[Thirsty_Monk]

Would you mind sharing a pic? Thinking about putting an Anvil in my laundry/brew room. How much water do you use during a normal brewday? Thanks!

The Anvil lid is pre-fit for a distillation column, and based on the hole size I *think* a 2" triclamp bulkhead would fit without any modification.  You'd then need a 2" to 1.5" Triclamp reducer for the steam slayer.  Instead I used a 1 5/8" knock out punch I already had on the blanks provided to make a hole that fits the 1.5" TC bulkhead.

I got the 9 gallon/hr nozzle but I think the 6gph would have been adequate.

Fancy condenser. Very nice.

[69franx]

Several months down the road here, any follow up here in the Foundry? Back in stock and thinking about it after the chilly brewday I had 2 weeks ago. Still not seeing much about this specific unit in here.
Who has one?
What do you like about it?
What don't you like about it?
What would you change if possible?
Done any mods on it?
Would you recommend?


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[69franx]

Are you getting consistent results?
How much did you have to adjust from however you brewed before this unit?

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[oginme]

I have the 6.5 gallon version of the Anvil Foundry.  I was sold on the Anvil product over the competitors due to price point, temperature control range, size of the unit which fit my brewing habits (I do 10 liter batches), double walled construction, dual power input capability, and the Blichmann/Anvil customer service which is excellent.

The one thing I don't like is the location and ease of access to the control panel.  If the face were pitched to face upward just a bit, it would make adjustment and operation a lot easier.

Right now, if I were to change anything it would be the head on the recirculation pump to allow for an exit valve to control flow rate rather than the hose clamp.  I have not done any mods on it yet, and this would most likely be the only one that I consider.

I would recommend the Anvil Foundry if it fits your requirements.  The controls are manual and push button.  If you prefer having Bluetooth controls or the ability to set in an automated mash schedule then there are other, more pricey options (Grainfather). 

My process is now well established with the unit after 19 brews.  It took three brews to get the process down and figured out to my liking.  I took another 4 brews to play around with my crush to get satisfactory results.  Since then I have been cruising along and getting very consistent results.  I had previously been doing BIAB on my gas stove (v. high output burner) and this pretty much now mimics that process without all the mess of moving the kettle and wrapping it with insulation for the mash steps.  Having the unit full with water and automatically start heating after setting the delay, means I start mashing in sooner in the mornings when I brew.  This is traded off with a lengthier cleaning process at the end of the brew session, so my net time is the same.

[chinaski]

Would you mind sharing a pic? Thinking about putting an Anvil in my laundry/brew room. How much water do you use during a normal brewday? Thanks!

The Anvil lid is pre-fit for a distillation column, and based on the hole size I *think* a 2" triclamp bulkhead would fit without any modification.  You'd then need a 2" to 1.5" Triclamp reducer for the steam slayer.  Instead I used a 1 5/8" knock out punch I already had on the blanks provided to make a hole that fits the 1.5" TC bulkhead.

I got the 9 gallon/hr nozzle but I think the 6gph would have been adequate.

Fancy condenser. Very nice.

I did exactly what the OP was asking about- keep the kettle and mash tun and move to an electric heat source.  I bought a commercial-grade 240V induction burner, had an outlet wired as part of a renovation, and built the BrunDog condenser (others call it a Steam Slayer).  Super happy with it- plenty of burner power to heat strike water quickly (I use very little of the available power when the lid and condenser are on).  Have some steam when I put my immersion chiller in as then the kettle lid doesn't seal.  Others mount the condenser to the upper part of the kettle wall- thus eliminating this issue...

[69franx]

I have the 6.5 gallon version of the Anvil Foundry.  I was sold on the Anvil product over the competitors due to price point, temperature control range, size of the unit which fit my brewing habits (I do 10 liter batches), double walled construction, dual power input capability, and the Blichmann/Anvil customer service which is excellent.

The one thing I don't like is the location and ease of access to the control panel.  If the face were pitched to face upward just a bit, it would make adjustment and operation a lot easier.

Right now, if I were to change anything it would be the head on the recirculation pump to allow for an exit valve to control flow rate rather than the hose clamp.  I have not done any mods on it yet, and this would most likely be the only one that I consider.

I would recommend the Anvil Foundry if it fits your requirements.  The controls are manual and push button.  If you prefer having Bluetooth controls or the ability to set in an automated mash schedule then there are other, more pricey options (Grainfather). 

My process is now well established with the unit after 19 brews.  It took three brews to get the process down and figured out to my liking.  I took another 4 brews to play around with my crush to get satisfactory results.  Since then I have been cruising along and getting very consistent results.  I had previously been doing BIAB on my gas stove (v. high output burner) and this pretty much now mimics that process without all the mess of moving the kettle and wrapping it with insulation for the mash steps.  Having the unit full with water and automatically start heating after setting the delay, means I start mashing in sooner in the mornings when I brew.  This is traded off with a lengthier cleaning process at the end of the brew session, so my net time is the same.

Thanx oginme, kind of exactly what I was looking to hear. Not sold on it yet, but it's sounding like a great solution

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[narvin]

Several months down the road here, any follow up here in the Foundry? Back in stock and thinking about it after the chilly brewday I had 2 weeks ago. Still not seeing much about this specific unit in here.
Who has one?
What do you like about it?
What don't you like about it?
What would you change if possible?
Done any mods on it?
Would you recommend?


Sent from my Pixel 2 using Tapatalk

I have the 10.5 gallon version.  The short answer is yes, I'd recommend it, with the caveat that it isn't a fully automated system.  However, it provides excellent control for what I want to do.  Being able to set the power in 1% increments (probably a duty cycle controller) is great, especially given the low but precise power needed for boiling with the steam slayer.  The controls are easy to use (sure, you have to bend over to use the control panel) and the delay timer and temperature set point that turns the heat on and off work very well.  I didn't buy the pump since I already had a few, but I do recirculate.  I haven't had to change recipes really, other than figuring out what the kettle losses and boil off would be for a 5 gallon batch.

As mentioned above, getting the crush right has taken a little bit of experimentation.  I don't think it would matter at all if you were just doing a single infusion, but for recirculating I want to limit grain husks coming through the basket or restricting the flow.  I've considered using a BIAB mesh but held off so far since it will be another thing to clean.  I'm aiming for about 3/4 - 1 gal / minute recirculation rate.  I think less aggressive stirring / clump breaking is helping, vs cooler batch sparging where I can stir the crap out of it.  I'm also still trying to perfect the whirlpool (I use this https://www.brewhardware.com/product_p/spincycleoverboard.htm) but so far it's been "good enough" for great beer.

[69franx]

So it looks like the newest edition has moved the control panel to near the top of the unit. Just what everyone was wishing for. If this cold weather hangs out, I'm grabbing a Foundry

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[goose]

I believe that John Blickmann has written an article on the AHA forum on how to size your ventilation system to ensure that you remove the excess water vapor and allow in the make up air.

I don’t think that John wrote something in the forum. He did author an article in BYO on the subject. I happened to review it for John prior to its publication.

If you can place a make up air vent close to your boiling location, you can improve the energy efficiency of your ventilation system by not wasting conditioned air. Do pay attention to the sound attenuation ideas that John makes in the article. A good vent fan does make a lot of noise.

Regarding the 240v question, I strongly recommend going to 240 since that’s the way to get enough power for quicker heat up times. You can get by with 120, but you’ll be happier with 240.

And use 1/2 the current than a 120 VAC system.

[Tim]

If you went BIAB you could really downsize the amount of equipment and lugging.  Go 240V if at all possible. One of the all in one BIAB systems (like the foundry) would be a great thing. 

If you are adventurous and knowledgeable, you could convert your 15 gallon boil kettle to electric with a 5500 watt element.  You could build an inexpensive simple 240v controller with an Inkbird, MyPIN or Auber PID for probably under $150, if you took the time to really source out the parts and can solder. 

If you try induction, this would eliminate the controller, but you would need a good thermometer for mashing.  You also need to make sure your kettle is induction capable. I was given a couple 1800w, 120V induction cooktops from Aldi and they are not very accurate and temp is set at 20 degree intervals.  I tried to boil a 3 gallon batch and getting more than 4 or 5 gallons of water to boil is almost impossible. I ended up heating it initially with the cooktop and a 120v heatstick.  I would get a 240V induction cooktop for sure.

[voigt.mike]

I love your ventilation hood. That is on my list. I brew in a basement workshop. It has a bathroom exhaust fan that doesn’t seem to do much and a floor drain that works great. That fan is right over where the city water comes into my house. In the coming months, I’ll have a cold water spigot, ventilation hood cobbled from ductwork, and 240v outlet in that spot. Hot water is a taller order, but a 5500w kettle makes hot water pretty quick. I’m currently running a cord all the way from my dryer outlet on the other side of the basement, and schlepping 5 gallon buckets of water for wort and cooling,


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[pete b]

The price of the Anvil makes it very intriguing. I think though I should get a 240 outlet and a powerful heat source in a hot plate type set up, if possible. I want to be able to put multiple types of vessels on it so not a built in immersible type. Not induction as I need to use both copper and SS on it. Anyone know of a good heat source?