"High Gravity Brew" electric setup

[millsbrew]

I'm going to be setting up my basement for an eHERMS. I know what I want, and don't mind paying a slight premium for someone else to save me the time building it. But mainly, I want to know that my premium gets me some form for customer service. I can't seem to find anything on the company other than the eBIAB reviews. I'm going to have a 220V setup in case that matters.

TL;DR: Has anyone dealt with HighGravityBrew.com and their complete systems they offer?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Frostbrewer]

I have one and I love mine. I do however have the benefit of them being my lhbs. They are super nice and extremely helpful. I've never had issues finding someone for help with the system when have called or gone in there personally

 

[Bowtiebrewery]

What is your budget? If you went all out, you could buy an all Stout Tanks system minus the electric controls and elements. Then buy the electric components from Ebrew supply completely assembled.

Or if you were OK with just a little bit of work and I mean very little. Go to Spike Brewing and get all your kettles done there. Ben will give you a quote on the work. and then buy from Ebrew supply for the electric end of it. Ben's customer support is fantastic, and I've heard nothing but great things about Ebrew supply. And you would have to probably get Stainless Steel to fab up a nice HERMS coil for it.$ Roughly $3600

Third option. All-in-one set up.
Brew-Ha BIAC, which I'm not 100% sure I would drop that kind of coin on... around $5K
Spiedel Braumeister: $2,450
Grain Father: around $1,100

 

[augiedoggy]

If you do a search on them here you will see they are about the cheapest made control panel sold for more of a markup than anything else mentioned on these forums... One owner mentions in another thread here that they had problems and when they opened it up they say High gravity didnt even even use ssrs but regular relays instead which wont last long before the contacts burn up in this application. He also mentioned the relays are epoxied to the home depot electrical enclosure they use instead of being screwed in for easy replacement and they use speaker wire for some of the power wire which of course does not have the correct insulation to meet safety codes... From what I can tell, basically they are made with about $100 of hardware and sold at a 4-500% markup as labor costs.. and thier "complete systems cost about $300-400 to just buy and assemble yourself with more care and better components.. They use all the most inexpensive components they can source like bayou classic kettles which I have a couple of myself and they cost about $100.. they work fine but are the thinnest and cheapest kettles I have ever seen compared to other budget brands like the concord and ballington.

here is the thread where an owner states all of this. https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=494787&page=4

I have asked for someone to open one up and post pictures to confirm this but it seems none of the owners that saw the other thread want to know one way or the other...Denial is a wonderful thing I guess.. certainly better than buyers remorse.

IMHO There are many other much better built panels out there like this seller who is also a member here...
He has many different models and they have many more features and appear to be built much better than the ones mentioned above for much less money..
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Brumatic-DB...9&pid=100005&rk=2&rkt=6&sd=221402670805&rt=nc

 

[millsbrew]

Thanks for the replies. Assume no budget.

 

[steveoatley]

If you do a search on them here you will see they are about the cheapest made control panel sold for more of a markup than anything else mentioned on these forums... One owner mentions in another thread here that they had problems and when they opened it up they say High gravity didnt even even use ssrs but regular relays instead which wont last long before the contacts burn up in this application. He also
QUOTE]

Augiedoggy

I understand your concern. I read the other thread.
I tend to trust the retailer that has a Brick and Mortar store, and an Insurance policy behind that business..... less than I trust the eBay seller. ( not bashing Brumatic )

Could you explain your association with Brumatic - are you him?
Do you know him ? Have you purchased from him ?

I have not purchased from either High Gravity or Brumatic, I am just as curious as the Thread starter.

(Not a hater, just want to be cautious buyer )
EIDT - this appliance could potentially burn down my house, so I am trying to be a careful buyer.

Thanks
Steve

 

[Dubchedford]

I don't know of I would put much trust in a product because he has a brick and mortor location. I seriously doubt if a high gravity controller burnt down your house that his insurance would pick up the bill. Its not like his controller is UL certified or anything, and neither is anyone else's for that matter. I don't have any issues with high gravity, I've been to there shop several times, and they are nice folks. I also have no problem that the guy is trying to make some money, but for me personally after a little research I found better options for that price. As previously, mentioned he uses pretty cheap components and its a hefty markup. They are people selling more robust setups for that cost. The seller that augiedoggy mentioned is one of them. If I remember right he has a website he sells from as well. Also, for what its worth there are a lot of brick and mortor retailers who also sell on eBay. So, I wouldn't use that as some kind of measure of quality.

 

[Bowtiebrewery]

Thanks for the replies. Assume no budget.

I think it is all in what kind of system you want. Personally I can't say I would buy a HighGravity Brewing system. I looked it over and didnt like the kettles. I'm a fan of Spike Brewing for their kettles. I feel you get a really great product that is fabricated here in the USA, by a dealer who stands behind every product he puts out there.

In regards to Electric Brew Supply, I've heard great things about them, and wouldnt hesitate to puchase controllers from them If I was going to assume no budget.

All this above assumes you want and a 3 vessel brewing system. I have a 3 vessel brewing system because Kal's brewery inspired me and I had to have it! I did everything myself and spend probably close to $2500 on my setup, and that is with some sourced Keggles and building the controller and wiring my self with much less on the component end than Kal has.

If I could go back in time and save my money... I probably would buy a Speidel 50L for the same $$ and have a single vessel system (Actually I would probably have a secondary vessel for my sparge water as well)


The limitations of a Speidel is that you cant brew much larger than 1.070 OG beers, but for the amount of times that I do that it wouldnt be a deterent. Also I'd probably need a winch as well to drain the Mash Cylinder.

The Brewha BIAC, looks amazing, however I'm not 100% sold on it and there is are 2 reports so far of users having serious issues with it. At $4K i'm not sure I could see investing that and having a catestrophic failure.

 

[augiedoggy]

If you do a search on them here you will see they are about the cheapest made control panel sold for more of a markup than anything else mentioned on these forums... One owner mentions in another thread here that they had problems and when they opened it up they say High gravity didnt even even use ssrs but regular relays instead which wont last long before the contacts burn up in this application. He also
QUOTE]

Augiedoggy

I understand your concern. I read the other thread.
I tend to trust the retailer that has a Brick and Mortar store, and an Insurance policy behind that business..... less than I trust the eBay seller. ( not bashing Brumatic )

Could you explain your association with Brumatic - are you him?
Do you know him ? Have you purchased from him ?

I have not purchased from either High Gravity or Brumatic, I am just as curious as the Thread starter.

(Not a hater, just want to be cautious buyer )
EIDT - this appliance could potentially burn down my house, so I am trying to be a careful buyer.

Thanks
Steve

high gravity sells those kits with a disclaimer that the are "DIY" and they don't attach the plug because they state whomever does assumes all responsibility for any issues from them. Don't assume they have any insurance or the product they sell meet any codes because they likely don't. Unlike the brumatuer panels the high gravity appear to be assembled by someone one with no credentials for building such products... No I am not him and I don't know him but he is a member here and many who have bought from him report he is a good guy to deal with.

Out of all the many different panels I have ever seen being sold the high gravity ones appear to be the largest rip off to me and that's why I feel I have to comment about them.
If you look at my thread below you can see what can be built for under $300 investment and its a hell of a lot more functional than the $99 high gravity boxes sold for $500 or more.
I understand you thought behind the brick and mortar but unfortunately the people in those brick and mortar often you they mentality to thier advantage by selling the same cheap stuff they buy online and markup to crazy prices to people who think like you... Same with people who shop by brand names... I repair electronics and can't help but laugh when I open for example a phillips TV to see all the components inside stamped with Samsung branding and to find that same TV was sold as 6 different model and brands at drastically different prices.... So many companies just lease the brandnames to whomever will pay to use them... Poloroid for example went bankrupt and closed up many years ago yet you see all sorts of Chinese electronics bearing the name...
Levis jeans also closed up all their american factories years ago and they are all made by another company in Egypt now yet people gladly pay $45 a pair thinking they are getting that same old quality american icon they always did...they don't notice the holes that pop up around the pockets after little use because the jean material is much cheaper and thinner...

 

[SeeMont]

For what it is worth, I picked up the 15 Gallon Brew-Boss system.. Unlike many here, I don't have a big back ground on electric brewing systems and controls, I wanted an electric system so I was not burning gas inside, I wanted simple with both automation as well as manual process control. I got my system, the product support is fantastic, is well made and works great. Good Luck.

 

[steveoatley]

Thanks for your input Augiedoggy

I am just trying to do my due diligence, for my electric build
There are a lot of options out there, and for me - building a panel is not one

I am not that guy, I have had no problem drilling holes in my BK for a HERMS coil, or valves.
But when it comes to 220V, I will leave that to someone else

Did not mean to highjack the thread.

Steve