Help me decide between Spike CF10 and SSBrewtech Unitank

[Bohern]

Congratulations! You wouldn't have gone wrong either way since both are excellent builds. Enjoy many years of brewing successes. Now, about those glycol chillers....

Oh I ordered the 1/5 hp chiller too.

 

[Broothru]

Oh I ordered the 1/5 hp chiller too.

I think you'll like it (same one I bought). It will be more than enough to crash a 14 gallon Unitank. I 'test ran' mine with a 7 gal. Unitank, 7 gal. Chronical and a 7 gal. Brew Bucket simultaneously. The Chronical and BB were ~65F ish and the Uni had a lager at 50F, no problems.

Normally I only have the Unitank and occasionally the Chronical simultaneously chilling, but I have had the Uni at 35F with the Chronical at 62F in a 70F room without frequent cycling of the chiller compressor. The 4+ gallon glycol reservoir is a good capacity and the unit doesn't strain to maintain the load. I use a 70:30 ratio which should allow you to set 24F on the tank, but I don't go lower than 26F. I've observed about 8F delta between glycol tank temperature and maximum obtainable fermenter temperature, using neoprene jackets and neoprene insulated glycol lines. Very satisfied with the output performance.

Brooo Brother

 

[Bohern]

The 4+ gallon glycol reservoir is a good capacity and the unit doesn't strain to maintain the load. I use a 70:30 ratio

I was going to ask about that. So it is 4 gallon tank and you used a 70/30 ratio or is it closer to 5 gallons?

 

[Broothru]

I was going to ask about that. So it is 4 gallon tank and you used a 70/30 ratio or is it closer to 5 gallons?

I think the total tank capacity is 4.8 U.S. gallons, but that would be all the way up to the rim of the tank. I leave enough room to allow for sloshing. I figure there's 4.2 total volume at "my" fill point. So, 1 gallon jug of glycol plus 3.2 gallons of distilled water gives me 70:30% water to glycol.

Brooo Brother

 

[Bohern]

I think the total tank capacity is 4.8 U.S. gallons, but that would be all the way up to the rim of the tank. I leave enough room to allow for sloshing. I figure there's 4.2 total volume at "my" fill point. So, 1 gallon jug of glycol plus 3.2 gallons of distilled water gives me 70:30% water to glycol.

Brooo Brother

Thanks man!

 

[Bohern]

I will say this after getting my 14 gal SS Unitank today, I am able reach to the bottom of the fermenter through the 6' port on top. So if CIP were to ever give me issues i don't see a reason I can't access it by hand if needed.

 

[Tom R]

And even if your arm wasn't long enough, a short-handled brush would let you get the job done.

 

[NeoBrew]

I will say this after getting my 14 gal SS Unitank today, I am able reach to the bottom of the fermenter through the 6' port on top. So if CIP were to ever give me issues i don't see a reason I can't access it by hand if needed.

Let us know how many times it takes to get that 6” tri clamp lid to seal too!

(a card carrying unitank I owner)

 

[eric19312]

And even if your arm wasn't long enough, a short-handled brush would let you get the job done.

Nothing more abrasive than the soft side of a sponge touches inside of my unitank! I'll use a brush on the outside cause I am not showing it off but I want the mirror finish on inside to last.

Also it is not really about whether you can reach the entire tank but whether you can easily see the entire tank. I would imagine the hardest part to see on the brewtech tank would be the inside of the dome near the port. I guess you could inspect with a mirror but have never heard of anyone doing so. It is additionally a concern because the CIP balls don't do a great job of spraying up. The part hardest to see is the part most likely to be missed by CIP...

 

[Bohern]

Nothing more abrasive than the soft side of a sponge touches inside of my unitank! I'll use a brush on the outside cause I am not showing it off but I want the mirror finish on inside to last.

Also it is not really about whether you can reach the entire tank but whether you can easily see the entire tank. I would imagine the hardest part to see on the brewtech tank would be the inside of the dome near the port. I guess you could inspect with a mirror but have never heard of anyone doing so. It is additionally a concern because the CIP balls don't do a great job of spraying up. The part hardest to see is the part most likely to be missed by CIP...

I am about to put it to the test, but I will report back my results.

 

[Tom R]

I agree about taking pains to ensure the interior finish of the fermenter is preserved.

I have a very soft brush, similar shape to a bottle brush, that I use to clean the ports. If I didn't have this I would wrap a sponge around a handle.

After CIP I use a sponge to clean the shoulder of the fermenter, since I can't see it without a mirror, as mentioned. But in practice, even my 10 gallon batches never leave residue that high up.

 

[Bohern]

I agree about taking pains to ensure the interior finish of the fermenter is preserved.

I have a very soft brush, similar shape to a bottle brush, that I use to clean the ports. If I didn't have this I would wrap a sponge around a handle.

After CIP I use a sponge to clean the shoulder of the fermenter, since I can't see it without a mirror, as mentioned. But in practice, even my 10 gallon batches never leave residue that high up.

Tom, what size unitank do you own and I am assuming it is the SS version or no?

 

[Tom R]

I'm a bit of an interloper.

I have a 15 gal Brewers Hardware fermenter. It has an 8" TC opening on top, so has similar access/visibility concerns as the SS Brewtech Unitanks.

 

[Bohern]

I'm a bit of an interloper.

I have a 15 gal Brewers Hardware fermenter. It has an 8" TC opening on top, so has similar access/visibility concerns as the SS Brewtech Unitanks.

I looked at those. But on the other note I do agree while one can't see the inside shoulder it is very reachable and should be easy to clean. How ever looking I my CIP ball closer and how it is going to ride I think it may hit the upper area as best I can tell.

 

[Beenym88]

I have the ss brewtech uni tank I. The thing works great but it is hard to clean and put back together. There are a lot of parts and with it being the small home brew size they are all close together. The tri clamps have to be placed in the perfect spot to not block another tri clamp much cursing goes on when it is time to put it back together. I have seen some that look like they would not have this issue including spike.

 

[Bohern]

I have the ss brewtech uni tank I. The thing works great but it is hard to clean and put back together. There are a lot of parts and with it being the small home brew size they are all close together. The tri clamps have to be placed in the perfect spot to not block another tri clamp much cursing goes on when it is time to put it back together. I have seen some that look like they would not have this issue including spike.

What size do you have and how do you go about cleaning it if I may ask please?

 

[Beenym88]

I believe it’s 7 gallon. The way I do it is probably different then most and I plan on purchasing a cip ball. But right now I take the thing in my walk in shower spray it down then let it soak with about 4 gallons of pbw mixture and shake it. Then if there is any residue I get in there with a sponge. I drain about 2 gallons of the pbw in to a bucket and take everything apart and let that soak which you have to do their is always still yeast in those spots when I take it apart. Then rinse thoroughly. Let it dry and put it back together.

 

[Bohern]

I believe it’s 7 gallon. The way I do it is probably different then most and I plan on purchasing a cip ball. But right now I take the thing in my walk in shower spray it down then let it soak with about 4 gallons of pbw mixture and shake it. Then if there is any residue I get in there with a sponge. I drain about 2 gallons of the pbw in to a bucket and take everything apart and let that soak which you have to do their is always still yeast in those spots when I take it apart. Then rinse thoroughly. Let it dry and put it back together.

My plan as of now is to use my Blichmann pump to run 160 deg PBW mixture through the spray ball and see how that works. Not sure if that pump can do the job or not though

 

[Beenym88]

I think that would work and be the more normal way of doing it. I just haven’t gotten around to buying the cip ball. It gets really frustrating the amount of stuff you find out isn’t included with some of these purchases. You definitely have to take apart the try clamps and clean those pieces individually the Sparta won’t get in there.

 

[eric19312]

I have the ss brewtech uni tank I. The thing works great but it is hard to clean and put back together. There are a lot of parts and with it being the small home brew size they are all close together. The tri clamps have to be placed in the perfect spot to not block another tri clamp much cursing goes on when it is time to put it back together. I have seen some that look like they would not have this issue including spike.

how many batches have you done in it so far? I felt the disassembly and reassembly was a lot of work at first too but now it just happens as part of the brew day.

 

[NeoBrew]

how many batches have you done in it so far? I felt the disassembly and reassembly was a lot of work at first too but now it just happens as part of the brew day.

I agree. It was daunting at first, now I can do it in 5 minutes.

I did pick up a CIPball, I don’t remember where I got it. It may have been SS.

I pretty much gave up using it. In order to get any decent spray it requires more flow than a typical brew pump. I have a sump pump style pump for my keg washer which is powerful enough. However after using it a couple times and realizing I needed to take the tri-clovers apart because they would never get hit by any kind of spray. The actual wiping of the inside of the conical is easy and only takes a couple minutes. For me it’s not worth hooking up the CIP system because it only nocks off a couple minutes of what I would need to do.

Another thing to note is that if you have the cooling coil in, it will block a lot of the spray pressure from getting to the conical above and around it.

 

[Beenym88]

how many batches have you done in it so far? I felt the disassembly and reassembly was a lot of work at first too but now it just happens as part of the brew day.

I have 3 fermenters so I’ve probably done around 8 in this one. Taking it apart is fine I just find putting it back together difficult. There are a lot of spots where the tri clamps have to be in the exactly right positing or it will mess another one up.

 

[bailey mountain brewer]

for me the cip depends on how much time i have. if i am busy i will hook it up quick and on a circulating cycle with my brew kettle and set my kettle at 180f and go on with life for 30 min to an hour, then come back to finish the job. typically when i do this there is minor spots left where the krausen was so i wipe that out and rinse and done. even with the chilling coil in it gets 98% clean, and the coil will usually have a small spot from krausen as well. still a quick wipe down and rinse is worth it to me. i would like to get a high pressure pump to eliminate it all together but its kind of at the bottom of my "brewing wish list" also i am cleaning a cf15 so I limit any moving of it i can.

 

[Bohern]

@bailey mountain brewer and @NeoBrew what are you guys using to pump with?

 

[bailey mountain brewer]

currently just a chugger pump. the first time i did it i did not heat my water as high or let it run as long. so i kinda stumbled on this because the one day i had just hooked up my cip and started circulating it then my 9yr old calls for me to help her and i forgot about if for a while ... close to an hour. so when i went back down to my basement brewery and started taking things apart i noticed it got much cleaner this way. i dont always clean this way, sometimes ill do a quick rinse then fill the thing completely with hot pbw and leave it soak overnight. again it all depends how much time i have ... and what type of mood im in. sometimes i get in a cleaning ocd mood and spend hours cleaning the entire brewery.

 

[eric19312]

I agree. It was daunting at first, now I can do it in 5 minutes.

I did pick up a CIPball, I don’t remember where I got it. It may have been SS.

I pretty much gave up using it. In order to get any decent spray it requires more flow than a typical brew pump. I have a sump pump style pump for my keg washer which is powerful enough. However after using it a couple times and realizing I needed to take the tri-clovers apart because they would never get hit by any kind of spray. The actual wiping of the inside of the conical is easy and only takes a couple minutes. For me it’s not worth hooking up the CIP system because it only nocks off a couple minutes of what I would need to do.

Another thing to note is that if you have the cooling coil in, it will block a lot of the spray pressure from getting to the conical above and around it.

I agree CIP is no replacement for full disassembly.

 

[bailey mountain brewer]

even after i run my cip i still disassemble. i feel it makes for less scrubbing, plus maybe trying to justify my purchase of the cip haha.

 

[eric19312]

for me the cip depends on how much time i have. if i am busy i will hook it up quick and on a circulating cycle with my brew kettle and set my kettle at 180f and go on with life for 30 min to an hour, then come back to finish the job. typically when i do this there is minor spots left where the krausen was so i wipe that out and rinse and done. even with the chilling coil in it gets 98% clean, and the coil will usually have a small spot from krausen as well. still a quick wipe down and rinse is worth it to me. i would like to get a high pressure pump to eliminate it all together but its kind of at the bottom of my "brewing wish list" also i am cleaning a cf15 so I limit any moving of it i can.

I'm doing a bit the opposite. I carry my CF15 to the driveway once empty and disassemble it there. All the parts get rinsed with hose water and stored in a bucket. Then the lid comes off and inside gets hosed out. I then wipe the krausen ring on the wall and lid with a sponge and hose it down some more till everything is visibly clean. Then I take it to my cleaning area, reattach the lid, and then CIP with hot PBW. 135F for 30 minutes. Then that hot PBW moves to soak the parts while I CIP with hot water to rinse. Then rinse the parts. That is followed by sanitizer and reassembly with all the parts still wet with sanitizer.

Since the vessel was visibly clean before I hit it with PBW I see no need to re-open the lid to reinspect after the PBW cycle.

And without any bits of stuff in there my CIP ball doesn't get plugged. When I first got the CIP ball I tried CIPing the fermentor with quite a bit of krausen still in it. The spray ball plugged up pretty fast and wouldn't spin. Even after switching from Chugger pump to a sump pump.

 

[Bohern]

currently just a chugger pump. the first time i did it i did not heat my water as high or let it run as long. so i kinda stumbled on this because the one day i had just hooked up my cip and started circulating it then my 9yr old calls for me to help her and i forgot about if for a while ... close to an hour. so when i went back down to my basement brewery and started taking things apart i noticed it got much cleaner this way. i dont always clean this way, sometimes ill do a quick rinse then fill the thing completely with hot pbw and leave it soak overnight. again it all depends how much time i have ... and what type of mood im in. sometimes i get in a cleaning ocd mood and spend hours cleaning the entire brewery.

You give me the hope my Blichmann pump is going to do the job.

 

[Bohern]

I'm doing a bit the opposite. I carry my CF15 to the driveway once empty and disassemble it there. All the parts get rinsed with hose water and stored in a bucket. Then the lid comes off and inside gets hosed out. I then wipe the krausen ring on the wall and lid with a sponge and hose it down some more till everything is visibly clean. Then I take it to my cleaning area, reattach the lid, and then CIP with hot PBW. 135F for 30 minutes. Then that hot PBW moves to soak the parts while I CIP with hot water to rinse. Then rinse the parts. That is followed by sanitizer and reassembly with all the parts still wet with sanitizer.

Since the vessel was visibly clean before I hit it with PBW I see no need to re-open the lid to reinspect after the PBW cycle.

And without any bits of stuff in there my CIP ball doesn't get plugged. When I first got the CIP ball I tried CIPing the fermentor with quite a bit of krausen still in it. The spray ball plugged up pretty fast and wouldn't spin. Even after switching from Chugger pump to a sump pump.

I agree, I think getting the vessel hosed out before you start your PBW cycle. Sorta like washing the mud off your Jeep before you get the soap and sponge.