Upgrading your T500 Boiler, two things you need to do!

The T500 boiler from Still Spirits is a great boiler. There are two big issues with it though, firstly the tap is very slow and you have to have the boiler over a sink or bucket to empty it. Replacing the basic plastic tap with a steel one is simple and doesn’t cost much. Most good quality taps have a safety locking feature and can take a tube on the end. This means that you can empty your boiler feet away from a sink!
The second upgrade is putting a power socket on the back so you don’t have the trailing cable which is always in the way. This is a little more complicated and time consuming.
** Warning **
Never make alterations to the mains cable or components that electricity flows through if you are not confident or sure on what you are doing. You could receive an electric shock or worse if you do this incorrectly.

[@MysticDonBlair]

I don’t have this still, but I really enjoyed watching. I think like all hobby distillers, I do want one of every type of still (and distilling gadget) available 😅 BTW: I still learn a lot from how to videos like this one. Thanks for sharing 😊

[@brewingadvice]

Thank you so much @MysticDonBlair for your comments. I totally agree which is why I have 2x Air Stills, 1x Air Still Pro, 1x Water Distiller, 2x T500 boilers (1 badly dented), 3x Love Brewing Boilers Version 2, 1x Love Brewing Boilers Version 3, then a load of condensers and extras! I need a bigger house!

[@garrymcgaw4745]

Thank you for that life hack I'm going to do that plug, I've already changed the tap. Cheers mate. 👍.

[@brewingadvice]

Glad it helped.

[@stuartpowell4905]

Good upgrade tips.Your boiler is perty dented up. Your losing internal volume like that. put a deflated basketball in side and blow it up. That will push most of the dents out. Enjoy your videos. take care

[@brewingadvice]

Hi @stuartpowell4905, many thanks for this and your other comment, I really appreciate it. Glad you like my videos.

[@martink9785]

Man, i gotta fit an iec socket in mine! It almost looks like i might fit an scr in there too. Thank you for making this 👍👍👍👍

[@brewingadvice]

Thanks @martink9785. Be careful with adding an SCR as SCR units get very hot and the base of the boiler also gets hot. Having them both in the same place will shorten the lifespan of the SCR. If you are going to do it, make sure you add a fan (with holes) so cooler air can be pulled in & also add some exit holes for the hot air. Personally I would have it external, but it may be fine.

[@martink9785]

@@brewingadvice that’s a good point, thanks. I think I’ll just fit it in the box that I have. But will definitely fit an iec socket to the boiler. I noticed that my cable is developing an odd shape near where it exits, presumably from bending and having stuff pushed up against it.

[@brewingadvice]

Yes, cable bunching or kinking can be due to compression, or the grip inside the boiler could be a little loose and some is coming outside. This isn't really an issue, but if that is the case, try to push some back inside so it doesn't get too tight internally.

[@stuartpowell449]

Good upgrade tips . Your boiler is perty dented up. Your losing internal volume like that. Put a deflated basketball 🏀 in side and blow it up. That will push most of those dents out. Enjoy your videos. 👍

[@brewingadvice]

Great idea to use a deflated baseball. Don't worry though, I don't use this boiler. I was given it by a friend who caused the implosion. They gave it to me to adopt and play with it so I could learn and not damage my own T500.

[@garethlister4332]

The new version comes with that tap now

[@brewingadvice]

Yes, I have seen this and they have also added two power switches for the two heating elements. These are great improvements.

[@garethlister4332]

Any idea if we can run it on one element once it's up to temp?

[@brewingadvice]

So, the new T500 boiler that has two switches on it, yes you can run them individually or both at the same time. I think though that they are both rated at 1,250W, which might be a little low to keep it in the sweat spot for distilling (it will be running at 50% power). For a normal 25 litre wash and a heating capacity of 2,250W, you want to run the boiler at around 72% power. It is likely that a separate SCR is still required to get it working well.