SSBrewTech - SVBS

[passedpawn]

Is it possible to use the chiller and hop basket at the same time? Looks like an interference issue.

If not, I guess you remove the hop basket before adding the chiller? Then leave the chiller in there for a few minutes to sterilize?

Thumbs up on SVBS. Yes to the brew cube, casters on the legs, etc. Hop spider and chiller work great to. Just purchased another 7gal brew bucket to facilitate back to back 5 gal batches.View attachment 834773

 

[Lebowski509]

Is it possible to use the chiller and hop basket at the same time? Looks like an interference issue.

If not, I guess you remove the hop basket before adding the chiller? Then leave the chiller in there for a few minutes to sterilize?

I’ve been wondering about this process as well. I’ve been using another kind of a hop spider that I kind of hang off the chiller but it seems a bit lower quality and I was wondering if the brewtech one would fit right inside, and kind of use those supports to sit on top of the chiller so you can hop stand.

 

[ranman]

Haven't seen any mention of difficulty (or not) in cleaning the SVBS' halo element after the brew day. Given that I'm still an induction burner brewer, how challenging is it to clean up any mash or hop residue that may be baked onto the element? The site says "easy to clean," but I wanted to hear from an actual system user...

 

[passedpawn]

Haven't seen any mention of difficulty (or not) in cleaning the SVBS' halo element after the brew day. Given that I'm still an induction burner brewer, how challenging is it to clean up any mash or hop residue that may be baked onto the element? The site says "easy to clean," but I wanted to hear from an actual system user...

I've brewed on it a bunch of times. It cleans up great with PBW and hot water. I think there was one brew that I had to reach in there and scrub the element. That was a pain. I can't remember why that session was different. Might have been when I was tossing loose hops into the kettle. I stopped doing that.

 

[Lebowski509]

I've brewed on it a bunch of times. It cleans up great with PBW and hot water. I think there was one brew that I had to reach in there and scrub the element. That was a pain. I can't remember why that session was different. Might have been when I was tossing loose hops into the kettle. I stopped doing that.

Yeah, I second that. I have had stuff gunk on there, but after a few minutes, soaking in some hot PBW, and very easily wipes off

 

[boralyl]

I was able to brew with the SVBS for the first time about a week ago.

I have to say the process was so much easier than using a separate mash tun and a pump to move things around between the kettle. I'm not going to go to much into my thoughts as I want to do a 2nd batch where I don't make a critical error.

So as a warning to others, be very careful with the Controller. Since this was my first time using the unit, I had the controller just sitting on a shelf near the SVBS. When I was walking to grab the 10 minute hop addition I tripped over the cord and it tugged on the wires at the controller such that it would no longer operate. I had to quickly transfer the wort to my old kettle to finish boiling, whirlpooling and chilling.

I was somewhat surprised that such a small trip made the unit completely unusable. I did try pushing the wires back in and wrapping it in some electric tape, but it still wouldn't power on. I reached out to SS Brewtech and as I expected there is no way to repair this and the only option was to purchase a new controller. So it's good to know you can buy parts when needed (at least the controller), but it's quite the expensive mistake. The replacement was $299.00 USD.

 

[passedpawn]

I used the included velcro strap with the brewcube stand. Hopefully avoid the same.

 

[boralyl]

I used the included velcro strap with the brewcube stand. Hopefully avoid the same.

View attachment 837596

I had looked into that, but they haven't had the brewcube in stock since black friday. That's the way to do it though to avoid the tripping hazard!

 

[kevin58]

I had looked into that, but they haven't had the brewcube in stock since black friday. That's the way to do it though to avoid the tripping hazard!

I bought a one man scaffold at Home Depot for about $100. It has a flip out paint tray that I clamp my SVBS controller onto. Pic was taken with my previous AIO now long gone. The whole scaffold folds up flat when not in use.

 

[bike2brew]

Yes brew cube is way to go. Make sure you order the casters also when its back in stock. Found out that it really is useful for moving it around once the brewday is over and for cleaning up afterwards.

 

[boralyl]

I got my replacement controller and had my first full brew day with the SVBS. According to the Brew Day timer, it took just under 4 hours from heating up the mash water to pumping the beer into the unitank. I probably had another 1-1.5 hours of cleaning afterwards, but honestly a lot of that time was just letting the SVBS soak.

So I'm very pleased with the results, as it would take me about 8 hours (plus a few hours the next day to put everything back together) with my previous system.

Even though I couldn't finish the boil on my first use, I did make note of my mash efficiency and it improved from low 60% to low 70% when I double milled the grain at the LHBS on this brew day. I didn't have any issues with a stuck sparge and the wort ran very clear into the fermenter.

Looking forward to brewing more batches in the near future!

 

[passedpawn]

I got my replacement controller and had my first full brew day with the SVBS. According to the Brew Day timer, it took just under 4 hours from heating up the mash water to pumping the beer into the unitank. I probably had another 1-1.5 hours of cleaning afterwards, but honestly a lot of that time was just letting the SVBS soak.

Did you see my post #102 above? If you have a dishwasher big enough to accommodate the grain basket, it cleans up great in there. Use PBW! I have done this at least 5 or 6 times and it saves me a bunch of time.

 

[jcech]

You know how I feel

I would also use their hop spider, but I don't think it will fit into the kettle at the same time as the chiller, which is a problem with my process. However, if you're considering using an external chiller (e.g. plate chiller) then it looks like a good design.

I saw this sale and after researching this went for the full Monty - SVBS with cube, Unitank 2.0 (7 gal), glycol chiller and various starter sets. Just got the 220 put in last week, cleaned everything and water tested it. First batch this weekend. Love ALL the comments and suggestions from everyone. Will save me a lot of learning curve. More time for BEER!

 

[passedpawn]

I saw this sale and after researching this went for the full Monty - SVBS with cube, Unitank 2.0 (7 gal), glycol chiller and various starter sets. Just got the 220 put in last week, cleaned everything and water tested it. First batch this weekend. Love ALL the comments and suggestions from everyone. Will save me a lot of learning curve. More time for BEER!

Wow, fully monty indeed. Good luck with it and I hope the first batch goes smoothly. Please come back and let us know how it went.

 

[jcech]

My set up

 

[wepeeler]

My set up

Glycol for 1 Uni lol. Need 2 more!

 

[passedpawn]

My set up

And welcome to the forum. Looks like you've been lurking for a while, glad you've joined us.

 

[jcech]

Glycol for 1 Uni lol. Need 2 more!

Got it to dabble in Lagers. Also plan to use it to help get to pitching temp faster. Anyone have experience doing this with a chiller? I have an immersion chiller to get me down to 120 or so and then use this to take it to 65 fast

 

[passedpawn]

Got it to dabble in Lagers. Also plan to use it to help get to pitching temp faster. Anyone have experience doing this with a chiller? I have an immersion chiller to get me down to 120 or so and then use this to take it to 65 fast

I don't see the IC in your pic. ?

I admit I'm in no hurry to get to pitching temperatures. I do chill at the end of the boil, but I can only get to pool temps (I use my pool water as the chilling water). In the winter, 65F, in the summer, 90F. So in the summer, I just put my fermentor into my chest freezer and wait until the morning to pitch the yeast. That delay, in my opinion, has no negatives.

 

[jcech]

I don't see the IC in your pic. ?

I admit I'm in no hurry to get to pitching temperatures. I do chill at the end of the boil, but I can only get to pool temps (I use my pool water as the chilling water). In the winter, 65F, in the summer, 90F. So in the summer, I just put my fermentor into my chest freezer and wait until the morning to pitch the yeast. That delay, in my opinion, has no negatives.

The IC is a std coil SS sells and for this pic it is put away. The other driver for me to get the chiller is to brew in the summer. I have used a cooler with ice water that I had circulated through my original IC but on a hot day in the summer it was impossible to get the temp down in any reasonable time. They holding it there while fermenting was even more impossible so I stop brewing in the summer.

A heat belt and insulated box made my unheated garage brewhouse doable even when its below freezing. Getting a freezer for the summer was too rube goldberg. I finally concluded that if I was going to do this and expand into every type of beer I was interested in then I simply needed to bite the bullet and do the equipment right.

 

[bike2brew]

I saw this sale and after researching this went for the full Monty - SVBS with cube, Unitank 2.0 (7 gal), glycol chiller and various starter sets. Just got the 220 put in last week, cleaned everything and water tested it. First batch this weekend. Love ALL the comments and suggestions from everyone. Will save me a lot of learning curve. More time for BEER!

Congratulations. Brew cube, hop basket, and chiller make for a solid package. I had to order the casters under a different ticket because I failed to see how much they contributed to the complete package.

 

[bike2brew]

My set up

Sweet

 

[wepeeler]

Got it to dabble in Lagers. Also plan to use it to help get to pitching temp faster. Anyone have experience doing this with a chiller? I have an immersion chiller to get me down to 120 or so and then use this to take it to 65 fast

I try to get to 80 or under and then use the glycol to get to pitching temp. I don't like to push it harder than that. It's easier in the Winter when my ground water is very cold. I can get to under 70 in less than 10 min. Summer time can be trickier.

 

[bike2brew]

I use the IC with recirculating ice water to chill wort to pitching temperature before transfer to the fermenter. Once in the fermenter I use my cooler/ice pack FTS to control fermentation temperature. Not likely for me to maintain 52 degrees lager temperature but should be easy enough for the glycol based cooler. I like the Uni but don't have the footprint for it or the glycol chiller.

 

[jcech]

Well today was brew day with my new SS Brewtec SVBS and predictably it took longer than I had planned. When you're not use to all the automation and multiple valves and hoses, you make mistakes that cost time. A learning experience that will improve with use. In the end the equipment was a dream. Hit my OG and yield targets. Batch pitched and temperature holding nicely even in the 45 degree garage.

Pros:
Excellent control over boil up and temperature. Fast too at 220V
intuitive control screen with the FTs. More than I was expecting for such a small display.
The cube and arm are worth it. Right height and a needed sturdy flat surface to stage things.
Design on valving concept is brilliant. No need to take apart and easy to clean.
IC matched for the design was terrific. Very rapid T drop with just a garden hose
Fermenter is badass good. Sample port, thermo well, built in sparging port and integrated cooling plate chiller makes this so each to use.
SS Brewtec support

Cons:
Tricky 220 plug. Not a lot of room to grip locking ring.
Diffuser on recirculation was just a trickle under mask recirc conditions.
Trub screen blocked which restricted flow rate especially at the end. This might be because I double milled the grains in response to comments made about efficiency
Cleanup. This will be a learning experience. No amount of water or spray can remove small grains imbedded in the holes. Blasting on one side just puts it on the other side.
Watch out about unclamped loose hoses. They come off when you least expect it. Clamp everything

Lost about a gallon in the end because of the plugged plate. Will try single grind next time. Allow plenty of space. Lot of cables and hoses.

 

[bike2brew]

Can't remember if you also acquired the hop spider. That may help with the trub screen too. Among the best things I like was transferring the wort to my fermenter w/ the knock out pump, so no more lifting. Have fun brew often.

 

[jcech]

Can't remember if you also acquired the hop spider. That may help with the trub screen too. Among the best things I like was transferring the wort to my fermenter w/ the knock out pump, so no more lifting. Have fun brew often.

I did not buy a hop spider but had a bag that I forgot to use. Big mistake.
The knockout transfer is great. When I used it to pump sanitizer to the unitank, it was terrific. The initial wort transfer was good too until the screen blinded. That how I lost close to a gallon or wort. Will correct next time

 

[bike2brew]

My 2nd brew went better than my 1st, and 3rd better still. As I am transitioning from partial volume extract to full volume all grain I have been learning to allow for a more aggressive boil to hit OG with better boil off losses. It's a process but so far everything is linear, positive and tastes good.

 

[passedpawn]

I did not buy a hop spider but had a bag that I forgot to use. Big mistake.

That is why the trub blocker got clogged, not the double mill of the grains. I learned this the hard way. You must use a hop spider.

 

[passedpawn]

Cons:
Tricky 220 plug. Not a lot of room to grip locking ring.
Diffuser on recirculation was just a trickle under mask recirc conditions.
Trub screen blocked which restricted flow rate especially at the end. This might be because I double milled the grains in response to comments made about efficiency
Cleanup. This will be a learning experience. No amount of water or spray can remove small grains imbedded in the holes. Blasting on one side just puts it on the other side.
Watch out about unclamped loose hoses. They come off when you least expect it. Clamp everything

Lost about a gallon in the end because of the plugged plate. Will try single grind next time. Allow plenty of space. Lot of cables and hoses.

Make sure the rubber diffuser thingy isn't pressed all the way down. It only slides over the pipe about 1/2 inch, then you can feel the detent. Same for the metal plate that goes into the rubber thingy.

If you look above somewhere (here: SSBrewTech - SVBS), you can see the part numbers for some disconnects that you can wrench onto the barbs. This makes removing the hoses (cleaning, storage) a breeze.

I have never disconnected the power cord. I just wrap around the tank when done cleaning.

 

[bike2brew]

I painted marks on the male and female of the power cord to make connection easier.

 

[DuncB]

I painted marks on the male and female of the power cord to make connection easier.

Blue for the boy and pink for the girl?

 

[calandryll]

Brewed for the first time in almost a year, I forgot how awesome this system is.

 

[bike2brew]

Yes, its truly why would you consider anything else

 

[delcosansgluten]

im about to do my first brewday on the SVBS. Can anyone recommend hardware I need to pump wort from the SVBS to my CF5 fermenter?

 

[passedpawn]

im about to do my first brewday on the SVBS. Can anyone recommend hardware I need to pump wort from the SVBS to my CF5 fermenter?

It comes with a barb, so you'd want 1/2" silicone tubing. Slide it on the barb and fill up your fermentor.

I put a quick disconnect on my barb, so mine is different.

 

[jcech]

im about to do my first brewday on the SVBS. Can anyone recommend hardware I need to pump wort from the SVBS to my CF5 fermenter?

Hardware? All you need is tubing to connect the knockout port to the top of the fermenter. The internal pump in the SVBS does the transfer. Be sure to clamp the tubing and close the recirc and whirlpool knobs (they are not valves, just pinchers). The flow is fast even to elevated tanks.

 

[passedpawn]

Got mine dirty yesterday. 2 batches.

 

[passedpawn]

You can see the quick disconnect on the knockout port in the pic above. And right below that is evidence of a boilover - got distracted

 

[delcosansgluten]

Hardware? All you need is tubing to connect the knockout port to the top of the fermenter. The internal pump in the SVBS does the transfer. Be sure to clamp the tubing and close the recirc and whirlpool knobs (they are not valves, just pinchers). The flow is fast even to elevated tanks.

thank you, you can tell im new to the equipment.