Grainfather!!

[2LiveBrewCrew]

I'm pretty sure it does. I believe I have a documented procedure for programming if I can find it. Let me look.

Edit: I found the document I was looking for and it was for the original GF controller, not the connect. Sorry. You can probably contact GF and get that from Support.

I'm pretty sure it does. I believe I have a documented procedure for programming if I can find it. Let me look.

Edit: I found the document I was looking for and it was for the original GF controller, not the connect. Sorry. You can probably contact GF and get that from Support.

Thank's bigtex

 

[2LiveBrewCrew]

Grainfather said there is no way to change the hysterosis on the connect controller.

 

[bigtex52]

There's a way, but just maybe not a way to change it by the average consumer. I rarely see over 1 degree differential from the set point. Do you have a Graincoat on your unit or some other insulating method like Reflectix? If not, I would highly advise you to consider that as it made a very noticeable difference when I added it to mine.

 

[2LiveBrewCrew]

I put the Reflectix on and it made a difference in heat up time.

 

[sgreene820]

View attachment 563896

Here's what Grainfather said:

Hi Steve,

Thank you very much for your email and sorry to hear of the issues that you are experiencing. Can you please try the following to see if this helps:

1. Fill the Grainfather with water and turn the pump on for 5 seconds and off for 5 seconds. Repeat 4-5 times.
2. Use a hose to blow water down the recirculation pipe. If there is an airlock, this should clear the pipe.
3. Unscrew the safety valve at the top of the recirculation pipe carefully and remove the ball and spring, check the spring for any debris. If the spring is clear of debris, reattach the valve without the spring and attempt to run water through the system without the spring in place, does the pump work?
4 If none of the above works please empty your Grainfather and dismantle the pump and check for any loose components as well as checking that the impeller o-ring is in place, then reassemble the pump. This simply requires undoing a few screws and will not have an effect on your warranty. I have attached an image to this email to show the dismantled pump.

It would also be helpful if you could answer these questions:
• Serial Number
• What was the wort temperature when you turned on the pump?
• How long has it been running fine for before failing (i.e. xx minutes)?
• Could you please take some photos of the pump’s rotor in different views so that we can see each side of the rotor?

I look forward to hearing from you.

Kind Regards​

They sent some pictures, but it wasn't clear what I was supposed to be looking for: a damaged O-ring? scorching? My pump has a green housing.

...

They sent me the same exact email last night. I emailed a bunch of pictures this morning.

Well, after I provided the pictures and my impression that the pump was out of round from the factory, they got back to me, asking if I was "comfortable" swapping the defective pump out for the known good one on the boiler they already replaced. I let them off the hook, since they had already done the right thing, and were already out a considerable expense to make the previous failure right. I may try to buy a replacement pump to rehabilitate the old boiler.

 

[Garrymcdgll]

So I've always had a problem with the chiller, it always get blocked immediately. I usually get it going eventually, but today was different. I just couldn't get the wort to run through it. I decided to get my air compressor and blow some air through it. It worked great, lots of hop material came out. And also that thing you see in the pics. Anyone know if this is part of the chiller, like a spring or something? Or is it a rogue piece of metal that shouldn't be there? I guess this has been the cause of my problems all along.

 

[jschein]

That looks like the spring in the recirculating pipe, where is the ball?

 

[Garrymcdgll]

That looks like the spring in the recirculating pipe, where is the ball?

It's not the spring, I removed that a long time ago and have it stored somewhere.

 

[RedlegEd]

It's not the spring, I removed that a long time ago and have it stored somewhere.

Hi. If it's not the spring (which is bigger than that,) then it's a rogue piece of metal that shouldn't be there. If possible, I'd remove it. Ed

 

[Garrymcdgll]

Yeah, I'm definitely going to remove it.

 

[Garrymcdgll]

Here's a picture of it after removing from the chiller. Looks like it's left over from the machining process.

 

[ancientmariner52]

Definitely machining swarf, probably from a lathe tool.

 

[RedlegEd]

Here's a picture of it after removing from the chiller. Looks like it's left over from the machining process.

Glad you found it and took care of the problem. It would suck getting that into one of your beers! Ed

 

[elreplica]

Definitely machining swarf, probably from a lathe tool.

Or from a milling machine ;-)

 

[ancientmariner52]

Mill chips tend to be little 6s or 9s, account of an interrupted cut. Lathes cut continuously, and depending on toughness of material and tool geometry, often produce tight continuous coils like these. I could dig some of each out of my work boots if you like. [emoji4]

 

[2LiveBrewCrew]

Got a question, Does the graincoat work better than the reflectix? I found the graincoat for a good price. $47.48 includes s&h to my front door. Or should I wait for a better sale?

 

[RedlegEd]

Got a question, Does the graincoat work better than the reflectix? I found the graincoat for a good price. $47.48 includes s&h to my front door. Or should I wait for a better sale?

Hi. With two layers of Reflectix, I think they work about the same. As @elreplica once said: "I have the reflectix and imagine it's just as good as the jacket. However I have the jacket cuz it looks cool and figured I'd put a tuxedo on it..." and I agree wholeheartedly. It looks and works great. Hope this helps. Ed

 

[2LiveBrewCrew]

Thanks Ed, I'll stick with the reflectix. Lots cheaper.

 

[elreplica]

Hi. With two layers of Reflectix, I think they work about the same. As @elreplica once said: "I have the reflectix and imagine it's just as good as the jacket. However I have the jacket cuz it looks cool and figured I'd put a tuxedo on it..." and I agree wholeheartedly. It looks and works great. Hope this helps. Ed

Yup...I think if I’m investing more than a grand for this piece of kit, it may as well look good lol.

 

[ihavenonickname]

Yay upgraded to a grainfather I found on Craigslist! First brew this week or next.

I’ve done lots of BIAB with good success. Couple simple questions I haven’t been able to find a direct answer to:
1. Is it safe to use PBW And Star san on everthing? Including pump and chiller
2. How should I set up the equipment profile on brewers friend?
3. Should I sell my current plate chiller? is the CFC gonna last and be easy to clean?

 

[thehaze]

I have had the Grainfather since August 2017 and brewed 29 batches and am about to brew 5 more in the upcoming weeks.

PBW works fine with the Grainfather. Regarding clogged filter or pump or anything else: I have never encountered any problems. I use somewhere between 5 and 9 oz pellet hops in the kettle, loose and never had an issue. Moreover, I transfer clear wort to the fermenter.

 

[MrHoppy]

Have done about ten batches, and have experienced some blockage even with the use of paint bags for hops. Removed the ball and had a little improvement. Last batch, I was stirring around and mistakenly knocked off the filter. All kinds of possible solutions were going through my head, but of course I couldn't do anything at the time. Figured it would become an issue at transfer. Well, my transfer was the fastest ever! I then took the pump apart, after PBW, and was amazed. It was totally clean. Not sure the solution to the filter issue is to just not use the filter? Anyone with a similar experience?

 

[Ccceric]

I knocked off my filter during the whirlpool, I couldn't do much about it so I just waited a bit longer for everything to fall out before transferring. It worked great! I didn't take apart the pump, i just blew some air back through it and called it good.

 

[Ccceric]

I have a question, and sorry for the back to back posts... I have done 6 batches in the grain father and all of them have had a much higher FG than I was expecting. On my old system s-05 would always go sub 1.010 but now I am in the high teens. Any ideas????

 

[murphyslaw]

I have a question, and sorry for the back to back posts... I have done 6 batches in the grain father and all of them have had a much higher FG than I was expecting. On my old system s-05 would always go sub 1.010 but now I am in the high teens. Any ideas????

How high? What FG did you expect? What was the OG? How were you mashing previously?

My mash temps used to fall a good 5-6 degrees using a cooler mash tun.


_______________________________

What gap do you all crush at?

Pre-GF, I crushed at 0.032 I think. When I got the GF, I crushed at 0.035" (and conditioned the malt). I couldn't recirculate full speed so I backed off to 0.040. That didn't seem to improve my recirculation speed. The efficiency of my first batch was around 82% and my last one around 68% (I don't have my data handy). I'm thinking about moving back towards 0.035" to see if that helps my efficiency since it didn't seem to make a difference for recirculating.

 

[ihavenonickname]

I have had the Grainfather since August 2017 and brewed 29 batches and am about to brew 5 more in the upcoming weeks.

PBW works fine with the Grainfather. Regarding clogged filter or pump or anything else: I have never encountered any problems. I use somewhere between 5 and 9 oz pellet hops in the kettle, loose and never had an issue. Moreover, I transfer clear wort to the fermenter.

That’s incredible! What’s your whirlpool technique? I thought all those hops would cause a clog for sure!

 

[Ccceric]

I used a cooler before, and I always pre heated it so my temp stayed ver consistent. Brewing the same recipes in the cooler and the grainfather with the same yeast and same temps the grainfathers batch FG is 1.017 and the cooler would be at 1.009. It seems to be every batch, I brewed a dry Irish Stout where the FG should have been 1.008 and it finished at 1.013 It started at 1.046. It just seems to be across the board higher FG. I was hoping that somebody might have an idea.

As far as crush... I am at the whim of my LHBS. The crush is always pretty fine, and I have to use rice hulls or the sparge sticks. I typically use a pound of hulls. I haven't checked my efficiency, so I can't speak to that, but I have it set at 75% and I always meet or exceed my OG with the proper amount of wort in the fermenter, so I don't think I am too far off.

I will say that I am okay with loosing a few points to not have to mess with the cooler anymore! The grainfather makes brewing so much easier, that I am brewing much more often. I love it!

 

[Frilock]

I used a cooler before, and I always pre heated it so my temp stayed ver consistent. Brewing the same recipes in the cooler and the grainfather with the same yeast and same temps the grainfathers batch FG is 1.017 and the cooler would be at 1.009. It seems to be every batch, I brewed a dry Irish Stout where the FG should have been 1.008 and it finished at 1.013 It started at 1.046. It just seems to be across the board higher FG. I was hoping that somebody might have an idea.

As far as crush... I am at the whim of my LHBS. The crush is always pretty fine, and I have to use rice hulls or the sparge sticks. I typically use a pound of hulls. I haven't checked my efficiency, so I can't speak to that, but I have it set at 75% and I always meet or exceed my OG with the proper amount of wort in the fermenter, so I don't think I am too far off.

I will say that I am okay with loosing a few points to not have to mess with the cooler anymore! The grainfather makes brewing so much easier, that I am brewing much more often. I love it!

The only thing I can think relating to the GF is that before you weren't keeping the temperature and a portion of your mash was at a lower temperature when using the cooler. Between the element heating and recirculation through the mash, the GF keep a pretty constant temperature through the grain bed. One thing you might want to try is to dough in right at your mash temp.

 

[Ccceric]

I currently dough in at the set mash temp, so I know that there is a short drop then. I used to stir the mash in the cooler every 20 min, and stir during the batch sparge as well. Maybe I should be stirring the mash in the GF too?

 

[murphyslaw]

I currently dough in at the set mash temp, so I know that there is a short drop then. I used to stir the mash in the cooler every 20 min, and stir during the batch sparge as well. Maybe I should be stirring the mash in the GF too?

Did you measure your mash temp at the end of your mash when using the cooler? I would be shocked if you were opening it every 20 min to stir and didn't lose 5 degrees or more.

That might explain the difference between the 1.013 and and 1.008 on the Irish stout. But it wouldn't explain your 1.017. what mash temp did you use on the GF?

And what were you making that ended at 1.017?


My cooler was inconsistent. Sometimes it would seem to hold the temp, sometimes it would drop by 5 degrees. And I'd also notice significant gradations, hot spots, cold spots, etc. Before going electric, I was analyzing my process and made the attached note about mash temps, times, and FG, for different iterations of an IPA I was tweaking. Anytime the temp dropped below 150, my FG was under 1.010. anytime it stayed above 150, my FG was over 1.010. I have read that people are starting to question whether mash temp really matters, but it seems to have been a factor for me.

My last GF brew was an apa mashed at 152, and the FG was 1.010.