ANVIL FOUNDRY ALL-GRAIN BREWING SYSTEM

[DarrellQ]

Re: Whirlpools

I've been using this on my 6.5 and having success. Little tall, but it gets the job done. Really wish there was some sort of additional whirlpool port though on the system itself.

Re: Efficiency on the Foundry

Just pitched yeast on a batch estimated for 72% and managed an OG at 61%. Asked my LHBS to mill a bit more coarse (as is suggested by Anvil) and got really bad results. I usually ask for "-2" which on a SS mill turns out to be 1 mm crush or 0.039 in., but went for a "0" which is 1.3 mm or 0.051 in. Curious to see what y'all have done to get consistent efficiency numbers on the Foundry. Only thing I did different this time was to not squeeze the grains as much as a I normally do but still gathered my correct pre-boil wort volume so i figured it wasn't necessary.

Cheers!

I had been buying my grains 'pre-milled' from Northern Brewer. My efficiency on two batches was horrible. So, I bought a Cereal Killer and carefully set it to .35 with my "points" feeler gauge (yes, I'm that old) and hit 75%. The only thing I did differently was mill my own grains.

 

[mbg]

My NB Winter Warmer that I brewed with FB and no pipe on 12/10 went into the keg last night. This was my first try at fermenting under pressure. I purchased a Fermzilla All-Rounder, pressure kit, and spunding valve and was ready to go. Even after one use I highly recommend this fermenter (or something similar). My beer was crystal clear going into the keg and was surprised that the floating dip tube captured every last drop of beer. I also used CO2 to push beer into the keg for the first time since this fermenter can be pressurized. This was great it saved me from lifting a full keg up and over the 2x6 collar on my keezer. This fermenter was easier to clean than any other I have used. Best of all the beer tasted pretty good already!

 

[drewmuni8]

Ive been using Bobby's spin cycle whirlpool arm for cooling with great success. For the actual WP, I simply steep and don't bother WPing.

Regarding efficiencies, is your 72 and 61% brewhouse efficiency or mash/lauter efficiency? When using the bag inside the malt-pipe, for mash/lauter efficiency Ive been consistently in the mid 70s range (75-76%) even with bigger and stickier grain bills (~17.5-19lbs of grains with 30% or more of wheat/oats/etc). I own my own grain mill (cereal killer) and Ive experimented with LOTS of grain crush sizes. I settled on 0.028" for a while but now Im back up to 0.030" for gap size as I feel that "took the edge" off with risking semi-stuck mashes. The sparging also seems to go better for me at 0.030". So if you volumes are accurate and hitting those marks as you indicate, I would look towards the crush. You didn't mention if you sparge or do full boil? Sparging seems to always be good for a couple of point bump in efficiency.

I believe my 61 and 72% numbers are "brewhouse", I use brewers friend so that column in which you calculate OG is what I'm talking about. I mostly go for a full volume mash but my last grain bill was approaching the 8 lb max on the 6.5 system so I went for a small sparge. What is your water percentages between mash and sparge? How much water do you mash with vs how much you sparge with typically? Ill go ahead and try the 0.030, but do you find yourself with lots of small grain in your boil from the small crush being able to go through the malt pipe?

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

Ive been using Bobby's spin cycle whirlpool arm for cooling with great success. For the actual WP, I simply steep and don't bother WPing.

Regarding efficiencies, is your 72 and 61% brewhouse efficiency or mash/lauter efficiency? When using the bag inside the malt-pipe, for mash/lauter efficiency Ive been consistently in the mid 70s range (75-76%) even with bigger and stickier grain bills (~17.5-19lbs of grains with 30% or more of wheat/oats/etc). I own my own grain mill (cereal killer) and Ive experimented with LOTS of grain crush sizes. I settled on 0.028" for a while but now Im back up to 0.030" for gap size as I feel that "took the edge" off with risking semi-stuck mashes. The sparging also seems to go better for me at 0.030". So if you volumes are accurate and hitting those marks as you indicate, I would look towards the crush. You didn't mention if you sparge or do full boil? Sparging seems to always be good for a couple of point bump in efficiency.

Just saw this. Answered my question. Don’t know how I missed it.

 

[Knightshade]

The malt pipe is my only gripe with this thing. Every single brew, whether I use a bag or just the basket, it will find a way to fall back in and splash wort everywhere. I think my next brew I will try that brewzilla false bottom. I went back and read your post and just out of curiosity, what was your grind size? I may have missed it in an earlier post if you mentioned it.

This is something that I've been worried about happening..but have yet (knocking on wood) to have it happen. Is the ring that it rests on not secure? Are any of your legs damaged somehow? When you've lifted and rotated onto the ring, where about do you finally let it rest? (I rotate 45 degrees so that it is as close to the middle of the anchor as possible on each side.)

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

This is something that I've been worried about happening..but have yet (knocking on wood) to have it happen. Is the ring that it rests on not secure? Are any of your legs damaged somehow? When you've lifted and rotated onto the ring, where about do you finally let it rest? (I rotate 45 degrees so that it is as close to the middle of the anchor as possible on each side.)

legs are not damaged. Happened once pulling the basket out and not having the legs in the right position, fully, and clipped that ring off into the foundry. One time using a bag with no pulley, tried pulling the bag out with the pipe sitting on the ring. It dislodged and fell in. Yesterday I used a pulley, tried using the malt pipe on the pulley but wanted to squeeze the bag so when trying to release the pulley, didn’t have it gripped right and the pipe fell in splashing malt everywhere. All I know is I have brewed three times and it has happened every time, sometimes more than once. I have also knocked that ring off several times. It could just be me. I am pretty clumsy at times.

 

[mbg]

legs are not damaged. Happened once pulling the basket out and not having the legs in the right position, fully, and clipped that ring off into the foundry. One time using a bag with no pulley, tried pulling the bag out with the pipe sitting on the ring. It dislodged and fell in. Yesterday I used a pulley, tried using the malt pipe on the pulley but wanted to squeeze the bag so when trying to release the pulley, didn’t have it gripped right and the pipe fell in splashing malt everywhere. All I know is I have brewed three times and it has happened every time, sometimes more than once. I have also knocked that ring off several times. It could just be me. I am pretty clumsy at times.

I just use a ratcheting pulley but have heard others spread the ring out a bit to make a tighter fit. I also saw someone make DIY clips to hold the ring to the top of the kettle.

 

[Knightshade]

Yeah..I'd say spread it apart a bit. I've been worried enough about it potentially slipping that I tend to do a push down double check on the ring before lifting up the pipe. Due to this fear, I probably hold up the malt pipe longer than I have to just to make sure I'm setting it down exactly where I want it to be but....

After it is done draining, I put the pipe into a HD bucket and leave it for awhile. I'll squeeze the bag a bit while it is in there, take the pipe out to the front yard where I do all my cleaning, then dump whatever drained into the bucket into the AF. Generally...the boil hasn't hit by then.

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

Putting it in a separate bucket is probably the thing to do. I tried expanding that ring before I ever used the foundry. It still managed to get dislodged a couple times.
Using a separate bucket is probably what I will do in the future.

 

[shoreman]

Sorry if this has been addressed already but do you need a hop spider or ss filter on this system without the pump to be able to drain at end of boil/chilling? Can you free range hops in this thing without issues?

 

[harrower]

I clamp two vice grips on the ring before I pull the malt pipe. I did this after knocking the ring into wort and had to fish it out.

 

[cmac62]

Sorry if this has been addressed already but do you need a hop spider or ss filter on this system without the pump to be able to drain at end of boil/chilling? Can you free range hops in this thing without issues?

Yea, I have not done a really hoppy beer, but a couple of oz's are no issue. You'll get some into your fermenter, but no big deal to me.

 

[shoreman]

Yea, I have not done a really hoppy beer, but a couple of oz's are no issue. You'll get some into your fermenter, but no big deal to me.

Thanks did it ever clog the spigot?

 

[cmac62]

Thanks did it ever clog the spigot?

I think you would have to use a lot of hops to clog the valve/spigot.

 

[Noob_Brewer]

Sorry if this has been addressed already but do you need a hop spider or ss filter on this system without the pump to be able to drain at end of boil/chilling? Can you free range hops in this thing without issues?

Ive always free-ranged my hops in the boil and steep. Never a clogged spigot and thats with 4-6oz of pellets (NEIPAs). I HAVE clogged the anvil pump twice while trying to whirlpool during the steeping phase and so I no longer whirlpool and just steep. The inlet of the anvil pump is only 3/8" and it has an internal plastic-barrier on the inside. So if a pellet gets into the inlet - its clogged easily. So when I "whirlpool" I just steep only with no recirculation. Haven't noticed any difference in final beer when whirlpool vs steeping anyways. When its time to chill, I recirculate with the pump with zero issues though. If you want free roaming pellets though, make sure you increase your kettle loss in the end with whichever software program you use for brewing so that the majority of hops stay in the kettle and not the fermenter.

 

[shoreman]

Thanks Noob - so if you aren’t using the pumps you could go from spigot over a mesh strainer to get cleanwort going into fermentor?

Anyone else do that?

that’s what I do now but I’m just dumping it (2.5 gallon batch) - helps with oxygen pick up too

 

[Noob_Brewer]

Thanks Noob - so if you aren’t using the pumps you could go from spigot over a mesh strainer to get cleanwort going into fermentor?

Anyone else do that?

that’s what I do now but I’m just dumping it (2.5 gallon batch) - helps with oxygen pick up too

I do use the pump for mash recirc, chilling, and transferring to the fermenter. I just don't use the pump in the "whirlpool". I did try a mesh strainer ONCE. what a PITA is was in my opinion. So Id rather not do that and just take a little more kettle loss with my dip tube pointed upward to get cleaner wort into the fermenter.

 

[DarrellQ]

Finally, an inexpensive solution for getting GFCI protection at 240 volts. These folks custom made this with a NEMA 6P on one end and NEMA 6R on the other. All for $69.99 with a 3 day turn around. Great folks to work with. https://shop.worldcordsets.com/shop

 

[harrower]

Could you put up a pic showing the female connector face?

 

[DarrellQ]

Could you put up a pic showing the female connector face?

 

[harrower]

Good source. I ordered the GFCI and will splice it into my existing 240v cable. Free shipping over $50. Just the GFCI was $48, so I ordered some network cables to get over the $50.

 

[Brewbuzzard]

I used a spa panel 240vac 60amp. I think it only cost about $45 or so. It feeds my control panel.

 

[xQuestx]

I'm trying to figure out how to make an adapter for my 3 prong dryer to the anvil. I'm checking to see if these items I've linked will work. Thanks.

3 prong plug

Leviton 515CV

In-Line User Attachable GFCI

 

[NSMikeD]

Brew day yesterday. Chimay Red clone. I decided to brew at 110 in my kitchen instead of 240 in the basement laundry. The 6.5 for a 2.5 gal batch performed very well to the point The convenience is greater than the benefit of the extra volts. I may get an proper gauge extension cord to brew in the kitchen but for now 110 works for me. I didn’t notice the extra time to get to mash or boil as I used the time to prep fir other steps.

Milling the grain

I tapped a pale ale a few days ago and poured a home brew

Following a suggestion I read here, I set the mash temp and let it keep the temp while doughing in. Sure enough it only dropped two degrees and quickly returned. Temp doesn’t drop from strike as projected for some reason thus I prefer this method.

Mashing with pump going well. I find 1/4 lb of rice hulls on my grain bills prevents a clog.

Brewing away

hop spider and chiller

and into fermenter.

I put this in both BeerSmith and Brewfather and will take a look at how they performed. I hope to post my findings.

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

Nice! What recipe did you use? I was hoping to try a chimay clone this week.

 

[NSMikeD]

Nice! What recipe did you use? I was hoping to try a chimay clone this week.

I started with the recipe in Clone Brews by Tess and Mark Szamatulski, scaled it down and then tweaked it for what I was able to get. it should be pretty close. The color for a Belgium Dubble varies depending bonus which style reference.
Here is what I brewed for a 2.5 gal batch. I left out the water since it was brining my tap water Brewfather Belgian Ale water profile (balanced).

Grain
6lb Maris Otter pale 2.8L
8oz Caramunich 38L
8oz GoldSwaen Aroma 130L
2oz Breis Chocolate 350L
12oz Simplicity Blond 1.3L candi syrup

Hops
.75oz Hallertauer Herbrucker 2.5 AA. 60 min
.5oz Tettnager 3.1 AA. 60 min
.5oz Celia 2.7 AA. 15 min

Yeast 1pkg SafAle S-33


Mash 152 @ 90 min No sparge
Mash out 168 @ 10 min
Boil @ 60 min 100% 110 v

4.24 g mash
3.71 g boil
3.21 post boil

Pre-boil gravity 1.053
Original gravity 1.070
Final gravity 1.017

ABV 7%
IBU 25
Color 26SRM


I was very close to my numbers aside from missing a quart somewhere along the line.

 

[mbg]

I started with the recipe in Clone Brews by Tess and Mark Szamatulski, scaled it down and then tweaked it for what I was able to get. it should be pretty close. The color for a Belgium Dubble varies depending bonus which style reference.
Here is what I brewed for a 2.5 gal batch. I left out the water since it was brining my tap water Brewfather Belgian Ale water profile (balanced).

Grain
6lb Maris Otter pale 2.8L
8oz Caramunich 38L
8oz GoldSwaen Aroma 130L
2oz Breis Chocolate 350L
12oz Simplicity Blond 1.3L candi syrup

Hops
.75oz Hallertauer Herbrucker 2.5 AA. 60 min
.5oz Tettnager 3.1 AA. 60 min
.5oz Celia 2.7 AA. 15 min

Yeast 1pkg SafAle S-33


Mash 152 @ 90 min No sparge
Mash out 168 @ 10 min
Boil @ 60 min 100% 110 v

4.24 g mash
3.71 g boil
3.21 post boil

Pre-boil gravity 1.053
Original gravity 1.070
Final gravity 1.017

ABV 7%
IBU 25
Color 26SRM


I was very close to my numbers aside from missing a quart somewhere along the line.

Looks like a nice brew day! What fermenter are you using?

Just curious about your mash-in. I've been brewing many years on a gas fired kettle and use a cooler/tun. I have found on the AF that you only need to set your strike water temp a few degrees above your desired mash-in. I also follow others that turn the power off or to 0% when adding the grain/mash-in otherwise I tend to overshoot. I also see you are set at 100% power at 152F. I'm using 240V and usually set at around 50% to prevent big temp swings, but, maybe on 120V 100% is fine?

I have a 10.5 and I use a tri-coiled chiller now but did you modify your chiller? The one that came with my AF had the in/out tubes bend over the edge out of the kettle. Might be asking for trouble with hose fittings inside of the kettle.

 

[biestie]

Haven’t posted in a loooong time, because I got sick of my top tier system, takes too long to set up and tear down...

My wife got me an Anvil for Christmas and I just finished my first brew. I’m loving it! I broke an electrician rule and wired my outdoor outlet for 220v... (I‘ll keep the extra breaker open when not used for brewing). Heating times are great and I hit the numbers perfectly using the BeerSmith profile.

So happy to be back into home brewing!

 

[NSMikeD]

Looks like a nice brew day! What fermenter are you using?

Just curious about your mash-in. I've been brewing many years on a gas fired kettle and use a cooler/tun. I have found on the AF that you only need to set your strike water temp a few degrees above your desired mash-in. I also follow others that turn the power off or to 0% when adding the grain/mash-in otherwise I tend to overshoot. I also see you are set at 100% power at 152F. I'm using 240V and usually set at around 50% to prevent big temp swings, but, maybe on 120V 100% is fine?

I have a 10.5 and I use a tri-coiled chiller now but did you modify your chiller? The one that came with my AF had the in/out tubes bend over the edge out of the kettle. Might be asking for trouble with hose fittings inside of the kettle.

my first brew I had it set for the strike temp using 240v. I forgot to turn it off so it was heating while I was adding the mash so it I over shot the mash temp by 5*+ The second time I turned off the heat at the strike temp but it still was too high and took longer than I cared to reach mash temp. I agree with ignoring software strike temp and striking 2 or 3 degrees above mash temp. However .....
This time I used 110 (for convenience of brewing in the kitchen) and just set mash temp. I use the circulation pump which, IME, should keep heat somewhat evenly distributed. It worked out for me. I was methodical adding the grains a scoop at a time to avoid dough balls. For the 6.5, 7lbs of grain and 4.25 gal of water, I am satisfied that this method will suffice going forward (plus a 90 min mash) without big swings. I think it was 155 at one pint but settled back at 152 quickly with the pump.

I think like any brew system, it has some quirks you work out over time. It’s pretty plug and play, but it can be tweaked to dial in more exacting to meet one’s preferences, like the strike temp variant


Regarding the chiller, I cut off the bends so that it fit in the unit. You may be able to see in the pics. IMO, the chiller is not properly designed for the 6.5. As for the hoses, no problems resting on the pot lids. Just keep an eye on the water pressure so it doesn’t try to escape out of a fitting. Plus a moderately low flow can be effective at removing heat while reducing water waste.

The fermenter is a cheap 3 gallon BrewDeamon. It was a gift from my niece. That being said, it works for me. It fits in my Craigslistcheapfind mini fridge that I run on a Willhi temp controller and that’s resulted in some seriously good beer. I’ve been looking at upgrades for 2 years now and haven’t found anything that would make me want to pull the trigger.

 

[tracer bullet]

Glad you like the Brewdemon, I considered it but ended up with the 3 gallon fermonsters. So far so good there as well.

It's interesting everyone has a mash method, often different. I do software calc for strike temp, often in the 167 F or so range. Once I'm there, just before I load the grain, I lower the temp and power to what I want to mash at (i.e. 155 and 40%). Then added the grain, stirred, turned on the pump and basically walked away. The room temp grain took the 167 water down to 155 or so as expected in short order, and the Anvil had very little work to do to maintain it. No overshoot since I'd already lowered it.

 

[shoreman]

I plopped down for the 6.5 and can’t wait to brew with it. I switched to 2.5 gallon batches last year with just a 5 gallon pot and biab with my stainless immersion chiller.

I’ve been really enjoying brewing small, much shorter brew sessions (short & shoddy), more variety and I just brew more. I can bust out a beer on Saturday morning and be done by 11:00am ready to do something else.

I just ferment these in my SS Brewbucket to a 2.5 gallon keg and no issues this far. Also use an old Mr beer for bottling my Belgian styles.

I’ve done a few partial boil 5 gallon all grain batches in my 5 gallon pot, hoping to figure that out here as well. Works great for my lagers.

 

[BigChas]

Glad you like the Brewdemon, I considered it but ended up with the 3 gallon fermonsters. So far so good there as well.

It's interesting everyone has a mash method, often different. I do software calc for strike temp, often in the 167 F or so range. Once I'm there, just before I load the grain, I lower the temp and power to what I want to mash at (i.e. 155 and 40%). Then added the grain, stirred, turned on the pump and basically walked away. The room temp grain took the 167 water down to 155 or so as expected in short order, and the Anvil had very little work to do to maintain it. No overshoot since I'd already lowered it.

I am thinking about getting the same 3 gallon fermonsters too. A quick question or two, how much wort do you fill fermenter with and about how much trub is left on average.

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

I plopped down for the 6.5 and can’t wait to brew with it. I switched to 2.5 gallon batches last year with just a 5 gallon pot and biab with my stainless immersion chiller.

I’ve been really enjoying brewing small, much shorter brew sessions (short & shoddy), more variety and I just brew more. I can bust out a beer on Saturday morning and be done by 11:00am ready to do something else.

I just ferment these in my SS Brewbucket to a 2.5 gallon keg and no issues this far. Also use an old Mr beer for bottling my Belgian styles.

I’ve done a few partial boil 5 gallon all grain batches in my 5 gallon pot, hoping to figure that out here as well. Works great for my lagers.

I love the idea of brewing small batches more often. I ultimately ended up getting the 10.5 because I couldn’t ever really see a difference in time between brewing 2.5 gallon batches and brewing 5 gallon batches. That aside, the main reason I don’t brew 2.5 gallon batches is because those smaller kegs are so expensive. Maybe I’m looking in the wrong place. That is honestly the main reason I do 5 gallon batches. I could bottle but I hate bottling. I am planning on trying a small batch in the 10.5, eventually. It’s a shame those small kegs are so expensive because it would be nice to transfer from a 5 gallon for dinner with friends, etc. I guess down the road I could bite the bullet and buy just one.

 

[tracer bullet]

That aside, the main reason I don’t brew 2.5 gallon batches is because those smaller kegs are so expensive.

I bought one of these, it's not cheap, but not too bad. I guess it depends on your budget: AIH New 3 Gallon Ball Lock Corny Keg

I am thinking about getting the same 3 gallon fermonsters too. A quick question or two, how much wort do you fill fermenter with and about how much trub is left on average.

Still fermenting my first batch in it. I shot for 2.5 gallons and got very close. Couple inches headspace still left. Trub TBD but I'd guess 3/4" or so since my 5 gallon batches tend to be about 1.5". Some of that depends on you, and what you put in it - i.e. if you whirpool first and dump practically none from the boil kettle vs. others who just go for it. I'm kind of in between.

 

[shoreman]

That aside, the main reason I don’t brew 2.5 gallon batches is because those smaller kegs are so expensive.

Yeah I have 2 if the morebeer torpedo 2.5 gallon kegs and they are certainly not cheap. I’ve had 2 Keezers crap out on me, so I decided to sell off the 5 gallon stuff and go ultra simple with natural carb and co2 cartridges to push the beer out in a mini fridge - really dig it, once again it simplified things for me and gets me focused on doing what I enjoy more often - recipe creation, fermentation & tasting

 

[mbg]

I bought one of these, it's not cheap, but not too bad. I guess it depends on your budget: AIH New 3 Gallon Ball Lock Corny Keg




Still fermenting my first batch in it. I shot for 2.5 gallons and got very close. Couple inches headspace still left. Trub TBD but I'd guess 3/4" or so since my 5 gallon batches tend to be about 1.5". Some of that depends on you, and what you put in it - i.e. if you whirpool first and dump practically none from the boil kettle vs. others who just go for it. I'm kind of in between.

I'm also thinking of going to smaller batches so I can brew more. I have a keezer with four 5-gal cornys. Is there any issues using 5-gal kegs for 2.5 gal brews?

 

[shoreman]

I'm also thinking of going to smaller batches so I can brew more. I have a keezer with four 5-gal cornys. Is there any issues using 5-gal kegs for 2.5 gal brews?

no I’ve done that before, you just use more co2 to fill and purge initially

 

[mbg]

my first brew I had it set for the strike temp using 240v. I forgot to turn it off so it was heating while I was adding the mash so it I over shot the mash temp by 5*+ The second time I turned off the heat at the strike temp but it still was too high and took longer than I cared to reach mash temp. I agree with ignoring software strike temp and striking 2 or 3 degrees above mash temp. However .....
This time I used 110 (for convenience of brewing in the kitchen) and just set mash temp. I use the circulation pump which, IME, should keep heat somewhat evenly distributed. It worked out for me. I was methodical adding the grains a scoop at a time to avoid dough balls. For the 6.5, 7lbs of grain and 4.25 gal of water, I am satisfied that this method will suffice going forward (plus a 90 min mash) without big swings. I think it was 155 at one pint but settled back at 152 quickly with the pump.

I think like any brew system, it has some quirks you work out over time. It’s pretty plug and play, but it can be tweaked to dial in more exacting to meet one’s preferences, like the strike temp variant


Regarding the chiller, I cut off the bends so that it fit in the unit. You may be able to see in the pics. IMO, the chiller is not properly designed for the 6.5. As for the hoses, no problems resting on the pot lids. Just keep an eye on the water pressure so it doesn’t try to escape out of a fitting. Plus a moderately low flow can be effective at removing heat while reducing water waste.

The fermenter is a cheap 3 gallon BrewDeamon. It was a gift from my niece. That being said, it works for me. It fits in my Craigslistcheapfind mini fridge that I run on a Willhi temp controller and that’s resulted in some seriously good beer. I’ve been looking at upgrades for 2 years now and haven’t found anything that would make me want to pull the trigger.

Yeah - takes some time to dial in a new system. I've made 5 brews and take good notes and still trying to dial this mash-in temperature.

On the chiller, yes it not the best but probably included for new brewers. I frequent the FB group for the AF and several have had the cheap hose included blow-out!!! So as a minimum maybe just change the hoses.

I haven't seen the BrewDeamond before - interesting. I have used buckets, carboys, big-mouths, and FastFerment conical but recently bought a Fermzilla All-Rounder. The All-Rounder worked out great!

 

[LagerLover78]

First off...to all who have posted thank you for all your findings and info...I've spend roughly the last week reading through the 32 pages of content thus far...we'll see I can retain all the info.

My LHBS has a unit in stock with the top mounted controller...however, I've seen it for a while now when picking up my grains. I'm debating on whether or not to buy that one or order one new. My thoughts behind that is if I'm going to drop the cash on the system, I'd want to get the most up to date system. I notticed more recently, the post about owners caulking the controller to prevent liquid from infiltrating the electronics. I would have hoped the controller was sealed and that the warrenty would cover that.

Anyone have thoughts? Am I worrying too much?

 

[mbg]

First off...to all who have posted thank you for all your findings and info...I've spend roughly the last week reading through the 32 pages of content thus far...we'll see I can retain all the info.

My LHBS has a unit in stock with the top mounted controller...however, I've seen it for a while now when picking up my grains. I'm debating on whether or not to buy that one or order one new. My thoughts behind that is if I'm going to drop the cash on the system, I'd want to get the most up to date system. I notticed more recently, the post about owners caulking the controller to prevent liquid from infiltrating the electronics. I would have hoped the controller was sealed and that the warrenty would cover that.

Anyone have thoughts? Am I worrying too much?

Just go buy it!

Don't know of any changes made since top controller unit was released. As far a sealing, I sealed mine around the black plastic to the kettle and around the display with silicone. I have seen others use DYI ideas including someone using I think it was glad wrap that sticks (wasn't pretty but worked and removable). John Blichmann is aware of the issue and says they are working on something. I have heard of at least a few that got enough water on the controller to fail it and they were replaced under warranty.