PicoBrew Pico users

[Mayday99]

I wonder what happened with the auction. Checked in at some point and saw a lot of z and c models up for sale. I am guessing someone in WA may have snatched these up and we will see on ebay soon?

 

[Trevor Mack]

I wonder what happened with the auction. Checked in at some point and saw a lot of z and c models up for sale. I am guessing someone in WA may have snatched these up and we will see on ebay soon?

To be clear there were zero Z models at the auction (plenty of Z step filters which are up on ebay already), but there were indeed C/S and Zymatic models. There have been a number up for sale in the "Picobrewers" group on Facebook (link).

 

[Mayday99]

To be clear there were zero Z models at the auction (plenty of Z step filters which are up on ebay already), but there were indeed C/S and Zymatic models. There have been a number up for sale in the "Picobrewers" group on Facebook (link).

Thanks for the update and clarification!

 

[Mutant]

Curious if anybody has visited the auction site. Lots of stuff going for hella cheap. This disclaimer on all the items did catch my attention though.

THESE BREW MACHINES ARE SERVER DEPENDENT AS OF JUNE 1ST. THE SERVER WILL BE KEPT ONLINE FOR APPROX 6 MONTHS

So at that point, all the machines are dead?

 

[Trevor Mack]

Running a local server which mimicks the www.picobrew.com server the machines are dependant on unlocks "offline" mode for the machines while keeping the automation features.

Though for the smaller machine configuration a custom step filter would need to be made to really use them as such.

https://github.com/chiefwigms/picobrew_pico

 

[Buck*49]

[QUOTE="Trevor Mack, post: 8905980,

“Though for the smaller machine configuration a custom step filter would need to be made to really use them as such.”


Can you clarify the statement above for me please?
Thanks.

 

[Trevor Mack]

The owners of Zymatic and ZSeries devices are in a better position as there is a fully reusable step filter. Whereas for the "smaller models" (C/S/Pro) there was never a "bring your own ingredients" reusable filter built that went to production lines for consumer purchase. So if you want a fully automated system and are holding onto one of these smaller models you will need to figure out how to do that. There is currently no known solution to this problem you are on your own.

 

[Lbarouf]

The owners of Zymatic and ZSeries devices are in a better position as there is a fully reusable step filter. Whereas for the "smaller models" (C/S/Pro) there was never a "bring your own ingredients" reusable filter built that went to production lines for consumer purchase. So if you want a fully automated system and are holding onto one of these smaller models you will need to figure out how to do that. There is currently no known solution to this problem you are on your own.

@Trevor Mack you made a cli tool available on github?

 

[Trevor Mack]

@Trevor Mack you made a cli tool available on github?

Yes I did. This tool allows you to extract your brew session data as well as any private BrewHouse data (cloned public recipes or personal created recipes) from the clutches of PB. tmack8001/picobrew

 

[Lbarouf]

Yes I did. This tool allows you to extract your brew session data as well as any private BrewHouse data (cloned public recipes or personal created recipes) from the clutches of PB. tmack8001/picobrew

Cool. I will give it a try.

 

[Lbarouf]

I also found thing 3D print: Picobrew Pico C reusable hops Pak by Moinsterx

I would try a food grade filament. Could be a good combination with a homemade grain filter.

 

[macgyuver]

There is one of us on the facebook group that already has a DIY setup for food grade silicon hop filter. He is also working on one for the actual pak. All materials can be bought off Amazon. No issues with heat and can be made at home without any special tools from what he is saying.

 

[chiefwigms]

There is one of us on the facebook group that already has a DIY setup for food grade silicon hop filter. He is also working on one for the actual pak. All materials can be bought off Amazon. No issues with heat and can be made at home without any special tools from what he is saying.

The thingiverse is his mold...

 

[Lbarouf]

Great, That appears to be only for hops. I don't have access to facebook (and don't want it neither), it would be great to know how to build one. I really feel like making a batch of milkshake IPA in a hacked Pico.

 

[macgyuver]

He is still in the design phase but said that once he has it all worked out he will post the information for molds and materials. He has shown a couple of desgins that he has molded and they look really good so far. Once they are post I or someone else will post here as well.

 

[macgyuver]

Here is a pic of the hop cage in the background and his prototype of the grain bin in the mold. All using off the shelf items to make. He used Bees Wax to hold the stainless screen in place.

 

[lupulinaddict]

Thought this might be the best place to ask....
I picked up a used pico c and picostill. The picostill didn’t have the power cord. Would any picostill owners be able to advise me what the power supply outputs are so I can find a replacement? Thanks.

 

[macgyuver]

I am at work at the moment so I will have to double check but if I remember correctly it is 12v 5amp power supply that came with the two that I have. I will double check when I get home and post if no one else has commented.

Thought this might be the best place to ask....
I picked up a used pico c and picostill. The picostill didn’t have the power cord. Would any picostill owners be able to advise me what the power supply outputs are so I can find a replacement? Thanks.

 

[RampantOctopus]

Thought this might be the best place to ask....
I picked up a used pico c and picostill. The picostill didn’t have the power cord. Would any picostill owners be able to advise me what the power supply outputs are so I can find a replacement? Thanks.

took a pic of the adapter for comparison purposes. The manufacturer is some company called Mean Well and they appear to have a fairly legit looking site. Maybe reach out to them? MEAN WELL USA Switching Power Supply

ooh-- looks like these are available off the rack: https://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/MEAN-WELL/GST36U12-P1J?qs=drgMNd%2BkGPN5lZBKNR99hA==

 

[lupulinaddict]

Awesome. Thank you both for the help! I couldn’t find anything online and haven’t heard back from customer service, although, I’m not sure if they still have a customer service department.

 

[RampantOctopus]

customer service

yeah, they're long gone.

 

[macgyuver]

They are on Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Industrial-G...s=meanwell+gst36u12-p1j&qid=1597421641&sr=8-1

Several other variants as well if you don't want the mean well brand. Just search for 12v 3a power adapter or 12v 3a industrial power supply you will see several. The only thing you will need for these is to make sure the plug is the right size but I believe it is a standard 5.5mm

 

[lupulinaddict]

I keep random plugs and adapters in a box. I went through and found a brick that looked like it would work. I plugged it in and it powered on the picostill. I’ll have to wait until the weekend to get some time to try out it out. Thanks again for all the help. I really appreciate it! Cheers!!

 

[Trevor Mack]

I keep random plugs and adapters in a box. I went through and found a brick that looked like it would work. I plugged it in and it powered on the picostill. I’ll have to wait until the weekend to get some time to try out it out. Thanks again for all the help. I really appreciate it! Cheers!!

If you haven't setup an offline server this will eventually be required to keep your machine running one Whitten closes up the website. Here is the repo that has that work and currently supports all device models actively sold by PB at the beginning of this year, chiefwigms/picobrew_pico

 

[macgyuver]

Just make sure that the brick you found has the proper voltage and at least 3a power. If it is under that there is a risk of it shutting down during high draw times.

 

[lupulinaddict]

Awesome. Thanks. I was hoping something like that existed. I’ll read through that and this thread.

 

[lupulinaddict]

This is what I planned to use.

 

[macgyuver]

Looks good to me

 

[Sebastian Weetabix]

Just so that everyone knows, search Andrew Thompson on Youtube.
He steps you through how to flash a micro SD card with the Chief Wiggems software and install it into a Raspberry Pi SBC!
I have both my Pico C and Pico Pro brewing offline.
How-ever, you can only use one machine at a time and you have to reboot the Pi after each session.
Have fun!

 

[RampantOctopus]

How-ever, you can only use one machine at a time and you have to reboot the Pi after each session.
Have fun!

The server can support multiple devices simultaneously. Some networks— like my own— seem to block the pi from making multiple connections. This can be dealt with my using the pi on a different netwok or offline.