Achieve More Repeatability Using, PID, RAPT BLE Temp Probe and Heat Exchanger Dish

[@feronimus7723]

You should really include the CIP spray module inside the gen 4 kit. Buying most kegLand products in Europe is already a nightmare. Trying to purchase any of the extras, especially if they are not expensive, is almost impossible. Very few distributors from Europe have your products, even fewer ship outside their country or have an English site. Most are distributors only for the fermzilla line. Its just sad that the only way we can get our hands on these products is buy paying someone from AU to buy them for us and ship them to EU. The cost is very close to 1500-2000 euro just for the shipment most of the times.

[@janpcs]

That's why I will probably end up buying a GF when I really would like to buy a Brewzilla. It's next to impossible to get you hands on Kegland products in the Netherlands.

[@BrewKegTap]

@@janpcs Give us a shout at BrewKegtap UK - we've got loads of Kegland products and can sort a shipment to NL.

[@KegLand]

Where abouts are you located? We will have to work harder to try and find a distributor near you.

[@janpcs]

@@KegLand I've found one myself. Unibrew in Nuenen in the Netherlands, only a 30 minute drive, has put them on their website now. I don't think that was the case when I posted my earlier reply. Thank you anyway.

[@feronimus7723]

@@KegLand Thanks for replying. I live in Greece. But as you can see this is a general problem for many of us here in the EU.

[@SimonBorg]

Definitely, the dish should be standard. It's a great bit of innovation and it's why I love kegland. Keep innovating and keep looking at ways to make your great products even better!

[@KegLand]

Yes we really feel the same thing. It would only increase the price slightly and really the brewery works quite a bit better with this dish. Either way we will also sell it separately for customers who have already purchased a Gen 4 model.

[@SimonBorg]

@@KegLand put me down for one please!

[@stevecappello]

The dish concept is brilliant. Please develop a version suitable for the Gen 3.1.1!

[@cleaverjc2]

My blue tooth thermometer and HDP just showed up and I'm so impressed with how well they work together. After playing around with recirculating water and tuning my PID settings, it makes so much sense to use a secondary thermometer. I was never really worried too much about my mash temps with my robo brew but I'm so much more confident with my gen 4 brewzilla system.

[@KegLand]

Thanks for the support. We really appreciate it. I agree they are a great combination with each other. Thanks!

[@lifeafterwork]

Hell yea!! - Just getting ready to buy all my equipment and the Gen4 is top on the list. I don't want to go chasing up addon parts and makes the gen 4 more fully featured. Please add the CIP as well. Better to add too much rather than not enough. You could also make packages.

[@KegLand]

The CIP should be released this week. Yes I think we may increase the price soon and make these parts included. It's in discussion at the moment.

[@MittyMagoo]

Yes to the plate as standard, seems like a good bit of innovation for little additional cost! Also would like to see the CIP included too.

[@KegLand]

Yes I think this would be a good idea. We are discussing this in management at the moment.

[@MittyMagoo]

@@KegLand this will be the trigger for me to bite the bullet on a gen 4! Excited for the updates.

[@cristigheorghe2913]

Damn, I need a love button for this vid. I learned more about PID in these 30 mins than I did in my uni years. Regarding the heat exchanger bottom plate: I definitely believe it should be standard. I just bought a Gen 4.1 BZ in EU these days (Aug 2024) and it wasn't there. I wouldn't mind paying extra for the part, but in Europe spare parts are not easy to find. I'm also thinking the plate should help with whirlpooling by separating the cone and not sucking it in through the middle.

[@craiggranquist1848]

Yep, if competitors don't have a heat exchange plate you should definitely make standard in the Gen 4. Enjoyed the rest of the video as well

[@KegLand]

Yes we tend to agree. I think we will do this in future.

[@barwell]

Yes please for the dish. I can really see the advantages and the improvements in temperature management.

[@KegLand]

Yes this will happen soon in the future.

[@jeremiahsmith7973]

Yes, include standard in kit. Please offer seperately as well so those who have aldready purchased the system can get the plate as well.

[@seanhensby9224]

Getting my setup next week. Coming from doing it the old school way. Thanks for the videos.

[@josephmichaud2396]

I think you should include the Heat Exchanger Dish with the Gen-4. As you say in the video the cost is small, with higher benefits. I purchased the Gen-4, 65 L unit over the past weekend, having the Heat Exchanger Dish included would have worth the small price increase. Trying to buy one will be hard as many dealers probably wont carry it. It would probably need to be specially ordered. YOU COULD RUN A SPECIAL DEAL WITH THE RAPT BLUETOOTH TEMPERATUNE PROBE! Buy the probe & heat exchanger dish together.

[@KegLand]

Yes I agree. We are going to make the dish standard in future.

[@trevormcgrath9817]

I just ordered the GEN 465 L on the black Friday sale. A real bonus would’ve have been to have included the heat exchange plate.

[@bulskin11]

Yes, please please make the plate standard...just seems like it should have been the base design from the start. With that said, it's great to see you guys are constantly working to improve your product instead of what many do and look at cost reduction after launch.

[@KegLand]

Thanks. We are still debating this at the moment. Your feedback is appreciated.

[@chrisnewman861]

Hell yeah, makes perfect sense to include the heat exchanger dish in the gen 4 range & the CIP spray module too. Keep up the great work KegLand, so happy you guys are an aussie company.. You beauty!

[@KegLand]

Thanks for that Chirs. We appreciate it.

[@Luzuuu]

Being able to tweak the PID according to my needs, batch size and increasing flexibiliy and potential for accuracy even further by adding an optional temperature probe is a great thing! I believe other manufacturers would rather not trust their customers and not make these functions accessible. So... thanks for making it possible!

[@andreaslinder8668]

The dish should be standard since anyone who wants to take full advantage of the Brewzilla will eventually get it anyway. Especially when looking at shaving off time from the brew day or for consistency between batches. And reading others who request the CIP accessory to also be included as standard, I second that as well.

[@KegLand]

Thanks for that Andreas. Yes these parts are not very expensive so we are considering just making them part of the base package. We seem to get about 60% of people say the same thing.

[@davec4955]

The heat exchanger dish as standard is a no-brainer !

[@SammaxMunich]

I bought the HED now 3 months ago - it works very well. The PID algorithm works definitely more stable and sraight forward with the changed flow. I did notice another advantage with this dish: The risk of a boilover seems signinifcantly reduced! Especially at the beginning of the boil, it seems that the HED somehow impacts the boil pattern and the need for constant stirring is greatly reduce. Did not expect that! I definitely adds another 2 minutes to the cleaning procedure, but it is not as bad as i thought it would be.

[@KegLand]

Yes the HED is a great accessory and I enjoy using this for my step mash profiles in particular. For single infusion it's not really necessary but for step mash it's great.

[@texasflooddk]

I think the addition of the HED makes good sense. I think it is odd that the immersion chiller is part of the Brewzilla set, but WITHOUT the fittings needed to connect it. I wish the immersion chiller was an option and that this option included the fittings. So in with the HED and out with the immersion chiller and correct the pricetag. Other than that the gen 4 is a great boiler.

[@halfstack9738]

Would love to see these accessories in the US as well. Having a quality sight glass for the gen 4 for sparging would also be a very welcome addition

[@KegLand]

That would be cool. We will look into this.

[@paddywoolley6035]

@@KegLand sightglass would be cool so I can just sparge from the digiboil without the measure jug

[@olsenalien]

Ofcourse You should make it standard! its absolutely neccessary

[@KegLand]

Yes I think it's going to be standard at some stage in the future.

[@gustag]

The heat exchanger seems like a really good idea

[@KegLand]

Yeah it works really well and i really prefer using it myself.

[@m8harry]

As a new brewer i look forward to purchasing this system very soon. Its my hope the clean in place ball and the heat exchanger dish become standard inclusions.

[@hennings6800]

Really looking forward for a 4.2 version or an "all inclusive" package with heat exchanger dish and thermometer. The heat exchanger dish seems to be unavailable in germany.

[@jeffstratford]

I’d buy the heat exchange dish, great idea.

[@KegLand]

Yes if you are doing step mash I think you will find it really useful.

[@chris2906]

Yes yes yes on the heat exchanger dish. I’ll pay for it either way!!!!

[@dwerg1]

First time trying the heat exchanger dish after 15 brews without it. It makes a huge difference for just being a simple and cheap stamped plate, definitely wish this came with the unit. Now I can actually control the temperature, really had to babysit it and measure at the top. Now I'm also not so worried about destroying the enzymes, I used to hear the wort getting to hot on the elements, now it's silent even if the elements are on for more than 10 seconds because the wort passes over it better.

[@White_Rose_Al]

Brilliant explanation by a manufacturer, great to see products constantly evolving

[@KegLand]

Thanks for that. We really appreciate it.

[@KieranShort]

Hell yeah, I'd love the screen to be standard.

[@NoMusiciansInMusicAnymore]

Yeah I'll be getting one of those plates and definitely think it's something that should be included, same with the CIP. Thanks a lot for the PID walk through, the info you guys provide in the way you provide it is why I keep buying from you.

[@KegLand]

Thanks for that. We really appreciate your support.

[@NoMusiciansInMusicAnymore]

@@KegLand no worries, any word on the 8 and 4L PET kegs?

[@westcoastbestcoast7683]

You’ll be getting an order from me guys, fantastic stuff this. I have the gen 3 already and my only real issue was the temperature differential between the display with the probe at the bottom and when I took manual readings in the mash. I’d try and compensate manually to get the core mash temp exactly where I want it but this solves all my problems. Now just need to make up an excuse for my wife!

[@tiamatlion8338]

Oh my god! I bought both of this upgrades and now my brewzilla work absolutely perfect! Thank you a lot!!!

[@KegLand]

No worries. Thanks for the support!

[@rmaunruh]

I hope you can add this to the aliexpress store soon. Just got the 65L gen 4 and would love to add this to it.

[@KegLand]

Yes they should be on this store soon.

[@thebackyardbrewer5611]

Can you allow customisation of the brewzilla kit on your website? Firstly so you can opt for a counter flow chiller instead of another useless immersion chiller. Most of us already have a stack of those taking up space in our breweries. Or even to buy it bare bones with no chiller or mash paddle or any other thing that we probably already own! Also it would be good to all the buyer to add other items that are Brewzilla specific on the actual brewzill page. That would make it so much easier to buy the right specific accessories without having to look at multiple items.

[@KegLand]

This is a fair point. I will talk to the team about this. I know a lot of people do not bother with the immersion chiller so it's possible we can take this out of the kit.

[@aarons6210]

Standard I recon. Always innovating you blokes!

[@KegLand]

Thanks! we appreciate the support.

[@cristigheorghe2913]

Just purchased the HED (heat exchanger dish) after seeing the praise it got in the vid, and to my sad surprise, whenever I screw on the plate, the pump protector screen becomes massively warped. I did install the longer bolt the dish came with, and even tried fiddling with some extra washers in between but to no avail :( Worth mentioning that the false bottom that came with my Gen4 Unit only has one ring grab in the center, as opposed to two of them like in the video, and seems less sturdy than the one depicted here.

[@uwelehmaxx8416]

Fluck me. My ol fella was making beer in the 70s,i was making beer in the 90s. And we had beer......how fucking much homebrew have u gotta make to cover the cost of this hipster bollocks......oh i forgot its not about getting' rats arsed'. Its about the efficiency and the hoppiness. Wel, my calculations tell me efficiency begins with minimum expenditures and maximum free energy,so work hard and save dollar. Im writing whilst listening (not watching )so saving time and fithy lucre. Oh yeah, I did 1000L batches(back to back) with a true master of the craft and he used his eyes,mouth,nose and i believe a little magic. Shout to Dave Porter....outstanding brewing company.

[@mrknaldhat]

I'm now 3 brews in with the gen4-35L and I'm really frustrated about the inconsistent temperature. I have now cut out a similar piece from a plastic bucket lid and it's already MUCH better. Previously very poor efficiency, 50-60%, too low OG and too high FG due to poor starch saccharification. This dish is a MUST in my opinion. It's really a design flaw. But we want big heating elements and the ability to drain from the bottom! Kudos for allowing that! (I've always had ~70% or better mash eff on a GF30. I almost always use rice hulls, ensure good recirculation, adjust pH and water mineral content. I can hardly think of anything else to optimize)

[@mrknaldhat]

and I've also insulated the tube on the side and the recirculation arm to not lose any heat there either. And ensure at least 45 mins mash time, often more than 1h

[@azerbouf]

You just using a plastic piece that attached to the bottom? Will try it out! Have you also calibrated the PID temp?

[@mrknaldhat]

@@azerbouf yep works like a charm. Now replaced with a SS plate though. I use PID during mash yes, but not during boil

[@azerbouf]

@@mrknaldhat Thanks for your quick reply!

[@michaeleade4149]

top Stuff in explaining how pid works as well as the use of Bluetooth thermometer which will make it alot easier on brewday for us all. love the idea of the heat exchanger and i believe it will work really well and a good addition to the gen 4.

[@KnobbyWobby]

Love these types of videos, the PID explanation was especially useful. The Brewzilla Gen 4 is amazing, though one small issue for me was, with the conical base giving you the option to do small scale batches, I find the immersion chiller will sit above the wort at 10L (post-boil). I wish it dropped in just a little bit lower as there's definitely room to do that.

[@KegLand]

The immersion chiller is the easiest chiller to use so it's good for people getting started but I personally prefer the counter flow chiller as its just a bit quicker and in Australia our water temp can get pretty high so it's also better in that respect.

[@angrydutchman8590]

Uhmmm . . . hell yes, the dish should be standard (and please kindly include it before Gen4 ships)! It's a great how everyone at Kegland continues to refine, innovate and develop their products . . . it's far better than planned obsolescence!

[@silveraven1]

I am currently awaiting my 65 L GEN 4 220v from the US because no Canadian retailers will carry them?!? . I really like how keg land keeps updating the technology to create more innovative products. However, living across the pond it’s harder to get separate equipment. For example, I’m still waiting for that silly little CIP attachment to be available. I recommend including all the equipment in one shot and charging a little more. Release a model that includes the distilling, lid, sight glass pipe, whirlpool arm, etc.. 😂 ONE AND DONE MATE! Thanks for listening to my rant.

[@KegLand]

Sorry Canada is a bit slow as your electrical approvals are often quite a bit more involved.

[@silveraven1]

@@KegLand I side stepped the bs and imported from the states. Did my first brew yesterday! Your supplier here in Canada OBK is not my favorite to deal with either anyhow.

[@warrensomerville4573]

Yes add plate and spray unit as standard

[@karl_sigurjonsson]

This is fantastic! Thank you for this!

[@mrknaldhat]

Perhaps a more user friendly way of tuning the PID would be to be able to set the volume of wort in the settings instead, where Kegland has then already tuned all these parameters to match.

[@NoMusiciansInMusicAnymore]

The problem there as Kee put it (although pretty quickly) there's lots of variables that would affect what the values should be from rate you're pumping at, whether or not you use the neoprene sleeve etc, I imagine where you brew would also make a difference if it's well ventilated or not as would the size of the grain bill so the type of beer you usually make. That's why he is showing good starting points for you to start to adjust from. In short, it's not as simple as just the volume of the brew.

[@cd2575]

Please make a sight glass for the gen 4. Seems like such a rudimentary item to be overlooked.

[@j4nch]

This should definitely be as standard, especially since the thermometer will be more accurate(but we need a way to know which version we have). I agree with other comments, it would be awesome to have an european warehouse :) Regarding the PID, my current material(home-made, with craft-beer pi installed) is able to do some "automatic calibration", I've to fill it to my desired level, then it runs through a long process where it overshoot and basically does what you explained, to compute for us some appropriate parameters. Wouldn't that be easier?

[@KegLand]

Yes I agree. We are going to make it standard soon

[@ejay960]

Love to see it standard issue!

[@theslyrylan]

Ended up getting both of these. Excited to try it out!

[@KegLand]

Nice one!

[@TwoMorbid]

like the idea of the heat exchanger dish, hopefully I can get one to add to my 35l gen4

[@KegLand]

Yes these are going to arrive in stock very soon.

[@cfrazier1977]

In would definitely add the plate and increase the price. Also, I would have assumed it had an auto tune function. That is how I programmed my pid controller.

[@tateastill5841]

100% the plate should be standard and distributors should be able to bundle the RAPT probe, havent seen them here in Canada yet. I'll continue to hold off on getting a 4th gen till the plate is standard

[@KegLand]

Yes we agree. this is happening now.

[@cleaverjc2]

Please make the heat exchanger disc standard please. My 65L just showed up with one without one and it"s a pain in the butt for me to order one where I live. I also agree with Feronimus to make the CIP nozzle standard as well, at least in the 65L and larger. Love the products and a few extra bucks on the price of the brewzilla is still so much cheaper than the other systems here. I can't wait for the blue tooth thermometer to come back in stock.

[@KegLand]

Yes this is something we are looking to do in the future. We are actively working on many other new accessories for the BrewZilla Gen 4. The CIP device is very close to being released. We ended up making further changes which has delayed the process slightly. Thanks so much for the support. We could not do this without customers like you. Cheers!

[@HeebyGeeby69]

Any idea when some of these plates will get to UK or EU? By the way I'm absolutely loving my Gen 4 35 but even though sound is on in the menu it doesn't seem to make any noise after each mash stage, should it?

[@KegLand]

We are about to introduce new more complex profiles that will allow you to turn on/off the sound for each profile step. So please wait for this update and you will have control over the process.

[@BennyBestt]

Built in PID is great addition, my 65L gen 3.1 didn't like running an external PID, I think it messes with the way the control panel works, especially when I ran it down low at 140v,

[@KegLand]

Yes the PID function is quite good especially if you tune it to your specific application.

[@Jessedrumin]

I vote yes I have gen 3 and am looking at upgrading I think I’ll wait until it becomes standard

[@KegLand]

No worries at all. Will not be long now.

[@zibzer]

Why not simply add an aux temp probe jack on the side of the Brewzilla rather than having to deal with the added complexity and cost of the bluetooth sender?

[@KegLand]

That is a fair point. We could do that. It was spoken about in the office so it's possible this may happen in the future.

[@icemanknobby]

If this is implemented that I think is a must, when would you be including or when would this part be available. I am just about to order a Gen 4 in Thailand it would be very unlikely they would stock this as a spare part, if included I would wait I guess, but when?

[@KegLand]

We have just started to ship the head exchanger dishes. We will make them included in future but we currently do not have enough stock of them yet as the demand has been quite high.

[@rcr286]

I'm in the market for an AIO system and Brewzilla shares the top of my list with a couple other brands. It seems that the HED is required equipment for consistency. I realize this is not expensive as an add-on (however it's not available in the U.S. as of mid-Jan '23), but it really seems it should be standard equipment and included in each kit. Thank you for all the other information on the PID and BT thermometer. GREAT info!!!

[@rcr286]

Actually, the more I read others' experiences and see more videos, I can't bring myself to buy a BZ Gen4 until the HED is available in the U.S.. Again, it really seems like it is required kit to manage your mash, so I really hope that the HED is included in the future. Until then...waiting.

[@KegLand]

We have more stock arriving in USA soon. Sorry it's taken a bit long to get the stock over there. With that said if you are doing single infusion mash the HED is not really necessary. It's more valuable for step mash or raising the temp for mash out.

[@pawwaldner8628]

You should make a video how to calibrate the real time temperature on controller or whatever it needs to get the temperature right because it's out....

[@KegLand]

That is a fair pont. We will look at doing a video like this in the future

[@user-yo6ex8bm3b]

Hey key & keglqnd. I think it will be a good idea with the plate as standard- have it on my Brewzilla 65 a it works fine with the heat 👍 Sofus 🇩🇰🍻🇩🇰

[@greenleaf512]

add the plate as standard makes perfect sense

[@KegLand]

yes the plate makes a signficant difference.

[@bradleylemon4750]

Awsome products coming out of Kegland. Fresh back into kit and kilo brewing after many years, and have already purchased into the RAPT eco system with controller and pill. Absolutely loving it. Would love to see a Brewzilla Gen 4 + starter kit for those fresh into all grain with all these recommended accesories, similar to your kegarator kits that i have purchased. As i feel all grain is my next progression and very keen on the Brewzilla Gen 4 65L.

[@KegLand]

Yes you should give it a go. We do have a number of recommended kits on the website already. Some of them are already prize winning recipes that were given to us from BJCP competition winners.

[@beersontap]

Hell yeah! Standard

[@devilmaycare2809]

After buying my gen 4 a month ago, why after the year this video has been out hasn't the heat exchange dish been added to the system as standard when you know it make the system work better??

[@KegLand]

We get about 60% of customers who are not doing step mashes and are happy to not use the HED. So we are worried about increasing the price of the base unit if not everyone needs the part. Even if we made it included it would be a similar price increase to purchasing it separately so it's not like you would get it for free. Definitely if you do step mashes it's much nicer to have the HED but it comes down to how you brew.

[@pavonino]

Hey Kegland, there is a problem in your PID algorithm, and you can see it in your video at 8:52, the temperature cutout is not disabled in PID mode so when you hit your setpoint the power clicks off and on resulting in higher output and overshooting. The comment about hysteresis not applying in PID mode should be true but in the current firmware The hysteresis still applies and will turn off heat until temperature drops by the hysteresis value.

[@KegLand]

Even with a 32a circuit breaker you would be falling a bit short. You need about 50amp.

[@ziggypuppyproductions7453]

Would love to see the see the heat exchanger offered and offered to those of us who already have the gen 4 at a discount or a slight increase or same price for new purchases. If it makes the product better than the original design why would you not include it at current pricing?

[@bryangirolami3814]

Please include the Heat Exchanger Dish in all Gen 4 brewzillas

[@kroddn3511]

If I ever have that luck to get a 65L Gen 4 (in Germany) I would apprechiate that plate to be included ;-)

[@KegLand]

Yes we need to do more to get a distributor in Germany. Which home brew store in Germany do you normally purchase from?

[@johnkoopmans8278]

Great concept, but wouldn't the plate have to be exactly horizontal? Otherwise, even if slightly tipped, almost all of the wort will fall off one side of the plate, rather than distribute around the entire circumference.

[@KegLand]

No it's not an issue. The plate does have spacers to ensure the distance to the screen and base is even. But we did testing without this and it still worked just as well too so I dont think this is an issue.

[@johndonovan3353]

So far it looks like a great idea.

[@KegLand]

Thanks John. We appreciate it.

[@PetraKann]

A vessel that is fully jacketed will have a more even temperature distribution as well as heating up the contents of the vessel more uniformly. Even in this situation there will be a temperature gradient within the liquid with the centre being the coolest zone because it’s further away from the inner vessel wall. We really need to know the thermal limits of your process. This is an engineering challenge in pasteurisation. Legally you need to coolest region to be above a specific temperature for a minimum length of time. This means that there will be hotter regions and longer exposure to heat which can cause undesired side effects like denaturing of proteins and enzyme activity degradation etc. The important thing with home breweries is the ability to reproduce your brewing conditions with as much process control as you can afford. You will be surprised as to how little instrumentation and process control large commercial breweries actually use. The approach generally is to target critical process areas and focus on equipment design. If you have poor equipment design and skimp on materials and fabrication quality and then expect to solve all your production inefficiencies and quality control issues with fancy control systems and instrumentations, your accountant will be on the phone before you can say jack robinson. And then you will have complaints from the public and clients that are buying and trying to sell your varying quality products.

[@KegLand]

Yes we absolutely recommend the use of the jacket too. Our jackets are also relatively thick compared with what is out there in the marketplace. We also have a new Gen 4 jacket that not only covers the brewery but also goes over the recirculation arm so I hope when you see this available soon you will be happy.

[@PetraKann]

@@KegLand I was referring to Jacketed Stainless vessels that have steam/hot water/cooling fluid running through that cavity between the vessel and the outer jacket. Insulation is definitely a good addition to the mashing vessel and also the fermenter. Cheers

[@petedudley1]

One potential issue with the heat exchanger dish is that it might denature more enzymes in the mash. If more of the wort is forced into close contact with the elements, even if the elements are low density, you might overheat the wort as it recirculates. The price of more efficient heating might be less efficient conversion of the starches, and as lower mash efficiency. Have you tested this?

[@KegLand]

We have not experienced this issue. The heat exchanger dish draws more heat out of the elements so we have noticed that the elements actually run cooler due to the heat being drawn out of them more efficiently

[@nicholaskeys7150]

I see that you can just manually control the heating element by % that might work better for distillation? I had a gen 3 it really didn't work well for that. Hopefully the gen 4 will work better?

[@zt7489]

Watching these videos waiting for my unit to arrive, so I'm reading the gen 4 manual. Your manual says for 23L :- Set the P coefficient to 0.250 Set the I coefficient to 0.010 Set the D coefficient to 0.075 Are these still the default settings, please? For people filling 19L corny kegs (63% of a full 30L batch), what settings would you recommend as a starting point, please?

[@mbourke85]

Awesome video @kegland. I'll be putting an order in today

[@KegLand]

Thanks for your support. We really appreciate it.

[@xkeithedgex]

Is there a way to update the firmware to add auto pid tuning? This is fairly standard with most pid controllers. I’m surprised that we would have to manually mess with these values

[@beanrod]

Vote standard here nice work

[@fachu2]

Hell Yeah make it standard and add the minimal extra cost in.

[@KegLand]

Yes we are starting to think the same thing. It's not very expensive to put in one more plate and it really improves the heat up efficiency.

[@fachu2]

@@KegLand I can't wait for the next batch to come in cos I snapping one up Instantly

[@rhysdejager]

It would be nice if the extra temp probe just plugged into the controller rather than having a whole separate device.

[@sr13500]

I dont really understand why the liquid would travel "uphill" over the dish as described at 5:18, wouldnt the dish need to be oriented the other way up to get this outcome?

[@KegLand]

fluid dynamics is strange, for sure!

[@pernielsen867]

As for the Heat Exchanger Disk, - what is the risk of stuck mash/grains between the two disks? Hope you understand what I mean.

[@KegLand]

well, zero, with good practice, as this sits under the false bottom

[@melkyriakou1555]

Thanks Kee, top stuff, loved the PID lesson. I am not fully sold on all the stuff, don't like cleaning too many bits and pieces, and I actually find the Gen 4 to heat up fast enough on just standard 10 amp power. I use a neoprene jacket from a Gen 3 which I've stretched around to fit. Not sure if that makes much difference, but in my testing with a temp probe in the mash, the temp differential with the built in bottom probe during recirculation is surprisingly bugger all anyway. Also, you know what would be cool, integration with brewfather during a brew (like grainfather with their app). Any chance? Not a massive deal, but I am usually running around doing other stuff (kids and wife related) during a brew day so it would help for sure.

[@KegLand]

Hey Mel. We have already done some integration with BrewFather but I would agree that it would be great if we had live updates so you can look at the brewfather display panel as you brew. This has already been spoken about and it's likely this will be available soon.

[@RolyNZ]

@@KegLand Any update on brewfather integration? I take it Brewfather is a separate entity to you guys so you can't make it hapen, but I would love a bit of flash App/recipe/BZ4 integration + control, not a dealbreaker, but my mates original Grainfather with a bluetooth controller is so sweet with the app control. (I win with on the gear stakes with the central drain and the mash pipe with the holes up the sides!!)

[@NearByGG]

Hi. How many BLE temp propes can be connected at once? Like one for the top and one for the middle, is that possible?

[@TheFrankonia83]

A curious question: The probe essentially is only useful when mashing. Do i have to switch of Bluetooth before boiling or can i dump the probe inside the boil? Also: If i want to tighten the plate with the wingnut it totally bends the bottom filter to the point that it wouldn't flow on one side of the filter.

[@KegLand]

Just switch the temp probe from BLuetooth to built in when you get to the boil stage.

[@danc701]

Great videos. Any idea when we might start seeing the heat exchanger, Bluetooth temp probe, dolly, and other accessories for the Brewzilla Gen 4 available in the USA? Thanks!

[@KegLand]

KegLand has two main distributors in America. www.morebeer.com and www.williamsbrwing.com It's best to contact these guys directly and they can give you lead times and approximate arrival dates.

[@sunder1983]

My brain isn't working today. Just to confirm for us freedom unit folks would the recommended sensor differential be 18 degrees F?

[@KegLand]

We've looked at this, but tooling costs are probably a bit restrictive

[@HomeBrewNetwork]

Great video!

[@KegLand]

Thanks Gash. How are you going with the heat exchanger dish? Have you had a chance to try it out?

[@HomeBrewNetwork]

@@KegLand I use it every time, makes a huge difference in my experiments! Cheers!

[@ashleym2878]

When you heat the water before adding grain what effect does it have if you don't put the blue tooth probe in until you have added the grain? Also when you recirculate won't the probe be in the way

[@KegLand]

It's quite easy to recirculate with the probe in place. I personally find it best to head up water withou the bluetooth probe but when I start mashing I then use the bluetooth probe. This works well for me.

[@jasonkerr9174]

I would agree in making the heat exchanger plate a part of the base package. I just purchased a gen 4 unit and was wondering when they heat exchanger plates will be sold separately? cheers

[@KegLand]

Yes we are going to have them on the website soon. We are just waiting on more stock.

[@markrose8250]

Any idea when the heat exchanger or diverter plates for the GEN 4s will be available in the United States?

[@nicksutton6373]

Heat exhanger plate looks like a great idea at the mash, how does it behave during the boil? - is there a risk of the plate/screen combo being lifted by the boil action?

[@fluffymatt9239]

This is something I was about to ask. If say it did effect it then they could always added mesh like qualities to it but not directly in the center which would allow the wort to flow outwards but also give the boil more surface area to penetrate

[@KegLand]

It operates in the same way. The bubbles in the boil just go around the edges of this plate so it's not an issue.

[@tomwidauer8376]

I saw you are using the top plate for the mash. I have used it once and it was a bit of a nightmare tbh and many people recommend doing away with the top screen altogether. So what is the go here? As for the heat exchanger, I already have it, together with the RAPT Thermometer but I am still struggling with consistent temperature during mash. I guess I need to play with PID a little, although some people also advise not to use PID at all and instead manually adjust settings, something that defeats the purpose of having a fully automated system.

[@KegLand]

Always use the top plate. Helps with sparging evenly and dramatically reduces the chances of blocking the pump. We tend to not use PID - a RAPT BLE probe is a better option IMO

[@qlddrones]

Why was the dish never made a standard part of the Gen 4? Did it not live up to the hype?

[@KegLand]

We still get about half of our customers who only do single infusion mash who feel that it's not necessary. For step mash I think it's essential but we are worried about including the part and making the BZ more expensive for everyone if only about half of customers want this feature.

[@cl4367]

I havent found any information on warranty period. Also can the electric elements be replaced upon failure? US customer here.

[@KegLand]

Check with local distributors as warranty laws/periods differ

[@Nickll84]

Amazing! Include it!

[@KegLand]

Glad you like it!

[@demonllama172]

Do you notice any darkening of the wort with the heat exchanger dish? It seems like holding the wort that close to the element might accelerate maillard reactions and make the wort darker than normal.

[@KegLand]

No it's quite the reverse actually. As the wort is flowing over the elements at a higher speed there is better heat exchange efficiency and the surface temperature of the elements stays lower not higher.

[@leroygross9144]

cool I like what you did🍻👍

[@KegLand]

thanks Leroy!

[@pawwaldner8628]

Where you from...?

[@SimonBorg]

I'd also love to lnow when we can purchase the plates and when the ble probes will be back in stock.

[@KegLand]

The BLE probes are in stock now but the heating exchange dish is still a few weeks away