General Category > Equipment and Software
Mash tun frustration
erockrph:
So I'm just about ready to start brewing some all-grain batches. There is a 5-gallon Rubbermaid jug cooler at Home Depot for $20 that has been calling my name for a while. I came across a mash tun design online using this cooler and included the exact parts list from Home Depot, so I decided that it was time to make the plunge.
I put everything together tonight. I noticed that some of the parts didn't fit as well as I expected, but eventually I was able to get everything fairly snug. I put in about 2 gallons of water and put a couple of paper towels under the spigot. A half hour later the towels were slightly damp, so I cinched everything down tighter and tried again. This time I saw the leak start almost immediately.
So I started disassembling the spigot and noticed that the O-ring was a hair smaller than the gasket opening. I'm 99% sure that this is where the leak is coming from. I took another look at the website I got the plans from. It turns out that this Home Depot Rubbermaid cooler is a newer/slightly different model! *GROAN*
I'm pretty sure if I used 1/2" fittings instead of 3/8", everything should be OK. Of course now I have to hope I can return everything (a couple of the fittings are scratched since I don't have a proper pipe wrench). My easy mash tun on-the-cheap is starting to look not so easy or cheap anymore. I'm really this isn't going to turn into one of those several week-long projects punctuated by several trips to Home Depot.
davidgzach:
Pick up some of this while you are at Home Depot. http://jbweld.net/products/water.php
It's non-toxic, water safe, and good to 300F. It's worked great for me.
Dave
ccfoo242:
And copious amounts of Teflon pipe thread tape.
Sent from the future...
erockrph:
--- Quote from: davidgzach on June 27, 2012, 04:49:45 AM ---Pick up some of this while you are at Home Depot. http://jbweld.net/products/water.php
It's non-toxic, water safe, and good to 300F. It's worked great for me.
Dave
--- End quote ---
The only product I'm finding is the epoxy stick. Is this like a glue stick? Is there a way to squeeze this into a tight spot to fill a gap?
kylekohlmorgen:
What is your batch size? 5-gal seems like a lot of hassle (unless you're forced to brew small).
Can't go wrong with Denny's model, IMO:
www.dennybrew.com
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