a of
Tony Profer
e:
ot
N
’s
r
to
Edi
Great
.C. won the
Charlotte, N
et
Brewing Gadg
Gator Tail
’s
at the AHA
Extravaganza
ce
en
r
fe
ebrewers Con
he
National Hom
H
June. ere
in Orlando in
em
ho
of his simple
e
m
so
es
r
a
sh
sure to make
made gadgets—
didn’t I think
you say “Why
the
to help make
—
”
t?
a
th
of
little easier.
brew day a
•16”x3/8”
try,
tition en not
e
p
m
o
c
or
r
tle Fillrenelius style kegsiesf, etc. No reason
t
o
B
e
s
n
o
e
t
No-Nonsfill bottles from bCrew sessions, papretition anymore.
m
o
,
o
t
s
c
ting
into
Use
to
club mee
ebrews
homebrew
homebrew your kegged hom
f
o
g
e
easy
style k
to enter
to make,
ornelius
C
e
iv
t
s
e
n
S
e
p
3/8”
t.
and inex
of rigid
tles firs
t
le
h
o
p
t
b
g
im
n
s
l
le
il
h
y
C
tube
er
insert a
How-to:
Remove
get is v
ly
d
.
p
a
s
g
im
le
t
S
t
is
o
h
T
snap.
do!
your b
3-5 PSI.
nup is a a tap and fill
reweries
a
b
le
c
e
h
t
d
n
a
of
a cobr
just like
to use,
no signs
w
o
tube into n top of foam,
h
s
n
lo
s
y
h
n
t
a tap
on
white
cap o
the cobr
r six m
n
o
e
e
t
t
h
f
t
in
a
,
r
g
d
n
a
o
li
meth
beer
e too f
while fil
with this
let go (
nylon tub
d
u
o
le
y
e
il
c
f
r
r
o
e
s
f
ead.
Bottle
even aft
Do not
a tap h
n
:
r
e
e
b
t
o
p
o
c
o
N
e
p
h
.
the ta
inside t
oxidation
will hold
e firm
b
it
ld
u
r
o
o
h
s
Fit
head,
ensue!).
o
t
r
e
w
o
sh
Parts list:
rigid nylon tu
be
(Note: This is
the cloudy
white semi-rig
id tubing you
can get at the
big box home
improvement st
ore, or perhap
s
your local home
brew shop. Take
your cobra tap
with you when
you go to buy
your tubing to
ensure that th
is tubing fits
snugly in the
end of the tap.
•Cornelius keg with your ho )
mebrew on CO2 (p
ressure releas
ed
to approximatel
y 3-5 PSI).
•Cobra (aka “picnic”) tap co
nnected to keg
•Sanitized 12- or 22-ounce
brown
glass flip-top
bottles (chill
ed
to brew temper
ature is best)
•Sanitized bottle caps
•Bottle capper
•Stopper (optional, to diff
erentiate tubing)
PET 2
- or 3
-L
Travel
Kegging iter
For whe
System
n
your br you want to
e
Truly s w but not the take
eparate
keg!
s
from br
ew disp CO2 injection
to take
ensing.
A
homebrew multiple bottles llows you
of y
f
o
r when
liters is
2 or 3 our
n
o
t
enough.
is expa
Th
n
Your be dable to howev is system
er much
er will
not go
flat nor you want to b
How-to:
ring
oxidized
using th with you.
homebrew Simply fill you
is syste
r 2-or
m.
the air and put the
3-liter
c
o
a
s
u
o
p
t
d
.
a
o
You wil
n the b
bottles
begins t
l k
ott
w
o
fully an squeeze out now all the air le loosely, squ ith your
d charg
e
u
ez
nder th
is out
e
normal
when th ing all
tank an with CO2 (us e loose cap.
e foam
T
d
in
dispense
. The v regulator set g a carbonat ighten the cap
or or
up). Yo
alve be
permits
you
u
tw
bottles the system to een the carbo are then rea r
dy to
can be
nator a
be close
nd
installed
d
without so that additio the bottle
losing C
nal 2-li
O.
ter
2
Carboy Drier
Do you let your carboy sanitizer drip dry
like the no-rinse sanitizer manufacturers
suggest? This 6” piece of scrap PVC
pipe makes it easier, and even works with
carboys that have handles installed. I use
this simple DIY tool every time I brew.
How-to: Cut a 5- or 6-inch length of
scrap 6” sewer pipe. Round the inside
edge with a router using a round-over
bit, or hand file until smooth (that’s
what I did). Make several small cuts
on the bottom to allow drainage. Note:
Do not use the carboy handles to support the weight of a carboy at any
time. I was able to find a scrap
piece of unused sewer pipe so this
gadget cost me nothing to make.
Parts list:
•2-liter (or 3-liter) cleaned
and sanitized soda bottle
1/2
• ” FPT brass or stainless
steel (SS) tee
Sev
• eral O-rings—fit to size
•Nylon garden hose washer
•14.5” SS tube (scavenged from a
Corny keg dip tube—use
the
curved end)
•1/2” MPT black liquid watertight strain relief fittin
g
Cob
• ra (“picnic”) tap with 38”
of 3/8” OD clear beer lin
e hose
1/2
• ”x3/8” brass adapter
•Carbonator and CO2 cartridges
to fit (typically availa
ble
from your local homebrew
shop)
•3/8” male flare x 3/8” MPT
brass needle valve (this
valve
allows you to use normal
CO2
bottles and regulators as
well
as the carbonator, and
also
can close the system off
to
allow CO2 cartridge change
s
without letting air into
your
homebrew).
Sma
• ll cooler to keep your homebrew at the right servin
g temperature. Note: the cooler
I
used has a 1 1/2” hole
cut into
the lid to allow the sod
a
bottle to protrude. A tal
ler
cooler would allow the
entire
system to be contained
inside.
3”
• length of clear 3/8” OD (put
on beer end of SS tube
to allow
2- or 3-liter bottle use
)
•3/8” hose clamps (Oetiker type
SS clamps recommended)
Tef
• lon tape
Parts list:
long x 1/2”
•6” diametCerpixpe6”
thick PV
Wallpaper Tray Sanitizer
and Storage Box
s such as spoons,
It’s easy to sanitize long item
using a store
auto siphons and racking canes
to spillage and
e
pron
and
e trays can be flimsy
bought wallpaper tray, but thes
a wooden homebuilt
cracking. Fortifying the tray with
makes the trays
and
pine box solves these problems
ble.
dura
far easier to use and more
p enclosure with feet
How-to: A simple 1”x4” pine scra
er that gets on
wat
added props the box above any
er of the tray.
cent
the
the brew table and supports
to pick up,
easy
it
Cutout handles on the ends make
be added
can
s
iglas
plex
move and empty the tray. Cut
een
betw
out
ies
nast
as a cover to keep dust and
end
each
on
cord
ee
bung
brew sessions. Attach some
Be
age.
stor
g
durin
e
plac
to keep the plexiglass lid in
e:
Not
age.
stor
to
r
prio
sure that all equipment is dry
s.
hose
tize
I still use a bucket to sani
Parts list:
•2 1”x 4”x33” fir or pine
boards (note:
a 1 x 4 board
is actually 3
1/2” wide)
•4 1”x 2”x 6 5/16” wood cr
oss
braces (align
with indentures on the bo
ttom of the
wallpaper tray
)
•33”x7 1/4” plastic wallpa
per
tray
•33”x 8”x3/16” plexiglass
(as
a cover)
•2 small eyebolts to attach
the bungee cord
2
• lengths 3/8”x18” bungee
cord (to hold
the plexiglass
in place during
storage)
•Wood glue
•1 1/2” nails or wood scre
ws
(pre-drill hole
s to avoid
wood splitting)
PET Carbonation Cap
These caps are great to fill 1-, 2- or 3-liter
PET bottles for taking your homebrew on the road,
or to give beer to friends. There are commercial
versions but you can save big when you make them yourself. These
are more
durable than the commercial versions and at only 20 percent of
the cost are an
easy DIY project. If you give a friend a
bottle of your homebrew with one of these
caps and don’t get it back, you are only
t:
out about $2!
Parts lis
soda
liter PET
3or
•2bottle cap
How-to: Carefully drill a hole into a 1-,
tire
l tubeless
2- or 3-liter plastic bottle cap. Unscrew
•Universa
e
re valv
clamp in ti
the tire valve parts and install the tire
2)
43
(NAPA #90valve with the seal on the inside of the
th
wi
s
le
cap. Tighten until a seal is made with the
•CO2 bott
tor and
la
gu
re
attached
cap. Fill your sanitized PET soda bottle
hose
3/4 full from your keg. Put one of these
x 1/4” FPT
caps loosely on the bottle. Squeeze the bot•1/4” FPorT stainless steel
brass
tle until all the air is out and the foam
ws
(this allo
ball valve
starts to come out the cap (this is good).
ly
ab
li
to re
the system
Tighten the cap and pressurize with CO2
suring your
en
shut off
expanding the bottle. Use about 14 psi to
ly
esn’t slow
CO2 tank do
carbonate. You may need to pressurize the
drain)
bottle several times as CO2 is absorbed into
les
x 1/4” nipp
the beer. If the beer is already carbonated
•1/4” MP
chuck
ll
re fi
set the pressure to about 7 PSI dependent
•1/4” T ti
on the style of beer. Note: The ball valve
installed on the standard air chuck hose insures
there will be no loss of CO2 through leakage.
32
ZYMURGY
January/February 2007
Tony Profera is a member
of the Carolina Brewmasters
in Charlotte, N.C.
www.beertown.org