14 gallon copper double boiler build
Posted: Mon Dec 04, 2017 7:43 pm
Good evening, I recently saw an old copper double boiler on Craigslist and got it for 75 bucks. It's an old boiler, this design fits on both eyes of a stove top and I knew this would be a perfect still for an RV " Mancave- Brew House" out back.
So I started out planning and sourcing copper, no easy task it seems, I had to trade a half gallon of my best for a piece of two inch copper. The boiler by my measurements is roughly 13.885 us gallons. I am restricted horribly by the low ceiling in an RV but I started out by cutting a 1 3/4 hole in the lid and welding a two inch coupling and broke out my measuring tape.
I wanted a gauge on this rig as I'm using it to steam cook grain, I built a stainless 7.75 gallon keg, and used unions to go from steam cooker to strip, to thumper so I can turn this rig multiple directions, I stuck to my old tried and true cardboard gasket cut with jig saw wrapped in Teflon. The lid has a lip that goes down into the boiler a full inch and barely leakes a drop of steam without the gasket.
The only problem so far is I limited myself to a half inch steam pipe and I'm having to cook a long time to get up to 200 degrees, I will be fixing that directly. The thunmper was made using a copper flange off flea bay, I had to get a donkey dick on an end grinder inside my two inch to get it to fit.
I welded a 1 inch Teflon seat ball valve on front for a boiler drain, I'm stripping corn- wheat malt and oat mash now , so I will hook up thumper tommorrow and take some more pics, sorry for the crappy resolution.
So I started out planning and sourcing copper, no easy task it seems, I had to trade a half gallon of my best for a piece of two inch copper. The boiler by my measurements is roughly 13.885 us gallons. I am restricted horribly by the low ceiling in an RV but I started out by cutting a 1 3/4 hole in the lid and welding a two inch coupling and broke out my measuring tape.
I wanted a gauge on this rig as I'm using it to steam cook grain, I built a stainless 7.75 gallon keg, and used unions to go from steam cooker to strip, to thumper so I can turn this rig multiple directions, I stuck to my old tried and true cardboard gasket cut with jig saw wrapped in Teflon. The lid has a lip that goes down into the boiler a full inch and barely leakes a drop of steam without the gasket.
The only problem so far is I limited myself to a half inch steam pipe and I'm having to cook a long time to get up to 200 degrees, I will be fixing that directly. The thunmper was made using a copper flange off flea bay, I had to get a donkey dick on an end grinder inside my two inch to get it to fit.
I welded a 1 inch Teflon seat ball valve on front for a boiler drain, I'm stripping corn- wheat malt and oat mash now , so I will hook up thumper tommorrow and take some more pics, sorry for the crappy resolution.