Return to TheElectricBrewery.com
  [ Shop ]   [ Building ]   [ Using ]   [ Recipes ]   [ Testimonials ]   [ Gallery ]   [ FAQ ]   [ About Us ]   [ Contact Us ]   [ Newsletter ]

Log inLog in   RegisterRegister   User Control PanelUser Control Panel   Private MessagesPrivate Messages   MembershipClub Memberships   SearchSearch   MemberlistMemberlist   Photo AlbumsPhoto Albums   Forum FAQForum FAQ


North Wall Brewing (working title) Build Thread
Goto page 1, 2, 3, 4  Next
 
Post new topic   Reply to topic   Printer-friendly view    TheElectricBrewery.com Forum Index -> Building Your Brewery
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
SookeBrewing




Joined: 01 Sep 2012
Posts: 69
Location: Sooke, BC, Canada


PostLink    Posted: Thu Sep 27, 2012 8:52 pm    Post subject: North Wall Brewing (working title) Build Thread Reply with quote


        Register to remove this ad. It's free!
I've finally gotten to a point in my build that I have some pictures of stuff that I want to share. When we bought this house about 2 years ago, I knew that it was PERFECT for a larger, purpose-built brewery. I discovered this site some time last year and have been salivating over it ever since.

Right now, I brew using some pretty basic equipment - a turkey fryer burner, big-ass aluminum pot and a cooler mash tun with stainless braid. I'm lucky enough to have gotten a free 100lb propane tank, and my equipment fits nicely in my well house, which, obviously, has a readily available source of water (its foundation is a 2500gal concrete cistern). The room is also small enough and very well insulated (to prevent freezing) that it works well as a fermentation room since there is already a heater in there (needed in the winter but not the summer, of course).

This is the new home of brewery 2.0, tentatively called "North Wall Brewing," since it occupies the north wall of my garage.



When we bought the place, the garage was neither insulated nor heated, so temperature swings are pretty wild in all seasons, especially the late spring and early fall when it's chilly at night and warm in the day. First order of business was to insulate and put up some walls:



We had an electrician run the lines for the heat before we did this. Due to a very, very busy summer I didn't have as much time as I'd liked to work on it, but finally managed to get the last of the OSB up a few days ago. This is the area NWB will occupy:



SWMBO wanted a ping pong table. She's better than I.



When I first thought about building the brewery, I assumed I'd be able to use this existing 220V outlet, but as you can see, it is a welding-type one that is only good for that purpose, something I learned from reading this forum and site, thanks! So I installed a new dryer outlet with the proper 30A 4-wire cabling, and ran it back to my panel where it now sits, waiting for a very expensive GFI breaker (at least $250) Sad







I got to work building the brew stand. First, I built a larger, modified version of it as my general-purpose work bench. A little higher, with a plywood top, and no bottom shelf, 8 feet long. Once that was done, I set to work on my stand. I'm really happy with the way it turned out.

Both stands, before sanding and staining:







I finished staining them last night, and I love the results. I used Minwax stain, Early American colour. We had cabinets with this stain at our last house. I love it.



I got that laundry sink for free - it's nearly brand-new. Since I'll really only be draining water and yeasties and non-toxic cleaning stuff, I'm going to run the drain for this either out the door into the grass, or through the wall and to a conveniently-located perimeter drain cleanout which drains the rainwater to a ditch below my property (probably the latter).

I got my hands on 3 used Sanke kegs, so I couldn't pass up the opportunity to convert them and save some major bucks on this build. I guess I can always upgrade later. I cut the tops off them and I'll be ordering fittings soon. I will also be shining them up like a boss.



In the left of the following photo, you can see my 1" water line that will be connected soon - then I will run 1/2" pex to the sink and create connections for the HLT and chiller. Just cold water, for now.



I am considering (ie, pretty damn sure) I'm going to tile the wall behind the brew stand for ease of cleaning and of course protection - OSB doesn't like wet. I'll be building a wooden vent hood lined with some sort of waterproof paneling (likely the next project as it's quick and easy to do while I wait for parts to arrive).

I have ordered nearly all the parts for the control panel and I'm working on sourcing and pricing all my keg fittings. I can't WAIT to get this thing together!

_________________
- Sooke, BC, Canada
Back to top
huaco




Joined: 05 Apr 2012
Posts: 1506
Location: Burleson Texas


PostLink    Posted: Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:19 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I really like the name of your brewery. Sounds good... easy to say. Looking great so far!
That ping-pong table is an awesome idea! I may need to get one for my garage!
Back to top
View user's photo album (10 photos)
SookeBrewing




Joined: 01 Sep 2012
Posts: 69
Location: Sooke, BC, Canada


PostLink    Posted: Thu Sep 27, 2012 9:26 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

huaco wrote:
I really like the name of your brewery. Sounds good... easy to say. Looking great so far!
That ping-pong table is an awesome idea! I may need to get one for my garage!


Thanks! It's growing on me. I thought of something geographically related to where I am, town/region name, etc, but I think it would be more fun to name my beers after that sort of thing.

Coincidentally - and I just considered this - The North Wall is also the name of one of the most famous dive sites in the Caribbean (just off Grand Cayman) - I dived there a number of years ago. In a former life, I was a dive instructor aboard a cruise ship. So it kind of fits that way.

AND, it kind of reminds me of The Wall (which is in the north of Westeros on Game of Thrones). Eep - better watch out for White Walkers.

_________________
- Sooke, BC, Canada
Back to top
perogi




Joined: 12 Feb 2012
Posts: 850
Location: NH

Drinking: Perogi Pale, NEIPA, Nutter's Crossing Nut Brown Ale, Edmund Fitzgerald Porter Clone

Working on: Max's Maibock


PostLink    Posted: Thu Sep 27, 2012 10:06 pm    Post subject: Re: North Wall Brewing (working title) Build Thread Reply with quote

SookeBrewing wrote:

I am considering (ie, pretty damn sure) I'm going to tile the wall behind the brew stand for ease of cleaning and of course protection - OSB doesn't like wet.


That the first thing I thought of when I saw the pics. Definitely put some sort of barrier up there.
Back to top
Castermmt




Joined: 03 Jan 2011
Posts: 863
Location: Lowell, In

Drinking: Steelhead Porter, Alt-Toids, Hefty-Weizen, Terry's Kolsch, African Amber, Pumpkin Ale, Double Dog Ale

Working on: Janet's Brown Ale, Terry's Kolsch, Pilsner


PostLink    Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2012 12:14 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Looks great! I can tell your a very smart man, you get a brewery, the wife gets a ping-pong table. Razz $250 for the GFI, that's steep. Cheers, Castermmt Mug
_________________
http://www.theelectricbrewery.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=24836
Back to top
SookeBrewing




Joined: 01 Sep 2012
Posts: 69
Location: Sooke, BC, Canada


PostLink    Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2012 2:10 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Castermmt wrote:
Looks great! I can tell your a very smart man, you get a brewery, the wife gets a ping-pong table. Razz $250 for the GFI, that's steep. Cheers, Castermmt Mug


Haha, thanks - yeah - basically every other modern panel out there I can find a GFI on Ebay for a lot cheaper. This one, despite only being 5 years old is hard to find - only electrical wholesalers have it, and I think it's a Canada-only panel, so Ebay pickings are slim to none.

_________________
- Sooke, BC, Canada
Back to top
huaco




Joined: 05 Apr 2012
Posts: 1506
Location: Burleson Texas


PostLink    Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2012 2:17 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Dang. And I thought my $120 for gfci 50amps breaker was steep
Back to top
View user's photo album (10 photos)
randbrewer1010




Joined: 22 Apr 2012
Posts: 110



PostLink    Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2012 2:51 am    Post subject: Re: North Wall Brewing (working title) Build Thread Reply with quote

I used the Early American stain color too. I love it. I went with a sort of classic color theme in my garage to match it. (Black and 'colonial white' (a slightly warmer white), sort of like the old colonial houses). Nice job on the build.

https://photos-1.dropbox.com/t/0/AABoYsWn9j2v4rw1F7JHSm6x5fNQPlJCsadiP23TAh1blQ/10/18491667/jpeg/1024x768/2/1348804800/0/2/DSC_0042.JPG/TwotNq4amogFPmdjL712PpUElsveHRw_oeT4-JPCK_o%2C2Jy3rLhphbmAl2a_E_zxprACFHZIIReHjuR5M-FDX8A
Back to top
kellzey




Joined: 04 Aug 2011
Posts: 580
Location: Orlando, FL


PostLink    Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2012 3:00 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

You have a nice looking ping pong opponent... Smile

Oh and the brewery looks good too!

Smile

_________________
I brew using electrons!
Back to top
kellzey




Joined: 04 Aug 2011
Posts: 580
Location: Orlando, FL


PostLink    Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2012 3:04 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
I got my hands on 3 used Sanke kegs, so I couldn't pass up the opportunity to convert them and save some major bucks on this build. I guess I can always upgrade later. I cut the tops off them and I'll be ordering fittings soon. I will also be shining them up like a boss.


Those are the instructions I followed. The process works great!


_________________
I brew using electrons!
Back to top
kal
Forum Administrator



Joined: 12 Dec 2010
Posts: 11116
Location: Ottawa, Canada

Drinking: Pub Ale, Electric Creamsicle, Mild, Pliny the Younger, Belgian Dark Strong, Weizen, Russian Imperial Stout, Black Butte Porter


PostLink    Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2012 1:08 pm    Post subject: Re: North Wall Brewing (working title) Build Thread Reply with quote

perogi wrote:
SookeBrewing wrote:

I am considering (ie, pretty damn sure) I'm going to tile the wall behind the brew stand for ease of cleaning and of course protection - OSB doesn't like wet.


That the first thing I thought of when I saw the pics. Definitely put some sort of barrier up there.

Careful tiling on OSB. From what I understand, tile mortar doesn't like to stick to OSB very well. Drywall or plywood would be better.

I learnt this when we started doing our basement: The contractor put plywood on the floor where tiles would go and only used OSB where carpet would go. In talking to him he said you can get away a bit with OSB under tile if it's not a high traffic area they said but it's best not to do it if you can avoid it. This is for horizontal tile. Vertical would be a lot worse I would imagine.

Either way - nice pics - thanks for sharing!

Kal

_________________
Our new shop with over 150 new products: shop.TheElectricBrewery.com
We ship worldwide and support our products and customers for life.
Purchasing through our affiliate links helps support our site at no extra cost to you. We thank you!
My basement/bar/brewery build 2.0
Back to top
View user's photo album (21 photos)
SookeBrewing




Joined: 01 Sep 2012
Posts: 69
Location: Sooke, BC, Canada


PostLink    Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2012 1:50 pm    Post subject: Re: North Wall Brewing (working title) Build Thread Reply with quote

kal wrote:
perogi wrote:
SookeBrewing wrote:

I am considering (ie, pretty damn sure) I'm going to tile the wall behind the brew stand for ease of cleaning and of course protection - OSB doesn't like wet.


That the first thing I thought of when I saw the pics. Definitely put some sort of barrier up there.

Careful tiling on OSB. From what I understand, tile mortar doesn't like to stick to OSB very well. Drywall or plywood would be better.

I learnt this when we started doing our basement: The contractor put plywood on the floor where tiles would go and only used OSB where carpet would go. In talking to him he said you can get away a bit with OSB under tile if it's not a high traffic area they said but it's best not to do it if you can avoid it. This is for horizontal tile. Vertical would be a lot worse I would imagine.

Either way - nice pics - thanks for sharing!

Kal


I'll be using a concrete backer board - if I recall correctly you shouldn't really tile on any wood surface directly, it's too flexible in most cases.

I'm thinking white subway tiles, large ones.

_________________
- Sooke, BC, Canada
Back to top
kal
Forum Administrator



Joined: 12 Dec 2010
Posts: 11116
Location: Ottawa, Canada

Drinking: Pub Ale, Electric Creamsicle, Mild, Pliny the Younger, Belgian Dark Strong, Weizen, Russian Imperial Stout, Black Butte Porter


PostLink    Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2012 2:05 pm    Post subject: Re: North Wall Brewing (working title) Build Thread Reply with quote

SookeBrewing wrote:
I'll be using a concrete backer board - if I recall correctly you shouldn't really tile on any wood surface directly, it's too flexible in most cases.

I'm thinking white subway tiles, large ones.

Cement board (or even green or regular drywall) should be good. If you think you're going to get the wall really wet (like a shower) definitely go with cement board but it's a lot more money.

In my brewery I didn't even use the green drywall that you'd see in a bathroom since I treat my brewery like a kitchen (where there's no green drywall - just the regular stuff).

Kal

_________________
Our new shop with over 150 new products: shop.TheElectricBrewery.com
We ship worldwide and support our products and customers for life.
Purchasing through our affiliate links helps support our site at no extra cost to you. We thank you!
My basement/bar/brewery build 2.0
Back to top
View user's photo album (21 photos)
SookeBrewing




Joined: 01 Sep 2012
Posts: 69
Location: Sooke, BC, Canada


PostLink    Posted: Fri Sep 28, 2012 3:16 pm    Post subject: Re: North Wall Brewing (working title) Build Thread Reply with quote

kal wrote:

Cement board (or even green or regular drywall) should be good. If you think you're going to get the wall really wet (like a shower) definitely go with cement board but it's a lot more money.

In my brewery I didn't even use the green drywall that you'd see in a bathroom since I treat my brewery like a kitchen (where there's no green drywall - just the regular stuff).

Kal


Yeah - I guess the concrete backer board would be overkill.

Thanks for the input!

_________________
- Sooke, BC, Canada
Back to top
SookeBrewing




Joined: 01 Sep 2012
Posts: 69
Location: Sooke, BC, Canada


PostLink    Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 2:32 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Over the weekend I connected the water from the crawlspace under the house to the line to the garage. What a headache trying to get a leak-free connection between the black poly water main and the 3/4" pex in the crawlspace! I think I finally got it.

All other connections were easy as pie, including the laundry tub and its drain, and a new exterior water tap for our driveway and kids' play area.



I also shined up those kegs somewhat. What a tedious, dirty job. I did NOT enjoy it at all, and quit before they were mirror shiny, plus I burned through all my Gator Grit finishing and polishing pads. One or two more sets of polish pads should make them look a little better.





I'm going to build the ventilation hood next, and tile the wall behind the sink and brew stand.

Speaking of that - I have exactly 4 feet of clearance between the top of my keggles and the ceiling in the garage. I'm building the vent hood out of either doubled-up (stacked) 2x8s or 2x10s (so the height of the hood will either be 14.5 or 18.5 inches). Where do you think I should put the hood? Right on the ceiling? Or mounted on the wall a few inches below? Obviously the balance is having enough room to work with above the kettles, but not so much that the steam billows out before getting sucked into the hood.

I think I will screw it into the wall anyway since the ceiling joists run parallel to that wall and might make it harder to secure into the ceiling anyway. But height is the question, yeah.

Thoughts?

Thanks!

_________________
- Sooke, BC, Canada
Back to top
kellzey




Joined: 04 Aug 2011
Posts: 580
Location: Orlando, FL


PostLink    Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 2:51 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

LIKE!
_________________
I brew using electrons!
Back to top
huaco




Joined: 05 Apr 2012
Posts: 1506
Location: Burleson Texas


PostLink    Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 3:18 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Awesome man! great work!
Back to top
View user's photo album (10 photos)
kal
Forum Administrator



Joined: 12 Dec 2010
Posts: 11116
Location: Ottawa, Canada

Drinking: Pub Ale, Electric Creamsicle, Mild, Pliny the Younger, Belgian Dark Strong, Weizen, Russian Imperial Stout, Black Butte Porter


PostLink    Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 1:46 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I only have about 15-18" between the bottom of the hood and the top of the kettles. This is mostly because in the old brewery I had low ceilings. It work well at getting the steam away. You could probably go higher and still be fine but I did the same thing in the new brewery. You don't really "work" that much in the kettles. Other than getting the large mash paddle into the MLT I didn't find it cramped.

Question: What's that black slanted pipe near the ground in the bottom right of this picture?:



Is that the drain for the sink? Does it slant down and then go up to get over the foundation pour? Do you have a P-trap under the sink? This rise at the end may be like a secondary P-trap which may cause you issues.

Kal

_________________
Our new shop with over 150 new products: shop.TheElectricBrewery.com
We ship worldwide and support our products and customers for life.
Purchasing through our affiliate links helps support our site at no extra cost to you. We thank you!
My basement/bar/brewery build 2.0
Back to top
View user's photo album (21 photos)
SookeBrewing




Joined: 01 Sep 2012
Posts: 69
Location: Sooke, BC, Canada


PostLink    Posted: Mon Oct 01, 2012 3:04 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Hi Kal,

Thanks for the advice re the vent hood - I think I'll go a little bit higher, maybe 20" above the kettles? My hood will be a little deeper so it may collect a bit more steam. In any case, I'm sure the Vortex fan will pull everything up and out where it's supposed to go.


You're correct, that black pipe is for the drain for the sink - I had 2 choices - go out the wall directly behind the sink and run it along the outside of the garage, or do what I did in that picture. The drain simply runs into the perimeter drain clean-out at the corner of the garage, which drains to a ditch at the bottom of my property. I didn't really want a long black pipe on the outside of my garage.

There is no P-trap (since it's not tied into the septic system) so the drain works pretty well. I would have done a more direct line to the wall, avoiding the foundation wall, but that baseboard heater is in the way. Not the most elegant solution, I know, but it works.

_________________
- Sooke, BC, Canada
Back to top
SookeBrewing




Joined: 01 Sep 2012
Posts: 69
Location: Sooke, BC, Canada


PostLink    Posted: Fri Oct 12, 2012 7:53 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Small update - polished up those kegs a bit more, but I destroyed my polish pads in the process, and it's not quite done. Can't seem to find any polish pads locally, so I will have to see when I visit the US tomorrow for 10 days.

Parts are slowly trickling in:



I also have my relays (magnetic, not SSR yet), and my Auber PIDs and timer and a big Amazon order is waiting for me to pick up just across the line in WA state. In there are my elements, transformers, terminal strips, JB-weld, and various power receptacles.

It's going to be torture having all this stuff and nothing to install it in (my enclosure won't ship until next month).

Also waiting for pickup in WA is my new grain mill (my old Corona-style mill broke).

I also built the frame for my ventilation hood. Stacked 2x8s for a total depth of 14.5". It's glued-and-screwed and now to put the top on it and stain it to match the brew stand. I will have pictures of all of this soon!

_________________
- Sooke, BC, Canada
Back to top
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic   Printer-friendly view    TheElectricBrewery.com Forum Index -> Building Your Brewery All times are GMT
Goto page 1, 2, 3, 4  Next
Page 1 of 4
Jump to:  
You cannot post new topics in this forum
You cannot reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum
You cannot attach files in this forum
You can download files in this forum



Forum powered by phpBB © phpBB Group