Grainfather!!

[don_bran321]

Melting plugs are caused by more current flowing through the cable than the cable is rated for. They probably used cheap Chinese made cables. If it's a standard power chord (which is what it looks like) I would just buy a good one at home depot

 

[jlinz]

My switch just failed as well. 2 years old, 3 emails to grainfather, and 0 replies in 2 weeks. I explained that I knew the product was out of warranty and that I would purchase a new one if needed, but was there a fixable solution, no reply. I went ahead and ordered the new controller since mine was out of warranty and i get it today. Seems like they are quick to deliver and very slow on customer service. I wonder if I will ever receive a reply to my emails. I guess we will see if this one fails. Love the grainfather, disappointed in the customer service.

Sorry to hear that!

 

[Zenmeister]

I have had my Grainfather for about 2.5 years now, and have not had any issues with the melting or safety switch on the bottom, doing a batch about every two weeks. About 1.5 years ago I upgraded to the new controller. I am now upgrading to a Spike system (primarily for bigger batches) but I absolutely love my GF, and have brewed fantastic beers with it. The 110 V system, while a little slow to get to a boil is not that big a problem. (All in, a brew day is about 4.5 hours, INCLUDING cleaning.) I almost always come within one or two points of hitting my numbers, using the GF water calculator. I couldn't recommend it more.

 

[jlinz]

Melting plugs are caused by more current flowing through the cable than the cable is rated for. They probably used cheap Chinese made cables. If it's a standard power chord (which is what it looks like) I would just buy a good one at home depot

That would be fine, but the power chord is integrated into the unit. I wouldn’t take it apart and void the warranty.

 

[shortyz]

Ive probably brewed 100+ batches with my GF and no issues, then my plug melted. This is a potential fire hazard.

when i look at the male end on the cord there is some arc pitting on the prong, im assuming this has been arcing for a while and finally the bad connection on the cord end to the receptacle is what caused the heat. Also soldering the wires to the receptacle would be a good idea at the factory aswell. With a connection that sees thousands of ON/OFF at very high current for that connection you might want to consider a different more positive connector.

I have to give props for the overall build quality inside the controller, the use of high temp wire is nice to see. Anyways, im going to put new cord ends on both pieces and keep on brewing. just thought id share my experience for anyone with the old controller, CHECK IT OUT. the potential for fire isnt very high i dont think but ya never know.

i will post my fix, and cut open the old cord ends to see if we can get to the bottom of this.

 

[pullapint]

" just thought id share my experience for anyone with the old controller"

What old controller are you talking about? Is there a version number I should look for? I've brewed 7 batches then I got my Bluetooth controller about 1 1/2 years ago but couldn't brew because of a torn rotator cuff. Now that I'm ready to brew again, I'm a little concerned. Is there a way to identify the suspect controller?

 

[shortyz]

my controller was from the original machines, no bluetooth. but if they used the same components it could be the same problem.

remember ive used my unit for more then 100 brews... i guess im kind of a guinea pig for long term use.

for using my unit this much and this is all the problems ive had, im still happy with the quality!

 

[Knkbrand]

"i will post my fix, and cut open the old cord ends to see if we can get to the bottom of this."


Please do, that would be awesome! Same thing happen to me shortyz. Is it easy to fix? Could a non electrician that has changed light fixtures and installed wall outlets do it? My male plug looks exactly like your.

 

[shortyz]

oh ya for sure, i will post a step by step.

 

[shortyz]

ok im back, and i tested my repair and its working great. remember to keep track of what wires go where relating to prong size on the plug (this probably doesnt matter but whatever)

i just put a cord end on some wire cable i had laying around, remember on plugs the brass/bronze screw is always your black wire (live one)

the connectors i used to connect my cord end with my controller are just standard butt connectors found at any automotive supply place, make sure u have some proper crimping pliers to apply them. The neutral wire has 2 wires going into 1 butt connector so u might have to trim some strands off the wire to get both to fit (depending on your style of butt connector, see picture 1) Regarding my previous post of the male connector on the heating element cord being bad, not the case. Just leave that end on the machine and it should work fine.

also u can zap strap your new pigtail connector to your power cord to prevent any stress on it, or hot glue it into the hole. Ive yet to do this because i wanna get the brew going.

As always, after a couple brews i suggest inspecting your connections for any kind of heat dis-coloration as this would be a sign of a poor connection.
****I assume no liability if you dont know what you are doing and hook it up wrong and screw your machine.*****

happy brewing.

 

[shortyz]

 

[PCL]

Having some issues with my CFC, interested in others’ input.

I was occasionally having problems with the pump not seeming to be able to pump wort through the CFC. Wasn’t clogged, worked fine with the recirc arm. I started doing a whirlpool at the end of boil which helped for a while. Now, despite still doing whirlpool my pump doesn’t seem to be able to push wort through the CFC, like it’s not strong enough. Last brew day wouldn’t even push PBW/water through it. I clean out my CFC, it’s not clogged. I’ve taken apart the pump there is nothing In it and works fine with the recirc. Anyone have this happen? Is the pump dying?

Also I don’t seem to get that heat element noise when it’s really jamming any more. Heating times seem the same tho. Still using 20 amp outlet.

Appreciate anyone’s thoughts. I’ve had GF for two years, love it. I’m almost ready to just scrap using the CFC which would be unfortunate cuz it’s a great feature

 

[shortyz]

are you using a hop bag?

 

[gotbeer74]

That would be fine, but the power chord is integrated into the unit. I wouldn’t take it apart and void the warranty.

I'm in the middle of mashing and looked at the power cord on the Grainfather. It is only 14 gauge wire. Shouldn't it be 12 gauge since it is requiring a dedicated 20 amp outlet?

 

[PCL]

are you using a hop bag?

No. In fact I found when using a hop basket that very small particles got through which clogged the filter. Without using a basket and throwing hops in The whirlpool makes a filter of hop material that wort can flow through.

My issue seems to be the pump. Seeing if anyone else has had issues

 

[Jag75]

Having some issues with my CFC, interested in others’ input.

I was occasionally having problems with the pump not seeming to be able to pump wort through the CFC. Wasn’t clogged, worked fine with the recirc arm. I started doing a whirlpool at the end of boil which helped for a while. Now, despite still doing whirlpool my pump doesn’t seem to be able to push wort through the CFC, like it’s not strong enough. Last brew day wouldn’t even push PBW/water through it. I clean out my CFC, it’s not clogged. I’ve taken apart the pump there is nothing In it and works fine with the recirc. Anyone have this happen? Is the pump dying?

Also I don’t seem to get that heat element noise when it’s really jamming any more. Heating times seem the same tho. Still using 20 amp outlet.

Appreciate anyone’s thoughts. I’ve had GF for two years, love it. I’m almost ready to just scrap using the CFC which would be unfortunate cuz it’s a great feature

What kind of flow does it have with the recirc hose ? If that's flowing like normal and the cfc is struggling you have something in there partially blocking it. Is your valve turned all the way open, check the ball valve make sure no sediment is in that . I had that issue once. Not sure if we should just toss in hops in the Gf. It will go right through that pump filter and clog it up.

 

[PCL]

What kind of flow does it have with the recirc hose ? If that's flowing like normal and the cfc is struggling you have something in there partially blocking it. Is your valve turned all the way open, check the ball valve make sure no sediment is in that . I had that issue once. Not sure if we should just toss in hops in the Gf. It will go right through that pump filter and clog it up.

Flow with recirc is great. I took ball out of valve so that won’t block up.

For the CFC I let PBW sit in it for half hour then run it through with more PBW and then sanitizer. Not sure how much better I can clean it out and doesn’t seem like it’s blocked up.

 

[Jag75]

Flow with recirc is great. I took ball out of valve so that won’t block up.

For the CFC I let PBW sit in it for half hour then run it through with more PBW and then sanitizer. Not sure how much better I can clean it out and doesn’t seem like it’s blocked up.

I wonder if the ball has to be in when using the cfc. If you blow through one end of the cfc do you feel the air coming out on the other? Maybe soak it all night with hot water

 

[RedlegEd]

Hi @PCL . You may want to inspect the pin/port on the inflow side of the CFC where it connects to the discharge pipe. Even though you removed the ball check valve and spring from the pipe, the connector itself may be clogged, or not making a good, tight connection. If your recirc arm is running fine, then it's definitely a problem with the CFC. I recommend you DO NOT blow through the CFC with your mouth, there's all kinds of little cooties living there. Use compressed air or CO2, or you can force a water flow from the wort output side just to make sure it is flowing freely. You are correct in the CFC is really a great, efficient way to cool down your hot wort. It would be a shame to stop using it. Hope this helps. Ed

 

[shortyz]

i use a muslin bag with all my hops, otherwise my pump would get plugged and not work.

just saying.

ive been using the CFC for 2 years with no issues other then when i didnt use a muslin bag with pellets/leaf

 

[jaymosbeershack]

I used to use a bag, till someone on this forum convinced me to go straight into the kettel with my hops. Never had a clog since. The more hops i use, the clearer the wort.

 

[Rickdude]

What kind of water hardness do you have? Scaling issues are exacerbated significantly in heat exchangers.

Can you pump anything at all through the CFC now? I would dissolve 8oz citric acid in 2 gallons of water, set the heat for 140 F, then recirculate through the CFC for 15 minutes. There are two ways to check if it's working-- hopefully you'll get a release of particulates (white for scale or brown for beerstone). If you don't see that you may still have heavy scale crystallization, in which case your pH will start coming up until it hits 5.5 - 6.0. (If your pH does come up like that, you'll need to add more citric to keep dissolving.)

Alkaline cleaners won't touch scale and will only take off the outer edges of beerstone, and acid sanitizers don't work on an established scale/beerstone problem. And even if you don't have hard water, you'll still have calcium being released from your mash (long story), so long usage without an acid rinse may still have developed that.

Keep us posted!

Rick

 

[jlinz]

Well, just got a replacement grainfather for my melted plug issue. Good customer service and happy the warranty was honored. Now let’s hope this one doesn’t melt, haha.

 

[Jag75]

Well, just got a replacement grainfather for my melted plug issue. Good customer service and happy the warranty was honored. Now let’s hope this one doesn’t melt, haha.

Nice man ! Glad they made it right

 

[jlinz]

Nice man ! Glad they made it right

Me too! Everything looks exactly the same though on the controller. This one is from 5/18. Old one was from 8/17. I wonder if the problem has been addressed.

 

[shortyz]

well good luck, i hope they changed the plastic that the receptacle is made out of(thermoset vs thermoplastic), or added another contact point.

 

[jlinz]

well good luck, i hope they changed the plastic that the receptacle is made out of(thermoset vs thermoplastic), or added another contact point.

Maybe, but like I said it doesn’t look any different than my old one.

 

[PCL]

Hi @PCL . You may want to inspect the pin/port on the inflow side of the CFC where it connects to the discharge pipe. Even though you removed the ball check valve and spring from the pipe, the connector itself may be clogged, or not making a good, tight connection. If your recirc arm is running fine, then it's definitely a problem with the CFC. I recommend you DO NOT blow through the CFC with your mouth, there's all kinds of little cooties living there. Use compressed air or CO2, or you can force a water flow from the wort output side just to make sure it is flowing freely. You are correct in the CFC is really a great, efficient way to cool down your hot wort. It would be a shame to stop using it. Hope this helps. Ed

View attachment 601657

Thanks for advice. The pin port is clean but I have had to clean that before. I did notice some air bubbles in the line starting at the connector to the CFC, maybe seal is an issue. Will dig into that further. Greatly appreciate your response and all who have answered.

I used to use my keg washer pump to blast out my CFC, until it died. I may look for a new cheap pump to accomplish the same. Not being able to inspect its cleanliness has bothered me about the CFC.

 

[PCL]

What kind of water hardness do you have? Scaling issues are exacerbated significantly in heat exchangers.

Can you pump anything at all through the CFC now? I would dissolve 8oz citric acid in 2 gallons of water, set the heat for 140 F, then recirculate through the CFC for 15 minutes. There are two ways to check if it's working-- hopefully you'll get a release of particulates (white for scale or brown for beerstone). If you don't see that you may still have heavy scale crystallization, in which case your pH will start coming up until it hits 5.5 - 6.0. (If your pH does come up like that, you'll need to add more citric to keep dissolving.)

Alkaline cleaners won't touch scale and will only take off the outer edges of beerstone, and acid sanitizers don't work on an established scale/beerstone problem. And even if you don't have hard water, you'll still have calcium being released from your mash (long story), so long usage without an acid rinse may still have developed that.

Keep us posted!

Rick

Also great advice. I will get working on this and get back to you.

Seriously, this is a great forum and have learned so much over the years from you all. Thanks

 

[WBB]

So I jumped on the recent sale on the grainfather. I cleaned everything, ran pbw and the clean water through everything and ready to go for the maiden voyage. Been watching videos and envisioning the process, trying to avoid any, oh craps.

One question I had was about mashing. Are you supposed to run the pump for the whole hour plus mashout, so 70 minutes, 60 min mash, 10 min mash out? Probably a dumb question, but it’s only dumb if you don’t ask.