ANVIL FOUNDRY ALL-GRAIN BREWING SYSTEM

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
I've got two questions for all of y'all..

1) Do any of you not use recirculation during mash?

2) Has anyone actually purchased an Anvil system new for less than MAP?

Thanks!
 
I've got two questions for all of y'all..

1) Do any of you not use recirculation during mash?

2) Has anyone actually purchased an Anvil system new for less than MAP?

Thanks!
1) I'm 50/50 on recirc. I should be more consistent but I haven't done any side by side tests to see if one is better than other for my beers.
2) I ordered direct from anvil.
 
1) I'm 50/50 on recirc. I should be more consistent but I haven't done any side by side tests to see if one is better than other for my beers.
2) I ordered direct from anvil.

Thanks! Do you notice mash temps staying consistent without recirc?
 
Thanks! Do you notice mash temps staying consistent without recirc?
I personally have not done a brew without recirculation for the mash duration, but I do think that the benefit of recirculating on this system is to maintain mash temps better. Before I dough in, I always check the strike temp on the top with my thermapen and it is exactly what the foundry gives me. After I finish adding the grains and stirring it well, which takes me 5-7minutes to dough in, the top temps with my thermapen is always 3-5 degrees lower than the foundry temp. Then I cover it up, and after 10 minutes I remove lid to recheck temps and pH after stirring again and its still the same temp differential. I don't start recirc until about 15 minutes. So even though the kettle is double walled which should help with temp stabilization, the lid is a major source of heat loss. So if you are wanting to try to NOT recirc, I would recommend insulating the top cover and even perhaps using a sleeping bag as well. The unit is so tall and narrow that I think some form of temp stratification would occur without recirculating no matter what. So I wonder if the temps would be better stabilized with a good insulation on the lid if not recirculating. Cheers
 
I personally have not done a brew without recirculation for the mash duration, but I do think that the benefit of recirculating on this system is to maintain mash temps better. Before I dough in, I always check the strike temp on the top with my thermapen and it is exactly what the foundry gives me. After I finish adding the grains and stirring it well, which takes me 5-7minutes to dough in, the top temps with my thermapen is always 3-5 degrees lower than the foundry temp. Then I cover it up, and after 10 minutes I remove lid to recheck temps and pH after stirring again and its still the same temp differential. I don't start recirc until about 15 minutes. So even though the kettle is double walled which should help with temp stabilization, the lid is a major source of heat loss. So if you are wanting to try to NOT recirc, I would recommend insulating the top cover and even perhaps using a sleeping bag as well. The unit is so tall and narrow that I think some form of temp stratification would occur without recirculating no matter what. So I wonder if the temps would be better stabilized with a good insulation on the lid if not recirculating. Cheers

Thanks for that. To be fair, I'm not wanting to not recirc, but I just watched a YouTube video, and the brewer didn't recirc. until the last 15 mins of his mash to improve clarity. I'm with you on temp stabilization, but couldn't you just give it a good stir every 15 mins or so to keep the water column from stratifying? That's what I do with my current BIAB system and it works well enough.

I want to move to the Foundry so I don't have to go outside in the blazing Texas heat during summer and I don't have to worry nearly as much about heating something to maintain mash temps. BIAB on my current set up is a bit on the inconvenient side. If I can keep it all in the house, I'd be happier.
 
Are you all finding the Foundry thermostat to be inaccurate when chilling after the boil? This is my second brew in the Foundry, and I’ve noticed when using the immersion chiller afterward that the Foundry thermostat reads much higher than the actual temp.

For instance, after about 20 minutes of running the chiller tonight, the Foundry thermostat still showed about 140 degrees. I took the temp with a sanitized thermometer and it was around 80. I confirmed this temperature when I transferred to my fermenter and my temp control read 77 degrees.

Any idea why that would be off like that?
Are you recirculating when using the immersion chiller? I don't use the stock chiller but have the C.U.S.S. all-in one tricoil and I recirculate with a brewhardware.com over the top spin cycle arm. It works great! But I have noticed that when I chill to hop stand temps (150-160) from a boil, I find I have to overshoot (based on the anvils readings) so when I remove the chiller it settles in at the desired target. So theres something to be said about how the wort flows by the temp probe which gives me a false reading initially, but when removing the chiller it settles to where I want. I have not had your issue though, the anvil temp probe not responding at all despite the wort being ~40-50 degrees cooler than the anvil reads. Thats why I asked if you are recirculating or stirring when chilling. If you are stirring while chilling, Id wonder if your temp probe on the anvil is correctly calibrated. Ive done almost 30 brews on my 10.5g system and never seen this big of a temp differential at any point in my brewing process.
 
Thanks for that. To be fair, I'm not wanting to not recirc, but I just watched a YouTube video, and the brewer didn't recirc. until the last 15 mins of his mash to improve clarity. I'm with you on temp stabilization, but couldn't you just give it a good stir every 15 mins or so to keep the water column from stratifying? That's what I do with my current BIAB system and it works well enough.

I want to move to the Foundry so I don't have to go outside in the blazing Texas heat during summer and I don't have to worry nearly as much about heating something to maintain mash temps. BIAB on my current set up is a bit on the inconvenient side. If I can keep it all in the house, I'd be happier.
Im a garage brewer in NC so I hear ya. I stir once every 15 minutes myself, but every time I lift the lid its a source of cooling the top part of the mash. So I just recirculate and start recirculating very slowly at 15minutes into the mash. So while I recirculate to help with the temps, I still manually stir to help keep the grain bed loose. I use a lot of big grain bills (16-19lbs) so it can compact easily if not careful, but stirring helps everything stay steady IMO. I have been very pleased with the system overall though and Im getting about 75% mash/lauter efficiency every time now. I have nothing to compare my numbers to though as this is my first and only system for brewing. But Im happy with it.
 
Are you recirculating when using the immersion chiller? I don't use the stock chiller but have the C.U.S.S. all-in one tricoil and I recirculate with a brewhardware.com over the top spin cycle arm. It works great! But I have noticed that when I chill to hop stand temps (150-160) from a boil, I find I have to overshoot (based on the anvils readings) so when I remove the chiller it settles in at the desired target. So theres something to be said about how the wort flows by the temp probe which gives me a false reading initially, but when removing the chiller it settles to where I want. I have not had your issue though, the anvil temp probe not responding at all despite the wort being ~40-50 degrees cooler than the anvil reads. Thats why I asked if you are recirculating or stirring when chilling. If you are stirring while chilling, Id wonder if your temp probe on the anvil is correctly calibrated. Ive done almost 30 brews on my 10.5g system and never seen this big of a temp differential at any point in my brewing process.

I’m moving the chiller around occasionally in either a stirring motion or up and down motion, but no aggressive stirring. I posted a follow-up of an answer I got from Short Circuited Brewers on YouTube. He said this is a known issue due to the temp probe being on the floor of the kettle and trub settling around it and insulating it. He suggested stirring very well to loosen that up and get an accurate temp reading. I am going to test some temps with just water this weekend to make sure it is reading accurately, but I’m hoping it’s just the trub that’s the issue.
 
I’m moving the chiller around occasionally in either a stirring motion or up and down motion, but no aggressive stirring. I posted a follow-up of an answer I got from Short Circuited Brewers on YouTube. He said this is a known issue due to the temp probe being on the floor of the kettle and trub settling around it and insulating it. He suggested stirring very well to loosen that up and get an accurate temp reading. I am going to test some temps with just water this weekend to make sure it is reading accurately, but I’m hoping it’s just the trub that’s the issue.
I haven’t heard of the trub causing this but it sounds certainly plausible. Keep us posted
 
Well I've been using store bought distilled and doing very simple SCA profile from there. Doing more to help prevent scaling than worry about taste profiles. "washing machine spigot" so you're collecting your waste water? That's awesome!
Waste water goes into the washing machine.
 
Does the waste go directly in through a top load? Or is it actually hooked up to the supply line so the machine can pull from it? Interested in making a similar setup.
I use a portable system that I hook up to my washer spigot. The waste line dumps into the machine. I remove the unit when I’m done. I haven’t figure out yet how to disable the auto drain in the washer.
 
B74AC212-0FDE-499A-8727-1507F6274D9E.jpeg

Sunday = Brewday (and laundry day)
 
Ok, I see. You run the washer while you are filtering the water? That’s a good idea. Would be enough pressure, I assume, for the washer to pull from.
 
Ok, I see. You run the washer while you are filtering the water? That’s a good idea. Would be enough pressure, I assume, for the washer to pull from.
No. I just put the waste line in the washer. It has an auto drain that I can’t disable to it pumps the water down the drain. I’d like to use that water but haven’t figured out how to keep it for a wash
 
Ooooohhh I’m sorry. I misunderstood. Yea it sucks those things waste so much I’m trying to think of ways to mitigate some of that. I might put a valve on it and redirect it to a bucket or something when I know I’ll need some water for washing clothes or something like that and just switch it back to the drain line when I have nothing to use it for. At least that would allow some of it to be used.
 
Steak and beer, what more can you ask for? I've been wanting to try cooking steak with the Sous Vide method for years. I thought what better way to control water temp for 2 hours and cook some steaks than with the Anvil? So, I vacuum sealed 3 NY Strips, cooked at 130 degrees for 2 hours, and finished off for two minutes in an iron skillet with butter. Wow! Never had a better steak. Too bad my first ever all grain brew with the Anvil is still in the fermentor!
 
I’m still waiting on my Foundry to arrive. I can hardly wait to use it, but I use an immersion chiller or a thermonater to chill my wort. What I do is recycle the was water with a small sump pump. I run the waste water through a hose to a homemade immersion chiller that is in a bucket of ice water. From there it empties into another bucket of water that has another hose submerged in it that runs to a sump pump. There is another hose running from the exit side of the sump pump back to the immersion chiller. This both saves a lot of water and if done right is capable of producing water that is much colder than just tap water. Hope this helps.
 
Bought some silicon the other day that I'm intending to use to seal the controller onto the base. Friend of mine sent me some info from a recent Facebook post where a boil over led to irreparable damage.

That is disheartening. Was the damage electrical, I assume?
 
Anvil should anticipate that boil overs can occur when using their equipment. IMHO A proper design would not get ruined by such very predictable event.

If that is the case, I will knock anFoundry down on my list of potential equipment purchase.
 
Anvil should anticipate that boil overs can occur when using their equipment. IMHO A proper design would not get ruined by such very predictable event.

If that is the case, I will knock anFoundry down on my list of potential equipment purchase.

FWIW, The 10.5g version is my first system and how Ive learned to brew all grain on. My first brew was in january and have brewed 28 beers on it. Never had a boil over "yet" :). Im on 240V and regularly have 7.5-8g pre-boil volume. I run it at 100% until it starts to get active (around 206) and then put power down to 87% and it has a nice boil throughout. I also have the older unit with the control panel down low. While I think the higher panel looks nice and makes it easier to operate without bending over, I always thought to myself, one slop of wort over the edge if not careful could do just this. Nevertheless, I'm very happy with my anvil.
 
I agree. I probably wouldn’t have purchased one if I knew they didn’t bother to seal the components. Thank you for the heads up on this. I will try and seal mine up as well.
 
Maybe this is an aftermarket opportunity for somebody to make a shroud/shield that protects the control panel from boil overs.

If it something that could user installed and removed, (say strap on) it would not violate Anvil's warranty.
 
Maybe this is an aftermarket opportunity for somebody to make a shroud/shield that protects the control panel from boil overs.

If it something that could user installed and removed, (say strap on) it would not violate Anvil's warranty.
A bungie cord and some saran wrap and it still wouldn't be the most ghetto thing in my brew gear ;)
 
Yeah..and because it was due to I'm assuming negligence as classified by Anvil (which makes sense) the damage wasn't covered.

View attachment 707598

I saw this on FB. At least we know how the controller is attached. Few weeks back I siliconed mine. Black plastic to the pot and around the display. When I was just about done cleaning my pot a drop of water that dripped off my hand hit the corner of the display and sucked between the display and it’s protective cover. After it dried out I siliconed it.
 
Has this issue with the controller been fixed? I saw John Blichmann acknowledge the problems on the FB group, but wasn’t sure if it was fixed yet.
 
Has this issue with the controller been fixed? I saw John Blichmann acknowledge the problems on the FB group, but wasn’t sure if it was fixed yet.

Im not sure how to tell. I just got mine like a week or two ago. What little bit of water that did hit the controller didn’t seem to make it into the components.
 
Has this issue with the controller been fixed? I saw John Blichmann acknowledge the problems on the FB group, but wasn’t sure if it was fixed yet.
Don't think it's fixed now but knowing Blichmann it will be soon. It doesn't take long to apply a bead of silicone but due to the shape of the joint it doesn't look the pretty. The factory could easily seal these two paths from the get go.
 
Chiming in on the recirculation, since I got a bag for the malt pipe, the screen wouldn't fit on top so I expanded the hole in the lid and made this recirculation ring with some loc-line and attaching it to a quick disconnect. Works pretty slick.
 

Attachments

  • 20201015_152703_HDR.jpg
    20201015_152703_HDR.jpg
    1.1 MB · Views: 118
  • 20201015_152715_HDR.jpg
    20201015_152715_HDR.jpg
    1.2 MB · Views: 118
Chiming in on the recirculation, since I got a bag for the malt pipe, the screen wouldn't fit on top so I expanded the hole in the lid and made this recirculation ring with some loc-line and attaching it to a quick disconnect. Works pretty slick.
This is awesome. I broke down and ordered that disc and now I wish I had just done something like this. I just didn’t want to modify the lid.
 
I'd be interested in hearing if Blichmann does repair it....honestly, I'd be surprised if they did. Really..I think there is a certain expectation that you're paying attention...this is not an automated system.

I get boil overs where I'm cooking pasta on the stove top...and who do I get upset with? This guy...nobody else. Cuzz it was my own damn fault..every damn time for not freekin paying attention.

I also believe the components are sealed to a certain extent. I had a flipping disaster a couple months ago where I neglected to (cuzz I'm an idiot) secure the spigot before I started filling up the unit with water. It overflowed in between the walls and leaked out the bottom where all the circuitry is for the heating elements. There was quite a bit of water in there...and all over my damn garage floor. I dried everything out as best as I could...stuck the bottom of the unit into a bag of rice for a day and no damage. Am I glad that it wasn't ruined...of course. Would I have entertained the notion of blaming anybody except myself...nope.
 
Chiming in on the recirculation, since I got a bag for the malt pipe, the screen wouldn't fit on top so I expanded the hole in the lid and made this recirculation ring with some loc-line and attaching it to a quick disconnect. Works pretty slick.

That is seriously cool...I kind of wonder how many times I'm going to be able to utilize the disc before it tears my bag.
 
I'd be interested in hearing if Blichmann does repair it....honestly, I'd be surprised if they did. Really..I think there is a certain expectation that you're paying attention...this is not an automated system.

I get boil overs where I'm cooking pasta on the stove top...and who do I get upset with? This guy...nobody else. Cuzz it was my own damn fault..every damn time for not freekin paying attention.

I also believe the components are sealed to a certain extent. I had a flipping disaster a couple months ago where I neglected to (cuzz I'm an idiot) secure the spigot before I started filling up the unit with water. It overflowed in between the walls and leaked out the bottom where all the circuitry is for the heating elements. There was quite a bit of water in there...and all over my damn garage floor. I dried everything out as best as I could...stuck the bottom of the unit into a bag of rice for a day and no damage. Am I glad that it wasn't ruined...of course. Would I have entertained the notion of blaming anybody except myself...nope.
I agree with all of this. Good points. In the meantime, I went and bought a $10 piece of sheet metal and some magnets to rig up a hood I can throw over the controls during boil if I feel uneasy about it.
 
I'd be interested in hearing if Blichmann does repair it....honestly, I'd be surprised if they did. Really..I think there is a certain expectation that you're paying attention...this is not an automated system.

I get boil overs where I'm cooking pasta on the stove top...and who do I get upset with? This guy...nobody else. Cuzz it was my own damn fault..every damn time for not freekin paying attention.

I also believe the components are sealed to a certain extent. I had a flipping disaster a couple months ago where I neglected to (cuzz I'm an idiot) secure the spigot before I started filling up the unit with water. It overflowed in between the walls and leaked out the bottom where all the circuitry is for the heating elements. There was quite a bit of water in there...and all over my damn garage floor. I dried everything out as best as I could...stuck the bottom of the unit into a bag of rice for a day and no damage. Am I glad that it wasn't ruined...of course. Would I have entertained the notion of blaming anybody except myself...nope.

Well the difference is when cooking or brewing on the stove top, you can quickly remove the pot from the burner to address boilovers. Can’t really do that with an all-in-one electric system like this. Not sure if yanking the plug out of the wall or turning the burner off at the controls has the same effect, but the latter may not be easy in a panic. In my experience brewing on the stove, those boilovers can happen fast and you have to be ready to immediately remove them from heat if you see signs of them coming.
 
Back
Top