Getting Gased, or Score one for the Species with Opossable Thumbs

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Milestone passed! The first purchase! Two of these babies:

http://www.instawares.com/thunder-group-natural-gas.thu-irbr002cn.0.7.htm

Thanks again to Rich for finding THE cheapest gas burner on the internet.

The plumber came this week to look at the brewery site. It sounds like his first brewery.
He revised my plan a bit, but the length of pipe is considerably shorter than I'd estimated when I first talked to him. I don't have the estimate yet, and I'm certainly not going to bother him for it. Mr. Flexibility, that's me. I want him to work this job during his most lonely hours this month, and hope to keep the costs down. We'll see. Hopefully he reads this blog, but I doubt it.

When the burners get here I'll try and mount them in the stand we have. That will be easier and cheaper than building a new stand, if it works. Then it's off to the plumbing supply store to see if the supply line and valves can be added. At least that's the plan.

Here's some pictures of the current burners and frame. It's a shame to take it apart. It has served us so well. Scroll right or left to see the underside.

http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=217875161615939&set=pu.2132725187...

Meanwhile, the brewery plans continue to evolve. I had a brainstorm, in fact a series of brainstorms. I'd wanted to make a movable sculpture, maybe two moving pieces, when I realized the sculpture with the burners doesn't need to move.

We were going to attach legs with lockable wheels to the burner stand when it hit me that a couple of cinder blocks will do the job just fine. That's great news because the metal is pricey. And I'm happy to spend the time working on other stuff. Eventually, that means sitting on the patio and brewing beer!

Lighting Bolt! Thunder! (Big noise.) Then it occurred to me the mash tun support, which stands higher doesn't need to withstand heat, and could be made of wood, which is much cheaper. I even have some 2x4s leftover from the old dog barrier, which now only exists in pictures.

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.1859185231700.101755.1002978657...

While I was pondering how to construct a rolling wooden mash tun support, I noticed the old BBQ. I won't use it once the gas is hooked up. I'll need a natural gas grill. The old BBQ has a nice stainless body, is a great height, has lockable wheels, and even a side burner which would be useful for carmelizing the first runnings when we make Scotch ale. The rounded top doesn't look like it comes off that easily, but it's only about 50 inches to cut, if I can figure out how.

https://picasaweb.google.com/103764515709741925769/ClumsyBrewer#56819626...

If I can get the top off, the old BBQ would make a first class mash tun support. Eliminating the cost of both sculptures is welcome news.

Here is a new brewery diagram. (It's to scale, 1 inch to 1 mm and in color.)

https://picasaweb.google.com/103764515709741925769/ClumsyBrewer02?authke...

BK = Boil Kettle
HLT = Hot Liquor Tank
The freezer has a temp controller to house a conical fermenter.

We've started to explore tubing options. We're thinking half inch all around with quick disconnects. There's three kinds we've found so far:

Cheap vinyl tubing. Food grade. Not rated for heat, but we've abused it thoroughly over the years, and it's done very well. It's especially cheap for us because we already have a long stretch of half inch we used to run from the water filter on the kitchen sink to the brew kettle.

(To give you an idea of how labor intensive our old brewery used to be, it took years before I thought to buy the 30-50 feet of vinyl tubing to run the water from the sink filter to the kettle. We used to hand carry the water, about four or five gallons at a time. Not this time, not this brewery.)

Expensive Silicone Tubing. Rated to 500 degrees Fahrenheit. Probably the ideal choice, but three clams per foot. Ouch.
http://www.homebrewstuff.com/brewing-hardware/tubing-and-hoses/silicone-...

Dad's hep on Sharkbite tubing. Food grade. Available at Home Depot for 50 cents a foot. Handles pressures up to 50 psi (5 psi is enough). Heat rated to 200 degrees Fahrenheit. We need 212 degrees. We're short a measly 12 degrees. Considering how we've abused the cheap vinyl tubing in the past, which was not rated for heat at all, this stuff might do fine. What's 12 degrees between friends?

Anybody have any thoughts on tubing?

Sadly, we learned this week that a Blichmann 14.5 gallon conical fermenter will not fit in our current freezer. I found a 12 gallon stainless conical that will, and it's cheaper:

http://store.homebrewheaven.com/12-gallon-stainless-steel-conical-fermen...

(The actual price has a discount that applies to orders over $250.)

This fermenter is taller and skinnier than the short, plump Blichmann. We would have to use CO2 to push out the last of the beer to kegs. If we want a Blichmann, we need a new fridge. There's a used appliance store on Sepulveda Blvd. near us. I've heard from two Falcons who love their Blichmanns. This skinny fermenter is an unknown quantity. Dad prefers the Blichmann and a new fridge with the freezer on the bottom so we can use gravity to transfer the beer to the kegs. We might be able to use the old fridge for extra beer storage. We'll see how this hashes out.

As for the dog, the first and second run of gate modifications have kept her in the yard. I've been sick this week, so I've had to put off the final mods. But she's contained. Hooray, the homo sapiens prevail!

Sal Sciortino, the Younger, is a National BJCP Judge and card-carrying member of the Maltose Falcons Homebrewing Society.

Saltheyounger@gmail.com