Brew-Boss Opinions

[cnash]

First beer (Resilience IPA) is in the keg and carbing. Definitely did not hit my numbers, but hopefully it'll be a sessionable variant. SG was 1.046 and FG 1.012, so right around 4.6% ABV, whereas it's supposed to be 6.8%.

Pressure transfer from the SSB BrewBucket worked awesome, definitely glad I went with that setup. Still a pretty good hop/trub cake in the bottom despite using a spider in the kettle, but I didn't draw any in even with the tube turned all the way down.

So not where I want it to be, but so far I'd say it's "good enough" for my first ever brew. Hopefully the results are drinkable.

That will probably be my first beer on my Brew-Boss setup. Will also be my first kegging experience. I plan to do a pressurized transfer from my anvil bucket as well. So we shall see how mine turns out.​

 

[cnash]

I think this is my final rendering of the stand I plan to build.
I will be ordering the material today. Already have ordered a received the wheels, winch and pulleys.

 

[Mike Howard]

Here is my temp setup:

 

[cnash]

Looks good for temporary. Pretty clean overall

 

[TennBrewer]

Are you using the COFI basket? If so, I think all mashes spray some recirculated wort over the grain bed unless you are maxing out the grain space in the basket.

Yes, I have the COFI basket. Far from maxing out the grain space, there's only about 12 pounds of grain in the basket. I've been brewing without the top of the basket so I can see the water/wort level. I've kept the recirculated wort below the surface and the beer so far is terrific. I think earlier batches weren't monitored so closely and the top of the grain bed was left exposed to the air (maybe).

 

[TennBrewer]

I've used mine only once. It comes with the same silicone hose that the system came with. but a slit in it. It goes on the rim of the brew kettle. I forgot to put weights on it like the video. there was still some steam coming out, but i feel after the weight it would stop that.

The T that comes off the side, connects to the cam lock that your hose goes to. The T is i guess what you could explain as the mixing chamber. the water goes in and sucks the steam out of the pot. When i get my permanent stand set up, i will make a tube go right to a drain. I just had a 9 gallon ferment bucket under. it wans't a big deal to pour out.

Over all i like it and feel it's worth the cost.

Word of warning from personal experience: I connected a water hose to let the water run outside to drain so I wouldn't have to keep emptying buckets. Turns out a little restriction in the drain hose forced the incoming water into the kettle. Added 3 extra gallons of water to the boil before I noticed not much water coming out the end maybe due to a kink in the hose. Had to add extra DME and hops to go from a 6 gallon batch to a 9 gallon batch. So, make sure your drain tube is not restricted in any way. Good luck.

 

[TennBrewer]

What kind of brewhouse efficiency are you all getting? I get about 68 percent for the overall brewhouse efficiency and mash efficiency is about 73.5 (ala Beersmith 3). I've tried changing the grain crush (.035, .025), double crushing, and extending the mash time. I'd like to get a little better efficiency so I can make more with less grain. This is important if I'm doing 5-6 gallon batches in a 20 gallon kettle. Too much grain and then there's not enough water to cover it.

 

[brewswithshoes]

What kind of brewhouse efficiency are you all getting? I get about 68 percent for the overall brewhouse efficiency and mash efficiency is about 73.5 (ala Beersmith 3). I've tried changing the grain crush (.035, .025), double crushing, and extending the mash time. I'd like to get a little better efficiency so I can make more with less grain. This is important if I'm doing 5-6 gallon batches in a 20 gallon kettle. Too much grain and then there's not enough water to cover it.

Probably over 20 batches on mine and BH efficiency is at 69, mash efficiency is usually 77-79%.

I'm on a 15G system with COFI and I usually brew with the mash basket lid off and stir a few times to keep the wort level between basket and kettle.

 

[TennBrewer]

Since I got my 20 gallon system, I've brewed 5 gallon batches so if I screwed something up, it wouldn't hurt as bad to dump it. Well, today I brewed a 12 gallon batch of APA. My efficiency is about 68 percent so it took 25 pounds of grains in 17.5 gallons of water. I used the electric winch to lower the COFI filter basket in slowly, it all fit and the basket was covered at least an inch or two below the surface. This required the top to be locked on which I was leaving off so I could stir the mash once in awhile like brewswithshoes does. As it turned out, I got nearly 6 gallons in two fermenters, so I can leave a half gallon of trub in the primary and secondary fermenters and still fill a 5 gallon keg to the top (though I sometimes skip the secondary and go right to the keg). It just seemed to me that the basket should not be totally submerged. I dunno, maybe it'll turn out OK.

 

[Lax coach]

Well I did it...killed my first batch, a Kentucky Common. Had a stuck mash where the pump sucked all the wort out of the kettle and dry-fired the element. Not sure how long it was in that state, as I was in and out of the garage, doing other things. It smelled pretty bad, and had some nasty black buildup on the element. I was able to clean most of it off, but it still looks like it has a camo powdercoat job.

Seems to still work though, as I went back to the LHBS to get the same grain bill, with two differences: I made sure to NOT throw the flaked corn into the grinder (don't remember if I did the first time), and added 1 lb of rice hulls. Second time through went fine, though the post-boil wort was lower volume (4.9G vs. 5.5) AND lower gravity (1.041 vs. 1.044) than expected, which I'm still scratching my head about.

It's a learning process--this was my fourth brew ever--so I'll get there eventually.

 

[cnash]

I still have yet to brew on mine.
Finally got everything setup and did a water test. Had some issues with the pump, but resolved it. Darin was helpful and quick to respond and was about to swap out the pump before I got it fixed myself.
Still unsure of what the actual issue was, but nothing seems damaged and works perfect now.

Hopefully I'll be able to do my first batch this weekend. (after finishing my stand/table/cart which should be done Saturday)
In the meantime I have ordered a new wort chiller (Hydra) and built a filtration unit for the exterior hose-bib that will mount on the cart and attach to the accessory port with cam-lock fittings.

 

[Mike Howard]

I have found that with any BIAB style setup...Rice Hulls are your friend. I just add them out of habit now and don't even give it a second thought.

 

[brewswithshoes]

I'd like to get a little better efficiency so I can make more with less grain. This is important if I'm doing 5-6 gallon batches in a 20 gallon kettle. Too much grain and then there's not enough water to cover it.

Just brewed on my BB the other day and thought about this. I'm not sure how the new setups are being sold but do you have the kettle pickup tube/elbow? I bought mine after the fact as it didn't come with the "full" package, and it easily added about .5 to .75 gallons from kettle to ferementor without pulling in any more trub/hop material.

https://www.brew-boss.com/1-5-Tri-Clamp-Pickup-Tube-p/tc-pickuptube.htm

 

[Conodor]

Just brewed on my BB the other day and thought about this. I'm not sure how the new setups are being sold but do you have the kettle pickup tube/elbow? I bought mine after the fact as it didn't come with the "full" package, and it easily added about .5 to .75 gallons from kettle to ferementor without pulling in any more trub/hop material.

https://www.brew-boss.com/1-5-Tri-Clamp-Pickup-Tube-p/tc-pickuptube.htm

I ordered mine on black friday. I'm pretty sure i had to add it. it's worth it.

 

[cnash]

Mine came with the pickup tube standard and I bought it on Black Friday as well.

 

[Mike Howard]

Mine was there as well...

 

[Lax coach]

The pickup tube comes standard with the “deluxe” configuration, which is the one that has 6 options to choose from on the product page. If you do the “build your own”—which is the one with 15 options on the product page—you have to select it from the appropriate drop down, and it costs $37.

I ordered the deluxe, so mine came with it without me doing anything.

 

[cnash]

Cart/stand/table is getting closer to be used with my brew-boss!

 

[jturman35]

I need to get me a work table with wheels for my set up!

 

[cnash]

Stand isn’t ready yet, but I wanted to brew. So I did.
Turned out great. Ended up with more volume (and because of that lower OG, but not by much) so I can dial that in for the next brews.
I also had one issue with my brew programming, so I’ll have to figure out what happened there. But it was easy to make one step manual and then move on to the next.
Will be so much easier with my brew stand, but it was still a hell of a fun time.

 

[Lax coach]

I really like having mine low. Between the rolling planter cart it sits on and the step the cart is sitting on in my garage, the bottom of the pot is probably 8-10" above where I stand on the floor. Makes dealing with the basket/hoist and adding stuff to the pot really easy.

I originally thought about putting it on the countertop and removing the shelves above it, but in hindsight I much prefer having it close to the floor.

 

[cnash]

I really like having mine low. Between the rolling planter cart it sits on and the step the cart is sitting on in my garage, the bottom of the pot is probably 8-10" above where I stand on the floor. Makes dealing with the basket/hoist and adding stuff to the pot really easy.

I originally thought about putting it on the countertop and removing the shelves above it, but in hindsight I much prefer having it close to the floor.

The cart/stand I'm building is pretty low. It's about 30" to the top of the stand where the kettle will sit.

Anyone use the Brew-Boss Hop spider? I am looking into one now after brewing this beer that wasn't too hop heavy but still got some hop debris in the pump and in the whirlpool arm.

 

[Mike Howard]

I use the hop spider from BB along with their hops boss....works great.

 

[Lax coach]

The cart/stand I'm building is pretty low. It's about 30" to the top of the stand where the kettle will sit.

We have very different definitions of "low" Here is my setup:

When I brew, I roll it out to the left, then back under the counter when I'm done.

Anyone use the Brew-Boss Hop spider? I am looking into one now after brewing this beer that wasn't too hop heavy but still got some hop debris in the pump and in the whirlpool arm.

I use the BB hops spider as well, though since I use a steam slayer, I can't use the hops boss like Mike does. I think it works great. Since I also can't use the hooks due to the lid being on, I attached one of these magnets to one of the vertical bars with JB Weld Steelstik (NSF approved), and use the other on the outside of the kettle to hold it in place. Unfortunately, I lost the second magnet after my second or third brew, so for the last one I just set it on the floor of the kettle. Seems to work fine that way also.

 

[cnash]

Finally got my stand/cart basically completed.
Still need to do clean up and mount the controller but the look won’t really change.

 

[Mike Howard]

Nice, looks awesome!

 

[Conodor]

added a new piece to my BB system. The thermometer fits in the top. the heat element fits in the bottom(with a $20 adapter) so the heat element and controller can be used on both. Hope to give it a run this weekend.

 

[Lax coach]

What is everyone's efficiency looking like? I seem to be hovering right around 60%, which seems on the low side. I've got the water parameters dialed in finally, so I'm hitting my post-boil volume targets. But gravity is typically significantly lower than expected.

 

[cnash]

What is everyone's efficiency looking like? I seem to be hovering right around 60%, which seems on the low side. I've got the water parameters dialed in finally, so I'm hitting my post-boil volume targets. But gravity is typically significantly lower than expected.

My first one was 63% Brewhouse Efficiency, but I was WAY off on the volumes on that one (over a gallon left over).
This past weekend I was at 67% Brewhouse Efficiency, but I was still a little off on the volumes. (very little).
So I think once I'm dialed in I will be right around the 70% efficiency that is expected.

 

[jturman35]

Think I’m around 70% BH.

 

[h22lude]

For those looking at efficiency, I wouldn't use brew house or mash efficiency. I've always hated those two figures. The best figure to look at is conversion. That is all you really need to know. The reason I don't like BH efficiency is because it doesn't tell you much. You could have 98% mash conversion (which is awesome) but used 1/2 gallon too much water. You could have hit your OG exactly but your BH efficiency would still be low because you used a little more water. For home brewers, who cares if we use a little more water. If our mash conversion is as close to 100% as possible, that is all we really care about. Mash conversion is what you need to dial in your system for future brews.

 

[brewswithshoes]

What is everyone's efficiency looking like? I seem to be hovering right around 60%, which seems on the low side. I've got the water parameters dialed in finally, so I'm hitting my post-boil volume targets. But gravity is typically significantly lower than expected.

Usually hit about 80 - 82% Mash efficiency, and BH efficiency usually lands around 69%. I'm ok with my numbers now as i can typically hit consistent amounts from batch to batch. I've just started getting into water profiles, so am closely monitoring to see what that changes.

 

[Aristoi]

Been eying this system for some time and following this thread. Can't believe nobody has posted this yet, but systems are 25% off for Tax Day sale! This is just what i needed to put me over the edge to upgrade from my 120v system. 15 gallon is $1100, and 20 gallon $1200

 

[Conodor]

Been eying this system for some time and following this thread. Can't believe nobody has posted this yet, but systems are 25% off for Tax Day sale! This is just what i needed to put me over the edge to upgrade from my 120v system. 15 gallon is $1100, and 20 gallon $1200

Aristoi, most here i think own one, so we don't hit the brew-boss site often. Great if it's on sale! scoop one up. you will definalty be happy.

 

[h22lude]

For those looking to buy and have an android tablet, he removed the app from the play store because of knew guidelines for apps. Sounds like it was screwing up the app. So you now have to download the AFK file from his site. I think all tablets should be able to do this. You may have to allow 3rd party apps in settings to allow this. Took me a few minutes to do.

 

[brewswithshoes]

Thought i'd piggy back this thread with an opinion question.

Anyone ever attempt to use their COFI as a hop spider? I made my first NEIPA a week or so back and had a massive mess on my hands. Swirl boss clogged, counter flow clogged, yada, yada. I ended up having to siphon 150 degree wort to the fermenter.

Was thinking next batch that i do like this (combo of a metric ton of pellet & whole cone hops) i would just quickly dump and rinse the COFI, put it back in without the lid, and use it as a giant hop spider. I understand it's not as finely meshed as a hop spider, but thinking it would go along way for cutting the clogging problems down.

Thoughts/Opinions?

 

[cnash]

Thought i'd piggy back this thread with an opinion question.

Anyone ever attempt to use their COFI as a hop spider? I made my first NEIPA a week or so back and had a massive mess on my hands. Swirl boss clogged, counter flow clogged, yada, yada. I ended up having to siphon 150 degree wort to the fermenter.

Was thinking next batch that i do like this (combo of a metric ton of pellet & whole cone hops) i would just quickly dump and rinse the COFI, put it back in without the lid, and use it as a giant hop spider. I understand it's not as finely meshed as a hop spider, but thinking it would go along way for cutting the clogging problems down.

Thoughts/Opinions?

I ended up buying a hop spider from AliExpress. Essentially the same one Brew-Boss sells for 1/2 the price. (I was going to buy from Brew-Boss but shipping killed it.)

Only problem I have is using my Hydra with the Hop Spider, which is something I am trying to resolve now.

 

[Mike Howard]

Using the COFI should work IMO, but it might be easier to just invest in something from ARBORFAB. That would eliminate the need to empty hot grains and do a rinse. I use the BB Hop Spider but a lot of whole cone hops can overload it.

 

[Mike Howard]

What kind of grain load is everyone using? I just did a 16 gallon batch with 34 lbs of grain and was way low on my numbers. Recipe called for 19.5 gallons of water but had to boil off to 14 gallons in order to hit OG. Not what I was expecting at all.

Also, how is everyone doing their water additions? Are you adding the full water volume at start, or just covering the COFI and topping up later?

 

[cnash]

What kind of grain load is everyone using? I just did a 16 gallon batch with 34 lbs of grain and was way low on my numbers. Recipe called for 19.5 gallons of water but had to boil off to 14 gallons in order to hit OG. Not what I was expecting at all.

Also, how is everyone doing their water additions? Are you adding the full water volume at start, or just covering the COFI and topping up later?

I've only done 5 gallon batches up to this point but I do full volume (around 8-8.5 gallons depending on the recipe). Recipes so far have been between 12 and 15lbs averaging 14lbs.