Calorifier wheeze.

[bizzard]

Calorifiers cost outrageous money to buy, I know coppers expensive but wow their nearly as thin as a fag paper and a blue one at that, very poor value for money in my opinion. You could buy possibly three Morco gas hot water heaters for the price of one of em.

So here are simple instructions to make your own very cheaply. First of all you need the pressure vessel, A stainless steel beer Firkin, Kil or huge barrel is ideal and might be obtained by engratiating yourself upon your local publican, frequenting his pub, and including him in your rounds of drinks for a while before popping the question and blurting out '' I wanna stainless steel keg beer barrel have you one I can have ?'', if the answers 'no!' then drink up and find another pub and start over again.

When you've found your ideal beer barrel roll it home and operate on it like so.

With an angel grinder cut off the top third of it. Drill holes for the heating coils, fresh water inlet and outlet, PRV ect, fit the appropriate skin fitting bushes to em and bend and coil say 15 mm copper tubing to fit into it. When all this is done approach a friendly stainless steel welder to weld the top back on. You could then lag it with an old sleeping bag to keep the cold out.

You should now be the proud owner of a beautiful S/S calorifier which will last forever, made with your own fair hands, cheaply, I say cheaply because you'd probably be drinking and spending your money in a pub anyway. These beer barrels are pressure tested to I think 40 or 50PSI too so no worries with explosions.. Good luck. bizzard.

[magnetman]

years ago a scrap man I used to go to had a few stainless calorifiers about 12 gallons he wanted £40 quid each (about 1995 price)

 

 

the copper ones certainly are overpriced I guess its a case of got a boat got a big wallet

[nb Innisfree]

Calorifiers cost outrageous money to buy, I know coppers expensive but wow their nearly as thin as a fag paper and a blue one at that, very poor value for money in my opinion. You could buy possibly three Morco gas hot water heaters for the price of one of em.

So here are simple instructions to make your own very cheaply. First of all you need the pressure vessel, A stainless steel beer Firkin, Kil or huge barrel is ideal and might be obtained by engratiating yourself upon your local publican, frequenting his pub, and including him in your rounds of drinks for a while before popping the question and blurting out '' I wanna stainless steel keg beer barrel have you one I can have ?'', if the answers 'no!' then drink up and find another pub and start over again.

When you've found your ideal beer barrel roll it home and operate on it like so.

With an angel grinder cut off the top third of it. Drill holes for the heating coils, fresh water inlet and outlet, PRV ect, fit the appropriate skin fitting bushes to em and bend and coil say 15 mm copper tubing to fit into it. When all this is done approach a friendly stainless steel welder to weld the top back on. You could then lag it with an old sleeping bag to keep the cold out.

You should now be the proud owner of a beautiful S/S calorifier which will last forever, made with your own fair hands, cheaply, I say cheaply because you'd probably be drinking and spending your money in a pub anyway. These beer barrels are pressure tested to I think 40 or 50PSI too so no worries with explosions.. Good luck. bizzard.

40-50psi is 3 bar, a bit borderline really, marine cals are tested to 5 bar.

 

Shame though.

[bizzard]

40-50psi is 3 bar, a bit borderline really, marine cals are tested to 5 bar.

 

Shame though.

Now I come to think of it it might be 80 or 90 psi for a Kil. I used to use a Kil-18 gals as an air receiver for paint spraying and air tools and I often pumped it up to over 100 psi. Presumably the smaller Firkins 9gals would stand a higher pressure. We need a publican to come on and tell us the test pressures which is always etched on their tops.

[Skye]

Now I come to think of it it might be 80 or 90 psi for a Kil. I used to use a Kil-18 gals as an air receiver for paint spraying and air tools and I often pumped it up to over 100 psi. Presumably the smaller Firkins 9gals would stand a higher pressure. We need a publican to come on and tell us the test pressures which is always etched on their tops.

 

It doesn't matter a jot what the test pressure is once you've cut the bugger up and re-welded it you wouldn't know what the test pressure was unless you had it pressure tested, more expense!

 

you could save this by not buying the landlord drinks but may lead to visits to more pubs! oh shame

Edited March 9, 2013 by Skye

[bizzard]

It doesn't matter a jot what the test pressure is once you've cut the bugger up and re-welded it you wouldn't know what the test pressure was unless you had it pressure tested, more expense!

 

you could save this by not buying the landlord drinks but may lead to visits to more pubs! oh shame

Fill it with right up with water and hydraulically test it safely yourself with a footpump or your own boats waterpump.

[mickp]

this is all ok if your into warm beer

[Skye]

this is all ok if your into warm beer

I think you just nailed the pressure testing, stuff the foot pump take it back to the pub for filling.

[MtB]

You can buy a household domestic calorifier for as little as £300(ish) these days. FAR better than a beeeer barral for choppin down to fit in yerbote.

 

Innit.

 

MtB

[Skye]

You can buy a household domestic calorifier for as little as £300(ish) these days. FAR better than a beeeer barral for choppin down to fit in yerbote.

 

Innit.

 

MtB

 

Aw Mike you are sensible boring at times, we were having fun, I'd already visualised welding loads together, tunnelling through the middle and adding a few port holes!

[bigste]

They use copper for a reason, it holds heat better. Stainless is the opposite, it is no good for retaining heat. That's why they keep beer in it, you don't want warm beer, or do you. lol

[BEngo]

Calorifiers cost outrageous money to buy, I know coppers expensive but wow their nearly as thin as a fag paper and a blue one at that, very poor value for money in my opinion. You could buy possibly three Morco gas hot water heaters for the price of one of em.

So here are simple instructions to make your own very cheaply. First of all you need the pressure vessel, A stainless steel beer Firkin, Kil or huge barrel is ideal and might be obtained by engratiating yourself upon your local publican, frequenting his pub, and including him in your rounds of drinks for a while before popping the question and blurting out '' I wanna stainless steel keg beer barrel have you one I can have ?'', if the answers 'no!' then drink up and find another pub and start over again.

When you've found your ideal beer barrel roll it home and operate on it like so.

With an angel grinder cut off the top third of it. Drill holes for the heating coils, fresh water inlet and outlet, PRV ect, fit the appropriate skin fitting bushes to em and bend and coil say 15 mm copper tubing to fit into it. When all this is done approach a friendly stainless steel welder to weld the top back on. You could then lag it with an old sleeping bag to keep the cold out.

You should now be the proud owner of a beautiful S/S calorifier which will last forever, made with your own fair hands, cheaply, I say cheaply because you'd probably be drinking and spending your money in a pub anyway. These beer barrels are pressure tested to I think 40 or 50PSI too so no worries with explosions.. Good luck. bizzard.

 

 

There was so much trouble a few tears back with people nicking ally and stainless kegs for scrap and gas cylinders for MIG welding that the breweries put in a mega- moan to the Gubbinsment. As a result the Old Bill will be down on you like a ton of bricks and the beak will bang you up not fine you.

 

N

[DaveC]

Calorifiers cost outrageous money to buy, I know coppers expensive but wow their nearly as thin as a fag paper and a blue one at that, very poor value for money in my opinion. You could buy possibly three Morco gas hot water heaters for the price of one of em.

So here are simple instructions to make your own very cheaply. First of all you need the pressure vessel, A stainless steel beer Firkin, Kil or huge barrel is ideal and might be obtained by engratiating yourself upon your local publican, frequenting his pub, and including him in your rounds of drinks for a while before popping the question and blurting out '' I wanna stainless steel keg beer barrel have you one I can have ?'', if the answers 'no!' then drink up and find another pub and start over again.

When you've found your ideal beer barrel roll it home and operate on it like so.

With an angel grinder cut off the top third of it. Drill holes for the heating coils, fresh water inlet and outlet, PRV ect, fit the appropriate skin fitting bushes to em and bend and coil say 15 mm copper tubing to fit into it. When all this is done approach a friendly stainless steel welder to weld the top back on. You could then lag it with an old sleeping bag to keep the cold out.

You should now be the proud owner of a beautiful S/S calorifier which will last forever, made with your own fair hands, cheaply, I say cheaply because you'd probably be drinking and spending your money in a pub anyway. These beer barrels are pressure tested to I think 40 or 50PSI too so no worries with explosions.. Good luck. bizzard.

 

 

Bizzard, I prefer my beer "from the wood" so can I use a wooden cask? Or would that only be permitted if I had a wooden boat? I suppose Sea Otter owners could only use aluminium casks!

 

I do like some bottled beers but I don't think a glass calorifier would last too long.

 

 

 

Dave

[Alan de Enfield]

........... We need a publican to come on and tell us the test pressures which is always etched on their tops.

 

 

Pressure tested to 42 bar (actually stamped on the side)

 

However - most of them are fited with a 'tracker' and stamped 'property of XXXXX'. You could /would be in big trouble if you are found with one.