Keg Boiler with Cabinet Build Story

[sltm1]

Thanx Badmotivator, your advice and a neutral flame will be used as per instructions. I'll definitely post pic's during the process. BTW, you wouldn't be close to the Idaho border would you?

[Badmotivator]

Thanx Badmotivator, your advice and a neutral flame will be used as per instructions. I'll definitely post pic's during the process. BTW, you wouldn't be close to the Idaho border would you?

Is 7 hours close?

[Desvio]

Is 7 hours close?

You're only about 3hrs from me (PDX), and I'm in your hood often... Just in case there are good suppliers out there, never thought to look with all my internet ordering.

[Badmotivator]

Is 7 hours close?

You're only about 3hrs from me (PDX), and I'm in your hood often... Just in case there are good suppliers out there, never thought to look with all my internet ordering.

Late in the game I found Paramount Supply Co. They have branches all over the NW. They won't be the cheapest, but they can get lots of relevant parts (triclamp fittings) in a day or so if they don't have them in stock.

[Bushman]

We have one locally and I found their prices to be very reasonable.

[sltm1]

Sounds like a trip to Eugene from here (Weiser Id)...not so close, too bad.

[Snackson]

I think I am going to have to replicate this! I have a spare keg with an actual 2" tri clover fitting(with the groove). Might invert it, cut the skirt off, add a 4" tri clover to the top, and a few 2" sight glass fittings along with an element port. I already have all the ferrules lying around too!

[Badmotivator]

I think I am going to have to replicate this! I have a spare keg with an actual 2" tri clover fitting(with the groove). Might invert it, cut the skirt off, add a 4" tri clover to the top, and a few 2" sight glass fittings along with an element port. I already have all the ferrules lying around too!

Sweet! I'd be happy to help in any way I can. I made a number of mistakes and I may be able to help you avoid some of them.

[Snackson]

I've got the soldering down from my brewing, simple soldered a bunch of 1/2" couplings into my keggles. I'd like to go 8" but the cost is way up there, maybe in the future. I just need to decide how many sight glasses to install, right now I am thinking the top like yours, one right at half way and one 3/4 the way up. I actually just got done soldering a 2" ferrule on top of my MileHi 2" column.

[Badmotivator]

I've got the soldering down from my brewing, simple soldered a bunch of 1/2" couplings into my keggles. I'd like to go 8" but the cost is way up there, maybe in the future. I just need to decide how many sight glasses to install, right now I am thinking the top like yours, one right at half way and one 3/4 the way up. I actually just got done soldering a 2" ferrule on top of my MileHi 2" column.

The most important sight glass for me is the one at the very top of the front, so I can watch for foaming and the cessation of foaming. Next is the light/fill port on the top of the boiler. Next is one toward the middle of the front so I can see wash level as it gets nearer the elements. Last is the one I have on the bottom of the front. That one is an afterthought; initially that hole was for the element, but I moved the elements to the bottom, and decided to continue with the sight glasses instead of a blank cap for purely aesthetic reasons. I don't think it is functional, frankly.

[skow69]

Wow! I admire your commitment. But then, everybody I know from Bend is a little OCD. [Har!]

[still_stirrin]

Wow! I admire your commitment. But then, everybody I know from Bend is a little OCD. [Har!]

Deschutes is made in Bend...my favorite porter is the "Black Butte"...(after my 9-grain porter, "Old No. 9", that is).
ss

[bearriver]

Wow! I admire your commitment. But then, everybody I know from Bend is a little OCD. [Har!]

Deschutes is made in Bend...my favorite porter is the "Black Butte"...(after my 9-grain porter, "Old No. 9", that is).
ss

That's the wife's favorite also.

Good stuff happening down there in Bend.

[zach]

Beautiful build!

What is your minimum operating level with the vertical heating elements?

[skow69]

Good stuff happening down there in Bend.

For sure. And lots of it. IPA comes out of the fountains downtown. They're into it.

[Hound Dog]

Heck of a job there BadM! With all the threads on welding and woes of having parts welded right, I have often wondered why people just don't solder the pieces to a keg as you have done. My boiler is a copper pot I made a while ago but as I modernized it I added stainless parts and had no troubles soldering up stainless parts to it. Your setup is sweet!

[Badmotivator]

Thanks, Dog. I definitely considered getting my stuff welded, but in the end I'm glad I did it all myself. I was able to do some reconfiguration (de soldering and re soldering) and also add parts to the plan halfway through because I didn't have to worry about the cost and hassle of getting a welder to do it. No regrets yet about going the way I did. There's always a possibility of developing regrets later...

[Badmotivator]

Beautiful build!

What is your minimum operating level with the vertical heating elements?

Thanks, Zach! I have the short stainless steel 2000W Camco? elements. I think I can go down to about 4 gal before trouble starts. I have no problem working within the 4 gal-13 gal operating window. However, just for Science I am thinking about bending one of these elements to get its top lower in the keg. If I played my cards right (and I'm not laboring under some illusion about the way rising liquids behave) I might be able to get those elements angled in such a way as to induce a little bit of swirl into the wash. Neat!

By the way: everyone loves a good whirlpool, right? I have never seen a better whirlpool than the one you get draining clear water through a 1" ball valve at the bottom of a keg, after giving the water some initial angular momentum. Incredibly tall, straight, stable, and long-lasting. If you happen to have sight glasses on the side of the keg it's even better. If you happen to have a couple of young children to help you enjoy it more, well then!

[Rastus]

OOOOOH Boy, that is some dang nice workin there sir!
an excellent use of some serious elbow grease.
fine execusion with some god given talent....

Thanks for sharing.

[Badmotivator]

OOOOOH Boy, that is some dang nice workin there sir!
an excellent use of some serious elbow grease.
fine execusion with some god given talent....

Thanks for sharing.

Thank you kindly. It's a great pleasure to hear that you folks appreciate my work. Some folks close to me suspect I've gone mad, I expect, so it's super sweet when I show what I've got to show and get such a nice response.

[Desvio]

This has made me rethink the next project a lot when it comes to welding versus soldering when it comes to stainless steel and why more people haven't done it, if it's strong enough and holds up to the heating cycles in the long run.

[Badmotivator]

This has made me rethink the next project a lot when it comes to welding versus soldering when it comes to stainless steel and why more people haven't done it, if it's strong enough and holds up to the heating cycles in the long run.

Cool. I'm here to tell you one person can do it with a pretty general set of tools, but I can't promise durability. Does anyone have any information about soldered joints failing over time?

[Hound Dog]

This has made me rethink the next project a lot when it comes to welding versus soldering when it comes to stainless steel and why more people haven't done it, if it's strong enough and holds up to the heating cycles in the long run.

Cool. I'm here to tell you one person can do it with a pretty general set of tools, but I can't promise durability. Does anyone have any information about soldered joints failing over time?

Pyewacket did this thread a while back to attest to the strength of solver solder. A lot of people complained about the safety factor here (like we don't do anything dangerous ). I don't believe he advocates doing this in any way but it does attest to strength beyond what we need. I appreciate his research. BOOM! http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... =1&t=44594

[Desvio]

This has made me rethink the next project a lot when it comes to welding versus soldering when it comes to stainless steel and why more people haven't done it, if it's strong enough and holds up to the heating cycles in the long run.

Cool. I'm here to tell you one person can do it with a pretty general set of tools, but I can't promise durability. Does anyone have any information about soldered joints failing over time?

Pyewacket did this thread a while back to attest to the strength of solver solder. A lot of people complained about the safety factor here (like we don't do anything dangerous ). I don't believe he advocates doing this in any way but it does attest to strength beyond what we need. I appreciate his research. BOOM! http://homedistiller.org/forum/viewtopi ... =1&t=44594

Thanks, great little tidbit of information, and clearly closes the knowledge gap I was looking for.

Time to dig out my soldering equipment and go troll the second hand stores.

[Snackson]

The key to successful stainless soldering is the right flux, Harris Stay Clean liquid soldering flux.

[googe]

Really nice build mate, work of art . Can't wait to see your still!.

[Badmotivator]

Really nice build mate, work of art . Can't wait to see your still!.

Thanks, googe! Next up is a shotty so I can run this thing, and then later some kind of flute. At this rate... How 'bout Christmas?

[Rastus]

Good thing Kegs cant talk, because i have been leering at mine with a different way of thinking ... I am sure they are uncomfortable.

i like that 8" triclamp for a opening, flip the keg upside down... use the original top as a bottom drain, solder a 8 inch tri clamp to the new top, and add a triclamp for a heating element on the lower side could have some optional triclamp ports that would be used for thermometer, and adding liquid with the still portion attached.

I used the flux harris stay clean and i love it! i made a point though of giving my entire flute a baking soda bath when i was done because that stuff is tenacious and not good to have lingerring on the surface of anything including your skin. and also harris stay brite solder, I intended to order stay brite #8 which has a little more silver and hence stronger... but nothing has failed for me so far on my still ... i may consider getting #8 if i jump into this type of project with the keg boiler... now silver prices are lower than when i was buying solder for my flute build, the safety silv 56 i used is a lot cheaper now and was real nice to solder with although the heat needed for that is much hotter.... but very clean and strong. i used that in my deflagemater and shotgun condenser tubes before soldering them into the jacket pipes with lower temp stay brite (hope that makes sense.)

another thing i found that saved me elbow grease was at the autoparts store in the body shop section they had abrasive discs that would tread to a chuck you can use with a drill, various sizes and grits but it worked my copper to a nice luster in a fair amount of time... i will have to test that also on stainless kegs.

I know what your talking about regarding your friends, it is a powerful compulsion that drives us to a point of creative madness, a lot of people dont get it... my wife cant understand why i have a hard time dropping everything when she calls dinner... while in the moment of creative energy flow there is nothing else that matters... now i will digress and say if she slipped on some lingerie and served dinner in the shop....

we here at this blessed collective of HD understand what your doing and appreciate the way you have approached the project and of course this qualifies as stainless porn, no copper observed here.... so there is always a group of appreciative souls here. thats why a lot of us keep coming back.



all for now...

tally hoooooooooe

[Badmotivator]

Kind words, and true enough, Rastus. I ate 'em up. Thanks! I pity your poor kegs, and maybe your wife a little, but I celebrate you and your creative energy!

The 8" top is hard to justify, but I don't really have to. I just liked it, so I went for it. It still left room for that fill port / light port on the top, I had the stupid money, and what the hell sometimes you gotta go over the top. Seriously though, between the ferrule, the clamp, and the ridiculously thick cap, you're well past a reasonable cost. Say goodbye to the boiler "paying for itself".

[Rastus]

8" ferrule:

https://www.brewershardware.com/8-Tri-C ... -Long.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" rel="nofollow

this looks like it will work..... and wont break the bank.

i always resisted the keg because i want to be able to reach in and make sure it is spik and span.this allows room for my fat arm and a brush.

when i built my flute i figured i am done... but when i read this thread, i realized i have so much harris stay clean flux and you know it would be a shame to waste it.....

till next time, CHEERIOOOOOO!