Brewzilla Steam Condenser - Wow!

[Frisp]

I am not knocking the condenser and I have thought about it myself in the past, I am just trying to get my head around how little is lost to boil off as I would have expected a bit less but not only 90ml

typo by me.. i did an edit should have read 900ml. And your right it does seem too low. Im going to run it again but this time with the narrow exhaust plate off. This may reduce the backpressure but the cooling spray should have more scope to puull and cool the steam.

 

[Frisp]

it's just a trap for home brewers to fall into and spend more money

I can see your argument but for me this is a bit of a necessity as other than a greenhouse I have no brewspace. Im banned from brewing in the house.
As for brewing outside I live in SW Scotland where we get probably under 100 dry days a year, 50 of which are Windy. and of those 50 im either working , doing chores or being told where to be by SWMBO on 47 of em.
Therefore If I want more than a handfull of brewing opportunities a year the disused Greenhouse is all I have. To brew in the greenhouse I cant have steam, lest all sorts of drips will land in my brew.
As I cant fit an extractor a steam condenser is my only option.

 

[Frisp]

I wasn't going here, but here we are... The whole concept for me is over engineered and over expensive to achieve the objective.

If we go back to basics the issue to be solved is move the steam. A secondary benefit could also be to prevent boil over. Easily done with a extractor fan.

fine if you have the option of an extractor, I only have a greenhouse to brew in and an extracter isnt an opotion

 

[Agentgonzo]

typo by me.. i did an edit should have read 900ml. And your right it does seem too low. Im going to run it again but this time with the narrow exhaust plate off. This may reduce the backpressure but the cooling spray should have more scope to puull and cool the steam.

That makes much more sense!

 

[Agentgonzo]

I can see your argument but for me this is a bit of a necessity as other than a greenhouse I have no brewspace. Im banned from brewing in the house.
As for brewing outside I live in SW Scotland where we get probably under 100 dry days a year, 50 of which are Windy. and of those 50 im either working , doing chores or being told where to be by SWMBO on 47 of em.
Therefore If I want more than a handfull of brewing opportunities a year the disused Greenhouse is all I have. To brew in the greenhouse I cant have steam, lest all sorts of drips will land in my brew.
As I cant fit an extractor a steam condenser is my only option.

All of that sounds entirely sensible. You've paid for something that makes your life better.

 

[Frisp]

So,do you have you have this fixed to the cold tap during the brew? If so how much cold water does it use? Isn't "boiling off" DMS no longer a thing?

Yes its connected to the cold tap. I didnt measure how much cold but the flow out of the exhaust flow was much less than i expected.
Dont know about the dms risk. But my thinking is this. If the
By the time this comes to the boil the lid and the pipes are scorchio. As long as the cold water spray is on as it comes to the boil that shoild create enough of a low pressure area to pull the dMs laden steam from under the lid.
Until I go live and do a brew for real I wont know. But other people dont seem to have a DMS issue using them. And those that do say that the comdensate in the catch bucket stinks of DMS/ brewery smell

 

[Frisp]

All of that sounds entirely sensible. You've paid for something that makes your life better.

 

[Agentgonzo]

But other people dont seem to have a DMS issue using them. And those that do say that the comdensate in the catch bucket stinks of DMS/ brewery smell

I think it was the "90ml" boiloff typo that confused people.

With only 90ml boiloff, it would imply that the condensate (along with the DMS) went back into the boiler.
With the much larger correct 900ml boiloff, the condensate (along with the DMS) goes into your drain bucket, as expected, and all is good.

 

[Andyroo Brew]

As with all shiny homebrew stuff you have the option to buy it or not. I bought a steam condenser for my garden room mancave as I didn’t want sticky ceilings and really impressed with it as it needs low water flow for the spray head and use the water to rinse the malt baskets after the mash. The only issue I have is that I have to use the 500w setting on my BZ gen 3.1 to get an adequate boil as the 1900w setting is too aggressive and would have liked to just tweak it a bit more but getting boil off at 1-1.5L/hr. The 3” pro sight glass needs a torch to look into the kettle as it’s steams up and not ideal!

 

[Neil Whittaker]

My purchasing history.

1. Steam condenser setup - Did not like the idea of the not seeing what's going on.
so
2. Bought the pro lid. - did not like the idea of using the immersion chiller, due to taking the lid off
so
3. bought a counter flow chiller - However, I've frequent blocked pump issues on my Brewzilla 3.1 system
so
4 bought an external pump plus cam locks. - Don't like my cold water supply to either the CF chiller or condenser setup.
so
5 Will buy new fittings and hoses to connect the system up to "under the sink" and control the cold water flow.

and now the above post gives a good reason to buy a gen 4

 

[MashBag]

As I cant fit an extractor a steam condenser is my only option.

I think you can. It would be surprisingly close to what I have

Each to there own, as @Agentgonzo put it, its makes your life better (more beer is always good) but it is not a necessity.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Each to there own, as @Agentgonzo put it, its makes your life better (more beer is always good) but it is not a necessity.

Is it not a necessity or a nice to own piece of kit if you can only brew in the house and don't want sticky walls and grief from the other half.

 

[Jiffy176]

Is it not a necessity or a nice to own piece of kit if you can only brew in the house and don't want sticky walls and grief from the other half.

I agree. I found brewing in the kitchen much easier than outside and a whole lot more pleasant when. It's 3 degrees outside.

 

[MashBag]

I can brew in my kitchen without sticky walls, without a sauna, without an angry wife... And without a condenser... so it isn't a necessity. Nice if its your thing, but its not a necessity.

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I can brew in my kitchen without sticky walls, without a sauna, without an angry wife... And without a condenser... so it isn't a necessity. Nice if its your thing, but its not a necessity.

How is this possible i have read many hundreds of posts about condensation over the years i have seen many DIY methods to try and avoid it like hoods with tubes and fans etc if you boil for 30 minutes or more how can you not have condensation on the walls and ceiling.

 

[Agentgonzo]

How is this possible i have read many hundreds of posts about condensation over the years i have seen many DIY methods to try and avoid it like hoods with tubes and fans etc if you boil for 30 minutes or more how can you not have condensation on the walls and ceiling.

I just brew in the kitchen and turn the extractor fan on. No condensation

Also, don't boil the bejesus out of it. For a 5 gallon batch, you only really need to boil off 1-2.5 litres in an hour to have the "recommended" level of "rolling boil". No need to boil off 5L and have it dripping down the walls

 

[MashBag]

Thank you @Agentgonzo

I too have an extractor. The point is the condenser is not a necessity.. There are other methods.

 

[Agentgonzo]

Thank you @Agentgonzo

I too have an extractor. The point is tuhe condenser is not a necessity.. There are other methods.

Depends what you want. If you brew in a greenhouse and not the kitchen and don't have an extractor, a condenser seems an ideal thing

 

[Agentgonzo]

Nothings a necessity. It doesn't mean you need to be snooty about people who choose to use it.

You can brew in a plastic bucket with holes in it in a cave with rocks and a fire. No need to be critical of people enjoying themselves in a hobby

 

[peterpiper]

Getting rid of DMS, seems the usual argument for a traditional 90 minute boil, vs just 60 min (rather than hop utilisation). But I've now switched to 60min open boils, with a 4 - 5L boil off, without noticing any final difference.

I can't imagine, how just a 900ml boil off would allow all unwanted volatiles to escape (even if an opeen boil).
But, if the choice is between a small boil off, and not brewing, the answer is obvious.

If I was limited to a 900ml boil off, using 300W for the boil. I'd go for a tiny extractor, which could be battery powered PC fan with 50/75mm ducting going out the window, rather than a condenser setup.