Speidel Sent me a Braumeister Cable

[Clint Yeastwood]

In another thread, I wrote about my Braumeister troubles. Speidel wrote their firmware poorly so the machine gives "Temp Err" messages when using Fahrenheit units. The preferred fix is to update the firmware using the $400 wifi module only available from Speidel. It is also possible to use a cable which you can't duplicate or buy, running a program on your PC.

Some say you CAN duplicate the cable, but I have found no evidence that anyone has succeeded. When I say you can't buy the cable, I mean you will have a hard time finding it. You may be able to order it from a vendor overseas, or maybe I somehow managed to overlook a USA source in spite of Googling a lot. Speidel claims Morebeer can order it.

Speidel graciously sent me a cable for nothing, and today I flashed my Braumeister. There are two types of firmware. One is for the wifi adaptor, and the other is for the Braumeister controller. I don't have the adaptor, and it appears the Braumeister will not let you use the wifi update without it.

Useful info: when you try to connect your Braumeister to your PC, you need to connect the cable when the Braumeister is unplugged. You plug it in and then run the update software. It will not accept the update otherwise. The program is called SpeidelSoftwareUpdater. Your computer may have to install some stuff to make the connection work.

I was hoping the cable would let me use Speidel's "Myspeidel" site to input and store recipes, because putting them in the Braumeister manually is a nightmare. So far, I have not been able to do it. It seems bizarre that you can connect to the web with a wifi adaptor but not with a direct wire, but it looks like that's how Speidel does things. They should really create a way for the PC to shoot information into the Braumeister without Speidel or wifi. It's amazing they didn't do this.

Hopefully, I can now brew in Fahrenheit without problems. If I learn anything new, I'll put it here for everyone else. I'll upload the software.

The cable's part number is 66943.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

I used the Braumeister in Fahrenheit today, and it ran without problems. I used firmware version 1.1.26 instead of the latest. The newest version requires some kind of crazy registration which is said to conflict with hacks intended to break people's dependence on Speidel's website.

It's too bad Speidel can't combine German quality with American user-friendliness and respect for independence. This machine needs a phone app and a desktop app. It should be easy to hook it to a PC and download schedules, and it should not be necessary to join Speidel's website. The Braumeister is excellent mechanically, but the user interface is very poor, and I don't want to have to join a cult or go online and access a company website in order to use my own recipes. What if Speidel goes out of business and the site disappears?

Making a proprietary wifi adaptor was really unwise. The adaptor costs $400, and it is not always available. A Chinese adaptor from Amazon costs $9. The Braumeister should have been made so any wifi adaptor would pop in and put a user in touch with his PC. Also, it should be possible to display the Braumeister's folders and files, just as you can display a phone's folders and files. The Braumeister should also have an SD card slot so huge libraries of recipes could be moved to it instantly. These suggestions are just common sense.

Having brewed with this machine 4 times, my conclusion is that you should forget the programming and run it manually with a kitchen timer. It does a wonderful job, but the automation is not worth the hassles.

 

[Pennine]

Not sure what version you have but mine is really easy to set 5 mash schedules on it and it works like a charm. It makes the timing on brew day much easier.

And in Spiedels defense using imperial units is much more complicated than metric and it would have saved you a huge hassle. Take the plunge and switch you won't regret it.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

Far as I can tell, mine accepts 3 schedules. Maybe I am mistaken, but 5 and even 20 are tiny numbers, and a $2000 machine should do a lot better. No engineer has an excuse for a blunder like this.

You have to enter every character by running through a huge menu using up and down buttons. It takes maybe 10 minutes per recipe to do this simple task which would take about 30 seconds if Speidel used applications like the rest of the world.

They could have provided a USB port like everyone else, allowing the use of a $4 cable or $9 wifi adaptor, and they could have allowed the internal files to display in Windows so recipes could be dragged and dropped. Instead, the rarely-available cable and adaptor cost $40 and $400.

Does anyone else on Earth make a wifi adaptor that costs $400? My Starlink box didn't cost much more, and it came with a motorized satellite dish.

To fully comprehend the absurdity of the recipe limit, consider the fact that a 128GB card costs $15.

The Braumeister also limits the temperatures you can use after the first step, which makes no sense. I haven't checked to see if the update fixed this.

The final blunder was making a new controller that can't be installed in the old machines. That seems like a deliberate effort to orphan them and motivate people to risk buying new ones.

Metric brewing is not easier. It's exactly the same, except the temperatures are less precise.

My recipes are all imperial. Everyone knows the metric system is superior, but homebrewers in the US don't use it much, and it's silly to convert things back and forth.

Why would anyone sell an expensive machine that can't perform a basic advertised function?

 

[Pennine]

Do you have this one?

 

[Pennine]

I have the more modernized display bought in 2016, that was when wifi connected brewers were starting. I'd imagine cost is high because the don't sell very many.

Anyway it's too bad your experience has been poor. That was their first edition and it sounds like they made some good upgrades over the original. Also they do not sell that one anymore. I dropped a bunch of money on the grainfather and absolutely hated it so I feel for

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

I am not venting to be a jerk. I hope the things I say will help other brewers make smarter decisions and possibly help Speidel do a better job serving its market. Consumer criticism makes products better, or at least that's how it works in America. Maybe criticism is bad form in Germany.

I have what I think is the model before the current one. Black controller, but no built-in wifi. The newest one is supposed to be great, but I have a grand in this one, and I wouldn't go near a new one unless I was positive it was free of problems.

I think I'm giving an overly negative impression. I will try to give a fair picture. I might have bought this machine even if I had understood the problems, which are annoying but minor. There are a lot of great things about it. I'm not positive, because BIAB looks really good. I haven't tried it. I think BIAB would have won out. If this machine had Bluetooth and a PC UI, BIAB wouldn't even be in the running.

I'm about to do BIAB for the first time, on a beer that goes 1.084. I will probably return and compare the experience to the Braumeister.

The build quality of the machine seems to be excellent. It's easy to use and clean. I love the way the motor and faucet pop out in a hurry. I like the fact that parts can be replaced easily. That shows good thinking on the part of the mechanical engineer. Once you get it programmed and debugged, it does exactly what it should. Grain, hops, and water in; wort out. It's easy for one person to carry. I'm just unhappy with the IT side, but like I said before, you don't have to use that. You can run the heater and pump manually, which is a lot easier than dealing with a stove or turkey fryer.

Think what it would be like if someone like Samsung or LG had made it. Bluetooth included. Web app. Phone app. Desktop app. SD card. Obvious stuff, easily done. Everybody would want a Braumeister. They would be knee-deep in backorders. Grainfather would go out of business.

I hope they get it together, because it seems like nobody makes an affordable machine that really satisfies customers. I couldn't find one. The Braumeister has tons of potential.

I wonder if I could bypass the controller and fix this thing with an Arduino or Raspberry Pi. That would be amazing, and I would never need a new machine. I'm pretty bad at Arduino, but no one has more time on his hands than I do.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

Hey, I have what might be great news. A guy on the Braumeister forum made an Arduino controller. Oops; okay, a different platform. Not Arduino.

I know nothing about it. He says it works. Caveat hackor.

Link to Arduino Thread

Link to Github Project

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

Here is some text from Github, which must be where all the gits hang out:

BrewManiacEx is a brew controller based on ESP8266. It was started by mimicking famous Arduino-based Open ArdBir, so most of Open ArdBir functions are included.

• Manual and Automation brewing process control
• PID and PWM heat control
• Automatic PUMP control

The most important feature that BrewManiacEx differs from Open ArdBir is

• WiFi Enabled, Web-based interface You can view, change the settings, monitor and control the brew on your phones, tablets, and computers.

Additionally,

• Multiple sensors support Up to 5 sensors are supported. Different sensors can be used in different stages.
• PID autotune Run the PID Autotune to get the best PID parameters for your system instead of guessing.
• Sparge water Heating control Run the sparge water heating when the main heating element is idle during mashing to enable using only one 15A/20A GFCI socket.
• Temperature logging chart Watching the temperature chart during brew and after brew
• [Untested/uncompleted] Distilling PWM controlled heating instead of PID controlled. Customized 4 stages: pre-heat, head, heart, and tail, which are defined by temperature ranges.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

The Braumeister only has four connections going to the controller: pump, thermal probe, and two for the heating element. I don't know if the heating element is AC or DC, but I guess it's not hard to find out.

A clever person who threw a controller together would just need to tie these three components to it, and once that was done, he could put the whole controller a couple of feet away from the Braumeister, where it would be safer.

 

[Pennine]

That's the model I have. Well I am not sure I understand your issue other than the fault error you are getting. Programming a recipe takes me maybe 30 sec at most and it's saved until you change it. Once I get a brew started mine always keeps the brew day quick and easy. I have always felt the €1,500 price tag was worth it. 200+ brews in and not replacing anything other than the malt pipe gasket seems like money well spent. My biggest gripe is the size of the malt pipe and the tendency to channel and eject wort all over. But with some process changes I have those figured out. Maybe I am ok with things being a little more manual?

Anyway good luck, hope you get it set up exactly the way you want.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

There is no way to enter even a name on my machine in 30 seconds.

Speidel says they don't have the wifi module now, so anyone who doesn't have one better jump. Very poor support. I'm going to buy several gaskets because Speidel can't be trusted.

I found out I can replace the controller with a Raspberry Pi, so that's what I'll eventually do.

 

[Willy]

Just arriving in this thread 2 years later. I saw an ad for a Speidel V2 (2018) 50 L Braumeister on FB marketplace (with Jaded Hydra coil, 2 SS Brewcubes, and a fermenter) ... For $600. And local to me.

So @Clint Yeastwood - how are things with the Speidel Braumeister today? Did you keep it? Get a new controller?

Curious if things got better. I think you may have convinced me to pass on it. But still mulling it over.

 

[Broothru]

I got my 25l Braumeister in 2010, old style controller. It’s the only thing I’ve used for brewing ever since (12-15 batches per year, on average), and I haven’t regretted my purchase, ever.

That said, I’d be hard pressed to replace it with another one. It’s a ‘mature’ product line, and innovations forthcoming are likely to be only incremental, if any are even forthcoming.

Sad, because the thing’s a beast. I’ve never had an issue with any part of the robust system. However, support from the factory is poor and unlikely to improve. But for $600 bucks, even I would be tempted to buy.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

I bought a bag, and that ended my love affair with the Braumeister. Bigger beers, easier brews, less cleanup, and no worries about factory support.

I brew on the stove, toss the wort in the pool to cool it, pitch, and ferment. Done.

I seriously believe the main advantage of brewing systems is that it satisfies a desire to fool with gadgets. They're more expensive, they're more work, and they're less versatile.

It makes people really mad when I say these things, however.

 

[Broothru]

I bought a bag, and that ended my love affair with the Braumeister. Bigger beers, easier brews, less cleanup, and no worries about factory support.

I brew on the stove, toss the wort in the pool to cool it, pitch, and ferment. Done.

I seriously believe the main advantage of brewing systems is that it satisfies a desire to fool with gadgets. They're more expensive, they're more work, and they're less versatile.

It makes people really mad when I say these things, however.

No, I get it. I did BIAB for probably five years, and made some decent brews. But the Brau, like any other AIO, gave me more control and precision over the variables. Oh, I enjoy tinkering, as long as the objective is clearly in my sights and the task goes according to plan.

For me, an AIO meant control. The Brau gave me that, in spades.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

I can't say I had the same experience.

The stove heats faster than a Braumeister, so the mash spends less time in between the temperatures I want. That seems like better control to me, since conversion doesn't take a time out while a pot heats. I put the pot over two induction burners, so it's not like waiting for a relatively primitive, slow, and weak resistance element. The Speidel tops out at 2000 watts, which is about like a blow dryer. One induction burner is much stronger, and I'm using two.

I could use a propane burner, but it would be a hassle, and the beer would be exactly the same. I timed my stove, and if memory serves, big temperature changes took about 6 minutes.

The mash temperature stays within a degree or two of what I shoot for. It takes a very long time for a big pot of mash wrapped in towels or blankets to cool. The beers taste the same as they did with the Braumeister. If the beer is no different, then all that recirculating business is not really accomplishing anything.

I guess some guys will say they can taste a difference. Well, a lot of guys swear "Shakti stones" under a CD player's feet will make it sound better, and there are people who pay $10,000 for cables to connect a turntable to a stereo system. Of course, that stuff is all BS. My palate has proven itself completely reliable in decades of cooking, so I trust it more than I trust random Internet people whose beer I have never tried.

Cleaning all those fiddly parts was very unpleasant. Emptying the mash pipe was also a major drag compared to dumping a bag in the trash. I had to dig grain out of the pipe, one scoop at a time, and drop it in the trash, and inevitably, grain and sugary wart got on the counter, the cabinet, and the floor. With the bag, I just put it in the kitchen garbage can upside-down and pull the bag out.

Lifting the pipe out of the machine was also pretty bad. You really have to stand on something to do it, you have to hope you position the stainless bar correctly to keep it from falling, and no matter how long you let it drain, when you move the pipe away from the machine, wort drips on the floor.

These days, I rinse the bag and throw it in the washer along with my hop bags. I scrub the pot in the sink. No special cord to wind up. No electronics to protect. No weird plumbing to run water through. No pump to remove. I don't have to put the dryer plug back into the receptacle. The pot is useful for cooking, so if you use a pot, you don't have to store two big, bulky vessels.

One day Speidel and its parts arm may go kaput, so that's also a concern. Important Speidel products keep disappearing from vendors' sites, which suggests the company is not doing well. Homebrewing is contracting. The world will never run out of pots, though. And because Speidel made the inexplicable decision to force customers to store recipes on its servers instead of locally, a Speidel collapse would be a recipe extinction-level event.

You should be able to write recipes with a simple PC app a high school student could write and then pipe them to your Braumeister via Bluetooth, USB drive, or memory card. This is really obvious.

I think if I absolutely had to go AIO, I'd get a Clawhammer system. Less money, and if a part goes bad, it should be easy to get a new one. But I wouldn't get a Clawhammer system. I have a bag.

I totally understand the fun of messing with electronics and machinery, but all I really want is good beer.

 

[Pennine]

Just arriving in this thread 2 years later. I saw an ad for a Speidel V2 (2018) 50 L Braumeister on FB marketplace (with Jaded Hydra coil, 2 SS Brewcubes, and a fermenter) ... For $600. And local to me.

So @Clint Yeastwood - how are things with the Speidel Braumeister today? Did you keep it? Get a new controller?

Curious if things got better. I think you may have convinced me to pass on it. But still mulling it over.

If it was the 10 or 20l I would pick it up in a second.

50l is a big batch of beer. The malt pipe on those would be challenging to lift I would think. That size AIO are a pain to clean too.

Asking for a friend, where are you located if you don't mind sharing

 

[Willy]

If it was the 10 or 20l I would pick it up in a second.

50l is a big batch of beer. The malt pipe on those would be challenging to lift I would think. That size AIO are a pain to clean too.

Asking for a friend, where are you located if you don't mind sharing

Thanks for your comment.
Charlotte, NC

 

[Willy]

Thanks for all the replies. Very helpful.

Still on the fence about the 50L sized vessel ... I really love my Brewzilla and how easily it can be upgraded or fixed. A new controller was less than $100 vs a Speidel controller approaching $1000. Wifi for $400? Huh?

But the deal is still pretty awesome. $600 gets you a 50L v2 Braumeister ($3000), 2 SS brewtech cubes ($200 each new), Jaded Hydra ($200), Speidel fermenter (??? Sure, always can use an extra)

 

[Broothru]

Thanks for all the replies. Very helpful.

Still on the fence about the 50L sized vessel ... I really love my Brewzilla and how easily it can be upgraded or fixed. A new controller was less than $100 vs a Speidel controller approaching $1000. Wifi for $400? Huh?

But the deal is still pretty awesome. $600 gets you a 50L v2 Braumeister ($3000), 2 SS brewtech cubes ($200 each new), Jaded Hydra ($200), Speidel fermenter (??? Sure, always can use an extra)

Gotta' agree with @Pennine re: 50L Braumeister. Pulling that maltpipe would be a real chore. None of the downsides noted by @Clint Yeastwood have played out with me on the 20L size. After the malt pipe drains, I simply pull it and dump directly into a kitchen sized Glad Bag and either leave it for the trash man or take it across the county road for our neighbor's miniature ponies and free range chickens. Living outside the township boundary lines can have its advantages.

For cleanup, since I brew on a patio that opens out into the yard, I simply hose out what I can with a hose and then take the whole rig inside for a more thorough cleaning in the laundry area deep sink. No kitchen mess that SWMBO'd would give me grief about making, plus it's co-located with my tools and work area for disassembly, cleaning and drying.

2000W heats 6~7 gallons fairly quickly to strike temperature, and I'm no more than 5 minutes between mash step increases. I can see where the time lag could be an ongoing pain if the issue was having to heat 50L, however, it's never been an issue for me with a 20L sized system.

I have added a couple of upgrades over time. I really got into low oxygen brewing processes a few years back and ordered the LoDO kit, which allowed me to increase the maximum grist weight by about 2# in addition to mitigating O2 pickup. It's not my imagination that the quality of my beers improved significantly with that upgrade, and for any LoDO naysayers in the audience I have the Competition BJCP scoresheets to prove it! But now, as an aging septuagenarian, I'm lifting less weight and consuming fewer empty calories, so I also bought a half-batch volume malt pipe. I now get to scratch the frequent itch to brew just as often but have only 2½ to 3 gallons to get rid of. Win-win for me, my back and my budget.

 

[Willy]

Gotta' agree with @Pennine re: 50L Braumeister. Pulling that maltpipe would be a real chore. None of the downsides noted by @Clint Yeastwood have played out with me on the 20L size. After the malt pipe drains, I simply pull it and dump directly into a kitchen sized Glad Bag and either leave it for the trash man or take it across the county road for our neighbor's miniature ponies and free range chickens. Living outside the township boundary lines can have its advantages.

For cleanup, since I brew on a patio that opens out into the yard, I simply hose out what I can with a hose and then take the whole rig inside for a more thorough cleaning in the laundry area deep sink. No kitchen mess that SWMBO'd would give me grief about making, plus it's co-located with my tools and work area for disassembly, cleaning and drying.

2000W heats 6~7 gallons fairly quickly to strike temperature, and I'm no more than 5 minutes between mash step increases. I can see where the time lag could be an ongoing pain if the issue was having to heat 50L, however, it's never been an issue for me with a 20L sized system.

I have added a couple of upgrades over time. I really got into low oxygen brewing processes a few years back and ordered the LoDO kit, which allowed me to increase the maximum grist weight by about 2# in addition to mitigating O2 pickup. It's not my imagination that the quality of my beers improved significantly with that upgrade, and for any LoDO naysayers in the audience I have the Competition BJCP scoresheets to prove it! But now, as an aging septuagenarian, I'm lifting less weight and consuming fewer empty calories, so I also bought a half-batch volume malt pipe. I now get to scratch the frequent itch to brew just as often but have only 2½ to 3 gallons to get rid of. Win-win for me, my back and my budget.

I mostly do 6 g batches (should work great in the 50 L) and also some 11-12 g batches for certain styles. (Pilsners, stouts and some other darker ales/lagers). Not really worried about the heavy bag - I have a multiple pulley hoist that makes it easy. Already do big batches in the Brewzilla (w/ extended malt pipe) so I am familiar with a heavy grain bag/or malt pipe.

The biggest plus for me seems to be having the ability to do a double batch on brew day. When I got the Brewzilla I put in two 240v 30 amp circuits - 1 in the garage and 1 on the back deck. So ... I could brew up a stout on one machine and a pilsner on another machine.

I wish someone could make a controller with wifi - or somehow modify the Brewzilla controller for the Speidel Braumeister system. A pump, a heater, and a temp probe is not that much to manage I would think.

 

[Broothru]

I mostly do 6 g batches (should work great in the 50 L) and also some 11-12 g batches for certain styles. (Pilsners, stouts and some other darker ales/lagers). Not really worried about the heavy bag - I have a multiple pulley hoist that makes it easy. Already do big batches in the Brewzilla (w/ extended malt pipe) so I am familiar with a heavy grain bag/or malt pipe.

The biggest plus for me seems to be having the ability to do a double batch on brew day. When I got the Brewzilla I put in two 240v 30 amp circuits - 1 in the garage and 1 on the back deck. So ... I could brew up a stout on one machine and a pilsner on another machine.

I wish someone could make a controller with wifi - or somehow modify the Brewzilla controller for the Speidel Braumeister system. A pump, a heater, and a temp probe is not that much to manage I would think.

I definitely see the benefit in doing double batches in a large system. The boil pot I used when I was doing BIAB was 10 gallons, so I do occasionally miss the ability to get a “two-fer” mash done on brew day. I’d use a come-along ratchet pulley, but when we replaced our deck lumber with Trex, I lost the overhead joist and lag bolt over my patio brew space.

But, as I noted earlier, I’m mostly into 3 gallons or less on brew day.

 

[Willy]

I definitely see the benefit in doing double batches in a large system. The boil pot I used when I was doing BIAB was 10 gallons, so I do occasionally miss the ability to get a “two-fer” mash done on brew day. I’d use a come-along ratchet pulley, but when we replaced our deck lumber with Trex, I lost the overhead joist and lag bolt over my patio brew space.

But, as I noted earlier, I’m mostly into 3 gallons or less on brew day.

Always do Irish stout in big batches (10+ g). They age like expensive wine... Same for pilsners, but that requires cold storage(lagering).

Eight/nine g batches are cool too. Fill up a corny and a 3 g half size corny.

 

[Pennine]

Another good thing with a 50l is you can do a stronger 6g batch if you want. That is one of the downsides of the BM the malt pipe does restrict your grain bill size and it's hard to make much over 1.060 beers with a full batch.

 

[Willy]

Another good thing with a 50l is you can do a stronger 6g batch if you want. That is one of the downsides of the BM the malt pipe does restrict your grain bill size and it's hard to make much over 1.060 beers with a full batch.

I figured that out too ... This will work well for a 7-8 g batch of 7% ABV American Porter.

It would also work nicely as an RO storage tank.

 

[Broothru]

Another good thing with a 50l is you can do a stronger 6g batch if you want. That is one of the downsides of the BM the malt pipe does restrict your grain bill size and it's hard to make much over 1.060 beers with a full batch.

With the LoDO kit, the top plate of the malt pipe gets inverted, creating about 2” more vertical room inside the malt pipe. That allows for about two additional pounds within the malt pipe. In fact, that was a selling point of the kit. I’ve had little problem in brewing 7% beers. If I want 10-12% (which I’ve never had the need to brew), I can always add a bit of rice syrup solids to the late boil.

 

[Pennine]

With the LoDO kit, the top plate of the malt pipe gets inverted, creating about 2” more vertical room inside the malt plate. That allows for about two additional pounds within the malt pipe. In fact, that was a selling point of the kit. I’ve had little problem in brewing 7% beers. If I want 10-12% (which I’ve never had the need to brew), I can always add a bit of rice syrup solids to the late boil.

Yeah I took a look, haven't seen that before, looks intersting. I actually flip the top plate on mine and it seems to be a similar concept to the LoDo kit from volume standpoint. I have the 10l and this let's me get up to around 5.5 pounds total. I could probably squeak a little more in but then efficiency drops off.

 

[Broothru]

I bought the half-sized malt pipe for lower final volumes (approximately 3 gallons) about six months ago, but the batch currently fermenting is just the 3rd half batch I’ve attempted with it. Still trying to get it dialed in. My recipes were proportioned down using BeerSmith, but the efficiency was way up and the original gravities well above range for style. Mash Efficiency was in excess of 90%!

It was a challenge on the first two attempts to get 7.5# of grain into the shortened malt pipe. But then I over-adjusted down to 6.5# and undershot O.G. on the current one, but only by a few points. The yeast is still chugging (slowly) even as I approach the predicted Final Gravity, so ABV% will likely be very close to my target.

My theory on the increase in efficiency with half batch volumes is the bottom up flow of wort has less resistance passing through the grain bed vertically (only half as high). So the pump is more efficient pushing wort, resulting in better conversion and more fermenables being produced.

My original (old controller box, circa 2010) advertised a maximum grain capacity of 5.4Kg or ~12 pounds. With the inverted top plate they now call 13.2#/6 Kg in the malt pipe. Not sure how I got 7.5# in that half-pipe (theoretical 6.6#/3Kg max grain), but it fit and the pump handled it effectively. Based on the 4.4 gallon of wort I collected, mash efficiency calculated out to be 92.6%. O.G. measured at 1.060/14.7P on my EasyDens, but my target was 1.047/11.7P. Ooops. But in a good way.

 

[Pennine]

I always condition my grain and double mill it, first with a very coarse setting and then as tight as I can get the mill go. This really keeps the integrity of the husk and helps efficiency significantly with the braumeister. I don't see your levels of efficiency but I am always at least 80%, usually better.

 

[Broothru]

My average efficiency (mash) hovers between 81% and 83%. I don't condition prior to crush but I do use a 3-roller Monster Mill MM3 with the primary gap set at 35mm. It seldom use rice hulls, but I do have a pound on hand for an upcoming Pivo Grodziskie that has a 100% smoked wheat grist bill. And I always do a two-step mash, mashing in at 55C, sacc. rest at 62, dextrin rest at 70C, mash out at 78C. Time and exact temperatures vary with sacc. and dextrin rests depending on recipe and style specifics, but my mash efficiencies are almost always in the 81-83% range. 90% is obviously an outlier. Finding the right grain to strike water ratio in the half-batch setup has been a challenge, but I'm getting closer to dialing it in.

 

[Pennine]

My average efficiency (mash) hovers between 81% and 83%. I don't condition prior to crush but I do use a 3-roller Monster Mill MM3 with the primary gap set at 35mm. It seldom use rice hulls, but I do have a pound on hand for an upcoming Pivo Grodziskie that has a 100% smoked wheat grist bill. And I always do a two-step mash, mashing in at 55C, sacc. rest at 62, dextrin rest at 70C, mash out at 78C. Time and exact temperatures vary with sacc. and dextrin rests depending on recipe and style specifics, but my mash efficiencies are almost always in the 81-83% range. 90% is obviously an outlier. Finding the right grain to strike water ratio in the half-batch setup has been a challenge, but I'm getting closer to dialing it in.

What times do you use at your steps?

 

[Broothru]

Oh, I have quite a list of different mash profiles I’ve built over the years for the Braumeister, but in a practical sense I only use a few of them any more:

Profile Sacc. Dextrin Mashout

Hoch-Kurz Ale 64C/:25 min. 70C/:45 min. 76C/:15 min.

Hoch-Kurz Lager 63C/:40 min. 68C/:50 min. 76C/:15 min.

Crisp, Fermentable 62C/:40 min. 70C/:20 min. 77C/:15 min.

Dry, Lite, High ABV 62C/:40 min. 72C/:20 min. 76C/:15 min.

Malty, Sweeter 62C/:20 min 72C/:40 min. 78C/:15 min.

As you can see, they’re all very similar with only small tweaks around the margins to accommodate the whims and nuances of the different sources I used at the time I researched them. There’re probably 50 or more profiles that I’ve constructed, but these are the only ones I use. In a practical sense, 1 degree Celsius = 1.8 degree Fahrenheit, so a 4C difference is not insignificant, and neither is a :20 minute to :40 minute time swing. Still, they are minor tweaks across a bigger target.

The more likely reason I have so many placed so close together in value is that it’s tedious and easy to forget to reprogram the old-style control box on the Braumeister, and old guys are sometimes prone to forget certain tasks. There’s more room for forgivable error if the variables are more closely spaced together.

 

[Pennine]

Oh, I have quite a list of different mash profiles I’ve built over the years for the Braumeister, but in a practical sense I only use a few of them any more:

Profile Sacc. Dextrin Mashout

Hoch-Kurz Ale 64C/:25 min. 70C/:45 min. 76C/:15 min.

Hoch-Kurz Lager 63C/:40 min. 68C/:50 min. 76C/:15 min.

Crisp, Fermentable 62C/:40 min. 70C/:20 min. 77C/:15 min.

Dry, Lite, High ABV 62C/:40 min. 72C/:20 min. 76C/:15 min.

Malty, Sweeter 62C/:20 min 72C/:40 min. 78C/:15 min.

As you can see, they’re all very similar with only small tweaks around the margins to accommodate the whims and nuances of the different sources I used at the time I researched them. There’re probably 50 or more profiles that I’ve constructed, but these are the only ones I use. In a practical sense, 1 degree Celsius = 1.8 degree Fahrenheit, so a 4F difference is not insignificant, and neither is a :20 minute to :40 minute time swing. Still, they are minor tweaks across a bigger target.

The more likely reason I have so many placed so close together in value is that it’s tedious and easy to forget to reprogram the old-style control box on the Braumeister, and old guys are sometimes prone to forget certain tasks. There’s more room for forgivable error if the variables are more closely spaced together.

Thanks that's helpful, I used the hoch kurz timing of 30/30 and a mashout quite a bit. I like your small variations though.

 

[Willy]

If I decide to pull the trigger on the 2018 Braumeister (still fence sitting, weighing pros/cons)... I don't think I will get the Lo Oxygen kit (just make my own which looks very doable). Same for the smaller mash pipe ... I would just do a slightly larger batch size (7 or 8 g) and be fine.

Oddly enough... The larger fermenter is a big plus as it would fit inside my inkbirded freezer for a big batch lagers.

 

[Pennine]

If I decide to pull the trigger on the 2018 Braumeister (still fence sitting, weighing pros/cons)... I don't think I will get the Lo Oxygen kit (just make my own which looks very doable). Same for the smaller mash pipe ... I would just do a slightly larger batch size (7 or 8 g) and be fine.

Oddly enough... The larger fermenter is a big plus as it would fit inside my inkbirded freezer for a big batch lagers.

$600 is such a steal for it, I would have a hard time not buying it even though I have no need for that much beer. They retail for $4k now it looks like.

 

[Broothru]

If I decide to pull the trigger on the 2018 Braumeister (still fence sitting, weighing pros/cons)... I don't think I will get the Lo Oxygen kit (just make my own which looks very doable). Same for the smaller mash pipe ... I would just do a slightly larger batch size (7 or 8 g) and be fine.

Oddly enough... The larger fermenter is a big plus as it would fit inside my inkbirded freezer for a big batch lagers.

The LoDO kit adds two important pieces to the mix that you probably won’t be able to fabricate without high heat cutting tools and a template. The floating plate you could do with a deep dish pizza pan, but the diameter might be a mismatch for getting a close fit.

For me, the essential part is the reinforcing plate (not the perforated plate) that holds the top screen and inverted perforated plate securely and tightly on top of the malt pipe. That’s the essential part that you might not be able to replicate easily.

The perforated top plate, like the bottom perforated plate, is a slightly smaller diameter than the malt pipe, so it won’t hold the screen in place when configured for LoDO mashing. When assembled, going UP from the grain bed, the sequence is (all mounted on top of the malt pipe), is top screen, perforated plate,
slotted reinforcing plate, with the mash cap floating on the wort/strike water.

The first photo shows the reinforcing plate over the screen and perforated plate. The second picture is the mash cap in place over the screen and plates.

If it looks strange, it’s because they’re on top of the half-batch malt pipe.

 

[Pennine]

We should probably start a new friends of the braumeister thread for these discussions...