Thanks to HBF Contributor Aaron N for this arms on evaluate! Aaron is a complicated brewer, very long time reader and a serial tipster!
FermZilla All Rounder
Fermenting underneath strain has been a method I’ve had my eye on for a while now and have felt the urge to experiment with it increasingly recently. To me essentially the most interesting advantage of pressurized fermentation is that on the finish of fermentation the beer is absolutely carbonated and able to drink (not accounting for beers that profit from a interval of conditioning). Different advantages embrace a doubtlessly faster fermentation, the next retention of fascinating aroma compounds that in any other case is likely to be off gassed (e.g. hop aromas), and the power to ferment at hotter temperatures with out a excessive presence of undesirable esters.
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I’ve been fermenting with a stainless-steel conical fermenter for the previous few years and have actually loved it. It’s simple to scrub, sturdy, makes pressurized transfers easy, and permits me to gather yeast for re-use. The mannequin I’ve doesn’t help pressurized fermentation as its strain restrict is 1-2 psi. Stainless-steel fermenters able to strain fermentation might be on the dear aspect and since I don’t really have a necessity for 2 stainless conical fermenters, I couldn’t justify the associated fee. There may be, nonetheless, an economical technique to get into pressurized fermentation due to new plastic merchandise which have entered the market within the final couple of years.
The FermZilla All Rounder is a part of Kegland’s line of plastic fermenters they’ve been creating and bettering upon in recent times. Kegland is a producer out of Australia that appears to have their ear to the bottom relating to creating merchandise that homebrewers worldwide are clamoring for. The All Rounder is particularly designed for pressurized fermentation which caught my eye and it has a gamut of extra equipment which additional drew me in. From my preliminary analysis it appeared like the right technique to enter the pressurized fermentation sport and permit me to maintain my different fermentation practices like closed transfers with out a ton of additional gear or work. Plus, coming from Kegland I knew I might belief them to place out a high quality piece of substances and I knew that they again up their merchandise with top-notch tutorial movies.
As famous, there are a number of equipment that mate with the All Rounder equipment and since I’m within the behavior of doing closed transfers, the Stainless-Metal Strain equipment appeared like a beneficial addition to the fermenter itself. This equipment arrived in the identical massive field as the remainder of the All Rounder package deal which included the next parts:
- 60 Liter (15.9 gallon) Fermenter
- Stainless-Metal Stand
- Stainless-Metal Deal with
- Lid with 35 psi Strain-Launch Valve (PRV)
- 3-Piece Airlock
- Grommet Bottle Cap
- Thermometer Sticker
- Quantity Marking Sticker
- Stainless-Metal Strain equipment
- (2) Stainless-Metal Fuel Ball Lock Posts
- Silicone tubing
- Stainless-Metal Float
So far as high quality of fabric, all parts had been nicely made and with out flaws. The grade of plastic used for the fermenter itself is akin to that of a two-liter bottle of soda. It might be a bit thicker, but when so, not by a lot. The fermenter has a date stamped on it to point its anticipated lifespan. At a sure level it’ll have to be changed, however the replacements are moderately priced. The deal with, its accompanying {hardware}, and the stand are all good high quality metal and robust sufficient to have a strong really feel to them, rigid and inflexible sufficient for his or her functions. The PRV physique is made from higher-grade plastic with a metal spring and pull ring. The airlock that got here with it’s the prevalent 3-piece selection that I’m positive each homebrewer is aware of. The bottle cap is a screw-on sort that, once more, is harking back to a soda bottle with the exception that there’s a grommet inset in the midst of the cap’s heart to permit for the insertion of the 3-piece airlock. The thermometer sticker has each Fahrenheit and Celsius starting from 50-97 levels F in increments of 3s and 4s and from 10 to 36 levels C in increments of two. For the amount marking sticker it’s detailed to the quarter liter from 0 to 60 liters on the metric aspect and 0 to fifteen gallons on the Imperial aspect. The Strain Package contents had the high-grade stainless-steel fuel ball lock posts with a feminine threaded connection, the range that may screw onto the highest of a soda bottle, in addition to 1 / 4 inch diameter barb to mate to the silicone tubing. The tubing is 31 inches lengthy and is a high quality materials. The float is so mild it looks like it’s made from plastic, however I belief that may be a purposeful design and it’s unblemished stainless-steel.
The specs (tailored from MoreBeer’s product web page):
- 60 L (15.9 gal) Whole Quantity
- Strain Rated to 2.5 Bar (36.2 psi)
- Temperature Rated to 50°C (122°F)
- Top in Stand – 34″
- Top w/ Airlock – 36.5″
- Tank Diameter – 13.9″
- Lid Ports – 28 mm PCO 1881 threads
Fingers on Evaluation
One of many options of Kegland’s merchandise is their documentation. Whether or not it’s in PDF or video kind, their content material is well-produced and simple to comply with. The PDFs are simple to learn, have helpful diagrams, and purpose to be succinct, solely offering the mandatory information with out being too wordy – admirable! Relating to the All Rounder, their four-page documentation covers warnings, meeting, and cleansing data in addition to some useful hyperlinks all through. For his or her Unitank and All Rounder collection of fermenters in addition they have a information to fixing leaks that has high-quality pictures and many useful nuggets of knowledge.
The PDFs and video got here in helpful at a pair factors when assembling the All Rounder as there have been no laborious copies of the directions included with the unit. All informed, it was an intuitive meeting. The stainless steel ball lock posts screwed onto the lid simply as did the PRV. I attempted to tighten the ball lock posts down to a degree that felt comfortable, however I attempted to watch out to not overtighten for worry of warping the plastic lid. This got here into play later once I realized the unit was not holding strain. That would have been prevented if I had adopted the Kegland information for fixing leaks and checked the connections previous to utilizing. As soon as the posts had been on the lid, I hooked up the silicone tubing to one in all them and hooked up the opposite finish to the floater. I ensured the gasket was correctly seated on the lip of the lid. The amount marking and temperature sensing stickers went on the skin of the fermenter merely sufficient.
Filling the Fermenter
Come brew day, filling the fermenter was a breeze as I draped the output hose coming from my plate chiller down into the fermenter by way of the one opening on the highest. For the reason that empty fermenter is a bit unstable, I used to be cautious when filling to ensure the hose didn’t unbalance the rig in any respect and was additional cautious to not bump it in any respect mid-filling. The regular circulation of wort dropping into the fermenter completely aerated the answer as evidenced by the mass of froth on high of the wort. After I had collected the specified quantity, I pulled the hose, pitched my yeast, positioned the lid on high, and screwed down the lid collar as tight as I might by hand. Shifting the rig from the filling spot to my fermenter, a distance of about fifteen toes, was a precarious operation made much less difficult by the handles, however nonetheless a job being that there have been twelve gallons of liquid sloshing round inside a sixteen gallon vessel. I positioned the stand inside my fermentation chamber, propped the vessel on high, and taped my temperature sensor to the aspect of the vessel. I’ve a thermowell on my conical fermenter and might be wanting into including one to the All Rounder sooner or later as it’s one thing that Kegland gives for the All Rounder.
Spunding Valve and Fermentation
As soon as located within the fermentation chamber, I hooked up a spunding valve to one of many ball lock posts on the All Rounder. Being that this was the primary time I had used a spunding valve there was a bit learning I had accomplished to piece one collectively and determine learn how to function it. A lot credit score goes to this website for serving to me alongside the way in which. I dialed within the launch valve on the spunding valve to my desired strain, 10 psi, and left the yeast to do their work
Associated, Construct a Spunding Valve
Over the course of the subsequent few days I used to be a frequent customer to these yeasties, delighted to see them at work. It was refreshing to as soon as once more be capable of see fermentation at work, one thing I had missed whereas fermenting within the stainless conical. Though the yeast cells had been clearly energetic on every of my visits, I did discover that the strain gauge on the spunding valve was not studying a worth above zero as I had anticipated. What it got here all the way down to was that there was a small leak coming from one of many ball lock posts the place it seated on the lid. I discovered this by including CO2 from my tank to the All Rounder, spraying Star-San all around the lid, and seeing bubbles kind across the publish’s backside. It was at this level that I eliminated the ball lock publish and located that the gasket was not seated correctly inside it. I massaged it into place, put the publish again on the lid, discovered my Crescent wrench and tightened the publish down fairly securely. I added extra CO2 to the vessel, sprayed extra Star-San, and verified that there have been no extra leaks.
Tip: Don’t desire a leak… Comply with Kegland’s information for fixing leaks and checking connections previous to utilizing
On the next batch I fermented with the All Rounder I bumped into points with the fermenter holding strain as soon as once more. Inspecting all of it fastidiously I as soon as once more discovered that the gasket on of the ball lock posts was not correctly seated. I reseated the gasket and torqued on the ball lock publish, solely this time I used to be not as cautious concerning the quantity of power I utilized. This resulted within the threaded publish on the lid bending in close to the highest which prevents an hermetic fastening with the ball lock publish. I might be ordering a brand new lid and might be way more cautious subsequent time to not torque down the ball lock posts too tight. I could even apply some keg lube on the gasket to encourage a greater seal with out having to tighten it as a lot.
Taking Samples
Usually, throughout fermentation when utilizing my conical fermenter, I’ll take samples each few days for hydrometer readings. I used to be making an attempt to determine how that may work with the All Rounder since there isn’t any pattern port like a typical conical has. I made a decision to hook up a picnic faucet to the serving ball lock publish, the one related to the floater and tubing, and draw samples. This turned out to be an environment friendly method of drawing the liquid out, being that the vessel was underneath strain and would simply push out the beer. The one draw back is that on the strain I used to be working it underneath (~10 psi) it got here out slightly quick and I ended up with a foamy pattern in my take a look at jar. As soon as the froth subsided nonetheless, I used to be capable of get an correct studying from my hydrometer.
Chilly Crashing
After reaching my ultimate gravity it was time for a chilly crash. With ales I chilly crash as quickly as attainable by setting the fermentation chamber to 38 levels Fahrenheit. I used to be cautious to take away the spunding valve to keep away from suck-back in addition to monitoring the strain within the fermenter to make sure that the speedy cooling wouldn’t drop it to the purpose of collapsing the vessel partitions. As a precaution, I added a burst of CO2 a pair instances over the one to two-day technique of chilly crashing. Having set on the desired temperature for one more day and seeing that the sediment had largely all settled to the underside I knew it was time to switch.
Transferring to Kegs
Because of the lesson I realized about which publish to not use for the spunding valve it was simple to know which one to connect my switch line to when it got here time to maneuver the completed beer to kegs. I hooked up a ball lock disconnect that’s related to 2 output ball lock disconnects which I join to 2 kegs. As soon as every thing was connected, I opened the PRVs on the receiving kegs and watched the beer circulation from the fermenter by way of the strains to the kegs. By means of the method I added CO2 from my tank to the All Rounder three or 4 instances to make sure that the strain within the fermenter stayed above that of the kegs. My impatience might have additionally inspired me to do that extra typically than wanted as a way to improve the circulation fee. The switch went easily and solely took about twenty minutes earlier than I had two full kegs and an empty fermenter, except for the yeast cake and trub.
Cleanup
Following the directions from Kegland, I used sizzling water to spray down the within of the vessel, eradicating the vast majority of the trub and yeast cake. One of many dwelling brewery instruments I’ve definitely gotten my good out of is Mark’s Keg and Carboy Washer. This instrument got here in helpful as soon as once more in cleansing the All Rounder. I added PBW to the basin, combined it with heat water, and turned on the pump. After recirculating for fifteen minutes there was nonetheless a hoop of post-krausen residue across the high quarter of the within of the fermenter. At this level I took a mushy rag dipped in PBW water and was capable of take away it with a reasonable quantity of scrubbing. The opposite items had been cleaned simply with a wipe-down and rinse. Within the case of the posts and tubing I as soon as once more made use of the Keg and Carboy Washer equipment and hooked these as much as the pump and circulated the PBW water by way of them. With all components cleaned and rinsed I set them out to dry.
All Rounder Issues to Take into account
For beers I brew typically I like to gather and reuse yeast. This course of is made fairly easy with the conical fermenter I take advantage of because it permits for drawing that yeast out of the underside dump valve post-fermentation. The All Rounder doesn’t have such a function. If yeast harvesting is one thing that’s necessary to the brewer, it’d show harder with the All Rounder. I consider it may be accomplished by fastidiously amassing it after transferring the absolutely fermented beer off by pouring it right into a sanitized vessel, it could simply be trickier than with a conical.
When almost stuffed, the 15.9 gallon All Rounder was cumbersome to maneuver. It was heavy and awkward to maneuver throughout a room. I might not suggest transferring it up or down stairs with out assist. The transferring strap would definitely make transport simpler and fewer harmful. When empty, the fermenter can also be a bit awkward as it’s top-heavy and liable to falling over even when securely on the stand.
The fabric comparability to stainless already made, the opposite be aware on the fabric is that the fermenter physique plastic isn’t the very best grade of fabric. I consider it’s completely passable for the aim it serves, and it’s what makes it an inexpensive piece of substances. Moreover, as famous concerning the lid turning into deformed as a consequence of my enthusiasm for overtightening, I consider it could be an improve to have a stainless-steel lid, however that would definitely bump the price of the unit up.
All Rounder Advantages
Already famous, however price mentioning once more is the cost-effectiveness of the All Rounder. For underneath $100 one can have a high-quality fermenter that’s able to strain fermentation with none additional modification. In comparison with a stainless fermenter that does the identical factor, one can purchase an All Rounder for a fraction of the price of the stainless gear.
Though I’ve not tried it, the All Rounder is a serving-capable vessel. I can see how it could be simple to do and could be a technique to cut back the quantity of substances a homebrewer maintains (however who amongst us are really destined to have much less gear?). To have a vessel to ferment, carbonate, and serve 5 or ten plus gallons at a time could be interesting to these with out loads of house or are in search of simplicity.
The cleansing facet of the All Rounder is engaging. In comparison with stainless it might not be as sturdy simply by the character of the fabric, nevertheless it was easy to scrub and simple to see when all residue was eliminated. If cared for correctly, it ought to final a number of years if not longer.
Kegland continues to innovate new merchandise and equipment that mate with this collection of fermenter. At present accessible are the strain equipment which I’ve outlined, a thermowell to allow a extra exact measure of fermentation temperature, a transferring strap that makes transporting the vessel simpler and safer, in addition to a floating dip tube filter that helps to dam hop particulate and different solids from getting sucked up by the switch tube. The help that exists and the prospect for continued innovation on this product line are definitely encouraging. In reality, Kegland has a nifty dry hop equipment on their website, however it’s presently not supplied exterior of Australia. I put in a request to MoreBeer so hopefully that might be on its technique to the US of A in time.
Conclusions
Whether or not seeking to get into strain fermentation or simply purchasing for a brand new fermenter, the All Rounder deserves consideration. It’s nicely made by an organization that backs up their merchandise with help and high quality documentation and is dedicated to persevering with to make the product line maximally helpful to dwelling brewers. I stay up for mastering the artwork of strain fermentation and trust that the All Rounder will serve me nicely all through this endeavor.
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Particular thanks for MoreBeer for offering the unit used for analysis on this evaluate.
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Ensure the parts you employ are suitable and rated in your supposed utility. Contact producer with questions on suitability or a selected utility. All the time learn and comply with producer instructions. evaluate:allrounder tag:tpr
