Grainfather!!

[rtmorris00]

I've been pricing out a 3 vessel electric system. Tired of the constant upgrade cycle, I didn't want to skimp on functionality or quality, but also wanted to keep the cost no higher than $1k. I ended up with preliminary plans for a kal clone with cheaper parts for about $1k....which puts me right in the range for the Grainfather.

The only downside with a grainfather seems to be limiting myself to 5g batches. While I was intrigued by being able to brew split 10g batches, its not something I see myself doing often. From reading through this thread, it seems like there really aren't any other "cons" to going with the grainfather. The simplicity of the system, and the small footprint, really appeal to me.

Someone in my homebrew club is selling his grainfather connect for $600. I may jump on that, though I am hesitant to get one without a warranty.

murphyslaw, I'm about in the same boat as you. I've been going back and forth on upgrading my current 3 tier system to electric or just bite the bullet and go with the Grainfather. It sounds hard to pass on that $600 deal, but the warranty would also concern me. I've seen some decent deals on eBay, Amazon Warehouse, etc., but worried about getting warranty support when buying through these venues. I think I might jump on the next Northern Brewer 20% off sale, but we'll see..

 

[murphyslaw]

murphyslaw, I'm about in the same boat as you. I've been going back and forth on upgrading my current 3 tier system to electric or just bite the bullet and go with the Grainfather. It sounds hard to pass on that $600 deal, but the warranty would also concern me. I've seen some decent deals on eBay, Amazon Warehouse, etc., but worried about getting warranty support when buying through these venues. I think I might jump on the next Northern Brewer 20% off sale, but we'll see..

Its hard to wait for one of those sales once you decide you're going to go for it! I plan to brew this weekend and am tempted to pull the trigger just to get my hands on it.

 

[bigtex52]

I hear ya, Murph. I speak from the experience of the guy with both a Kal clone and a GF. I love my Kal clone. I went the cheaper (not much cheaper!) route as well, with a 15 gallon Blichmann boil kettle and Keggles for both the MT and HLT, chugger pumps and a Unistrut cart. It isn't nearly as pretty as Kal's, but I did it all myself and the beer comes out very good. I have brewed a LOT of good beer with it.

That being said, after an extremely long brew day one day followed by a seemingly even longer cleanup, I reached the decision to try out a GF, and have never looked back. I still have my Kal and use it occasionally, but ease of process, being able to brew in the kitchen in the dead of winter without turning into an icicle or the kitchen into a steam bath and quick and easy cleanup have something to think about. I now probably brew 8 batches in the GF for every 2 I do on the Kal. Hope that helps, and good luck to you on your decision.

 

[rtmorris00]

I appreciate the input, bigtex52, and I think this is going to help push me in the direction of the GF! Just got an email from Northern Brewer, and they started a 20% off sale today. Looks like I might be joining the club sooner rather than later..

 

[bigtex52]

Sounds good RT! I don't believe you will regret it. I see their special includes free shipping too. Not bad! The only thing I do out of the GF way of things is I heat my sparge water on the stove rather than buying a sparge water unit. Maybe some day, but I am not sure my counter plugs will run them both at the same time anyway. Make sure the circuit you are using for your GF is GFI protected. I live in an older house where that wasn't code, so I picked up one of those 1 M cords with a built-in GFI and it works slick. If you have questions, feel free to ask.

 

[murphyslaw]

Thanks, bigtex. Your experience with both is really helpful.

I appreciate the input, bigtex52, and I think this is going to help push me in the direction of the GF! Just got an email from Northern Brewer, and they started a 20% off sale today. Looks like I might be joining the club sooner rather than later..

Wow, good timing! I was going to get one from my lhbs this weekend bc they give 10% off with an aha membership. But this deal is too good to pass up.

 

[murphyslaw]

I find it interesting that so many people here seem to get good efficiency while using what I would consider a course crush. Ive been crushing conditioned malt at 0.030 with a feeler gauge and getting around 72% with my cooler/braid, turkey fryer/pot setup. Does the grainfather's efficiency come from minimizing system losses/dead spaces?

 

[a.pescador.garcia]

At least from my short experience with this machine. First batch I crushed at 0.05 or so, mashing 8.5 kg, and got 70%. Second batch, reduced the crush to 0.042, mashing 5 kg I was at 82%. My plan is to end up with a curve of how the efficiency is varying for different amounts of grains, and then use that for recipe formulation. I guess for batches at 6 - 8 kg the efficiency should fall in the range 75 - 80%.

 

[rtmorris00]

Well, I bought the GF. I'm fortunate to live by Northern Brewer so I picked it up today and brought it home. Put everything together. Test the heater. Good. Tried turning the pump on and just got a low humming noise. Confirmed that I could blow water through the recirculation arm and suck water through it, so doesn't seem like anything is clogged. Any ideas? Otherwise, I guess I'm packing it back up and bringing back to NB tomorrow..

 

[rtmorris00]

Well, I bought the GF. I'm fortunate to live by Northern Brewer so I picked it up today and brought it home. Put everything together. Test the heater. Good. Tried turning the pump on and just got a low humming noise. Confirmed that I could blow water through the recirculation arm and suck water through it, so doesn't seem like anything is clogged. Any ideas? Otherwise, I guess I'm packing it back up and bringing back to NB tomorrow..

Well, I decided to take the pump apart to see what was going on. When taking it apart, the impeller wasn't spinning very well. I gave it a few spins, pulled the plastic impeller piece(?) out, put it back on, and seems to be working now. Is it normal for the pump to be a bit noisy when you close the ball valve a bit to slow the flow down?

 

[bigtex52]

Well, I decided to take the pump apart to see what was going on. When taking it apart, the impeller wasn't spinning very well. I gave it a few spins, pulled the plastic impeller piece(?) out, put it back on, and seems to be working now. Is it normal for the pump to be a bit noisy when you close the ball valve a bit to slow the flow down?

Something doesn't sound quite right. The sticky impeller is ok since I think they all have a bit of break-in to go through. I would cycle the valve open to full closed and back several times and let it run for a bit to see if it quiets down and runs smoother. These little mag drive pumps will run with the outlet valve even completely closed without damage. I do know that if the pump is sucking air it will get noisier so make sure there is enough water in the tun to not suck a vortex and air. Remove the inlet filter and see if that changes anything. If it does, make sure it is set up right with the hole on the rubber part facing down. Also, check the little silicone inlet hose on the pump to make sure it is seated well. Hope those tips help, and if not, the iWill (GF) people will definitely make it right.

 

[rtmorris00]

Something doesn't sound quite right. The sticky impeller is ok since I think they all have a bit of break-in to go through. I would cycle the valve open to full closed and back several times and let it run for a bit to see if it quiets down and runs smoother. These little mag drive pumps will run with the outlet valve even completely closed without damage. I do know that if the pump is sucking air it will get noisier so make sure there is enough water in the tun to not suck a vortex and air. Remove the inlet filter and see if that changes anything. If it does, make sure it is set up right with the hole on the rubber part facing down. Also, check the little silicone inlet hose on the pump to make sure it is seated well. Hope those tips help, and if not, the iWill (GF) people will definitely make it right.

Thanks bigtex, I appreciate the feedback. I'm hoping to brew up something tomorrow on it, so I'm going to run some more water through it tonight to see how things go. Should the pump be making any additional/different noise when the output is restricted via the ball valve? I haven't used any pumps as part of my brew process before, so I'm not sure what to expect. Thanks!

 

[bigtex52]

Yes. It will sound a little different different because the pump is working harder to deadhead against the valve, but it shouldn't sound really noisy or rattle. Let her rip and see how she does. Good luck and let us know how it turns out.

 

[murphyslaw]

Have people found the add-on beersmith profile for the grainfather to be a good starting point?

 

[sgreene820]

Looks like my boiler has given up the ghost at about the 8 month point, at about 40 minutes into a 90 minute boil. Connect controller looks fine, says it's heating at 100% but reading 204 F and falling...

I'll let you all know how the warranty support goes.

 

[bigtex52]

Did you check the reset button on the bottom? That can pop if the unit gets overheated. Let us know.

 

[sgreene820]

I did, after I drained it. I think the breaker may have failed because the button can't be pushed in. The burner scorched the mash, too. I noticed it was boiling a lot more vigorously than I have come to expect.

 

[bigtex52]

Hmm. That doesn't sound too good. What was the temp when it was boiling so vigorously? I wonder if the PID/Triac in the Connect unit failed and stuck on. I know that's a pain, but Iwill (GF) is really good about treating you right. Let us hear how it comes out.

 

[boasist]

I made some upgrades to my Grainfather this weekend. Swapped out the pump for a riptide, and extended all of the tubing. This allows me to keep the chiller at its mounting point and still utilize it fully for the brew. I really don't even have a need for the lid anymore. I look forward to my next brew day. With the new silicon tubing as well I've extended everything to allow me to put this right in my fermenter. It's a great upgrade and I'm pretty...pumped!

 

[bigtex52]

I made some upgrades to my Grainfather this weekend. Swapped out the pump for a riptide, and extended all of the tubing. This allows me to keep the chiller at its mounting point and still utilize it fully for the brew. I really don't even have a need for the lid anymore. I look forward to my next brew day. With the new silicon tubing as well I've extended everything to allow me to put this right in my fermenter. It's a great upgrade and I'm pretty...pumped!

How did the Riptide pump mount to the GF Pump mount? PICS? Keep us posted on how it works out.

 

[rtmorris00]

Brewed up my first batch on the GF yesterday! No problems with the pump, but still a bit noisy when the output flow is restricted. Not a constant sound; almost a clicking-like sound. The other thing I noticed is that a couple of times when the heat was on and the pump was going, I heard a click like something was turning on/off. Both the pump and the heat lights briefly went out and then back on. Any reason that this should be happening? The brewing process was awesome and cleanup was very easy. It was great being able to set the timer to start early in the am and have it almost ready for mashing when I woke up. Now, I just need to figure out how I want to manage my sparge water. Thinking about maybe getting a hotrod or another type of heatstick and re-purposing one of my kettles or cooler.

 

[specharka]

Fortunate Islands clone fermented with Hill Farmstead ale yeast. Should have used more rice hulls, the 50% wheat made for a dreadfully slow sparge. Efficiency was good though, around 79%. Starting to slowly dial in my process for the grainfather— it takes some time to make adjustments for crushing and lautering.

I’ve found that using a BIAB bag under the grain silo helps tremendously to catch any wayward flour or debris from making it into the boil. The only real issue I’m still having an issue with is my existing hop spider keeps clogging during the boil. I clean it regularly but it’s having some drainage issues, thinking I might have to whirlpool it during the hop stand / chill and transfer.

 

[sgreene820]

Hmm. That doesn't sound too good. What was the temp when it was boiling so vigorously? I wonder if the PID/Triac in the Connect unit failed and stuck on. I know that's a pain, but Iwill (GF) is really good about treating you right. Let us hear how it comes out.

I spoke to GF and will get a replacement unit. Apparently this may be a known defect in early model Connect controllers. In the meanwhile, I'll find out whether 30 minutes is enough boil for a double IPA.

 

[BrewBrains]

Last weekend I experienced my 1st stuck mash with the GF. Brewed a cream ale/ imperial cream ale partigyle with about 17 lbs of grist and I'm blaming it on the 6-row malt due to the increased protein content. Also used corn grits and flaked corn. All in the name of tradition. No rice hulls. I had to scrape the lower perforated plate repeatedly with spoon to get liquid to flow through. I think in the end it came out OK, just took me an extra hour or so. Anyone with similar experiences and any ideas about the cause?

 

[murphyslaw]

Got my GF Wednesday, ran it through a cleaning cycle and everything went really smooth. Getting ready for my first GF brew tomorrow. Aside from using a hop spider to avoid clogging the pump filter, any other tips for a first run?

I normally crush my grain at 0.030, but everyone on here seems to be around 0.040. Would my tighter crush clog this thing up?

I created a beersmith equipment profile based on the TeBrake profile, which I found on the BS forum and I think was also included in this thread somewhere. But it still tells me to use a gallon more water than the GF app. I'm leaning towards following the GF app and seeing how it goes. I suppose I can just heat up extra water just in case.

 

[murphyslaw]

Question about the delay feature. I plan to brew after taking my daughter to dance class tomorrow. If I set the heater to start at 915am, then leave with my phone--breaking my Bluetooth connection--will the controller know to start heating when I'm not there?

 

[skraeling]

So with grainfather connects committing electrical seppuku and melting themselves into the control box. I decided to try something new. Grainfather states they have solved the issues with the recepticle, but there is no way to tell if you have this updated part or not. I got bored one brewday and decided to hook up a 120mm fan to my box. I thought I felt a difference in the temp at the plug. Being the scientist that I am... I wanted actual quantifiable data... so I ordered a thermocouple from amazon... results ensued. Please pick this apart. I did this for fun but got some interesting data out of it.

apologies for the absolutely terrible editing. I lost all the original work i did when the system crashed rendering. Threw this together very quickly (as its 1am now) just to get my results out there which I found quite intriguing.

 

[bigtex52]

Not seeing your attachment

 

[skraeling]

Not seeing your attachment

Fixed I think

 

[bigtex52]

Fixed I think

Works, thanks!