propane plumbing question

[danno]

OK, I'm building a 2 tier all grain setup. (kegs arrive today, got my pump, SS valves and fittings, polysulfone QD's, etc... should be a fun weekend putting it all together...)

My question involves plumbing the propane. Is soft copper tubing with brass flare fittings acceptable, or do I need to use black pipe? I'd rather go the soft copper tubing/brass route, but if I'm setting myself up for, say, an explosion, I'd rather avoid that...

I'm also going to use grill ignitors (like this (http://www.truevalue.com/index.cfm?action=shoppingProductDetail&intProductID=30153&CFID=13952400&CFTOKEN=cafdc1-0e80a4ba-cb40-4c74-af74-6024510ffab5)) so I don't have to singe knuckle hair firing up burners...

[Jeff]

I checked 2000 Uniform Plumbing Code (it's fairly stringent) and soft copper is not allowed. Type K or L copper is with one exception. If the gas contains 0.3 grains of hydrogen sulfide per 100 cubic feet of gas it shall not be used. I don't really know what the last part means but you could probably get that info from your gas supplier

[danno]

OK Jeff, you inspired me. As I was thinking about the whole thing, I decided I wanted to be able to control each burner individually. So, using your above guidance, here's what I came up with...

http://www.boomspeed.com/danno/propaneplumbing.jpg

That's type L copper, plus brass fittings. I just removed the tank adapters from the regulators, and the rest came easy... The hose on the left was the most expensive piece of this, (not including the regulators and burners, which I'm taking from my turkey fryers) all total it was about $25, with the hose being $13 of it...

So before I start soldering, and building this on to my structure, any further critiques? I went with the cast elbows instead of a standard elbow, so I could have a place near the regulator to mount to the frame and provide some stability...

[Jeff]

It looks pretty good to me, but remember I'm an engineer so I usually just mess stuff up for people. :eek:

[BREWERDLUX]

Danno, how did this set up work? Im about to do the same thing and was wondering about the whole copper vs cast thing........

[danno]

heh, I've been busy with work and the wife's honey-do list, all the stuff is still sitting more or less where I took the picture... maybe this weekend, I need to get my stand built before I put together the plumbing. But, I am going to head back to the mega home store to price out black pipe, I'd hate to be reading a post here from the great beyond saying "I told you so..."

[O2 Mash]

Danno, you seem to be a pretty resourceful guy. I was wondering if you looked into the pumps yet. Please pass on any advice you may have. I have decided to set mine up with a pump rather than gravity. That way I can build the system on one level, rather than a skyscraper. I would go to a pump eventually, so I decided to just do it now so I don't have to build the frame again down the road. Also, FYI I saw a setup where a guy utilized old bedframes for the frame. What a great idea, you just need to know someone with a welder. I'm thinking I can get the frames from a mattress store where the delivery guys remove the old bedding for you.

[danno]

with a pump, you can get to two tiers. I can't think of a way you could do a single tier without two separate pumps (or much screwing around), but if anyone has any ideas, I'm open to suggestions.

I got a deal on a brand new March AC-3C-MD pump, it too waits to be installed into the new brewery. It's close to the same March pump that B3 ($129) and Northern Brewer ($110) carry, the main difference is the plastic body is polypropelene, not polysulfone, and only rated to 190ºF, not 250ºF. However, talking to people in the know, the ratings are conservative, and also based on loooooong pumping times, so I'm not too worried. (on the plus side, it's 1/15th horsepower, not 1/50th like the B3 and NB pumps...) Check out ebay, there's a couple of these right now for $60 new...

[O2 Mash]

Originally posted by danno
with a pump, you can get to two tiers. I can't think of a way you could do a single tier without two separate pumps (or much screwing around), but if anyone has any ideas, I'm open to suggestions.

I got a deal on a brand new March AC-3C-MD pump, it too waits to be installed into the new brewery. It's close to the same March pump that B3 ($129) and Northern Brewer ($110) carry, the main difference is the plastic body is polypropelene, not polysulfone, and only rated to 190ºF, not 250ºF. However, talking to people in the know, the ratings are conservative, and also based on loooooong pumping times, so I'm not too worried. (on the plus side, it's 1/15th horsepower, not 1/50th like the B3 and NB pumps...) Check out ebay, there's a couple of these right now for $60 new...

Danno, check out this link. http://www.campbellsmoonshinebrewery.50megs.com/photo4.html
These guys have ONE pump on their system and have it on one level (if I'm looking at it correctly). Looks like seperate inputs and outputs that can be manipulated by valves enabling one to use just one pump. Let me know what you think.... O2