Remote capabilities hydrometer

[birzzz]

Hi,

I am wondering if there is anything on the market like a tilt hydrometer that can work on wifi, but accessible from a remote location (read over internet) I can't seem to find a clear cut answer.


Any thoughts or experiences with some products?

 

[H.Stiglitz]

The tilt can log data to a google sheet that is accessible over the internet.

 

[Bago-0]

I use tilt with google sheets and fermentrack. Then can view remotely.

 

[micraftbeer]

I've seen online Brewbrain FLOAT. There's also Plaato airlock (but my experience shows it had limitations on types of fermentors) and the Brewbug/Brew perfect (my experience on that one is it's a bit clumsy and also had fermentor limitations).

 

[micraftbeer]

I presume that you're aware of the "hack" with the Tilt how you get an old phone (I bought a used iPhone 4 or something from Ebay a few years ago for $25), plug it in near your fermentors, running the Tilt app. The phone communicates with the Tilts and logs the data in the app. And the app has several options of where to write that data on the internet as it comes in. I personally map it to BrewFather because I think it's super awesome to have my fermentation plots stored right with the exact batch when I want to go back and look at it or recreate it.

Also, here are my reviews on the aforementioned WiFi devices in case you don't want to do the old phone thing.

• Link to Plaato Digital Airlock

• Link to BrewPerfect WiFi Hydrometer

• Link to Tilt Bluetooth Hydrometer

 

[seilenos]

I used an iSpindel that logs to a free ubidots account.

 

[micraftbeer]

Does iSpindel also use Bluetooth (and thus require the cell phone transmitter arrangement), or is it WiFi?

 

[seilenos]

I believe it is WiFi only ... meaning that I know it is WiFi because that is how I use it and believe it does not have Bluetooth.

 

[seilenos]

Also, it does not require any additional bridge or device to upload the data. It uses WiFi to connect to the local WLAN and then communicates directly with the remote Ubidots account.

 

[Wayne1]

iSpindel to wi-fi to BrewFather. BrewFather can be accessed through your phone, laptop or anything, anywhere there is internet.

 

[Knightshade]

I use a tilt, which sends its data to a raspberry pi 0 which cost like $25. Uses my IOT wifi and sends data up to Brewers Friend.

 

[micraftbeer]

Also, it does not require any additional bridge or device to upload the data. It uses WiFi to connect to the local WLAN and then communicates directly with the remote Ubidots account.

How does it do on battery life? I've heard the reason Tilt uses Bluetooth is because wifi uses much more power and thus the battery life is short.

My Tilts seem to last 12-18 months. I think. It seems like a long time since I replaced batteries...

 

[Knightshade]

From a technology standpoint, Bluetooth will use less energy, look up BLE. By using less energy, it also produces less heat, which in the case of batteries...means that they will last longer.

 

[Wayne1]

The iSpindel uses replaceable batteries. They do charge in place, but can also be removed and replaced, They use NCR18650B Li-Ion batteries. I believe these are the same or similar batteries used in the Tesla.

 

[ChrisThomas]

I use a couple of iSpindels and Fermentrack, but the iSpindel can log to many things. On a single charge I usually get three brews, loging every 15 minutes. I could get more but I don't want it to die halfway through a brew.

The iSpindel project is open and you can buy all the parts and assemble yourself, there are some sources of complete kits to assemble youself an there are some people who supply them assembled and some even precalibrated as well. The bigest issue reported is that off using cloned batteries, only buy from reputed suppliers and ones that clearly state the battery weight.

I've built a variant with the 3D printed sled, Cherryphillip and Open Source Distilling PCBs, the PCBs make it much easier and use a smaller Pelting.

Your iSpindel will need to be calibrated (unless you've got one already done), there are detailed procedures on how to do this. Once calibrated you should only need to recalibrate if you change the battery.

Hope that helps?


Chris

 

[ChrisThomas]

That's 3 "brews" of wine, each one taking 2-3 weeks by the way.


Chris

 

[seilenos]

How does it do on battery life? I've heard the reason Tilt uses Bluetooth is because wifi uses much more power and thus the battery life is short.

I recharge mine between brews which has allowed them to go for at least 6 weeks at 5 min update interval.
It would be longer if I kept the default 15 min interval.
I do not know the lifetime of the rechargeable battery itself, but that is easily replaceable.

My units came precalibrated and they are "close enough" ... I still do OG and FG with a refractometer.
I use the data more to track temperature and how the fermentation is progressing as opposed to being spot-on gravity-wise.
That being said, the units are within the error bars of the refractometer.

 

[bruce_the_loon]

How does it do on battery life? I've heard the reason Tilt uses Bluetooth is because wifi uses much more power and thus the battery life is short.

My Tilts seem to last 12-18 months. I think. It seems like a long time since I replaced batteries...

Single Tilt data point, I've done 10 brews and 5 tests with my Tilt since I got it and crunching my logs show about 183 days or 4395 hours of data gathered over that period. The battery is still the original one.

 

[TestTickle]

The simplest solution is what has already been mentioned here - use Google Sheets (free), Brewer's Friend, Brewfather or another solution that'll record and chart your readings.

I'm not sure what your tech skill level is, but with the Tilt, you buy/assemble a RaspberryPi unit for the Tilt to log to. If your Internet router supports it, you can then forward port 1880 (the port that the Tilt app uses) to a WAN port so that the interface can be accessed from anywhere outside of your home and you can see the readings in real time. It may seem a little complicated, but it's really not. One downside to this is that if someone else somehow were to access the Tilt interface, they could change settings and screw up your readings. I used to have mine set up this way and never had any issues.

For a free solution, I would just recommend the Google Sheets option (you'll still need a phone, tablet or RaspberryPi for logging to the cloud). If you are currently paying for or are interested in using brewing software anyway, Brewer's Friend and Brewfather are better options IMO.

 

[TestTickle]

Single Tilt data point, I've done 10 brews and 5 tests with my Tilt since I got it and crunching my logs show about 183 days or 4395 hours of data gathered over that period. The battery is still the original one.

I have had two of mine for at least two years now and a third one for about a year...all on the original batteries. Over that span, I have estimated that I have done a total of 90 to 100 batches between the three Tilts.