Blichmann Boilermaker G2

[trimixdiver1]

Interesting. So instead of Blichmann addressing your concerns in this thread they instead called your employer to complain? Wow. That's pretty ****ty.

Yes that's correct. In other threads like the rims rocket "relief plug" issue, he PM me several times wanting to discuss the issue, but I always said it needs to be in the open forum. There are many other issues regarding quality control that I could get into as well. It just seems like there is this fake facade that he has this super quality engineering company, well as an engineer I find this to be a slap in the face. In reality most of what they do is import and slap some hardware on a product and a sticker and call it done. The new G2 pot is made in the USA but a lot of corners were cut to do so, and a new pos valve was added to justify the new pot.

With that said they do have nice products, and support isn't too bad most of the time. I just wish the cost was more inline with what you really get. I also hope Blichmann uses these threads as a tool to improve their products and hopefully get some real engineers so members on this forum don't have to do the fault engineering for them.

 

[trimixdiver1]

Anyone know when the 55 gallon extensions will be available for the G2 pots? Blichmann's website lists them as an option but none of the top 5 retailers list anything at all about them.

trimixdiver1: I was curious why your video disappeared so thanks for explaining... that's all very unfortunate. You should be able to post it on YouTube again given there was absolutely nothing wrong with it (it simply showed you unscrewing a valve on a kettle ). Opinions are always valid and appreciated too. It's what helps move products forward.

Kal

Since it was a video of a pot that I didn't own in a store that I don't own, I will respect my former employer and not post it.

Thanks though!

 

[Swiller]

Yes that's correct. In other threads like the rims rocket "relief plug" issue, he PM me several times wanting to discuss the issue, but I always said it needs to be in the open forum. There are many other issues regarding quality control that I could get into as well. It just seems like there is this fake facade that he has this super quality engineering company, well as an engineer I find this to be a slap in the face. In reality most of what they do is import and slap some hardware on a product and a sticker and call it done. The new G2 pot is made in the USA but a lot of corners were cut to do so, and a new pos valve was added to justify the new pot.

With that said they do have nice products, and support isn't too bad most of the time. I just wish the cost was more inline with what you really get. I also hope Blichmann uses these threads as a tool to improve their products and hopefully get some real engineers so members on this forum don't have to do the fault engineering for them.

Wow, never again will I support a horrible company. I cannot believe they got you fired because you're telling the truth.

The guy who blasted then over the rims rocket got a perm ban from this website over it. You should probably talk to a lawyer about wrongful termination.

How can a community like this support such a terrible company.

 

[Gameface]

As far as the new valve is concerned I wonder if it is full open a good couple turns before it's free to pop out. I did notice (during the short time while you pics were up) that the threads started to show before the valve was fully unscrewed. I suppose the smarter homebrewers amongst us could use that as a sign that they have opened the valve far enough.

I'm in the market for a 20G kettle and my other two kettles are Blichmann. I hadn't written them off based on this new design. Not at all. But hearing how they heavy-handedly dealt with a person posting actual pictures of their actual products... Well, tht doesn't sit well with me. Not at all.

 

[Swiller]

As far as the new valve is concerned I wonder if it is full open a good couple turns before it's free to pop out. I did notice (during the short time while you pics were up) that the threads started to show before the valve was fully unscrewed. I suppose the smarter homebrewers amongst us could use that as a sign that they have opened the valve far enough.

I'm in the market for a 20G kettle and my other two kettles are Blichmann. I hadn't written them off based on this new design. Not at all. But hearing how they heavy-handedly dealt with a person posting actual pictures of their actual products... Well, tht doesn't sit well with me. Not at all.

My entire system is blichmann all g1 kettles, therminator chillers, boil coils ...etc. Thank god I got most of the equipment second hand. I'll do my best to stop people from supporting a company like this. It's absolutely aweful!

 

[kal]

Since it was a video of a pot that I didn't own in a store that I don't own, I will respect my former employer and not post it.

True. That's a very valid point.

Kal

 

[kal]

As far as the new valve is concerned I wonder if it is full open a good couple turns before it's free to pop out. I did notice (during the short time while you pics were up) that the threads started to show before the valve was fully unscrewed. I suppose the smarter homebrewers amongst us could use that as a sign that they have opened the valve far enough.

The valves do show. John Blichmann shows this himself in this video:

[ame]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7MQZdL6Gk4[/ame]

For my electric setup where I only have the valves either open all the way or closed all the way, I'd still prefer a standard ball valve as it's faster to use and there's no chance of the valve popping off. So if I had to rebuild my system today and used the G2 kettles, I'd replace these valves with standard ball valves. YMMV. Everyone's system is different.

Speaking of which, has anyone confirmed that you can replace this valve with a standard ball valve? It's not clear to me what's left on the kettle when you remove this valve. Is there a standard 1/2" male NPT threading on to which you can attach a standard 1/2" female NPT ball valve?

Kal

 

[Swiller]

True. That's a very valid point.

Kal

Valid? No... If he wants to take the high road, fine. But it's beyond me to respect a former employer who didn't respect you or understand the reason for bringing light to a safety concern to educate the public.

It is all about money. People who have NO REASON to profit off such a horrible product see it one way; those who profit, see it another way. And those who don't know any better are the ones who buy it and get injured.

I don't believe he, nor Blichmann deserve such consideration. I don't live in your area, but I'd boycott this guys LHBS if I did...

http://www.cpsc.gov needs to know about both of these products from Blichmann... The rims rocket and this new kettle.

 

[trimixdiver1]

Wow, never again will I support a horrible company. I cannot believe they got you fired because you're telling the truth.

The guy who blasted then over the rims rocket got a perm ban from this website over it. You should probably talk to a lawyer about wrongful termination.

How can a community like this support such a terrible company.

Whoa! I didn't get fired. Downsizing

 

[trimixdiver1]

The valves do show. John Blichmann shows this himself in this video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7MQZdL6Gk4

For my electric setup where I only have the valves either open all the way or closed all the way, I'd still prefer a standard ball valve as it's faster to use and there's no chance of the valve popping off. So if I had to rebuild my system today and used the G2 kettles, I'd replace these valves with standard ball valves. YMMV. Everyone's system is different.

Speaking of which, has anyone confirmed that you can replace this valve with a standard ball valve? It's not clear to me what's left on the kettle when you remove this valve. Is there a standard 1/2" male NPT threading on to which you can attach a standard 1/2" female NPT ball valve?

Kal

From what I saw, it's a weld less bulkhead.

 

[Swiller]

Whoa! I didn't get fired. Downsizing

My bad, I totally misread that then. I saw you post they called and complained to your boss, and you no longer work there.

 

[trimixdiver1]

Valid? No... If he wants to take the high road, fine. But it's beyond me to respect a former employer who didn't respect you or understand the reason for bringing light to a safety concern to educate the public.

It is all about money. People who have NO REASON to profit off such a horrible product see it one way; those who profit, see it another way. And those who don't know any better are the ones who buy it and get injured.

I don't believe he, nor Blichmann deserve such consideration. I don't live in your area, but I'd boycott this guys LHBS if I did...

http://www.cpsc.gov needs to know about both of these products from Blichmann... The rims rocket and this new kettle.

This issue has nothing to do with my employment at my LHBS. There are other reasons why, like downsizing.

Now that I'm clear of any conflicts of interest, I wanted to continue this dialog about the G2.

Aside from the safety issue is the inherent design of the valve, now instead of an industry standard 3pc ball valve with a stainless ball and Teflon packing, we have a honestly poor finish plug type valve that uses silicone o rings to do the job of dynamic sealing. So now your on the hook for replacement o rings as they will wear much faster than a ball valve. Again the "engineering" wasn't done on o ring material, what about viton, kalraz, chemraz, edpm......

 

[Swiller]

This issue has nothing to do with my employment at my LHBS. There are other reasons why, like downsizing.

Now that I'm clear of any conflicts of interest, I wanted to continue this dialog about the G2.

Aside from the safety issue is the inherent design of the valve, now instead of an industry standard 3pc ball valve with a stainless ball and Teflon packing, we have a honestly poor finish plug type valve that uses silicone o rings to do the job of dynamic sealing. So now your on the hook for replacement o rings as they will wear much faster than a ball valve. Again the "engineering" wasn't done on o ring material, what about viton, kalraz, chemraz, edpm......

Ya sorry about misunderstanding that. And sorry you lost your position for whatever reason.

I do honestly believe they design their gear in order to make residual income off the replacement of these silicon parts. That plug on the rims rocket is the same thing. It serves no purpose for saftey, but it will need to be replaced often.

 

[trimixdiver1]

I probably didn't make it clear, no worries.

I do find the part supply suspect though.

 

[JMSetzler]

Well, as a person with no experience with the original design, I decided to order the 10g G2 tonight and got the HopBlocker to go along with it. I'm not sure exactly how long it will take it to arrive here but with any luck I'll have it one day next week.

I'll make a video walk around of the unit when it arrives.

 

[kal]

Speaking of which, has anyone confirmed that you can replace this valve with a standard ball valve? It's not clear to me what's left on the kettle when you remove this valve. Is there a standard 1/2" male NPT threading on to which you can attach a standard 1/2" female NPT ball valve?

To close the loop: I contacted Blichmann and yes, you can remove the linear flow valve and attach any standard 1/2" NPT female ball valve. This is what I'd be doing with my setup if I had to rebuild today with G2 kettles. I'm not a big fan of the new handle, lid, or satin finish, but I do really like the sight glass and how well the false bottom/stepped bottom of the kettle work together, so if I had to re-buy, it would still be G2's.

Update: John Blichmann sent me a note a few days later to indicate that a direct swap of the proprietary valve with a standard ball valve is not possible as the o-ring and thin washer that they use to seal their ball valve on the G1 pot is not used for the proprietary valve on the G2. So you need to use an o-ring and a washer, similar to what they did on the G1 kettles. More info

Kal

 

[PilotCline]

As per the cosmetic defect kettles. I ordered the 20 Gal back in April or so from AIH. It was flawless. I could not find anything wrong anywhere. I ordered a 15 Gal in the beginning of August. I was hoping that I would have the same luck. Well, not so much. I immediately noticed a large dent below the ball valve. OK, so that's my defect. Cool, I can live with that. I put the lid on and noticed that it slid all over the place. Not cool. I inserted the false bottom and it did not seal all the way around. I contacted the seller and they contacted Blichmann. Well, apparently out of round is considered a cosmetic defect even though it affects the function of the lid. They also said that the false bottom seals on the bottom and not the sides. OK that I am alright with. It is just the fact that the lid does not seat properly and if bumped slides everywhere. So according to Blichmann I have a working pot. Well the store said I could try bending it back myself, which I did. Just didn't want to have to do that with a $377 pot. Also the Auto Sparge hole was punched for my by Blichmann. Well, where they punched the hole it dented the pot, and they left a nice burr that I will have to file out. Luckily I now have my complete matching Breweasy system, so whatever I will live with it. Had I known all of that about the 15 gallon I received I would have just paid 10% more for a new one. Unfortunately that was no longer an option when I ordered.

After reading this, John got a hold of me. They sent a new kettle and took back the bent one. Shipping was taken care of by Blichmann for both the new kettle, and the return. Makes me with that I just emailed them first before trying to go through the dealer. I am again one happy customer!

 

[trimixdiver1]

After reading this, John got a hold of me. They sent a new kettle and took back the bent one. Shipping was taken care of by Blichmann for both the new kettle, and the return. Makes me with that I just emailed them first before trying to go through the dealer. I am again one happy customer!

To all those that think some of us are here just to complain, now you know why we do this. We are paying good money for Blichmann, we expect customer service like this. Thanks for doing your job Mr Blichmann.

 

[vash68]

...

The guy who blasted then over the rims rocket got a perm ban from this website over it. ....

Wow, are we still in the United States?

 

[trimixdiver1]

Wow, are we still in the United States?

As long as you speak the truth, I don't see why you would be banned here.

 

[TobyG]

The guy who blasted then over the rims rocket got a perm ban from this website over it.

To which guy are you referring? The new product announcement thread was moved to a mod-only forum, but the guy who was the main complainer was not banned.

 

[Gameface]

deleted

 

[Stealthcruiser]

Hmmm.......
Why is it that I can't select "page 18" on this thread, as it shows said page exists?

Maybe this post will go there.


Edit:


Guess that answers that!

 

[TobyG]

Hmmm.......
Why is it that I can't select "page 18" on this thread, as it shows said page exists?

It's a glitch in the BB software. Seen it happen on lots of sites. Of course, I don't have a page 18 since I have my settings for more posts per page (it only goes up to page 5 for me).

 

[Weezy]

Anybody try the G2 on an induction cooker yet?

 

[schematix]

Anybody try the G2 on an induction cooker yet?

Their website says it's made from 304, which means it won't work with induction. Same as the G1.

 

[kal]

FYI - After a bunch of tests, I posted pictures/information on how to replace the linear flow valve with a standard 2 or 3 piece ball valve. See here

Kal

 

[Carlscan26]

Great write up (as usual) Kal. Thanks for doing that.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[TrickyDick]

I've had nothing but excellent customer service from Blichmann. Thanks John!!!
Debating moving to electric brewing, and I like that Blichman is still in the game.
The rims rocket seems like a good idea, and perhaps much simpler to clean afterward compared with the typical SS pipe designs.

TD


Sent from my iPad using Home Brew

 

[kal]

The rims rocket seems like a good idea, and perhaps much simpler to clean afterward compared with the typical SS pipe designs.

I would say the exact opposite. A RIMS chamber with a heating element is more cleaning than a HERMS coil. I use HERMS myself and never have to clean my coil (haven't in 5 years) since I flush the sparge water through it. A heating element always picks up "gunk" so you have to disassemble/clean every time.

Kal