DIY mash tun manifold sourcing materials

[greystashlawless]

I am planning on upgrading my mash tun in the coming weeks by building a new manifold to replace and existing false bottom. The mash tun i have is a 66l cooler box, but the false bottom i use at the moment only covers a very small part of the base. Its a re purposed false bottom from the 48l mash tun sold by TheHomeBrewCompany. Hoping a larger coverage area will boost by efficiency by a few points.

After some investigation online it seems like people recommend using one of three materials to build the manifold:

• Stainless Steel
• Copper
• CPVC

I have pretty much ruled SS out, simply because of the cost.

Unfortunately i'm finding it difficult to source all of the materials for a copper or CPVC build. The pipes themselves are widely available, but the fittings all seem to be brass which i will not be using.

Does anyone know of any sites or shops in Cork that may stock either copper or CPVC fittings?

[Shanna]

Google building or plumbing supply stores in Cork and they should be able to help you out. I got a lot of copper parts from heat merchants in Dublin. You could build your own manifold from copper pipes, right angled bends and t shaped copper fittings along with a couple of cut lengths of copper pipe. I had a similar false bottom in my first mashtun and it worked well enough. I cut slits in the underside of the copper pipes to let the wort drain out. The whole lot could be assembled and disassembled easily enough as you just push the pipes in to the fittings as you dont need to seal them up. Just strip them apart when your finished and give them a wash with hot water and let them air dry.

If you cant afford or dont want to splash out on a proper false bottom you could get a stainless steel colander or a stainless steel tray to put on top of your mashtun as a poor mans false botto.. If your not using a brewing bag I would consider one also as it makes it easier to drain the wort through a manifold when the bag holds all of the grain


https://images.app.goo.gl/ykmUUG7dNie4fDNv6
https://www.google.com/search?client=ms-android-h3g-ie&ei=l1DpXODHIrqe1fAPybm66AE&q=copper+t+fitting&oq=copper+t+fitting&gs_l=mobile-gws-wiz-serp.3..0l2j0i22i30l6.299559.307330..309141...3.0..0.287.1381.17j0j1......0....1.......8..0i71j35i39j0i67j46i131j0i131j46i67j0i131i67.FNlCvkSqy6g#

Shanna

[greystashlawless]

Hey Shanna,

Thanks for the reply, i went around the plumbing and DIY shops in Cork at the weekend and they only had brass fittings. So i will need to find somewhere online i think!

I already have a false bottom, but my concern is there is only one hose for drainage right in the middle of the mash tun. I think that may be affecting my efficiency.

[Will_D]

I suggest you have a look here www.flowmax.ie they take orders online and shipping is reasonable but always check!. Stainless stuff here is probably cheaper than brass in a diy store.

[LordEoin]

i got all mine from Woodies in Blackpool or the Co-op superstore, cant remember which. All copper.
lidl have blow torches cheap at the moment too in case you want to solder the fittings on.

[greystashlawless]

Thanks for the suggestions lads.

I was in Woodies recently and they only stocked brass pieces. Will check out the co op though.

Flomax looks promising!

[Tom]

Hey. Forgive me for wading in without properly reading all the links etc.

The copper parts you're looking for are called End Feed elbows tees and reducers. The Endfeed doesn't have a ring of solder on the inside (the plumber feeds it in from the end) while the solder fittings obviously do (lead solder usually). The compression fittings aren't necessarily the worst for brewing, but they are cumbersome and expensive.

Hope that helps narrow down your google searches and chats at the Co.

[iBrau]

IITC on the Tramore road is a plumbers merchants who stock copper solder fittings. I'm certain I've seen a few in Woodies near the Kinsale roundabout too. They're on the Woodies website at the link below:
https://www.woodies.ie/catalogsearch/result/?q=Solder

I bought my solder fittings in Dublin providers, also near the Kinsale roundabout.

[johnrm]

I'm sure I got some in Chadwicks Midleton.

[Raxy]

IITC on the Tramore road is a plumbers merchants who stock copper solder fittings. I'm certain I've seen a few in Woodies near the Kinsale roundabout too. They're on the Woodies website at the link below:
https://www.woodies.ie/catalogsearch/result/?q=Solder

I bought my solder fittings in Dublin providers, also near the Kinsale roundabout.

Is the solder used lead free though?

[iBrau]

Is the solder used lead free though?

I don't know but I'm not worried about it. The ring fittings I used had a tiny amount of solder, and there was even less when I sanded the inside of the pipe to expose the bare copper. When I heated the joints I added lead free solder from the outside and made sure it flowed down in to the joint. There is possibly a tiny exposure to lead on the inside of the pipes but this doesn't contact my beer as I built a chiller coil with the solder ring fittings.

Also I accept the fact that lead pipes are still in the ground and are going to put many orders of magnitude of lead in my body more than a few solder ring fittings! 

[LordEoin]

They're used for drinking water etc, so should be lead free