Comparing electric brew system

[reefermike]

for those that purchases a robo brew or a grainfather do you ever wish you would of just built an electric kettle with controller. I am an electrician so doing it myself isn’t a big deal, and I’ll have a 240 outlet. I don’t think when it’s all said and done there would be a significant cost difference, although the quality of the components may be somewhat better. There is one plus to the robobrew or the grainfather in that it is pretty easy to convert to distilling should you want to up the damage to the liver. I guess what I’m looking for is either way if you built it and wish you would have bought the other or vice versa. What are you thoughts

 

[swimIan]

There is a 240v robobrew v3.1 sold by morebeer. I made my own system and love it.


https://www.morebeer.com/products/robobrew-v3-grain-brewing-system-pump-35l925g-220v.html

 

[Carolina_Matt]

I think a big part of the appeal of these systems is that it's essentially plug and play. If you have the capability of putting your system together on your own, I would think you can get a higher quality and less expensive system (assuming your labor is considered free).

I bought the Digiboil because it has the basic capabilities that I need for BIAB, but it doesn't have anything above that. I didn't want to drill a hole in my kettle for a heating element and I don't trust myself to build a controller on my own, but if that was my skillset then I probably would have gone that route.

 

[tellyho]

I built my own a while ago before the advent of all the plug and play options. It was a learning process; I definitely would have bought a preassembled system if it had been available.

 

[Bobby_M]

What batch size and ABV combos are you hoping for? If you install 240v 30amp outlet, no way I would recommend an all in one system.

 

[reefermike]

If I were to guess all would be around 5 gallons as I dislike bottling. I am think just build it and buy a digiboil to do some distilling

 

[RoguePixels]

Maybe start with a checklist of what you want out of an electric system. If you find a ready made one that hits everything for a good price, go for it. If not or you just want to make your own, go that route.

 

[muhteeus]

If you are an electrician, I would honestly go the DIY route. You have the option of doing something like KAL's The Electric Brewery or you could do something like BruControl and automate some or all.

I agree with @RoguePixels , make a checklist and see where you end up!

 

[Bobby_M]

The all in one units typically sacrifice power for convenience. That is, there are few to none in the 5500 watt power range. If you were to DIY or piece it together, I'd recommend a kettle with a TC 5500 watt element. The other place where the all in ones are frustrating is the small "malt pipe" baskets. They drain like crap. If you decided to run a recirculating system (I don't recommend it), it's even worse. That little 10" disc can't flow much. The Anvil tried to fix that will a band of perforations around the bottom of the basket but when I demoed it a couple times, the flow is still really slow. Nothing drains like a hanging BIAB bag.

 

[speavler]

for those that purchases a robo brew or a grainfather do you ever wish you would of just built an electric kettle with controller. I am an electrician so doing it myself isn’t a big deal, and I’ll have a 240 outlet. I don’t think when it’s all said and done there would be a significant cost difference, although the quality of the components may be somewhat better. There is one plus to the robobrew or the grainfather in that it is pretty easy to convert to distilling should you want to up the damage to the liver. I guess what I’m looking for is either way if you built it and wish you would have bought the other or vice versa. What are you thoughts

Do I wish I had DIY'd? No. The DIY process seems like a hobby of its own, which is fine. But I crank out ales with 14 pound grain bills all day long with the Grainfather. I'm not a big fan of its recent controller app updates, however. But the small footprint setup really works for me. If I had a 240 outlet, I'd check out the Robobrew 17 gallon system and double my batch sizes.

 

[highland_brewer]

The all in one units typically sacrifice power for convenience. That is, there are few to none in the 5500 watt power range. If you were to DIY or piece it together, I'd recommend a kettle with a TC 5500 watt element. The other place where the all in ones are frustrating is the small "malt pipe" baskets. They drain like crap. If you decided to run a recirculating system (I don't recommend it), it's even worse. That little 10" disc can't flow much. The Anvil tried to fix that will a band of perforations around the bottom of the basket but when I demoed it a couple times, the flow is still really slow. Nothing drains like a hanging BIAB bag.

Bobby is correct here. None of the systems have 5500 watts. I built a system based off of a 11 gallon bayou classic with pretty much all hardware from Bobby's shop. TC weldless element, etc. and I really enjoy the system both building and brewing on it. You can't beat 17 minutes from ground water temp to strike temp with a 5500 watt element, and less from mash out to boil. I do think the AIO systems serve a purpose and I have used about all of them. That being said they all have proprietary parts that you may not be able to replace. Everything in the system I built is fully replaceable and readily available. The cost was not that expensive IMO and I have both a 1650 watt element and 5500 watt element (spoiler alert 1650 watts is not enough to do 5 gallons with unless you have the lid barely cracked, like Clawhammers 120v system)

Here are a few photos of the kettle. I also have a grain to glass video using it.

 

[Tobor_8thMan]

I second Kal's Electric Brewery. I built my own from his kit of parts. I take pride in telling people, "A very smart person from Canada designed this equipment, but I built it!".

 

[Tobor_8thMan]

Here it is...