The controller is super easy to use and you probably don’t even need to read all the instructions to operate it.
My biggest issue was with the grain. It was too thick for the bottom screen. So I was unable to use the top screen since I had to use my spatula to keep the grain from caking up during the mash. I had to stir up the grain every five minutes or so.
I ended up with 1.060 gravity, which is exactly what I was looking for, so I’m pretty happy with that . It took about 50 minutes to reach mash temp and about the same to reach boil.
It’s currently sitting in the fermentor. I expect it to ferment for four days. But I plan to condition it for at least a week before kegging.
BTW, the beer I brewed is an English stout.
I’m working hard to convince myself I don’t need this, I won’t use it, and I don’t have space, and extract brewing is just fine for what I need. Since the original post, that is. Good luck with the fermentation, I’m following along.
Consider adding rice hulls to the mash!
I’ve found it helps immensely with preventing a stuck mash/sparge.
I recently bought 18kg of rice hulls thinking “I’ll always need rice hulls”. The next batch I made didn’t need any hulls, seems the maltster uses a coarser crush now…
I’ve heard that helps and I was planning on trying it but I completely forgot.