New Anvil Bucket Fermentors

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Alex4mula said:
So I'm guessing that in that setup as beer is going into keg the CO2 is pushed into the Anvil? Thus the "close" transfer?
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correct and correct.

Alex4mula said:
What if the keg is already filled with CO2?
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it is filled with CO2. i use the "fill to the very top with star san and push out with CO2 from a tank" method to purge the keg. right before i'm ready to transfer the beer into the keg, i use the PRV to drop the pressure inside the keg to almost ambient.
 
sweetcell said:
correct and correct.


it is filled with CO2. i use the "fill to the very top with star san and push out with CO2 from a tank" method to purge the keg. right before i'm ready to transfer the beer into the keg, i use the PRV to drop the pressure inside the keg to almost ambient.
Click to expand...

Well but in that case it is the O2 that went into the keg after purging that will go into the Anvil.
 
sweetcell said:
correct and correct.


it is filled with CO2. i use the "fill to the very top with star san and push out with CO2 from a tank" method to purge the keg. right before i'm ready to transfer the beer into the keg, i use the PRV to drop the pressure inside the keg to almost ambient.
Click to expand...
I vent my anvil fermenter to the beer line to purge the keg. Then swap hoses at filling time.

Purging:
(Anvil airlock out) to (Beer_Line_Out)
(Keg_Gas_Line_In) to a Blow-off Growler

I'm doing my with gravity fill. I am using 1/4MFL hoses so I can swap them from keg purge to keg fill.

Filling:
(Anvil ball valve out) to (Keg_Beer_Line_Out)
(Anvil airlock out) to (Gas_Line_In) ​



My problem is the ball valve connection leaks like a carburetor starving for intake air. It didn't matter how fuggin tight the hose clamp was it bubbles. I'm also wondering if the keg vent to the anvil should equal or larger to stop the ball valve connection from pulling a vacuum.

Any of you guys watch for bubbles going into your keg? Just curious.
 
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Schlenkerla said:
I vent my anvil fermenter to the beer line to purge the keg. Then swap hoses at filling time.

Purging:
(Anvil airlock out) to (Beer_Line_Out)
(Keg_Gas_Line_In) to a Blow-off Growler

I'm doing my with gravity fill. I am using 1/4MFL hoses so I can swap them from keg purge to keg fill.

Filling:
(Anvil ball valve out) to (Keg_Beer_Line_Out)
(Anvil airlock out) to (Gas_Line_In) ​



My problem is the ball valve connection leaks like a carburetor starving for intake air. It didn't matter how fuggin tight the hose clamp was it bubbles. I'm also wondering if the keg vent to the anvil should equal or larger to stop the ball valve connection from pulling a vacuum.

Any of you guys watch for bubbles going into your keg? Just curious.
Click to expand...

It could be CO2 bubbles and not O2 bubbles. I saw that mentioned in a transfer video using these Bounce beer filters.
 
I tried doing a test run with my anvil7.5. Even at 2psi, the co2 leakage was there around the lid. You actually have to press down on the lid to get it to seal better. I know it’s not rated for pressure xfers.

I had to get a splicer on the hose between the fermenter spigot and the keg liquid out, which is still doesn’t seem right. The hose that connects to the spigot is no the same size as the ball lock hose.

What size hose are you using to connect the anvil spigot to the ball lock on the keg for beer xfer?
 
WBB said:
I tried doing a test run with my anvil7.5. Even at 2psi, the co2 leakage was there around the lid. You actually have to press down on the lid to get it to seal better. I know it’s not rated for pressure xfers.

I had to get a splicer on the hose between the fermenter spigot and the keg liquid out, which is still doesn’t seem right. The hose that connects to the spigot is no the same size as the ball lock hose.

What size hose are you using to connect the anvil spigot to the ball lock on the keg for beer xfer?
Click to expand...


From the ball valve I took a 1/2 hose, stepped it down with a 1/2 to 3/8 hose barb. Then used a 3/8 hose with a 3/8 to 1/4 hose barb and forced a 3/16 hose onto the 1/4 barb after a soaking in boiled water. Its connected to a 3/16 SS Barb for use on a 1/4 FFL.

1/2 hose >>> 1/2-Barb Adaptor-3/8 >>> 3/8 Hose >>> 3/8-Barb Adaptor-1/4 >>> 3/16 Hose >>> 3/16 SS Barb for 1/4 a MFL Swivel nut.

The leak is in the 1/2 hose & hose clamp and its hard to get started. Once started it bubbles like a MF'r.
 
Alex4mula said:
Well but in that case it is the O2 that went into the keg after purging that will go into the Anvil.
Click to expand...
what 02 that went into the keg? there is no O2 in the system, and i don't let any in. after the keg is purged with CO2 (via the displaced star san method), i release most of the pressure just prior to transfer - but i don't let it all out, and there is still some positive pressure in there. it's close to ambient, but not quite (pressure is still a little higher inside keg). no O2 has enter the system.
 
sweetcell said:
what 02 that went into the keg? there is no O2 in the system, and i don't let any in. after the keg is purged with CO2 (via the displaced star san method), i release most of the pressure just prior to transfer - but i don't let it all out, and there is still some positive pressure in there. it's close to ambient, but not quite (pressure is still a little higher inside keg). no O2 has enter the system.
Click to expand...

Ok. That makes sense now. Tks
 
sweetcell said:
what 02 that went into the keg? there is no O2 in the system, and i don't let any in. after the keg is purged with CO2 (via the displaced star san method), i release most of the pressure just prior to transfer - but i don't let it all out, and there is still some positive pressure in there. it's close to ambient, but not quite (pressure is still a little higher inside keg). no O2 has enter the system.
Click to expand...
You should try the fermenter purge. It passes something like 20 volumes of CO2.
 
sweetcell said:
ah, got it. yeah, it's a pretty ugly McGuyver'ed system made with whatever hose i had laying around. big hose is 1/2", smaller braided hose is beer line that came with my used kegerator. it's pretty thick, so it just fits inside the 1/2" and fits over the gas in barb. hose clamps to make sure everything stays snug.
View attachment 614775
Click to expand...
Just a personal note ... whenever I have to use a larger sized hose over a smaller one like you're doing there, I like to insert a short piece of copper/stainless tube inside the smaller hose, just to keep the clamp from collapsing the inner hose and to make sure the clamp is able to tighten enough to hold any pressure and/or prevent leakage - it's always worked for me, but it's up to you - YMMV!

All that being said, IF you are using the hose barb as that short piece of tubing, you've got it covered!

MT2sum
 
MT2sum said:
Just a personal note ... whenever I have to use a larger sized hose over a smaller one like you're doing there, I like to insert a short piece of copper/stainless tube inside the smaller hose, just to keep the clamp from collapsing the inner hose and to make sure the clamp is able to tighten enough to hold any pressure and/or prevent leakage - it's always worked for me, but it's up to you - YMMV!

All that being said, IF you are using the hose barb as that short piece of tubing, you've got it covered!

MT2sum
Click to expand...
solid advice. in this particular case i didn't need to worry about collapsing the little tube because it's thick, braided and relatively hard. but if i was using standard, soft beer line i would definitely be inserting some internal support.
 
sweetcell said:
ah, got it. yeah, it's a pretty ugly McGuyver'ed system made with whatever hose i had laying around. big hose is 1/2", smaller braided hose is beer line that came with my used kegerator. it's pretty thick, so it just fits inside the 1/2" and fits over the gas in barb. hose clamps to make sure everything stays snug.
View attachment 614775
Click to expand...
Now I'm completely done with hoses that use hose clamps at the keg. I'm using only flare fittings. The exception is the connection to top of the fermenter. I still use the bung with 3/8 barb to 1/4 adapter shrink-fitted to a 3/16 line.

I'm way happier with this set up.

Franktalk said:
This is the part that I use:
http://shop.greatfermentations.com/...MI_Z-1qtG43AIVzlYNCh0o-wlhEAQYBCABEgKA0PD_BwE
Click to expand...
Used it for the first time yesterday. Fuggin worked like a charm. No bubbles in my transfer. Nice and slow laminar fill.
 
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Yesterday I decided to use my French Coffee Press over doing some type of dry hopping.

I read about this long ago but never did it before and before going LOB.

https://beerandbrewing.com/use...o-enhance-flavors-in-your-beer

!!!!! This copied from another thread. I figured some of you using Anvils might like this idea.!!!!!!!!


This is what I did yesterday.

1) Measured out a 1-liter trifecta using Sodium Metabisulfate, Asorbic Acid and Brewtan-B.
2) Dropped 20mg, 20mg, 40mg into a liter of post boiled water
3) Then poured it on an oz of Citra cryo in my coffee press.
4) Gently stirred and let it steep 10 minutes.
5) Then slowly pressed the hops to separate the particulate hop tea.
6) Poured it in a sanitized 2-liter (2L) bottle.
7) Using my carbonating cap and put 10psi on it.
8) Next, I inverted it to use the CO2 pressure to force it into my closed and purged keg. Using a gray gas connect on the 2L bottle and a black disconnect on liquid out. Both connected with a 3ft 3/16" transfer line. Popping off the black disconnect just before the 2L ran empty.
9) I had to vent my keg afterwards.
10) Then did my closed transfer for my pale ale and spunded.

The 2L was very clean, no particles got into the keg from what I could tell.

Don't know how it's gonna taste. It smelled damn good while in the coffee press.
 
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Parrothead1 said:
Luckily ithhmjh nr
Mhtt
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Have another...
IMG_20190512_224920.jpeg
 
I received a 4 gallon bucket from Anvil about 10 days ago and it had deep cuts in the bottom.

IMG-1242.JPG
I had read all the posts about the issue but thought by now the QC issues would have been resolved. Emailed Anvil and a new bucket was sent out the next day. There customer service is top notch.
The replacement was perfect and had 2 koozies inside as a bonus.

Did the first brew with it Saturday and I really like this fermentor. The valve can be dissembled completely for cleaning and the racking arm seems to work perfectly with no leaks. Fits in my mini fridge easily.

I also have the SS brewbucket mini and while the finish is much nicer and the SS is heavier I prefer the Anvil over the SS. I just don't understand why the SS base is not attached to the bucket, its a real pita to move around especially with no handles. I'm also not a fan of the mini ball valve, it leaks if you turn it counter clockwise and its a pain to disassemble

So overall I think the Anvil is a winner for me and will probably get another..
 
Are people taking apart the spigot assembly in between uses to sanitize?

I did after my first two batches but then got lazy and haven’t done it since.
 
AzOr said:
Are people taking apart the spigot assembly in between uses to sanitize?

I did after my first two batches but then got lazy and haven’t done it since.
Click to expand...
Yes. If you mean the ball valve and the pickup tube with the nut and the two seals. The seals being the nut seal, inner pickup o-ring seal. It's too easy not to do.

That said, I don't disassemble the ball valve. It can be broken in half to replace the ball seals. I did it once when the ball seal was off 90 degrees. It was was blocking the port opening.

The valve from the outside can be broken apart from the bulkhead fitting to the handle. All of it is on this side of the fermentor.
IMG_20191014_202229.jpeg
 
AzOr said:
Are people taking apart the spigot assembly in between uses to sanitize?

I did after my first two batches but then got lazy and haven’t done it since.
Click to expand...

I took it apart for the initial cleaning and since its easy to do I will after each batch.

I have the Anvil Foundry with the same valve and six batches in I have only disassembled it once. Did not have any build up and I figure since it in boiling temps for over an hour I will probably stay with that schedule. I have a small brush I run through it with each cleaning.
 
My cold crashing under pressure solution. Was thinking of trying to find a 2nd gasket to add but this seems to work pretty good. Might add the co2 connect right to the lid and have a shutoff valve on the airlock, was also thinking if adding a low pressure gauge but will have to see.

If anyone is curious I turn the co2 on till it leaks out the lid then turn the co2 off. Do this once a day while cold crashing.


20191013_084522.jpeg
 
The weights made me laugh. I use the same ones, my wife's, to hold the lid down on my kettle for the condenser and the CIP cleaner. Great brewer's ingenuity!
 
Oddball question here, but...

Normally I leave the valve/ pickup tube @ 3 o'clock-ish and rotate it as I pull it from the fermentor. I forgot, and left it in the down position (6 o'clock). I just went to pull a sample of the porter I have going, and it seems the pickup tube is clogged with trub. Any thoughts on getting it unclogged? I guess I can siphon it off if needed, probably beats spraying the crap outta my arm with starsan.
 
If you have Co2 you could turn the valve until the pick up is at 12:00 then hook up a hose and set the pressure to 1 psi or less then crack the valve for a very short burst.
 
ANVIL.jpg
Ordered a 7.5g Anvil on Black Friday and it showed up on 12/7/19. Upon opening the box I noticed a huge dent in the side of the bucket ( all outer cardboard packaging looked good ,no damage). I have emailed, sent a service request (on the Anvil website) and tried calling multiple times ( phone instantly hangs up) . Not to thrilled with the customer service right now. I guess I just have to suck it up and try and knock the dent out. Sucks because I really wanted to be happy with this product at this price point. I was even going to buy another one or the foundry. I'll give them to the end of the week because i'm sure they're busy this time of year but not impressed with CS right now .


Update below , anvil stepped up and is replacing the fermentor
 
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FadeToBeer said:
View attachment 656567 Ordered a 7.5g Anvil on Black Friday and it showed up on 12/7/19. Upon opening the box I noticed a huge dent in the side of the bucket ( all outer cardboard packaging looked good ,no damage). I have emailed, sent a service request (on the Anvil website) and tried calling multiple times ( phone instantly hangs up) . Not to thrilled with the customer service right now. I guess I just have to suck it up and try and knock the dent out. Sucks because I really wanted to be happy with this product at this price point. I was even going to buy another one or the foundry. I'll give them to the end of the week because i'm sure they're busy this time of year but not impressed with CS right now .
Click to expand...
I wouldn't touch that. Unacceptable for sure.
Just have to be patient and persistent until you can get CS to get a new one to you.
 
FadeToBeer said:
View attachment 656567 Ordered a 7.5g Anvil on Black Friday and it showed up on 12/7/19. Upon opening the box I noticed a huge dent in the side of the bucket ( all outer cardboard packaging looked good ,no damage). I have emailed, sent a service request (on the Anvil website) and tried calling multiple times ( phone instantly hangs up) . Not to thrilled with the customer service right now. I guess I just have to suck it up and try and knock the dent out. Sucks because I really wanted to be happy with this product at this price point. I was even going to buy another one or the foundry. I'll give them to the end of the week because i'm sure they're busy this time of year but not impressed with CS right now .
Click to expand...
Try their email. I got a ball valve that was buggered up overnighted to me. I got head to work otherwise I'd post the email address and contact name.

Here it is...

Josh Molter
Ordering Analyst
Anvil Brewing
765-420-0031

[email protected]

An alternate is Doug Granlund same email address. In your email be sure to include the picture. They should be mortified.
 
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As I was just typing a reply for this thread (now deleted) I received a email from Jacob . He apologized for the damaged unit and sent me a tracking number for a new bucket fermentor . I am now pretty happy with the CS of the Anvil company. They are making it right. I was probably being a little impatient (new brewer) and should've waited before posting anything negative about anvil's CS ( I was just posting my experience). They have in fact stepped up and are replacing the product , thank you Anvil . Looking forward to using this product when it arrives.
 
53793909-CD8E-4047-A7BD-02CBF84D1AE9.jpeg
Aww. They look so cute together.
I just bought a 4 gallon fermenter.
I’m currently brewing a 2.5g batch of Vienna lager.
It’s my first time doing a half batch but I’m excited to start brewing more often!
Next purchase is a 3g keg.
Btw- I purchased the bigger one a few years ago. The fit and finish has improved dramatically.
I love these fermenters! I haven’t modified it yet to do pressure transfers yet.
 
Schlenkerla said:
Yes. If you mean the ball valve and the pickup tube with the nut and the two seals. The seals being the nut seal, inner pickup o-ring seal. It's too easy not to do.

That said, I don't disassemble the ball valve. It can be broken in half to replace the ball seals. I did it once when the ball seal was off 90 degrees. It was was blocking the port opening.

The valve from the outside can be broken apart from the bulkhead fitting to the handle. All of it is on this side of the fermentor. View attachment 648243
Click to expand...

Have you experienced any clogging with especially hopped up batches of beer? 1/4 seems quite small for this, I suppose if the pressure is good enough you shouldn't have troubles. I just have some concerns using 1/4 vs. 1/2.
 
Spraentart said:
Have you experienced any clogging with especially hopped up batches of beer? 1/4 seems quite small for this, I suppose if the pressure is good enough you shouldn't have troubles. I just have some concerns using 1/4 vs. 1/2.
Click to expand...
I have only had one problem out of 20 or more transfers. It's was on my last transfer. So I had 19 or so without issue. I transfer on 1/4, lines. I didn't clean a out a partially blocked JIC fitting. Frankly, I missed that inspection after cleaning. After stopping the flow, then blasting out the clogged fitting, I was back to having no flow issues.

That said I don't transfer muck over to my fermentor. It's always a clean transfer into my fermentor without any hot break or trub.

I'm a low oxygen brewer so I don't really dry hop. If did, I'd dry hop with a suspended hop sack and whole hops. Mainly to not suck up small hop particles in my pick up tube. That said I don't want anything chunky in my keg either
 

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