Vent-matic Faucets Status?

Does anyone know the status of the Shirron/Vent-matic faucets? From what I can tell there have been some legal issues that have/had caused them to cease production. I tried checking Shirron's site but it's a piece of garbage (slow and crashed on me several times trying to navigate through their brewing-related products). I've seen a couple of sites that claim "they're back" but one doesn't have any way to order or pricing info and the other is a vendor that I've heard bad things about. The reason I ask is I have three stainless Vent-matics and would like to add two more taps to my keezer, so it'd be nice if they all matched. Worst case I figure I can go with stainless Perlick's, but it'd be nice if they all matched.

Chi company has them SS and $34.99 a piece

beaksnbeer said:

Chi company has them SS and $34.99 a piece

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Sweet, thanks

What were the legal issues in contest?

daksin said:

What were the legal issues in contest?

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My understanding is the original patent holder sold the patent to Shirron, then he went to Perlick and designed their forward sealing faucets. They're not exactly alike, but they're definitely similar to the VentMatics. Then I believe Perlick sued or threatened to sue Shirron if they didn't stop selling the VentMatic. My disclaimer is I got this info from various sources/forums, so I'm not sure how accurate it is.

Think it was the other way around which is why Perlick dropped the 425 line as they were to close in design.

Just an FYI, or ordered a couple from CHI Company last week and they arrived yesterday. I know they originally offered different spout diameters on the VentMatic faucets. I haven't measured them but I'd guess they're probably 10mm whereas my old ones are prob 12mm. The only other noticeable difference is the tap handle locknut is a little different on old versus new.

I e-mailed CHI company and asked about how the Ventmatic came to be again and they said that there was a time lapse clause in the law suit that has expired allowing manufacture of the faucets again. The law suit was apparently filed by the patent holder against Perlick.

For what it's worth, I think the Ventmatics are the best faucet available, or at least they were. I haven't seen a new one but I have 6 of the old ones that I got right before Ventmatic went out of business. Excellent quality and operation. The Perlick 525's, while serviceable, just don't operate to my liking. They have a huge "throw" to open and close them (a very long handle movement) compared to the Ventmatic. Plus, I don't think the seal is quite as solid when you close them. Just an opinion.

Bump to this thread, I am about to order 5 of them and want to know if anyone has received a new one and has though opinion on functionality and quality.

I had per lick 525ss in the past that constantly leaked, lost a batch when I went on vacation and came back to frozen beer on my garage floor. Seeing perlicks response to customers on here I am looking for another option.

I ordered a few on Monday, hoping they are here by weeks end. I'll update one I get them.

There was a response on the old vs. new in the wanted to buy perlick 425's a couple of months ago (I don't know how to link it sorry)

Members, Stone Hands and Demon have them and are quite happy.

Well I just ordered 5 in addition to shanks and the rest of the gear so i'll report when I get them and have them in service

So my faucets showed up a day early and here are my initial impressions:

At a glance they are identical to the old style Ventmatics - they look good on the wall with the others, almost can't tell which ones the new ones are.



However, when you look at them from the side, you can tell which ones are the new style because the handle tilts back a few degrees further when closed (and they open a few degrees further as well).


Here is a closeup side by side - old on the left, new on the right


The faucet spout that came with the new one is a 10mm where my old ones came with 12mm. I confirmed that spouts are interchangeable between bodies.


Here are the guts laid out - again old on the left, new on the right. There are some differences in the bonnet washers and orings and they do not appear to be interchangeable, but I have not tested. Also the old body style let you insert the handle lever in any orientation, but the new style does not (you can see the milling difference is you look at the full res picture). There are also some minor differences between the slide valves.


Finally, the interior... they look identical but there is a better polish on the internal body on the old style... again need to see the full res to see the difference.


I haven't poured from them yet, but all in all, for ~$35 a piece I am very pleased. I have no doubt that these will perform just as well as the old ones.

I just replied to a pm from GG. One of my new ones was leaking when I first hooked it up. I took it apart and lubed everything up with keg lube and reassembled. That did the trick and it's been working great. It didn't seem like there was any lube on them from the factory.

I also have different size spouts on my old ones versus new. I'm not at home right now (at GABF!) so I can't measure but I think my new ones might have 8mm spouts. They seem to be much better at avoiding the "hollow pour" issue. I found these guys selling replacement spouts, just haven't gotten around to ordering them yet: http://centerlinemachining.com/homebrew.htm

I just ordered 3 on 10/8 and they arrived via UPS on 10/11. Good communication from company and very pleased with the transaction.

microbusbrewery said:

I found these guys selling replacement spouts, just haven't gotten around to ordering them yet: http://centerlinemachining.com/homebrew.htm

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Just in case anyone else is considering ordering the 8mm spouts, I ordered some and they're awesome. Fit and finish is great and they shipped them out right away. Appearance-wise they're not exactly the same as the OEM spouts (slightly different shape), but they're close. Don't get me wrong, there's nothing "wrong" with the appearance; they look at least as good as the originals, they're just a tad different. And they definitely give me a much better pour than the original 12mm spouts.

I just ordered two faucets from the Chi Company, I will report when I get them. It will be so great to throw my Perlick 525 in the trash.

8mm short spouts are shown as available now.
waiting or the longer ones...

http://www.chicompany.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=376_17_16&products_id=3303

The wife ordered me several of the Ventmatic's as a Christmas present. She just got an email a few minutes ago letting her know they were cancelling the order and returning her money.

Below is their reasoning. Glad they are being honest and thankful I can wait for V2....

The reason for this refund is that issues were reported to us about leaks with the new Vent-Matic faucets. We shipped all stock back to the mfg. for retrofitting with new / improved gaskets and seals.

It would have been dishonest of us to ship to you a product with a known defect, thus we have cancelled your order.
The Vent-Matic Faucet (v. 2) should be available by mid to late January of 2014. Should you re-order at that time, during checkout, in the “Special Instructions” text entry box, type “*****” and we will refund back to you 5% of your goods order.
We apologize for this inconvenience,
Matthew Chitiea
Owner,
The CHI Company

I have three of the version 1.1's that I haven't used yet. I wonder if they will exchange them for v2's?

Two of them were shipped from CHI to me last week...

Someone be sure to post here when the v2's come out.

disney7 said:

I have three of the version 1.1's that I haven't used yet. I wonder if they will exchange them for v2's?

Two of them were shipped from CHI to me last week...[...]

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The sensible thing would be to contact the retailer and arrange for a return/refund, and reorder when the new stock is available. I suspect that would be the easiest and hence preferred method for the retailer...

Cheers!

CB77R said:

8mm short spouts are shown as available now.
waiting or the longer ones...

http://www.chicompany.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=376_17_16&products_id=3303

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CB77R is ChiCompany and is pretending to be a ChiCompany customer. ChiCompany was previously banned and now so is CB77R.

CHICompany stated that the v2 would be available Feb 1 at the latest. Well, it's Feb 1.

TheBeerNerd said:

CHICompany stated that the v2 would be available Feb 1 at the latest. Well, it's Feb 1.

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From their website.......


We expect to have the 2014 Vent-Matic available by (the latest) February, 2014.
UPDATE: 1-9-2014 - MFG states that the process of manufacturing the new teflon parts has commenced. Current availability projection is February 1.


That would put Feb 28th as the "latest". Still waiting patiently here.

I will say this about the customer service. I was not happy when I installed my taps. I installed 6 taps this week in my keezer and had a leak in one of them. I called them 30 minutes before they closed and when I said I had a problem they already knew what was going on. I was offered another tap until the parts came in. The next day I had another Vent-matic tap on my doorstep. They did back up their problem and made it better until the replacement parts are in.

ps. I don't know them and I'm new to their service. Still thought it was good.

man, I got 4 of these for christmas. I just finished building my portable kegerator with two. I have two more about to go into my sanyo 4911 conversion. I emailed them about getting them replaced or fixed.

I did hear about a guy who got 4 new faucets on his front door when he had leaks. So Chi is legit. Not sure why they're banned from this site?

insanim8er said:

[...]So Chi is legit. Not sure why they're banned from this site?

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Any vendor posing as a customer is an intolerable thing, here or anywhere else.
It just isn't the right way to go.

Full disclosure: I've been a frequent customer and have yet to be disappointed in that regard. But I was disappointed to learn about the posing thing and hope it will never be repeated.

If ChiCompany would spring for a vendor membership - and then apologize for past indiscretions - I suspect all would be well in the kingdom...

Cheers!

day_trippr said:

Any vendor posing as a customer is an intolerable thing, here or anywhere else.
It just isn't the right way to go.

Full disclosure: I've been a frequent customer and have yet to be disappointed in that regard. But I was disappointed to learn about the posing thing and hope it will never be repeated.

If ChiCompany would spring for a vendor membership - and then apologize for past indiscretions - I suspect all would be well in the kingdom...

Cheers!

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I see.. that makes sense. Kinda funny they don't get a vender account *shrugs*

I just contacted CHI's customer service. They said they've been calling the manufacturer daily for the last 2 weeks with no response.

I might just cave in and buy Perlicks.

TheBeerNerd said:

I just contacted CHI's customer service. They said they've been calling the manufacturer daily for the last 2 weeks with no response.

I might just cave in and buy Perlicks.

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He told me it'll be sometime in Feb. He doesn't know when, but it'll be soon.

I got 4 of them for christmas, so I'm waiting for the seal kits.

I told him I had some events where I needed to use my faucets on my portable kegerator this month as well as next month.

Two days later I had 3 stainless steel faucets in the mail.

Their customer service is legit over there at Chi.

Just saw this on their web site when I checked for an update...

UPDATE: 2-14-2014 - MFG has recieved the new gaskets & seals. They will now take 24 faucets and perform a 48 our leak test, each faucet at a different psi from 5psi to 20psi.
Mfg will also perform an automatic lever activation test (via machine) to leak test during the operation of the faucet lever.
We should receive fist batch around the 24th of February.
The CHI Company will then send faucets to some previous buyers of the 2013 Vent-Matic v.1 Faucet for one week of "field testing".

Once we (and our customer evaluators) are satisfied with the results we will re-release them.

Thank you for your patience in this matter.

I have 8 of them for sale, with the shank and black plate thing that butts up to fridge

On the Chicompany faucets page:

UPDATE - 1-12-2015:
The mfg. is still reworking the design of the faucet. Realistically, we are looking at late 2nd quarter of 2015.


Snipe hunt!

Cheers!

day_trippr said:

On the Chicompany faucets page:

UPDATE - 1-12-2015:
The mfg. is still reworking the design of the faucet. Realistically, we are looking at late 2nd quarter of 2015.


Snipe hunt!

Cheers!

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That's kind of crazy. Me thinks these aren't the #1 priority for the manufacturer. That or they're having a really hard time getting it right.

I ordered a couple ventmatics and they leaked as bad as the Perl's to my disappointment. I was fortunate to find a used Perlick 425 on ebay, it works as well as my other 425's. Now I'm happy.

I know this is an older thread but I wanted to share my experience with Chi Company and Vent-Matics.

I purchased 4 "Vent-Matic" faucets from Chi Company in late 2013.

I have been using them since then but almost always get some sugar build up around the bonnet. So it's leaking around the bonnet and I figured I would try to replace the seals. I looked around to try to find exact replacement seals but couldn't. So I emailed Vent-Matic themselves. And got the following reply:

"Thanks for your e-mail. Sorry for build-up but a real Vent-Matic do not have this problem.

If you bought 4 in 2013. You have a knockoff from Draught Tec. Or CHI which is not a VENT-MATIC™ Faucet. If so, we may be able to help. Send us a picture of the faucet please and if you can tell us who sold them to you we will send you parts that we think may fix the build-up you are getting.

Regards,
Kit
Vent-Matic Company, LLC"

I am still in conversation with vent matic.

Well that's an interesting development. Did you contact them through http://www.vent-matic.com/? I looked at the mobile version of that site and it seems a bit peculiar. For example, I'm not seeing any way to order faucets or find distributors.

I guess I've lucked out. I had three original Vent-matics from back in the day, then I ordered two more when CHI started selling them (counterfeit?). One of them was a bit temperamental and CHI sent me replacement seals. They've been working fine ever since.

Yeah, i did. I also noticed they didn't have them for sale or a list of distributors. Not sure if that's because they are still going through legality issues or not.

But the guy replied to me a second time and said he was going to put parts in the mail that should help fix my problem.

Gotta love an optimist, but reading the first six sentences with what's happened over the last few years makes that last sentence righteously speculative.

The odds are heavily in favor of breath-holders being totally doomed...

Cheers!

day_trippr said:

Gotta love an optimist, but reading the first six sentences with what's happened over the last few years makes that last sentence righteously speculative.

The odds are heavily in favor of breath-holders being totally doomed...

Cheers!

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Dude, they were sabotaged by the patent seller. The blue prints he gave then when he sold then the patent rights were BOGUS. Because the contract was time sensitive. If they didn't produce x amount and pay him back x amount after so many days, he would gain thousands of dollars.

I've been in contact with Matt, owner of Chi since I had returned the ones I had. Now that I see Sierrabrewer mentioned this, I will say 100% of what he is saying is true.


I actually sent the new manufacturing company my original VentMatic faucets. One was pre and one was post shirron. This was so the new manufacturing company could measure the original ones with lasers to get accurate blueprints.

And they will be better because Matt got some special spouts to add onto these faucets. He showed me photos and the whole idea is pretty bad ass. You'll be able to get an all stainless steel stout faucet that is forward sealing and matches the rest of your faucets. Plus the faucet can get changed for any other beer. I can't wait.

So bottom line is they were NEVER fake. They were fake blueprints.

I do want my original VentMatic faucets back... I gotta call Matt again Monday on that.

I will also say that Matt at chi is an awesome guy and always seems to be good on his word and stands by the products he sells. Plus he's always the one to answer the phone if you need to get a hold of him for any reason.