Help me decide between Spike CF10 and SSBrewtech Unitank

[TxBigHops]

Glad I found this thread. I'm about to pull the trigger on a 1/2 bbl fermentor, and this confirms most of my own conclusions between these two similar makes. Here's how I would summarize the differences:

Lid - personal preference. For me, advantage Spike as I don't have to purchase a CIP and pump, and I feel better about being able to remove completely for thorough hand cleaning. But I can certainly see that some others might prefer the SsBT design.

Legs- I've heard some say the Spike with extensions and castors can be a bit tippy, so advantage SsBT for having four legs instead of three.

Pressurization - Slight advantage Ss due to the lid design if you ever feel the need to go over 15 psi. And the PRV they supply appears to be a higher quality adjustable unit.

Batch sizes - Advantage Spike. The half bbl Spike has the cooling coil extend down to the 1.1 gallon mark, and the temp gauge is at the 5.7 gallon mark, so a large-ish 5 gallon batch is possible putting 7-8 gallons into the fermentor and allowing for trub. I suppose you could even put the temp gauge into the sample port at the 2.9 gallon level if you wanted to ferment even less.

Cooling - As mentioned before, the coil extends lower, which is a major issue to me, not just for smaller batches, but it should make crashing easier too. Also, the hoses are insulated, and the pump looks to be a more robust model. Anyone tested both to confirm this? Appears to be another advantage to Spike.

Price - Advantage Spike. Even after adding the racking arm, the full heating and cooling bundle, the complete carb stone bundle, and the bracing shelf, which I believe just about equalizes the two. Spike $1335; SsBT $1469. I did leave off the $55 TC blow off cane, but I don't see that as something I need. Some others may not want the carb stone and pressurization bundle, saving them even more. And finally, the 0% interest financing seals the deal.

Spike's pricing for TC accessories look to be a touch lower, and they have some other neat accessories that I can't help throwing in like a clear 4 inch TC window cap. How cool is that!? Adding in a few extra clamps and gaskets at a fair price just saves me the trouble of getting them from somewhere else. And don't forget that 0% financing!

Hoping to get an order placed very soon, and I will come back here to update with my thoughts and impression of the unit.

 

[Blazinlow86]

Keep in mind the SS brewtech prv is set at 18psi from what I've read. Only mentioning it as it advertised as being alot higher and thought of as a advantage but imho If it can only hold 18psi it's not really any difference as you would still need to crash to carb and I can't see the advantage of carbing at 48f rather than 44f. I'd avoid the leg extensions if possible as it would be very top heavy. Cheers

 

[Chris Grubb]

I just pulled the trigger on a CF5 from spike. Although I have never seen either in person, the spike came with what appears to be better quality parts, and more accessories, and cheaper than the ss unitank.

 

[TxBigHops]

Thanks for the input. Yeah, those legs are honestly my biggest concern. But I'd also really like to get the dump valve up off the floor. And make room for the sight glass. I suppose one option would be to build a low cart to mount it to.

Spike, I see that you are monitoring this thread. Any thoughts on why you went with three legs over four? Especially for the bigger fermentors. And are 18 inch extensions really necessary? How about adding a shorter option?

 

[SpikeBrewing]

Spike, I see that you are monitoring this thread. Any thoughts on why you went with three legs over four? Especially for the bigger fermentors. And are 18 inch extensions really necessary? How about adding a shorter option?

We get this questions a lot. 3 legs are actually more stable than 4. Our analogy is the wobbly restaurant table vs a tri-pod. The main issue is the center of gravity and foot print width. The center of gravity on any conical is high due to the legs. Our conical is a little shorter with a wider diameter to help add stability. When you add leg extensions this only raises the center of gravity making the tank more tippy. The 4th leg would not help with either of these cases. Our 1bbl will have a 4th leg but that is purely for weight capacity. We are working on an extra wide bracing shelf which will increase the footprint of the tank.

 

[TxBigHops]

We get this questions a lot. 3 legs are actually more stable than 4. Our analogy is the wobbly restaurant table vs a tri-pod. The main issue is the center of gravity and foot print width. The center of gravity on any conical is high due to the legs. Our conical is a little shorter with a wider diameter to help add stability. When you add leg extensions this only raises the center of gravity making the tank more tippy. The 4th leg would not help with either of these cases. Our 1bbl will have a 4th leg but that is purely for weight capacity. We are working on an extra wide bracing shelf which will increase the footprint of the tank.

Thanks!. In that case I'm going to hold off on the extensions and possibly mount it to a home built cart to widen the footprint. I'll check out your solution when it becomes available.

 

[Dog House Brew]

Four votes for Spike here.
View attachment 582646

That isn’t fair!! My plastic doesn’t look that cool.

 

[TxBigHops]

I’m one of the earlier testers of the Spike CF10. I also own two Chronicals (7 and 14) that I use all the time and love (minus the weldless fittings) The Spike unit (even though it was a test unit) functioned flawlessly.

Two comments I will make on the Spike one:

1. The lid has its pros and cons.
Pros are that you can remove it and clean the interior of the conical without any issues and get a better clean.

The cons are: the damn lid seal. When you take the lid off after being compressed for so long, the seal tends to fall out of the lid as your lifting it or putting it back on, it can fall right into your wort. Simple fix is to “dimple” the channel where the seal sits in so it pinches the seal a bit to hold it in. The other con is the 2inch trub valve. This valve is a blessing and a curse. Blessing where you won’t get any clogs (yeast, hops, etc) but a curse where the wort comes out at a lot a faster pace if you’re not careful, you could lose a lot of wort.

Other then that, everything has worked great and you wouldn’t be disappointed with the Spike conical.

I can’t comment on the Ss brewtech Unitanks to compare it to. I was leaning on buying another Spike to replace the other 14 gallon Ss chronical I have, I really dislike the weldless fittings in the Ss Chronicals.

Regarding the seal falling out of the lid, I could have swore somebody responded with the proper way to install so that wouldn't happen, but must have been another thread because I can't find it here. What I recall is that you press the thicker part of the seal into the lid, and the narrower, pointy side is what contacts the fermenter, correct?

I'm assembling mine right now, and it looks like that should work to keep it inside the lid. And my own question, do I lube that sucker up with keg lube before using?

 

[mongoose33]

Regarding the seal falling out of the lid, I could have swore somebody responded with the proper way to install so that wouldn't happen, but must have been another thread because I can't find it here. What I recall is that you press the thicker part of the seal into the lid, and the narrower, pointy side is what contacts the fermenter, correct?

I'm assembling mine right now, and it looks like that should work to keep it inside the lid. And my own question, do I lube that sucker up with keg lube before using?

It wouldn't hurt, but I didn't do that with mine. You might want to put a very thin film of lube on the rim of the fermenter, but I didn't do that.

The first time I buttoned up the CF10, I had a slow leak. Turned out I hadn't tightened the big clamp enough so it was leaking past the lid seal. A few more turns and it was fine, and has been since.

 

[TimBrewz]

I went with the SS 1/2 barrel uni tank with casters. I just liked the design and features. Also a brewery I frequent went with SS for their commercial scale operation and recommended the brand.

Granted, the coil chilling is not good for 5-6 gal batches, but I am never making anything less than 11 gallons. If I do I just use a bucket put it in my beer fridge.

It’s easy to clean, the coil I just spray with jet setting on garden hose sprayer after a soak in PBW.
Dry hops are easy to add through the port on the top. I blow co2 through the blow off tube when I open the top port. Very simple.

Cooling with Penguin chiller it chills 12-16 gallons from 65f to 33f in a couple hours, carbonation system works great and I’ve been using it as a brite tank sometimes, which is super cool.

I have not used the Spike to compare it to, but I don’t think I made the “wrong” choice with the SS.

Anyway that’s my 2 cents. These both seem like solid options from my experience and reading through the thread.

Cheers, Tim

 

[jready]

I have both and like them both for different reasons. The SS unitank seems more stable, easier to add dry hops and I like the sampling port better. The Spike has an easier solution to fermenting under pressure better and easier cooling, the carb stone is better, and the bigger dump valve is nice. I wouldn’t get rid of either but will probably buy one more Spike.

 

[crooow]

I'm bumping this thread because I'm faced with this same decision. In fact, I'm paralyzed by the apparent equivalency of these two fermenters. Anyone have updated thoughts?

 

[TxBigHops]

Glad I found this thread. I'm about to pull the trigger on a 1/2 bbl fermentor, and this confirms most of my own conclusions between these two similar makes. Here's how I would summarize the differences:

Lid - personal preference. For me, advantage Spike as I don't have to purchase a CIP and pump, and I feel better about being able to remove completely for thorough hand cleaning. But I can certainly see that some others might prefer the SsBT design.

Legs- I've heard some say the Spike with extensions and castors can be a bit tippy, so advantage SsBT for having four legs instead of three.

Pressurization - Slight advantage Ss due to the lid design if you ever feel the need to go over 15 psi. And the PRV they supply appears to be a higher quality adjustable unit.

Batch sizes - Advantage Spike. The half bbl Spike has the cooling coil extend down to the 1.1 gallon mark, and the temp gauge is at the 5.7 gallon mark, so a large-ish 5 gallon batch is possible putting 7-8 gallons into the fermentor and allowing for trub. I suppose you could even put the temp gauge into the sample port at the 2.9 gallon level if you wanted to ferment even less.

Cooling - As mentioned before, the coil extends lower, which is a major issue to me, not just for smaller batches, but it should make crashing easier too. Also, the hoses are insulated, and the pump looks to be a more robust model. Anyone tested both to confirm this? Appears to be another advantage to Spike.

Price - Advantage Spike. Even after adding the racking arm, the full heating and cooling bundle, the complete carb stone bundle, and the bracing shelf, which I believe just about equalizes the two. Spike $1335; SsBT $1469. I did leave off the $55 TC blow off cane, but I don't see that as something I need. Some others may not want the carb stone and pressurization bundle, saving them even more. And finally, the 0% interest financing seals the deal.

Spike's pricing for TC accessories look to be a touch lower, and they have some other neat accessories that I can't help throwing in like a clear 4 inch TC window cap. How cool is that!? Adding in a few extra clamps and gaskets at a fair price just saves me the trouble of getting them from somewhere else. And don't forget that 0% financing!

Hoping to get an order placed very soon, and I will come back here to update with my thoughts and impression of the unit.

Here's the analysis I did last fall. I went with the cf15 and I have absolutely no regrets. Spike has improved the leg stabilization issue. Cooling is great and I love the larger lid on Spike. When the time comes to add another fermentor to my fleet, I can't imagine not going with Spike.

 

[couchsending]

for those adding lots of dry hops to these devices do you get a lot of them lodged in the cooling coil and never
exposed to beer. This happens so often to me with the SS Chronicles and it drives me insane.

You have to CIP the SS but not necessarily on the Spike correct?

is the cooling efficiency really that much different between the two?

At the point where I want to pull the trigger on a few of these. Leaning SS but still not sure.

 

[martianpc]

I owned the SSBrewtech, sold it. Bought the Brewer's Hardware jacketed tank instead. There is ZERO comparison between them. The BH tank is light-years nicer.

 

[iancl]

I did a fair bit of research and went with the Spike about 16 moths ago.
++ on the large lid, temperature controls & jacket. Rolls around easily once you learn how to drive.
Fabrication quality is exceptional.
Wish the legs were 2" longer.

 

[mongoose33]

for those adding lots of dry hops to these devices do you get a lot of them lodged in the cooling coil and never
exposed to beer. This happens so often to me with the SS Chronicles and it drives me insane.

I don't know how hop pellets could get lodged in the coils; whole-cone hops, I suppose maybe, but not hop pellets.

You have to CIP the SS but not necessarily on the Spike correct?

You can open the Spike and clean it without CIP. That's the advantage to the wide lid. The downside to the Spike method is that the SSBt can achieve higher pressures if you're doing pressure fermenting or what is in essence spunding.

is the cooling efficiency really that much different between the two?

I think that depends on if you're doing half batches or not. On my Spike CF10 I tend to do 5-gallon batches and about 2/3 of the cooling coil extends down into the wort. If you're not going to do half-batches w/ the SSBt offering, I don't think there's a meaningful difference. Of more import will be the source of the cooling liquid and the ability to recover.

At the point where I want to pull the trigger on a few of these. Leaning SS but still not sure.

I don't think you can go wrong either way, depending on what you're trying to achieve. Pick the one whose features match your requirements most closely.

 

[TxBigHops]

I owned the SSBrewtech, sold it. Bought the Brewer's Hardware jacketed tank instead. There is ZERO comparison between them. The BH tank is light-years nicer.

Well that's not too surprising. Isn't it more than double the cost? Not exactly an apples to apples comparison. Or as you said, ZERO comparison.

 

[martianpc]

Well that's not too surprising. Isn't it more than double the cost? Not exactly an apples to apples comparison. Or as you said, ZERO comparison.

It's about 200-300 more. You will need to source your own submersible pump ($10-20 bucks), inkbird, as well as a prv of your choosing. Then pick if you want anything else added. It's a little more $ but it's a LOT more tank. I have no regrets.

The cleaning is easier without the submerged coil, the cooling is more efficient and your beer shouldn't freeze (mine did in the ssb), it's not going to have condensation dripping off it for the most part, it's much nicer looking, the racking cane on the ssb is not ideal (tiny diameter, no indicator of direction, gets stuck in large dry hop additions).

 

[TxBigHops]

It's about 200-300 more. You will need to source your own submersible pump ($10-20 bucks), inkbird, as well as a prv of your choosing. Then pick if you want anything else added. It's a little more $ but it's a LOT more tank. I have no regrets.

The cleaning is easier without the submerged coil, the cooling is more efficient and your beer shouldn't freeze (mine did in the ssb), it's not going to have condensation dripping off it for the most part, it's much nicer looking, the racking cane on the ssb is not ideal (tiny diameter, no indicator of direction, gets stuck in large dry hop additions).

I'm not questioning that it's a great tank. I looked at them, and I would love to have one. But I don't think you're quite remembering the price differential correctly. I added quite a few extras to my CF 15 and my total cost was 1350. The base CF 15 plus temperature control bundle is just a touch over 1,000. The Brewers Hardware 20 gallon jacketed conical starts at 1850. Not sure if anything would need to be added to that to make it comprable to my Spike. But that's somewhere between a $500 - 800 difference.

Also, for me personally one huge selling point on the spike was the ability to do half batches, or even 5-gallon batches. From the looks of the location of the thermometer and Sample valve on the Brewers Hardware unit, it doesn't look like that would be possible. Maybe a 10 gallon batch, but no way a 5-gallon batch.

 

[martianpc]

I'm not questioning that it's a great tank. I looked at them, and I would love to have one. But I don't think you're quite remembering the price differential correctly. I added quite a few extras to my CF 15 and my total cost was 1350. The base CF 15 plus temperature control bundle is just a touch over 1,000. The Brewers Hardware 20 gallon jacketed conical starts at 1850. Not sure if anything would need to be added to that to make it comprable to my Spike. But that's somewhere between a $500 - 800 difference.

Also, for me personally one huge selling point on the spike was the ability to do half batches, or even 5-gallon batches. From the looks of the location of the thermometer and Sample valve on the Brewers Hardware unit, it doesn't look like that would be possible. Maybe a 10 gallon batch, but no way a 5-gallon batch.

That may be true, I have the 15 gallon tank. 5 gallon should not be a problem. I haven't done one yet, I just got it. I'm also coming from the SSBrewtech, not a spike.

I just feel that if someone is going to be spend this much on a fermenter that waiting and saving a little longer for the Brewer's Hardware makes a lot of sense.

 

[ttuato]

for those adding lots of dry hops to these devices do you get a lot of them lodged in the cooling coil and never
exposed to beer. This happens so often to me with the SS Chronicles and it drives me insane.

You have to CIP the SS but not necessarily on the Spike correct?

is the cooling efficiency really that much different between the two?

At the point where I want to pull the trigger on a few of these. Leaning SS but still not sure.

Use this from Norcal to add your dryhops (O2 free!) and problem solved. I adapted it to work with my Speidel tank until I get enough cash for a conical

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/...-brink-from-nor-cal-brewing-solutions.658695/

 

[Gameface]

Has anyone overpressurized a Spike conical?

I've had some blow-off in my CF15 and I'm not sure what would happen if the blow-off port got clogged. Does anyone know what the weak point is as far as pressure? Like what would give first? Hopefully the conical wouldn't turn into a bomb.

 

[Vale71]

Has anyone overpressurized a Spike conical?

I've had some blow-off in my CF15 and I'm not sure what would happen if the blow-off port got clogged. Does anyone know what the weak point is as far as pressure? Like what would give first? Hopefully the conical wouldn't turn into a bomb.

The material that is blocking the blowoff will most likely be blown out long before the tank itself gives way. I can't imagine crud from fermentation forming a blockage that is strong enough to withstand more than a few PSI of pressure. If that were even a possibility then Spike would most definitely deliver the tank with a PRV fitted at the factory.

 

[Beholder]

I owned the SSBrewtech, sold it. Bought the Brewer's Hardware jacketed tank instead. There is ZERO comparison between them. The BH tank is light-years nicer.

+1, I had the same question, but learned of the significant advantages for jacketed conicals. I ended up going for a Stout 20g unitank and am very impressed with the build quality and operation of the tank.

 

[crooow]

It's about 200-300 more. You will need to source your own submersible pump ($10-20 bucks), inkbird, as well as a prv of your choosing. Then pick if you want anything else added. It's a little more $ but it's a LOT more tank. I have no regrets.

The cleaning is easier without the submerged coil, the cooling is more efficient and your beer shouldn't freeze (mine did in the ssb), it's not going to have condensation dripping off it for the most part, it's much nicer looking, the racking cane on the ssb is not ideal (tiny diameter, no indicator of direction, gets stuck in large dry hop additions).

Hmm. Interesting. Is it rated for pressure or do you pressurize it at your own risk?

 

[martianpc]

Rated 15 psi, but frankly, it is built better than the SS brewtech, so I imagine it could hold much more. The thing weighs over a hundred pounds empty.

 

[Blazinlow86]

Has anyone overpressurized a Spike conical?

I've had some blow-off in my CF15 and I'm not sure what would happen if the blow-off port got clogged. Does anyone know what the weak point is as far as pressure? Like what would give first? Hopefully the conical wouldn't turn into a bomb.

Spike said somewhere on here the lid will come off if it's over pressurized.i think that was 20ish psi. Cheers

 

[jready]

Spike said somewhere on here the lid will come off if it's over pressurized.i think that was 20ish psi. Cheers

I had this happen it was my own dumb fault but scared the snot out of me. That being said, I have both, I like both but if I had to chose one Spike would be it

 

[martianpc]

This is why I prefer jacketed now. The SSBrewtech couldn't get this low. Yet alone with this control. It just ices up at the coil. Notice the temp, I'm less than 1/2 degree off my target, it can also cool small batches because the jacket goes into the cone. Sorry to thread jack but I owned a SSBrewtech unitank, thought it was pretty great except for icing the coil. Now having experienced the BH jacketed though. Whoa. I'm running glycol through insulated pipe to the cooler 8 feet away. Works awesome.

 

[Vale71]

I'm cooling my SSB Unitank down to 34°F routinely, you've just got to slowly ramp it down so that the coil doesn't ice up. But anything below that and the coil does ice up as the beer's temperature is too close to its freezing point. I thought with a jacketed you could actually get to 32°F or even slightly below?

 

[martianpc]

I'm coolin my SSB Unitank down to 34°F routinely, you've just got to slowly ramp it down so that the coil doesn't ice up. But anything below that and the coil does ice up as the beer's temperature is too close to its freezing point. I thought with a jacketed you could actually get to 32°F or even slightly below?

You could I'm sure, I just have water in the tank right now for testing. So I didn't want to freeze it.

 

[Gameface]

This is why I prefer jacketed now. The SSBrewtech couldn't get this low. Yet alone with this control. It just ices up at the coil. Notice the temp, I'm less than 1/2 degree off my target, it can also cool small batches because the jacket goes into the cone. Sorry to thread jack but I owned a SSBrewtech unitank, thought it was pretty great except for icing the coil. Now having experienced the BH jacketed though. Whoa. I'm running glycol through insulated pipe to the cooler 8 feet away. Works awesome. View attachment 614982View attachment 614983

My Spike conical can absolutely get to 33F. The problem with the coil freezing happens if your glycol mixture temp is too low. Mine is set at 29F and I have no problem crashing to 33F.

 

[iancl]

Let me start by saying that you cant go wrong with either conical. I own one of each. Initially I bought the SS Brewtech about two years ago and was pretty happy with it. It was a big upgrade from my carboys.

A few of the things I didn't like about the SS Brewtech was the 1.5" sanitary 90 degree elbow into the 3/4" ball valve would consistently get clogged with any IPA I would brew. I would have to push a sight glass cleaning bush through it to get it to dump. What a mess it would make. The other big issue for me was the pressure transfer would not work very well. You can only put a couple PSI to it per the recommendation. It gravity transferred much better. When I would transfer to a keg it would typically take about 20 minutes to fill a keg. The other drawback was that it didn't have a sampling valve.

My recent addition was the Spike Brewing conical. I decided to try their conical after buying 3 new brew pots from them. Man! What a difference. Everything about it is top notch. I have used it 3 times now and each time I use it I love it more. To start it has a 4" cap on the lid to make adding stuff in the top a breeze. I even oxygenate through it. It also is super thick so you can put up to 15 PSI in it. The large 2" dump valve makes dumping trub and hops a breeze. It has never clogged on me and I put a pound of hops in it on my last IPA. The sampling valve makes it very easy to pull a sample for testing as well. Everything is connected with sanitary fitting, even the thermowell. To top it all off, Spike has the absolute best customer service and support I have ever experienced. The have always responded within a few hours.

In conclusion, I would HIGHLY recommend going with the Spike Brewing conical for all the reasons I listed above. I included a couple pics as well.

Let me know if you have any questions.

View attachment 417893

View attachment 417894

Nice, Very nice setup!! Jealousy aside, Why are the pumps set so close to the floor? Edit: referencing the earlier images. Current comment is why would you ever want to chill a unitank as low as 33 degrees?

 

[martianpc]

Nice, Very nice setup!! Jealousy aside, Why are the pumps set so close to the floor? Edit: referencing the earlier images. Current comment is why would you ever want to chill a unitank as low as 33 degrees?

Cold crash, some people like to even get down to 29/30. It is more effective at lower temperatures. And with a unitank it's easy to add CO2 positive pressure to avoid suck back and O2 intake.

Also lagering. A nice cold lager can be nice to have as an available option..

 

[Vale71]

Current comment is why would you ever want to chill a unitank as low as 33 degrees?

It's called lagering, breweries have been doing it succesfully for centuries now.

 

[iancl]

It's called lagering, breweries have been doing it succesfully for centuries now.

Correct, but I can't imagine tying up a unitank for 3 months when a keg in a temp controlled freezer could do the job as well, (and probably more efficiently), and free up the fermenter for the next batch.

 

[Vale71]

I've seen setups with 3 or 4 unitanks, so all you need is available space and an appropriate budget. In a dedicated tank with an advanced temperature controller you can also control the temperature ramping in a very flexible and accurate manner. With a keg you can just stick it in the fridge and have no control over how fast it will cool. And even if you're transferring to a secondary vessel the colder the beer the less it will foam and the less oxygen it will pick up during transfer.

 

[iancl]

I've seen setups with 3 or 4 unitanks, so all you need is available space and an appropriate budget. In a dedicated tank with an advanced temperature controller you can also control the temperature ramping in a very flexible and accurate manner. With a keg you can just stick it in the fridge and have no control over how fast it will cool. And even if you're transferring to a secondary vessel the colder the beer the less it will foam and the less oxygen it will pick up during transfer.

Yes, and correct on all of that. I chill to 34 in my $650 unitank at a controlled rate, and then transfer to my $50 keg and then stick it in my temp controlled freezer, along with the other 6 kegs, and let it lager as long as it needs, which frees up the fermenter for the next batch. Point being, 4 Unitanks is a much bigger capital outlay than 10 Kegs, an inkbird, and a used chest freezer. To each his own.

 

[Blazinlow86]

Nice, Very nice setup!! Jealousy aside, Why are the pumps set so close to the floor? Edit: referencing the earlier images. Current comment is why would you ever want to chill a unitank as low as 33 degrees?

Why not?