I currently use a keggle with a false bottom, with a pickup tube that goes from the ball valve to the middle of the keggle. I am looking for an alternative for this, mostly because I need to use primarily leaf hops with this rig. The pickup tube today uses what I think is called a flare fitting (basically it is a nut and a ferrule which are attached to the pickup tube).
I was thinking about having an alternative to this that I can use with pellet hops and a whirlpool-- it would basically be a short copper pipe to the edge of the keggle, which is a common design I’ve seen others have. How do I connect the pickup tube to my ball valve? Is the same type of fitting which is on my false bottom’s pickup tube easy to use? Is this a flare fitting? Am I making this too complicated, and I shouldn’t use a pickup tube at all?
Your design is basically what I do. I use a close nipple on the keg bulkhead. Then I use a compression fitting to connect a piece of tubing to it. I bag whole hops, since they’ll clog the pickup, and pellets I just go through the pickup into the fermenter.
I have a simple pickup tube. It is attached to the ball-valve with a compression fitting. Not flared just tight enough to hold it in firmly.
Coarse hop-bags are the way to go. It’s the simplest solution and extremely effective for whole hops. Can’t believe I was brewing without them all these years.
You’ll use a compression fitting on the copper pipe which has pipe thread on the other side.
I just made a hop stopper and could not be more pleased. It handled my pliny clone with a pound of hops in the kettle with ease. These are the instructions I followed, omitting the stainless steel thread as it wasn’t necessary.