be a super accurate and reliable PRV that uses water and gravity

I have thought about a way to put a gauge of some sort on the 1.5" tri clamp on top of the boiler. Haven't done a lot of research to find a solution for that, but it would be nice to know the pressure for sure.

I will spend some time googling tall manometers.

[rgreen2002]

Just because I am curious and might be incorrect.... could you not just put a pressure gauge in line into the tubing above the BOP? Say an old pressure cooker gauge... I ask because I have been thinking of doing this myself.

[MichiganCornhusker]

I will spend some time googling tall manometers.

+1
A manometer is something I've been wanting to do for a long time, I need to move it to the top of my list.

[Hank Reardon]

Finally got to the cleaning run yesterday. She performed like a champ. A noisy little champion.

Brought 5 gallons of water in the BOP to a boil in around 40 minutes.

I'm thinking the 1st Booner's will be mashed over Labor Day. Before then, I still have to clean the outside of the piping, and the go to town.

I will try to post a video when corn is in the pot.

[shadylane]

Finally got to the cleaning run yesterday. She performed like a champ. A noisy little champion.

Brought 5 gallons of water in the BOP to a boil in around 40 minutes.

I'm thinking the 1st Booner's will be mashed over Labor Day. Before then, I still have to clean the outside of the piping, and the go to town.

I will try to post a video when corn is in the pot.

Don't forget the earplugs

[rgreen2002]

Don't forget the earplugs

...ain't that the truth!

[freefall]

I did a cleaning and test on my mine. I needed a check valve. so need to play a bit more. Keep us updated on you progress,

[BoomTown]

Hank, how are you planning on holes for the head piece? Corn has a predilection for getting everywhere you don't want it to be.

I was thinking about drilling holes parallel to the floor, but I see MCH did his face down. I'm thinking face down sounds good to me.

Our commercial grade, steam injection mash tun manifold is venting steam face down too. Never had a clog yet. easier to rinse clean between cooks, and easy to clean at the end of mashing cycles when we clean out the pot.

[steelmb]

... The PRV is 15#, ...

Do you have any specs on that pot regarding pressure? 15 psi is a fair bit of pressure for a vessel that size. I really doubt you will ever get to 5 psi let alone 15 psi unless something really goes wrong but that is what a PRV is for. However the PRV will do you no good if it is sized incorrectly and something on your boiler lets loose before reaching the pressure that the PRV is rated for.

[shadylane]

If there's 24 inches of mash in the pot then the boiler pressure will be around .87 psi
Unless the injector starts to plug up
That's why I use a PRV and a 6' tall manometer.

[steelmb]

I realize that under normal operating conditions that the pressure will be next to nothing. However, PRVs are used to protect things and oneself should, for some unforeseen reason, the operating conditions become abnormal and the pressure increases to something dangerous. There is no point in having the PRV if it's set value to release at, is above the bursting pressure of the vessel it is supposed to protect. This is why I asked if he had any info on the vessel and what pressure it was capable of withstanding. If someone were going to put 10 psi in a 55 gal steel oil drum I would not want to be anywhere near it. From looking at the picture the vessel is probably sturdier than a 55 gal drum but there are also things like safety factors to consider. The vessel should have the capability of holding 3 to 4 times what the pressure relief valve is set at. At a very minimum twice the pressure which might satisfy most folks here but I'm sure it would not satisfy the authorities that regulate pressure vessels. I just don't want the OP to have a false sense of security just because he has installed a PRV.

[BoomTown]

... The PRV is 15#, ...

Do you have any specs on that pot regarding pressure? 15 psi is a fair bit of pressure for a vessel that size. I really doubt you will ever get to 5 psi let alone 15 psi unless something really goes wrong but that is what a PRV is for. However the PRV will do you no good if it is sized incorrectly and something on your boiler lets loose before reaching the pressure that the PRV is rated for.

We suggest a 5 lbs PRV.

[Tomb]

Hope this is not too OT...

How much water would it take to generate the steam to boil 5 gallons in the pot?
Would that steam increase the volume in the pot?

T

[DeepSouth]

Hope this is not too OT...

How much water would it take to generate the steam to boil 5 gallons in the pot?
Would that steam increase the volume in the pot?

T

About 3/4 of a gallon give or take if you are heating from room temperature up to a boil. So if you started with 5 gallons at room temperature, it's going to end up being closer to 6 gallons once the steam is injected to bring it up to a boil.

[Hank Reardon]

Well, this is the weekend. I will be making a run at Booner's with Pintoshine's enzymes, and a feed grade rolled corn. I chose rolled mostly because it is the same price in my tiny part of the globe.

Sunday nite, I will have a on-grain ferment going in my fabulous fermenter that I bragged about more than a month ago. It is a SS 40 gallon (US) tank w/ a 1.5" ferrule on the bottom. It came with a butterfly valve that will work fine, and I can cap if it leaks, or let it ride if it doesn't. Which means for those of us from Montana, it has not yet been tested.

I have 50# of rolled corn, so I will be using 23 gallons of tap water from my well. I will then follow the process from the T&T, except that my backset is from UJSSM. So I guess some purists would say that is not a Booners. I suppose, a purist may say that all the way through from here, since my plan is to continue to make this product, and no matter what, it will have some relation to UJ.

Anyway, I digress. I will post a video with some (hopefully) helpful tips for the next person to attempt this. I'm guessing it will be a sh*tshow, but will not know for sure for another 48 hours.

Can't wait.

[shadylane]

Wish you luck
Don't worry about the purists, they can't even make an exact copy of Hank Reardon Whiskey.
On a side note don't forget the hearing protection, When the steam hits it, a big SS pot like that is going to ring like a bell.

[MichiganCornhusker]

...and no matter what, it will have some relation to UJ. .

And a fine heritage that will be.

Manage your pH zones for the different enzymes and you will find great success.
Looking forward to the show, good luck.