MoreBeer 14 Gallon Conical Fermenter and Yeast Harvester Review

[jbsengineer]

I would not buy the CO2 adapter

How come? Is the conical high enough to rack to kegs?

 

[zymurgy101]

Yes, that's correct; the height of the conical is just enough for a gravity feed into kegs...bonus!

I'll follow up on your PM later today...in the office now.

 

[jbsengineer]

What is the largest size batch you have fermented? Can you push 12 gallons?

 

[maida7]

What is the largest size batch you have fermented? Can you push 12 gallons?

I don't have a conical. I ferment in a 15.5 gallon sanke keg and can easily get 12 gallons of finished beer out without seeing any type of yeast in the blow off tube.

 

[damnitbeavis]

Couldn't one just use a ninety degree elbow triclover fitting and then use shorter legs so the conical will fit in a fridge easier? I use a similar setup with my stout tanks short 14.5 gallon fermenter.

 

[Jukas]

Couldn't one just use a ninety degree elbow triclover fitting and then use shorter legs so the conical will fit in a fridge easier? I use a similar setup with my stout tanks short 14.5 gallon fermenter.

I'm sure you could, but the yeast harvester the OP has is designed to be used vertically, and I'd imagine would spill the slurry if you tried to unhook it when it's horizontal.

 

[zymurgy101]

The yeast harvester wouldn't collect yeast efficiently using a 90 degree bend. You'd get some yeast, but it would never get full. This thing will pack in some yeast when used as directed. If you don't want to use casters, you could still cut blocks of wood to go under the legs to provide sufficient spacing to use the yeast harvester in a freezer setup. I do like the casters as they allow me to roll it through the garage and onto the driveway for cleaning. Sure you could lift it wherever you wanted to go; but I lift enough during a brewday or while racking. IMO, the casters and yeast harvester are two accessories that are worth every penny.

 

[damnitbeavis]

The yeast harvester wouldn't collect yeast efficiently using a 90 degree bend. You'd get some yeast, but it would never get full. This thing will pack in some yeast when used as directed. If you don't want to use casters, you could still cut blocks of wood to go under the legs to provide sufficient spacing to use the yeast harvester in a freezer setup. I do like the casters as they allow me to roll it through the garage and onto the driveway for cleaning. Sure you could lift it wherever you wanted to go; but I lift enough during a brewday or while racking. IMO, the casters and yeast harvester are two accessories that are worth every penny.

I'd be willing to bet you a shekel it would totally fill. My 90 degree elbow on my stout conical will fill completely solid with yeast, as it is at the bottom of a very large tank, with a lot if pressure. During fermentation, the yeast is swirling around like mad in the whole tank. I guess it is possible the polished walls in the stout tank accentuate this, but I bet it would work with the brushed interior, too.

 

[zymurgy101]

I'd be willing to bet you a shekel it would totally fill. My 90 degree elbow on my stout conical will fill completely solid with yeast, as it is at the bottom of a very large tank, with a lot if pressure. During fermentation, the yeast is swirling around like mad in the whole tank. I guess it is possible the polished walls in the stout tank accentuate this, but I bet it would work with the brushed interior, too.

Perhaps I should have said, "In my opinion it would probably not fill" as I have never had a reason to try a 90 degree bend at the bottom. Using casters and three blocks of plywood provide enough room for the yeast harvester, so that's the route I took. Your mileage may vary.

 

[zymurgy101]

I thought I would post this in case others might have similar questions.

Collection:
If necessary, I dump trub a day before I attach the yeast harvester and I remove the harvester about a day or so before racking. It sort of depends upon what brew is fermenting and the yeast used. Some are faster; some are slower. The beauty of it is that you really don't have much to lose; you can always buy yeast. I make sure to have plenty on hand and what gets harvested is a bonus. I have easliy paid for the price of the unit.


Brew Day:
I just aerate the wort and dump in the yeast. I take the harvester out of the fridge maybe 15-30 minutes ahead to allow it to become less viscous...too long and the pressure will begin to release. After the wort is aerated, take off the air lock from the yeast harvester and dump it in...it takes a while...slow moving stuff. lol It's easiest to remove the entire lid from the conical when doing this procedure.

Hope this is useful!



Jeff

 

[Mashinations]

I have thermowell/blowoff assembly, which is part of the reason I got True refrigerator. While it is not "necessary" I am glad I got it, don't have to worry about aggressive fermentations and get most accurate temp reading.

I'm not sure yeast harvester is really worth it. Will know better after multiple uses. Will take 25+ repitches to pay for itself.

Definitely happy with the more beer conical thus far and would recommend.

I bought the 27 gallon conical a few months back when it was DoD. While I'm VERY happy with the build quality of the conical itself I found the B3 accessories for the unit WAY overpriced and was able to piece together similar units through another site for about 50% the cost.

To push CO2 all you need is a 1.5" tri-clover to 1/2" FPT and put a 1/2" MPT to a 3/16" barb into it. I don't understand the need for a pressure gauge on the B3 unit since you're pumping the CO2 from a tank that already has a gauge on it.

The B3 yeast harvester is nice for sure but IMO way too big - in my case, 15" leg extensions on a 27 gallon conical w/blow-off and temp control means the thing won't fit in any kind of commercial freezer. What I pieced together doesn't have a pressure relief valve on it but provided fermentation is done before you detach it, it hasn't been necessary.