So over the weekend I decided to add a thermosight to my HLT.
In drilling my 3/8" hole I managed to drill next to 1 of only 2 bubbles/waves on the internal wall (warped from the heat of past brews). Because of its location I am unable to get the o-ring, washer, & nut assembly on.
I’d like to patch and re-drill a new hole. Does anyone have any suggestions on what/how to patch the 3/8" hole? It needs to be stable to the heat and pressure of 10g of strike water.
This id going to be a tough one. My only thought would be to get a scrap of stainless, maybe 4"x4", and give it a little roll to contour to the pot. Rivet each corner, and then use some JB Weld on the outside of the pot to seal it.
Edit : Wait, you said cooler…so I guess this means plastic, so use a scrap of plastic in place of the SS.
Couldn’t you just fill it with something like GOOP? A little masking or duct tape on both sides to hold the glue in the hole until it dried?
I’d try attaching that scrap plastic with epoxy puddy. It is really easy to use and will actually cure underwater. So I’m guessing it will be good and water tight.
Epoxy alone might work for that.
Nut and bolt that just fits the hole with a washer and silicone gasket.
Plus then your cooler will look like Frankenstein’s monster which will give it a bit of additional character.
Thanks for the ideas. I thought about an epoxy because of it would fill the void and be strong enough to hold the pressure from the strike water but I wasn’t sure if it would leech chemicals in the water and leave an off flavor. I also thought about filling it either with all silicone or a combination of 1/2 epoxy on the outside to serve as a plug and fill the remaining, interior portion of the hole w/ food grade silicone. My only worry is that this may not be strong enough and w/ the pressure of the water pop the plug.
Though not pretty I think the stopper/bolt combo might be the best. If you have any other thoughts I’m happy to listen.
Thanks!
One last thought. Buy a new cooler… ;D
Why not use the bolt and washers stopper as a temp plug, then fill the cooler with boiling water? That way, you can tighten the bolt and bend the wall back into place. After you have it back into place, drain hot water and rinse with cold to fix the sidewall into it’s new position.