Klarstein

[Rodcx500z]

Just got an email from Natalie at klarstein this is not a bad price
read:https://www.klarstein.co.uk/Home-ap...731_ks_gb_wd_ldw_harmony_week_1&utm_source=WD
The 35L is only £209-00p and you get a tenner off if you sign up to the news letter

 

[Fuzzy Growler]

Just got an email from Natalie at klarstein this is not a bad price
read:Maischfest Boiler Mash Kettle
The 35L is only £209-00p and you get a tenner off if you sign up to the news letter

Hey Rod just looking into these myself, going to check YouTube reviews etc today before I commit

 

[Keruso]

Just got an email from Natalie at klarstein this is not a bad price
read:Maischfest Boiler Mash Kettle
The 35L is only £209-00p and you get a tenner off if you sign up to the news letter

I know our brewing needs are not the same but I would suggest having a look at the robobrew / brewzilla system before making a final decision. I bought this actual klarstein for my first system, the lack of a pump and a recirculation arm was a drawback for me. Difficult to maintain or change the mash temperature. It may not be something that bothers others.

 

[Fuzzy Growler]

I know our brewing needs are not the same but I would suggest having a look at the robobrew / brewzilla system before making a final decision. I bought this actual klarstein for my first system, the lack of a pump and a recirculation arm was a drawback for me. Difficult to maintain or change the mash temperature. It may not be something that bothers others.

Cheers keruso I'll keep this in mind and I'll check the others you mentioned out too, bottling this morning so will look this afternoon

 

[Keruso]

Cheers keruso I'll keep this in mind and I'll check the others you mentioned out too, bottling this morning so will look this afternoon

These may help - all-in-one brewing system reviews
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

 

[Fuzzy Growler]

These may help - all-in-one brewing system reviews
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Cheers mate, done most of the work for me

 

[Fuzzy Growler]

Cheers mate, done most of the work for me

Looks like I'll be saving the extra few quid for the brewzilla, great review videos you sent cheers thanks again, not found anyone with them in stock but one site is expected to get them in 2nd week of June so hopefully I'll have the spare cash by then... Thanks dude

 

[Pennine]

im not sure i would go with the brewzilla the heater seems way underpowered at 1900 watts. mine is a robobrew copy and has 2500w and still takes a while to heat to mash and boil. in fact i use a 2000w heat stick at the same time. i think there are better units out there for the same price.

 

[Fuzzy Growler]

It's 1900 + 500w making it a 2400w and great reviews.... What others do you recommend in the same price bracket?and I will check them out, I'll not be purchasing for another month or so, so plenty of time to look them up, the Klarstein has mixed reviews, a lot of people are complaining about the grainfather, was thinking of looking in to the brew monk? Any info is greatly appreciated thanks Pennine

 

[Fuzzy Growler]

im not sure i would go with the brewzilla the heater seems way underpowered at 1900 watts. mine is a robobrew copy and has 2500w and still takes a while to heat to mash and boil. in fact i use a 2000w heat stick at the same time. i think there are better units out there for the same price.

Also when you say a long time, how long is it taking, I'm new to Brewing so I'm not sure what to expect

 

[Pennine]

mine probably takes 30-40 min to go from 17c to 65c and then 20-30 min from mash to boil. the extra heat stick easily halves that time. i didnt realize its 500w plus, is that when the pump is off? if so its probably comparable to what i have so go for it!

some other options i have this one.

https://www.braumarkt.com/easybrew-30-plus-automatische-brouwketel-wortkoeler-5013494
same as this one.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Klarstein-...t=&hvlocphy=9044899&hvtargid=pla-350268582865

 

[Pennine]

i also had the grain father was my least favorite of the three in this order: 1 braumeister, 2 robobrew 3 grainfather.

i sold the grainfather as the robobrew was a much better option for me. i really like how you can keep the grain basket open on the top and stir at will.

both the grainfather and robobrew lack in efficiency and could be better if you are ok with a long sparge time. braumeister is ridiculously expensive and restrictive on brewing higher gravity beers.

so they all have positives and negatives.

i also dont really care about having the brewers connect via a phone or any modern stuff like that. so if its important to you the robobrew doesnt do anything with that.

 

[Fuzzy Growler]

mine probably takes 30-40 min to go from 17c to 65c and then 20-30 min from mash to boil. the extra heat stick easily halves that time. i didnt realize its 500w plus, is that when the pump is off? if so its probably comparable to what i have so go for it!

some other options i have this one.

https://www.braumarkt.com/easybrew-30-plus-automatische-brouwketel-wortkoeler-5013494
same as this one.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Klarstein-...t=&hvlocphy=9044899&hvtargid=pla-350268582865

Maybe worth imitating your set up and getting additional heat stick, I will check the links out thank you, I'm not sure if it's with the pump running or not. I'll check this out too

 

[Fuzzy Growler]

i also had the grain father was my least favorite of the three in this order: 1 braumeister, 2 robobrew 3 grainfather.

i sold the grainfather as the robobrew was a much better option for me. i really like how you can keep the grain basket open on the top and stir at will.

both the grainfather and robobrew lack in efficiency and could be better if you are ok with a long sparge time. braumeister is ridiculously expensive and restrictive on brewing higher gravity beers.

so they all have positives and negatives.

i also dont really care about having the brewers connect via a phone or any modern stuff like that. so if its important to you the robobrew doesnt do anything with that.

No I'm not bothered with the connect and I don't mind putting in a decent shift on brew day. I would like to brew some really hoppy IPA's and hopefully some strong impy stouts at some point.

 

[Keruso]

No I'm not bothered with the connect and I don't mind putting in a decent shift on brew day. I would like to brew some really hoppy IPA's and hopefully some strong impy stouts at some point.

In my experience If you are going to buy an all-in-one system then get one with lautering features, where you can mash, (decent temperature control and step mashing) recirculation pump, which means you get decent temperature control and better efficiency combined with a filtration process for clear wort, and sparging where you can rinse the grain of remaining sugar before boiling. The klarstein model in your original post does not give all these, whereas the Klartstein Mundschenk (for more ££) does, as too the robobrew, brewzilla and others. For a relatively small extra outlay you can get better features.

 

[crowcrow]

I'm no doubt biased as I have the unit Rob posted, but for the money I'm very happy with it. I've not brewed with other set ups, so I could be missing out on loads of features, but I've found it excellent. I wrap mine in a load of old towels to stop heat lost, and it barely switches on and off during the mash stage. If you have a cash but something classier no doubt, but if like me, you don't, you can brew some great beers with this.

 

[Fuzzy Growler]

I'm no doubt biased as I have the unit Rob posted, but for the money I'm very happy with it. I've not brewed with other set ups, so I could be missing out on loads of features, but I've found it excellent. I wrap mine in a load of old towels to stop heat lost, and it barely switches on and off during the mash stage. If you have a cash but something classier no doubt, but if like me, you don't, you can brew some great beers with this.

Hi crow so you have the Klarstein? I'm not rolling in cash so a top end unit is out of my range, I was fancying the Klarstein because of its price tag, but with more and more comments coming in I found myself looking at near £400 units that is totally out of my budget right now, my girlfriend is a full time student so the only wage coming in is mine....

 

[crowcrow]

Hi crow so you have the Klarstein? I'm not rolling in cash so a top end unit is out of my range, I was fancying the Klarstein because of its price tag, but with more and more comments coming in I found myself looking at near £400 units that is totally out of my budget right now, my girlfriend is a full time student so the only wage coming in is mine....

Wife and two kids here and only my salary so similar boat. There was a deal for the 30l set up for £169 delivered plus an extra £10 off - so I jumped at it.

Instead of the pump I jug through and few litres in the middle of the mash. I've found my efficiency high and the beers good - where I've had issues it has not been down to the kit but my own brewing failings!

Some pics and brews here: My first all grain brew day

Some other discussion here: Klarstein

 

[Scrattajack]

I have the 25L Klarstein kettle and on balance, I'd say it was good value for money. Apart from the fact that I should have ordered a larger one, the only problem I've had is with mashing. I'd fondly imagined that I could just set the thermostat to 67C, say, and disappear for 90 minutes but what actually happens is that when the temperature drops and the heater kicks in, it over-compensates and the temperature goes up to the low 70s. It's still usable, you need to avoid setting the thermostat, keep an eye on the temperature and give it the odd blip of heat to keep it at the right sort of level. This is without any lagging, so as mentioned above that's something you could do to make it a bit less hands-on.

 

[Keruso]

I have the 25L Klarstein kettle and on balance, I'd say it was good value for money. Apart from the fact that I should have ordered a larger one, the only problem I've had is with mashing. I'd fondly imagined that I could just set the thermostat to 67C, say, and disappear for 90 minutes but what actually happens is that when the temperature drops and the heater kicks in, it over-compensates and the temperature goes up to the low 70s. It's still usable, you need to avoid setting the thermostat, keep an eye on the temperature and give it the odd blip of heat to keep it at the right sort of level. This is without any lagging, so as mentioned above that's something you could do to make it a bit less hands-on.

That was pretty much the experience I had with mine and why I moved onto a unit with a pump and recirculation ability. I vaguely remember someone on the forum added an aftermarket pump and hose that collected wort from the tap and fed it back into the malt pipe. I suspect that keeps better control on the mash temperature.