PicoBrew Pico users

[macgyuver]

I would echo the same. I use the pro.... with C kegs. When cold crashed, I rack it to corny kegs. the adapters make it easy to use either.

On a different topic, anyone ever used a traditional Norwegian kveik yeast in a pico pak? The fermentation range up to 98 degrees combined with the valve for fast ferment, seems attractive. I wonder if 3-5 days fermentation is actually reality. I was looking at the Gjernes farmstead, Voss Kveik’s profile looked pretty darn good.

Anyhow, if anyone used those in the past, I'd love to hear more.

This would be interesting, turn some brews around within a week or two finished product. Let me know if you try this and how it goes.

 

[rex clingan]

Hi, new here, occasional lurker. Just bought a Picobrew S 2nd hand for a ridiculously low price. Previous brewing systems: Braumeister 50L, 50 gallon propane fired ss brewhouse.

In trying to understand how the Pico works, searched the net for flow diagrams. Which led me to a patent site. Which led me to a Google Patents search on Picobrew.

Where this caught my eye - https://patents.google.com/patent/US20170051236A1/en?assignee=picobrew&oq=picobrew&page=1

Do the Picopaks really use lecithin to improve hop utilization? And rice bran/magnesium oxide to extend hop life?

 

[Mutant]

Hi, new here, occasional lurker. Just bought a Picobrew S 2nd hand for a ridiculously low price. Previous brewing systems: Braumeister 50L, 50 gallon propane fired ss brewhouse.

In trying to understand how the Pico works, searched the net for flow diagrams. Which led me to a patent site. Which led me to a Google Patents search on Picobrew.

Where this caught my eye - https://patents.google.com/patent/US20170051236A1/en?assignee=picobrew&oq=picobrew&page=1

Do the Picopaks really use lecithin to improve hop utilization? And rice bran/magnesium oxide to extend hop life?

Just curious if you like paying roughly $2 a beer and have to make it yourself? Do the math: cost of Picopak/#12ounce bottles produced

 

[Hoppy2bmerry]

Well, one can use their own ingredients now which would lower the cost some, though I would not generally recommend it. Just BIAB small batches on the stovetop.

 

[rex clingan]

Just curious if you like paying roughly $2 a beer and have to make it yourself? Do the math: cost of Picopak/#12ounce bottles produced

No plans to buy any 'paks, so, nope. Will likely use the ones that came with it, but it'll basically be the own ingredients approach.
Mostly got it as a small capacity sweet wort & wort appliance, for malt flavor and balsamic/solera brewing projects.

 

[Mayday99]

Ok, bought a pico c off ebay on a whim for 100 bucks. What the heck.
I was able to:

• Connect to wifi and get update
• Deep clean and multiple rinse cycle
• Experiment with manual brew option

So I noticed on manual brew, I set the step temp to 149. Stopped it and took a reading from the step drawer and it read about 140. returned drawer and set to max of 203 then set to hold for 5 minutes. Pulled out drawer and took reading. It was about 191. This is using a thermapen that I know to be accurate.

Is this a pico thermometer issue? Or some wrinkle of a herms type system that I am not understanding?

 

[rex clingan]

Ok, bought a pico c off ebay on a whim for 100 bucks. What the heck.
I was able to:

• Connect to wifi and get update
• Deep clean and multiple rinse cycle
• Experiment with manual brew option

So I noticed on manual brew, I set the step temp to 149. Stopped it and took a reading from the step drawer and it read about 140. returned drawer and set to max of 203 then set to hold for 5 minutes. Pulled out drawer and took reading. It was about 191. This is using a thermapen that I know to be accurate.

Is this a pico thermometer issue? Or some wrinkle of a herms type system that I am not understanding?

Did you get readings on temperature from the panel that matched the setpoints?
Some thoughts:
1) Maybe Pico reads temperature in a different location, maybe closer to the steam injection point.
2) Maybe temperature in these two tests was still rising when measurement made. Not sure what rate the pump is good for, but the time constant for seeing a change in the step filter would be its volume over the pump's volumetric rate.
3) Could be a bad temperature sensing element.
4) Could be an offset in the design, intended to give a process result comparable to that in a conventional system at the input temperature.
5) HE in HERMS stands for heat exchanger. With steam injection, there isn't a heat exchanger per se. The process could be referred to direct contact heat exchange. Live steam is the term usually applied in distillation, steam sparging in a pot, steam injection in a pipeline. Not sure if anyone has coined an acronym for how the Pico mashes. RIMS seems closer than HERMS to me.
6) More data would be useful. More points along the measured vs. setpoint curve. More points in the profile of measurement vs. time for the input temperatures investigated.
7) Time permitting, I'll try these same tests on my Pico S.
8) Seems like there's a hot rodder's trick to get engine management electronics to respond differently, involving wiring a potentiometer either in series or parallel with the temperature sensor.

 

[Mayday99]

Lot of food for thought there, Rex! Thanks. I'll try and slip a temp probe in there so I can monitor in real time. As it is the machine seems to read about 10 degrees higher than what the temp in the step filter actually is, but would be Interesting to monitor over time.

 

[rex clingan]

A question about the Pico S/Pro: at the back left corner of the reservoir, there is a plastic hose, and a built in clip that it seems like it would fit in. As received from the PO (2 batches total use), this hose was floating free, and seemed to have a short plastic sleeve covering the end of it. I pulled the plastic bag off the end and set the hose in the nearby clip, where it seems to be effective at draining the reservoir.

I don't see anything in the manual or on this thread that suggests any issue with how this is set up. What is it supposed to look like?

 

[rex clingan]

Lot of food for thought there, Rex! Thanks. I'll try and slip a temp probe in there so I can monitor in real time. As it is the machine seems to read about 10 degrees higher than what the temp in the step filter actually is, but would be Interesting to monitor over time.

Another thought, getting a temperature of wort in the keg might be a better indicator of batch, since it's downstream of the thermoblock and where most of thte mass of liquid resides.

 

[Lbarouf]

This would be interesting, turn some brews around within a week or two finished product. Let me know if you try this and how it goes.

I am planning my next brew and will order some of that yeast. Hopefully I will be able to report/comment back in a month or so. I’ll be glad to share as I have not heard anything from anyone else so far.

I just need to pick a recipe to experiment with.
The recipe tool is fixed at 5L. Argh....

 

[Mayday99]

So I am guessing the picoferm doesn't work with manual brew? Not sure I understand the point of it.

While waiting over a week for my pico paks to ship, I made a nut brown ale. Made it on the stronger side so to unknown efficiency. Little over 4 pounds of grain.

I deviated some from the instructions. I preheated the mash water . Dropped my grain bag in making sure to stir and move it around. Mashed for an hour at 154 stopping half way to stir again. Did a 10 minute mash out at 170. Stopped the machines and pulled the grain bag our. Let it drain and then I sparged it with about 20 oz of 175 water. Did the boil and circulate steps as directed . Hit 5l exactly into the keg so glad I sparged. Wort tasted great.

Didn't get reading since I got rid of all my. Brew equip and have no hydrometer.

Picoferm attached but apparently for no reason. I was able to register it but unable to use on manual brew

 

[Buck*49]

So I am guessing the picoferm doesn't work with manual brew? Not sure I understand the point of it.

While waiting over a week for my pico paks to ship, I made a nut brown ale. Made it on the stronger side so to unknown efficiency. Little over 4 pounds of grain.

I deviated some from the instructions. I preheated the mash water . Dropped my grain bag in making sure to stir and move it around. Mashed for an hour at 154 stopping half way to stir again. Did a 10 minute mash out at 170. Stopped the machines and pulled the grain bag our. Let it drain and then I sparged it with about 20 oz of 175 water. Did the boil and circulate steps as directed . Hit 5l exactly into the keg so glad I sparged. Wort tasted great.

Didn't get reading since I got rid of all my. Brew equip and have no hydrometer.

Picoferm attached but apparently for no reason. I was able to register it but unable to use on manual brew

Per Pico forum, functionality of PicoFerm with manual brews is available with Zymatic.
Functionality of PicoFerm for manual brews on other products supposed to be forthcoming.
When....?

 

[Mayday99]

Per Pico forum, functionality of PicoFerm with manual brews is available with Zymatic.
Functionality of PicoFerm for manual brews on other products supposed to be forthcoming.
When....?

Thanks for the update. Seems the machine and system has potential, but am underwhelmed with what the company has delivered so far.

 

[Buck*49]

A question about the Pico S/Pro: at the back left corner of the reservoir, there is a plastic hose, and a built in clip that it seems like it would fit in. As received from the PO (2 batches total use), this hose was floating free, and seemed to have a short plastic sleeve covering the end of it. I pulled the plastic bag off the end and set the hose in the nearby clip, where it seems to be effective at draining the reservoir.

I don't see anything in the manual or on this thread that suggests any issue with how this is set up. What is it supposed to look like?

Suspect that manufacturing neglected to attach hose to port.
A couple of pics:

 

[rex clingan]

Suspect that manufacturing neglected to attach hose to port.
A couple of pics:


View attachment 644791 View attachment 644792

Yeah, that was my best guess at its proper location.

 

[Buck*49]

Ok, bought a pico c off ebay on a whim for 100 bucks. What the heck.
I was able to:

• Connect to wifi and get update
• Deep clean and multiple rinse cycle
• Experiment with manual brew option

So I noticed on manual brew, I set the step temp to 149. Stopped it and took a reading from the step drawer and it read about 140. returned drawer and set to max of 203 then set to hold for 5 minutes. Pulled out drawer and took reading. It was about 191. This is using a thermapen that I know to be accurate.

Is this a pico thermometer issue? Or some wrinkle of a herms type system that I am not understanding?

Were you able to register your PicoC with PicoBrew?

 

[Mayday99]

Were you able to register your PicoC with PicoBrew?

No. But I did do a manual brew and have some picopacks on the way. I tried to register but it said the machine Id number was in use . Don't care that much as long as it works.

 

[Buck*49]

No. But I did do a manual brew and have some picopacks on the way. I tried to register but it said the machine Id number was in use . Don't care that much as long as it works.

That is why I asked. You probably won’t be able to see Brew history of PicoPaks.
FWIW, Here is info regarding reassigning used equipment:

Buck49 - 6/8/2019
As their are some good used Pico products for sale and I have a friend in the market, I reached out to Pico support regarding reassigning the equipment to a new owner. I thought I would share Tim's response:


"For anyone who is looking to sell/buy a second hand Pico we need the following from the current owner:

- the exact date of sale
- new owners first/last name and contact email

Once we have that, we'll need the new owner to create an picobrew.com account with their profile completely filled out and saved (required - shipping address, phone number, full name) and then we can assign the machine to the new owner.
-Tim"

 

[Mayday99]

That is why I asked. You probably won’t be able to see Brew history of PicoPaks.
FWIW, Here is info regarding reassigning used equipment:

Buck49 - 6/8/2019
As their are some good used Pico products for sale and I have a friend in the market, I reached out to Pico support regarding reassigning the equipment to a new owner. I thought I would share Tim's response:


"For anyone who is looking to sell/buy a second hand Pico we need the following from the current owner:

- the exact date of sale
- new owners first/last name and contact email

Once we have that, we'll need the new owner to create an picobrew.com account with their profile completely filled out and saved (required - shipping address, phone number, full name) and then we can assign the machine to the new owner.
-Tim"

I reached out and asked to transfer it. We'll see what happens

 

[Buck*49]

I reached out and asked to transfer it. We'll see what happens

You will probably have to reach out to EBay seller to have him make request, if he is the person that machine is currently assigned to.

 

[rex clingan]

Anyone know why Picobrew opted for plastic poppets in the quick disconnects on the S keg hoses?

 

[rex clingan]

For a manual brew on a Pico S/Pro/C, how likely is it that grain conditioning would be beneficial?

 

[Mayday99]

Was able to get the pico transferred to me. Ordered a couple packs out of curiosity and to level set as to what the system is capable of.
Ordered "Vessel of Shimmy" which I am guessing is a Chimay clone. They are using extract to bump to 8% abv and brown sugar in place of dark candy sugar. BE256 is the yeast. Hoping to get an airlock into the pico c since I don't want to suppress esther production on a belgian yeast. Here are ingredients. Note the magnesium oxide confirming someone elses earlier observation on the use of isomerized hop pellets.

 

[rex clingan]

Was able to get the pico transferred to me.

Hey, did you add it to your equipment settings? How did you get it to display the code needed for this? I just plugged in a used Pico S I got. It logged onto my wifi and updated the firmware. Scratching my head over how to get it to display the code needed.

 

[Mayday99]

Hey, did you add it to your equipment settings? How did you get it to display the code needed for this? I just plugged in a used Pico S I got. It logged onto my wifi and updated the firmware. Scratching my head over how to get it to display the code needed.

It's in one of the utilities I believe. Under about. It scrolled a very long code repeatedly in addition to the software version. The long code is the pico I'd. I sent an email with that Id to support to get the ball rolling.
It's worth it to do it. Gives access to a manual brew builder as well although kind of clunky. At least gives an estimate on efficiency and ibu that does seem to be adjusted for this unit.

 

[rex clingan]

It's in one of the utilities I believe. Under about. It scrolled a very long code repeatedly in addition to the software version. The long code is the pico I'd. I sent an email with that Id to support to get the ball rolling.

On a previous unit I registered, the code the mothership liked was 6 or 7 characters. It may not have appeared until Picobrew released the machine on their end. I guess it will take either the id as you describe or the code.
Have you figured out how to get into service mode?
Want the instructions for priming the pumps?

 

[Mayday99]

On a previous unit I registered, the code the mothership liked was 6 or 7 characters. It may not have appeared until Picobrew released the machine on their end. I guess it will take either the id as you describe or the code.
Have you figured out how to get into service mode?
Want the instructions for priming the pumps?

I haven't turned it on since it was activated, but I'd happily take any info you have.

 

[rex clingan]

I haven't turned it on since it was activated, but I'd happily take any info you have.

Service menu: turn on while holding in selector knob.

"Here is how to prime the drain pump -

• Fill your step filter with 2 inches of warm water, and connect a keg wand to the grey ball lock fitting. Run this hose into a sink or receptacle.

• Access the Utilities menu, and select 'Drain Step Filter.' Do you hear the pump turn on when you do this?

• If water does not begin draining from the step filter, try drawing (sucking) on the keg wand to prime the pump.

• If you feel resistance, disassemble and check the drain port in the step filter to ensure that it is clear of debris (see attached picture).
• If the drain port appears to be clear, leave the step filter removed from the machine, and while 'Drain Step Filter' is running, try drawing on the end of the hose again. If you do not feel resistance, the issue is within the step filter.

If you feel resistance, Try the following:

• Fill the step filter with about an inch of water and insert it into the machine.

• Fill your brewing keg about 2/3 full, then seal it with the black keg seal, inserting the plug into the hole so that it is air tight. Connect the keg to the machine.
• Power on the machine while holding in on the knob, this will pull up a service menu. While in this menu be very careful to only do exactly as instructed.

• Click once to skip past machine info, and select 'Circulate.'

• What should happen is that the keg pump will drain water from the keg, creating a vacuum which will draw water through the drain pump line, clearing the line and pulling water through to prime the drain pump.

• Let this run for about 5 minutes, then remove the black seal from the keg. Does water appear to be draining into the keg?

You may need to try these steps a few times. "

". . . prime the shuttle pump in your Pico (reference the pictures and video I've attached).

This should help set your Pico right and get you ready to brew again without incident.

First, prep your Pico like you're going to perform a rinse cycle.

Next, you'll grab the hose that is to the left in your reservoir and remove it, pull off the sock on the end (do not lose the sock!).

Then get the syringe and fill it with water. Start the rinse cycle and inject water into the hose. You should start to feel the hose vibrate. If not, refill the syringe and repeat. This may take multiple tries.

Once you get that going with the hose, reattach the sock and reset the hose back.

Continue to run the rinse cycle for a few minutes to monitor the flow of water.

Attachment(s)

Shuttle pump.mp4https://picobrew.zendesk.com/attachments/token/c4iZkEs3TLSdqgXiy9aaRsTs0/?name=Shuttle+pump.mp4

https://picobrew.zendesk.com/attachments/token/HnlL8f051fTV0bj0SYnBGmwS3/?name=04.jpg

https://picobrew.zendesk.com/attachments/token/B41oQ8WZcXhjuX2OgAFEBkMjg/?name=22222.png "

 

[rex clingan]

Dumb idea for manual brewing: Connect as per 'pak brewing, insert sous vide stick into keg.