Building Homebrew Equipment.
by Karl F. Lutzen & Mark Stevens
Introduction.
Take one step into a homebrew store, or flip through the pages of any magazine about homebrewing, and it's easy to see that home-brewing can be an expensive hobby. From the counterflow wort chiller to a refrigerated keg system to a complete brewery, a serious homebrewer can spend thousands of dollars on a homebrewery.
Most of the products offered by the many homebrewing equipment manufacturers and suppliers have been produced with the needs and wants of the consumer in mind. Companies in the brewing industry are constantly coming up with products that they hope will make the brewing process easier, yet also allow the homebrewer to make a better beer. Many of the best-selling homebrewing supplies and "accessories" were created by homebrewers like yourself who developed a product that greatly aided them in their quest for "professional"-quality ales and lagers.
Despite the dizzying number of gadgets on the market, there is one thing to take solace in - brewing is a simple science. No matter if you are a beginner using strictly kits or a professional at a 30,000- gallon-a-year microbrewery, beer is still made using the same five basic steps: making wort, boiling, cooling, fermenting, and packaging (carbonating). You can make award-winning beer using a simple starter kit. Yet there is equipment that doesn't come with the beginners' kit that will help you produce a higher-quality beer. Wort chillers, mashing and lauter tuns, and kegging systems are not required equipment for beginners, but most experienced homebrewers cannot produce their product without them.
All of the equipment described here can be purchased at your local brewing supply store or at one of the growing number of national homebrewing supply distributors. But building this equipment yourself offers two attractions: 1) You will save money; and 2) you can make changes to the equipment as is necessary to work in conjunction with your work or storage space, or existing equipment.
The projects here are designed for anyone from beginning to advanced brewers, kit brewers to all-grain masters. Most presuppose brewing experience (i.e., you will have a rough idea about how to use homemade equipment), and all require a working knowledge of and access to common tools found in a workshop (drills, saws, hardware, etc.). We hope you enjoy making these products and, with their help, succeed in achieving the ultimate goal - excellent beer.
The Rolling Carboy Carrier.
The best way to move carboys is with rolling carboy carriers. They can be made at a minimum cost (we were able to make the rolling carboy carrier with only scrap wood from our work shed), they can be assembled quickly, and they provide a much safer and easier way to handle glass carboys. You basically construct a platform with a lip to keep the carboy in place and then put caster wheels on the bottom so that it can be rolled from the brewery area to the fermenter area. This doesn't solve the problem of moving carboys up and down stairs, but if you brew and ferment on the same level, it's a real back-saver.
The best way to move a carboy is with a rolling carboy carrier like this.
MATERIALS FOR A ROLLING CARBOY CARRIER1 13" 13" platform of " plywood4 1-wide 12-long strips of " plywood4 swivel coasters16 #10 -long wood screws Directions 1. Cut out the platform and strips from a " plywood sheet.
2. Glue and clamp the strips to the platform in the pattern illustrated.
3. Attach the swivel casters with the wood screws 1" in from the edges (be sure to drill pilot holes first).
4. Set the carboy on the platform, fill, attach airlock, and roll into the fermenter closet or corner.
The Carboy Stand.
Milk crates provide an easy way to build an inverted carboy stand for the BrewCap system. A carboy stand is a necessity if you want to effectively drain your carboys after sanitizing them, or if you are interested in using the BrewCap (made by BrewCo in Boone, North Carolina). The BrewCap was developed to allow brewers a more effective way to remove the expended yeast and trub that settle at the bottom of the carboy. With your carboy in an inverted position, the BrewCap holds two tubes in place: The short one extends into the neck and removes the expended yeast and trub, and the long one extends to the top of the inverted carboy and is a pressure-relief mechanism. Using a BrewCap, you will no longer need to siphon the wort into a secondary fermenter, and it is a completely closed system.
MATERIALS FOR A CARBOY STAND MATERIALS FOR A CARBOY STAND2 (identical) milk crates4 bolts, washers, and nuts (size will depend on the size and design of your milk crates) Directions.
1. Saw a hole in the bottom of one of the milk crates (the "top" crate) large enough that the neck of the inverted carboy extends through the hole.
2. Set the second crate (the "bottom" crate) on its side and face the open side toward you; cut a large square hole in the top of the crate to accommodate the neck of the carboy and the hoses.
3. Fasten the two crates together using bolts, washers, and nuts.
Milk crates provide an easy way to build an inverted carboy stand for the BrewCap system.
Immersion Wort Chillers.
One of the longest steps of the extract brewer's brewing process (other than the wort boil) can be the cooling of the wort. Especially if you still are using the ice bath and diffusion method of cooling your wort, you know how long it takes to get the 200 wort down to a temperature appropriate for pitching the yeast. The immersion chiller can reduce your cooling time to 15 minutes.
Immersion chillers are usually built from a coil of copper tubing with connectors on each end to which hoses are attached (garden hoses are often used). One connector is run to a source of cold water; the other is run to a drain for expelling the hot water. The immersion chiller offers a simple, effective way to quickly cool hot wort. Cooling wort quickly is important for two reasons. One: You can achieve a more effective cold break, which is the point when suspended proteins drop out of suspension as the wort is cooled. And two: You reduce the amount of time the wort is exposed to possible airborne pathogens.
Basic Immersion Chiller Chillers are readily available from many homebrewing supply stores for $30 to $35; however, they can also be built at home for a bit less than that. One advantage to building the chiller yourself is that you can adapt the plans to suit your own needs. We'll describe a few ways that chillers can be adapted to work more effectively.
When you build a wort chiller, the most critical aspect is the tubing you choose. Copper works well because it efficiently transmits heat energy and is readily available at fairly low cost. Stainless-steel tubing would work, but it costs more. Aluminum also works fine, but some brewers feel that it tends to give the beer a metallic taste. There is, however, no real evidence of such flavor problems. Your tubing should be in diameter. If you use a thinner tube, you will achieve potentially greater efficiency because the thinner tube will give you more surface area per volume. However, chillers made from -diameter tubing tend to take much longer to cool wort and are prone to clogging. Using a -diameter tubing gives you good efficiency and acceptable cooling times, and it avoids clogging.
You can buy an immersion chiller like this one for about $30, or you can make one yourself.
MATERIALS FOR IMMERSION WORT CHILLER25 of -diameter copper tubing2 hose clamps1 inexpensive garden hose (25 is all you need) Note:Lengths of copper tubing greater than 20' usually come in a large coil. Most hardware stores will want to sell you a full box containing 50' to 60' of tubing. Shop with a friend and build two wort chillers if your hardware store will not sell you a cut length (or maybe find a new hardware store!). You could also build two chillers and use the double-coil chiller method that we describe on page 8.
Note:Before you begin, you should know that you can easily crimp your copper tubing and ruin that section of it. Once it's crimped, cut out the crimped section and attach a coupler by soldering (lead-free, please). If you don't have a spring tubing bender, buy one when you buy your copper tubing. It will help make the 90-degree bends without crimping the tubing.
One other point: You should plan to leave enough copper tubing on the ends so that they stick out over the sides of the pot (see illustration on page 7). Once in a while you may get leaks from loose hose clamps; if the tubinghose connection is outside the pot and it does leak, the water will not drip into the wort.
Directions.
1. Turn the copper tubing into a coil. If the copper tubing came in a coil, you can wind it into a tighter coil by hand. This is done by holding one end and turning the coils into ever-smaller coils. You can coil the copper tubing for your immersion chiller by wrapping it carefully around a soda keg if you have a soda keg handy. The final diameter must be small enough that there is at least 2" between the interior sides of the brewpot and the coil. Leave about 18" to 24" on one end.
2. Bend the short end of the tube at the top of the coil 90 degrees out from the coil.
3. Bend the longer end 90 degrees so that the length of the tube goes back up toward the top of the coil.
4. Bend the top part of the long length out from the coil.
5. Cut the garden hose so that each length is at least 5' or 6' long.
6. Slide a clamp over each cut end of the hose.
7. Slip one hose length over one end of the coil. Repeat with the other hose at the other end of the coil.
8. Tighten the clamps to hold the hose lengths firmly to the coil.
Use a soda keg to bend your tubing.
That's it! Your immersion chiller is ready to use, and it should have cost you less than $25.
We recommend testing the chiller before brewing a batch of beer, just to convince yourself that everything works and to satisfy yourself that there will be no surprises when the time comes to use the chiller. We tested our chiller by boiling a brewpot full of water, to which we had added gallon of white vinegar, and seeing how long it would take to cool it. The vinegar is important because it will clean the outside of the chiller and prepare it for use in the wort.
In addition to the chiller, you will need a hose that's long enough to run from your faucet to the chiller. If you're using the chiller in your kitchen, as most people do, you may need to twist off the end of your faucet to reveal the threads. These threads should accept a standard hose fitting, but many kitchen faucets need a threaded adapter to accept a hose connection. These are available at most hardware stores for $1 to $2. Some homebrew supply shops also sell the adapters. If you can't get the end of your faucet off, or if you just don't want to mess with it, you can buy a rubber adapter that will fit over the end of the faucet, avoiding the need to unscrew the faucet sprayer.
When you are ready to use your immersion chiller, sanitize it by putting it into the boil for 15 to 20 minutes. When the boil is done, attach the hoses - and chill out.
When you're ready to use the chiller, sanitize it by setting it down into your brewpot 15 to 20 minutes before the end of the boil. The heat will destroy any bacteria and other microorganisms on its surfaces. Then when the boil is done, simply attach the hose to your faucet, set the other end of the hose in the sink, and turn on the faucet. Five gallons of wort should cool from boiling to below 80?F in about 15 to 20 minutes. The time will depend on the flow rate and temperature of the water.
Double-Coil Immersion Chiller.
If you had no choice but to buy a 50' or 60' length of copper tubing, or if you are worried about wasting water, want faster cooling times, or have a cold-water supply that just isn't cold enough, you can build a chiller with two coils that are connected by a length of hose (see illustration below). Set one coil in a bath of ice water, the other coil in the hot wort, and then run water through the chiller. This is more efficient both because you are cooling the water before it gets to the brewpot and because you are using a single coil with a greater difference in temperature between the cooling fluid and the wort. Thus the heat-exchange process works more efficiently.
Double-coil chiller. This one calls for two coils: the first to lower the temperature of the cold water, the second to chill the wort.
Counterflow Chillers.
If you want to run wort through your chiller, instead of running the chiller through your wort, a counterflow chiller is the best way to go. We'll describe several you can build yourself.
PVC Pipe Counterflow Chiller The PVC pipe counterflow chiller is one of the more popular counterflow chiller designs to emerge over the last several years. It is fairly simple to build and use, and it works faster than most immersion setups. However, as with all counterflow chillers, the inside of the copper tubing needs to be cleaned carefully before and after use because any trace of beer left behind can lead to infection.
The PVC pipe chiller involves taking a 2' length of a large-diameter PVC pipe; inserting a copper coil inside; drilling two holes, one for bringing in cold water and another for expelling hot water; attaching fittings for water hoses; and then sealing the ends. To use: Pump hot wort through the coil while simultaneously pumping cold water through the pipe.
The PVC counterflow chiller (cutaway view) allows cold water to flow through a section of large-diameter plastic pipe, while hot wort circulates through the small-diameter copper coil installed inside the plastic pipe.
MATERIALS FOR A PVC PIPE COUNTERFLOW CHILLER1 2' length of 6" PVC pipe2 PVC pipe caps (also called end-caps)4 compression MPT adapters4 " hose barb FPT connectors10" of copper tubing" heat-resistant hose" PVC hose25' inexpensive garden hose," diameterPVC cementEpoxy cementTeflon tape Directions.
1. Drill a -diameter hole in each end-cap.
2. Insert the compression end of a compression MPT adapter into each end-cap and seal with epoxy.
3. Drill a -diameter hole 2" from both ends of the PVC pipe.
4. Coil the copper tubing and insert it into the PVC pipe.
5. Place a compression nut and ferrule on each end of the coil.
6. Insert the compression end of a compression MPT adapter into each hole in the PVC pipe.
7. Thread the compression nuts onto the adapters and tighten. Seal the adapters with epoxy cement.
8. Coat the inside rim of an end-cap and the outside of one end of the PVC pipe with PVC cement. Place end-cap on pipe and repeat for other end. Be sure all sealing surfaces are evenly coated with the PVC cement to avoid leaks.
9. Wrap a couple of turns of Teflon tape around each MPT, thread on the hose barbs, and lightly tighten. Do not overtighten.
10. Add the hoses and you're done! The key to success, however, is making sure you sanitize the inside of the copper tubing.
You may want to build a small stand for the chiller using strips of wood. Otherwise the pipe has a tendency to move around. You can either cut a rounded curve in two end pieces, or you can build a four-sided rack - whatever works for you.
Another method for "controlling" your chiller is to wrap a length of 16-gauge wire around the pipe just below one end-cap and twist the ends into a double wire. Bend the end lengths 90 degrees up past the end-cap, make a hook, and hang it from the brewpot handle. Remember: the simpler, the better.
Hose Counterflow Chiller.
In the hose counterflow chiller, a copper tube is inserted inside a standard garden hose and the wort is pumped, or siphoned, so that it runs in a direction opposite to the water flow.
Before we delve into a description of making a chiller from scratch, we need to mention that the tube fittings can be bought already made. These fittings are produced by Listermann Manufacturing and are sold under the name Phil's Phittings. This fitting kit sells for about $15 and really makes building a chiller easy work.
A hose counterflow chiller coiled up and ready for action MATERIALS FOR A HOSE COUNTERFLOW CHILLER50' of I.O. (inside diameter) garden hose50' of O.D. (outside diameter) soft copper tubing6 1-long pieces of " copper pipe2 " copper tees2 " copper end-caps6 hose clampsPlastic zip ties or wire Directions.
1. Cut off 8" from each end of the hose and save for Step 9.
2. Insert a -long copper pipe into each end of the copper tees and solder them in place.
3. Drill a -diameter hole in the end of each copper end-cap. (Hint: Start with a drill and work up to a drill.) Start with a drill and work up to a drill.) 4. Place an end-cap on one end of the long leg of the tees and solder into place.
5. Uncoil the copper tubing and feed it through the garden hose.
6. Place a hose clamp on both ends of the hose.
7. Feed the end of the copper tubing through the tee assembly and onto the hose, then tighten clamp. Repeat for other end.
8. Solder the tubing to the end-caps to seal.
9. Attach the hose ends to the short legs of the tees with hose clamps.
10. Wind the hose and tubing assembly into a coil around a large cylinder, such as your brewpot.
11. Secure the coils together with wire or zip ties.
12. To sanitize the chiller before using it for the first time, run a very hot solution of 75 percent water and 25 percent vinegar through the copper tubing.
Plumbing Setup[image]In a hose counterflow chiller, a copper tube is inserted in a garden hose. Water flows through the hose (and over the tube) in one direction, while hot wort is pumped through the tube in the opposite direction.
Mash Tuns.
Making a mash tun means you are now going to make all-grain beers. Making all-grain beers does take more time, but we think it is well worth the control you gain when you produce your own malt sugars (instead of purchasing them in the form of liquid or powder extract). Three different mash tuns are presented here, and all three can be adapted for lautering and sparging as well.
The most important consideration when designing and building a mash and lauter tun is the ability of the vessel to hold hot (up to 180?F) liquid. A mash tun must be large enough and sturdy enough to hold at least 6 gallons of liquid. It should also be insulated; if it is not insulated, it should be made of an appropriate material that will allow you to apply direct heat to maintain the right mash temperature. The mash tuns described here can also be used as lauter tuns with the addition of a sparge water sprayer and a false bottom. See page 16 for false bottom tips, see page 19 for sprayer tips.
Mashing in a Picnic Cooler Large, chest-style picnic coolers make ideal mash tuns because they are well insulated and inexpensive. For a 5-gallon setup, look for a 34-quart cooler (about $10 to $15). The next size up is usually the 48-quart cooler, which will handle 10- or 15-gallon batches without a problem. Although 48-quart coolers are larger than you'd really want when doing 5-gallon batches (they may give you a shallow grain bed), quite a few homebrewers use that size without a problem. For very large batches, 60- or 80-quart coolers are reasonable. One consideration when choosing a cooler is its resistance to heat. If you can find a brand that claims to withstand 170?F temperatures, you're ahead of the game. If not, you're still okay. Most of them don't warp too badly, and even if they do, they'll still hold heat well enough to mash - and besides, they're cheap. Building a new one every year or so is no big deal.
Once you have the cooler, you may need to drill out a drainage plug if it doesn't already have one. Because we're using diameter CPVC pipe for this project, drill a -diameter hole (the outer diameter of a -diameter CPVC pipe). Although the drainage hole in a cooler is usually on the side, having the hole in the bottom is actually a bit more workable in many situations. Next, you'll have to build a drainage manifold to lay in the bottom of the cooler.
MATERIALS FOR MASH-TUN CONSTRUCTION6' of -diameter CPVC pipe4 90-degree elbows for -diameter CPVC pipe5 tee connectors for -diameter CPVC pipeFood-grade silicone or epoxy sealant-diameter I.D. (inside diameter) poly tubePicnic coolerToolsHacksaw-diameter drill bit and drill (if the cooler does not have a drain) Directions 1. Measure the length of the cooler bed. Subtract 4" and cut four lengths of CPVC tubing to that length.
2. Measure the width. Subtract 4" and divide by three. Cut six lengths of CPVC tubing to that length. Cut one of these lengths in half. Now use a hacksaw and cut thin slots in all the pipes, about one-third of the way through. Assemble the manifold as shown in the illustration on page 13.
3. You can glue the manifold together, but it will be easier to clean if you make it easy to disassemble. One idea that works well is to permanently glue the two end units together, and then just piece together the four long rods when it's time to brew.
One other idea that seems to work well is to replace the CPVC with copper pipe, which is readily available at most plumbing supply stores and is fairly inexpensive and easy to work with.