ApolloSpeed
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Sep 30, 2008
- Messages
- 232
- Reaction score
- 3
Hi guys, we upgraded our system to get into electric brewing, we've probably got a dozen run throughs on this system and counting. Got a few mods we are gonna add to improve this setup, let me know what you guys did if any.
Here's my take:
Coming from your typical 5 gallon banjo burner and watercooler mashtun, this system surprisingly doesn't have a big learning curve. Assembly instructions are a little weak, but we built it in about 3 hours (including 22 gallon fermentor).
Efficiency is slightly lower than we hoped (65-69%) but that's not too bad really.
Electronics are really handy! You can easily set your temps, and walk away. Other nice features... whirlpool kit, autosparge, linear valves, sight glasses, big thermometers, and the electric coil brings a fast boil!
We also purchased the Blichmann 22 gallon fermentor and so far it has been great. Easy to clean. Looks awesome.
The Riptide pump: this little bad boy really does move alot of wort! But, in the beginning it will scare you to death. It squeals to high heaven if it has an air bubble, and is prone to getting stuck at higher temps. At first I thought it was defective, but after reading other reviews, it takes alot of practice to get the throttling and priming just right.
The connections on this system are decent, but I'd prefer quick disconnects. We will be upgrading shortly. Same with the hoses. They are not very efficient. A lot of heat loss. We get a 12 degree heat loss from one tank to the other. We will be looking into better hoses as well.
Now the Bad... if you toss hop pellets into this system, do not, I repeat, do not order the Blichmann Therminator! This chiller is useless with anything more than a handfull of hops! You need to bag all hop additions (reducing your utilization ALOT!) or else this chiller clogs instantly. On top of that, it is very hard to clean. A counterflow chiller is probably the best option here.
Overall, we like this system minus the Chiller. In the future, we will probably buy a third vessel for heating sparge water to further increase our efficiency. With Blichmann's modular nature of products, this should be an easy addition. I'd recommend this system to beginners in electric brewing, just don't order the Therminator Chiller!
Here's my take:
Coming from your typical 5 gallon banjo burner and watercooler mashtun, this system surprisingly doesn't have a big learning curve. Assembly instructions are a little weak, but we built it in about 3 hours (including 22 gallon fermentor).
Efficiency is slightly lower than we hoped (65-69%) but that's not too bad really.
Electronics are really handy! You can easily set your temps, and walk away. Other nice features... whirlpool kit, autosparge, linear valves, sight glasses, big thermometers, and the electric coil brings a fast boil!
We also purchased the Blichmann 22 gallon fermentor and so far it has been great. Easy to clean. Looks awesome.
The Riptide pump: this little bad boy really does move alot of wort! But, in the beginning it will scare you to death. It squeals to high heaven if it has an air bubble, and is prone to getting stuck at higher temps. At first I thought it was defective, but after reading other reviews, it takes alot of practice to get the throttling and priming just right.
The connections on this system are decent, but I'd prefer quick disconnects. We will be upgrading shortly. Same with the hoses. They are not very efficient. A lot of heat loss. We get a 12 degree heat loss from one tank to the other. We will be looking into better hoses as well.
Now the Bad... if you toss hop pellets into this system, do not, I repeat, do not order the Blichmann Therminator! This chiller is useless with anything more than a handfull of hops! You need to bag all hop additions (reducing your utilization ALOT!) or else this chiller clogs instantly. On top of that, it is very hard to clean. A counterflow chiller is probably the best option here.
Overall, we like this system minus the Chiller. In the future, we will probably buy a third vessel for heating sparge water to further increase our efficiency. With Blichmann's modular nature of products, this should be an easy addition. I'd recommend this system to beginners in electric brewing, just don't order the Therminator Chiller!
