DIY Fast Ferment Conical Fermenter

[Brewmegoodbeer]

Hello fellow home brewers,

I have recently been looking into the Fast Ferment Conical fermenter, and this thing is awesome! You are able to primary and secondary in the same vessel without moving the beer, and then you can siphon from the fermenter, nice, clear beer. The problem is, just the fermenter is 100 bucks, and then the stand is 50, and since I am a grad student with over 100,000 in loans, I ain't got money for that! I took an idea from another DIY conical fermenter on here: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=445207, where you take two food grade buckets, make a truncated cone out of one and weld the other bucket onto the cone, making a conical fermenter. I am also attaching cpvc piping to run down to a yeast trap just like the Fast Ferment Fermenter. I have attached pics of what I have done so far. I have yet to sand the bottom seal so don't judge my welding work or the uneven, unsanded cut on the cone . The bottom picture is the fermenter that i got my idea from, except I will have a yeast trap with a valve to separate it and dump it. I have about 38 dollars into this (6 for buckets and 32 for piping and fittings). My next steps are to do some sanding, attach the yeast trap, weld the bucket to the cone, and to make a stand. Stay tuned!

 

[Brewmegoodbeer]

Hello fellow home brewers,

I have recently been looking into the Fast Ferment Conical fermenter, and this thing is awesome! You are able to primary and secondary in the same vessel without moving the beer, and then you can siphon from the fermenter, nice, clear beer. The problem is, just the fermenter is 100 bucks, and then the stand is 50, and since I am a grad student with over 100,000 in loans, I ain't got money for that! I took an idea from another DIY conical fermenter on here: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=445207, where you take two food grade buckets, make a truncated cone out of one and weld the other bucket onto the cone, making a conical fermenter. I am also attaching cpvc piping to run down to a yeast trap just like the Fast Ferment Fermenter. I have attached pics of what I have done so far. I have yet to sand the bottom seal so don't judge my welding work or the uneven, unsanded cut on the cone . The bottom picture is the fermenter that i got my idea from, except I will have a yeast trap with a valve to separate it and dump it. I have about 38 dollars into this (6 for buckets and 32 for piping and fittings). My next steps are to do some sanding, attach the yeast trap, weld the bucket to the cone, and to make a stand. Stay tuned!

Here is an update of what Ive done so far: I sanded down the bottom of the conical, built my yeast trap, and taped the cone onto the bucket, preparing to weld it.

 

[davou]

You are going to NEVER be able to properly sanitize that joinery my friend; sorry

 

[Brewmegoodbeer]

Why not? there is not any deep holes or crevices that sanitizer cannot reach. yes, the welding is not super smooth but by swishing sanitizer around in it, it should be able to get everything. My last batch I was tired and forgot to sanitize the fork that I mixed my yeast into my wort and I never got an infection. I think we over think infections and they are actually harder to get than what we prepare for. I have never had an infection. Maybe your right and maybe i'm wrong. After my first batch in it, I'll let you know

 

[Brewmegoodbeer]

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[Brewmegoodbeer]

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[Brewmegoodbeer]

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[davou]

maybe hit it with a heat gun like they use to melt pvc pipes? that should smooth it out.

I know that after a while even buckets get contaminated to the point of being scrapped just because of the scratches in them from stirring.

Sorry to have brought you down, the project is cool but its gonna be a pain!

 

[Brewmegoodbeer]

I Grinded down and smoothed the plastic welds more with my soldering tool. Next step is to weld the buket to the cone. I'll ve a plastic welding master after this.

 

[Brewmegoodbeer]

I welded the cone onto the bucket today. Its looking good! There are a few places where its leaking that I marked and will fix with my soldering iron. Next is to build the stand and glue the piping.

 

[ElChangoGuero]

very interesting thread, ill be waiting to see the final results, looks nice!!!

 

[StrainedSky]

Interesting, I think I would worry about leaks or a blowout

 

[augiedoggy]

I would just use a food grade epoxy at this point to coat and smooth out the weld areas..