KegLand Questions and Answers

[KegLand-com-au]

@KegLand-com-au Do you have any updates on the cryo hops? I've heard rumours Bintani are not making these available to homebrewers this year...

This is something we are looking into at the moment but have not made a decision yet. Will be able to get back to you shortly on this one. Once we have some more information we will update this part of the website:
https://www.kegland.com.au/ingredients/hops/cyro-hops.html

 

[KegLand-com-au]

The Duotight flow stopper - automatic keg filler doesn't stop the flow properly against ~15psi - it just keeps on leaking.

https://www.kegland.com.au/duotight-flow-stopper.html

First time I did a pressurised transfer I had the spunding valve cracked so that the sound was audible and after the keg filled it just kept on leaking.

I'm not sure whether it's because the float ball I received has some burrs on it?

The main reason that I purchased this is so that I can fill kegs unattended while I'm spending time with the kids!

I subsequently tested it with a PET bottle.

The only way that I can get it to seal upon filling is if I use the spunding valve and turn it way, way down so you can only just hear it during the transfer.

The float needs to be clean and without burrs on it. Can you please email us some photos of the ball and the setup. From the image attached it looks like you have it attached to a PET bottle. Not sure how this is working. You need to have enough pressure being applied to the tank/bottle so that the pressure pushed the ball up and stops the flow.

We have not heard of any issues with this device and I still use this device quite a lot myself. I generally fill the first part of the keg under some pressure. Once I have about 1-2 liters of beer in the keg. If I do this while the keg has some head pressure then this will prevent beer splashing and foaming up as i continue to fill. After I have about 1.5liters of beer in the keg I open the pressure release valve and the keg fills perfectly every time.

 

[KegLand-com-au]

Rather than cutting the beer lines as I previously suggested, it would be better (if possible) to just take two or more (one in, one out) of the beer lines out completely and swap them over to be the same bulkheads as is already on the Water In/Out lines. Going by the pictures, it looks like the beer lines may come out reasonably easy. That way there would still be the option to use it as a beer chiller down the track if desired by re-installing the beer lines. Unless I'm mistaken, that would then make this chiller pretty much the same as the MoreBeer version, and more suitable for fermenters which is is apparently the reason Kegland are selling so many units lately. Compatible replacement bulkheads could be sold as an optional extra "conversion kit".

View attachment 114606

Thanks for that. We do make these for More Beer at the moment and we customise them in this way but we have not started customising the chillers for the Australian market.

To be honest we still believe that on a small scale you are better off having a fermenting fridge rather than glycol chilled fermenter.

 

[KegLand-com-au]

Maybe Kegland can provide a few pics so we can see how much space is available. I also have the FTSs setup, and would like to keep things simple and use the submersible pump with the G40. I really don't want to go down the track of another pump, when I have a perfectly good one available. I also want to keep it tidy, and having an external pump is not ideal

I don't have any photos handy but next time we have one opened up we will take some photos and post them up on the website for you. You certainly will have enough space for a small 12v submersible pump or a few of them for that matter but having the pumps external to the unit will be more energy efficient and also will give you more cooling capacity overall.

 

[KegLand-com-au]

Yeah that's pretty much the idea. I figure the existing beer lines are just hollow pipes, so if they were lopped off, leaving an inch or so inside the chiller, that would make 'bulkheads' to attach coolant hoses to pretty much exactly how the MoreBeer 100's are configured to be more suitable for muliple fermenters.

The stainless coils are fairly easy to remove. You just need a phillips head screw driver so you take the top cover off the tank, then remove the line glands that hold the stainless steel coils into the side of the unit. Then remove the plastic frames that hold the cooling coils and within about 10 minutes you will have all the stainless coils removed. Putting them back in again will take you about 20-30mins.

 

[KegLand-com-au]

Hi Kegland,

I have a question about using the Icemaster G40 chillers pretty much exclusively for fermenters (and perhaps chilled fonts as a bonus), rather than mainly for chilling warm beer as intended. I have an Ss Brewtech Unitank and have ordered the FTSs kit, but I've now discovered I fundamentally mis-understood the difference between using the FTSs kit with the their glycol chiller vs the Icemaster chiller. While doing some research I came across how the Icemaster 100's are produced and sold in the US (example https://www.morebeer.com/products/icemaster-100-glycol-chiller-stainless-bulkheads.html) and now I'm wondering if it would be possible to adapt the G40 to operate in a similar manner?

As I'd initially only be using it to chill one fermeter, the easiest option would be if it's possible to squeeze the FTSs submersible pump down into the reservoir and run the coolant lines and power cable through the hole at the top of the unit (the hole for the agitator power cable), but it's hard to tell from pictures how much room there is in there. The other option, considering I'd be willing to forgo ever being able to chill beer, is to cut two or more of the eight "beer in/out" lines (one in, one out) and run hose off those to a submersible pump and return line straight back onto the tank (as described in the MoreBeer ad). The agitator pump may or may not be able to stay in place, but may not be needed anyway.

Anyway, hopefully that all makes sense? I'm really looking for ways to make my situation work, but sometimes I miss something important, so this might not be possible. I'd be interested to hear any other suggestions you have that might work with the equipment I have (Unitank with FTSs kit). I'll probably end up calling to discuss in more detail, but thought it might be worth posting here as well in case it helps someone else in a similar situation.


Thanks,
Steve

Yes it might eventually be worth us making a video on this particular topic and showing customers how they can modify the G40 specifically for fermenters. We probably need to start stocking some small 12v pumps for this application.

 

[KegLand-com-au]

Hi kegland. I see the flow control disconnects are already sold out. Any idea when they'll bee back in stock?

We should have the website updated with the next shipment date in 1 week. We are just trying to work out which container to bring them in on at the moment. We will put a date on the website soon here:
https://www.kegland.com.au/flow-control-ball-lock-disconnect-flow-restrictor.html

 

[KegLand-com-au]

Try Brewman I think he refills

I would keep an eye on this part of our website. We are updating this page frequently and we are constantly adding new filling sites to this map.
https://www.kegland.com.au/distributor/

 

[KegLand-com-au]

I didn't even realise this was a thing but it makes sense as I managed to drive down and see Brewman and he filled up my cylinder for me... Right after he threw my RPV in the bin because it flew out of his garage! I'll be emailing Kegland this week to sort out a new one.

This problem has well and truly been resolved. We had a number of cylinders in the first batch where the PRV valves were not working correctly and they were holding too much residual pressure behind them. You might find a lot of the older cylinders did not hold any residual pressure behind them making the RPV useless. The new model RPV valves are significantly more reliable. If you ever hear of any refill station that comes across an RPV valve that is not working correctly ask them to contact us and we will send out some free replacements to them.

The new model RPV valves can be signified by the score mark on the face of the RPV. See image here:
https://www.kegland.com.au/media/ca...9034_-_replacement_rpv_for_cylinder_valve.jpg

As you can see from the photo the new models has a small score around the hex hole in the middle of the RPV.

 

[fdsaasdf]

@KegLand-com-au I've now done 9 brew days on the Robobrew 65L and overall am quite happy with the unit.

One thing I have noticed is that the bottom screen and malt pipe screens both catch and scratch the outer cylinder when being inserted/removed. Although they seem to work well, and I haven't had issues with sediment escaping, they would be better with a silicon o-ring or some sort of other buffer to avoid scratching. When time permits I'll probably make one out of a silicon cutting mat.

Also, the top screen for the malt pipe doesn't really have anywhere to sit on the centre tube, and for thin mashes I've found it doesn't want to sit above the grain when recirculating - it starts to dig in. Again, a silicon o-ring will fix this by giving some resistance.

From an improvement perspective, I'd also like to see a sight glass, especially for checking the liquid level when the malt pipe is inserted or during the lift. Perhaps this could be included as a modular replacement/improvement for the pump return tube. Otherwise it would be straightforward to add one 90deg clockwise of that, which would give the added bonus of being able to use the stamped volume markings as a reference from the outside too.

 

[KegLand-com-au]

I think the description needs updating. They have the 3 element controls like the 65L robo. I have the 2400w one and I love it. Great for kettle sours.

This is interesting, I don't agree with idea that KL don't have a great opportunity, if they got their shit together they could own the market for brew bits and ingredients. For example, I'm not aware of another >50L 1V brewery for ~$650 (or under $5K actually), and nothing competes with the robobrew 35 at $399.

KL's grains are far cheaper on demand than I can get locally pre-shipping, the hops are cheap (albeit potentially sold above weight like my Centennial), but they currently ship hops and yeast warm for the 2-6 days it takes to get to my house via shipping company and delivery agent. Good reasons to avoid them if you have a better option.

In any case I don't think a monopoly is what we want as a consumer.

As an observer I speculatively wonder if KK's current ownership situation came to be because MCH thought they had (or could establish)such a privileged position.

From the consumer's perspective, there are many people who don't have a particularly good LHBS available. I live in the 3rd largest city in the country (can see the CBD from my verandah) but I'm over half an hour's drive (on a good day) from any credible LHBS; and those I'd give my dollars to are open <= same hours that I work.

Thankfully one of my locals does decent courier rates; and has accommodated the occasional out-of-session pickup from the store, but if I'm waiting on the postman for equipment am I going to care where here it comes from if KL are (for example) $50 cheaper directly?

Thanks for the feedback. We just started to get stock of the Techni Ice Packs so you should see them on our website soon so you can select these to be packed in your order. All of our yeast and hops is stored in a 40ft reefer container set at 4C. So definitely while in storage at our factory the goods are refrigerated but in order to ensure they stay cool on the way to you it will be up to the customer to purchase the techni ice packs in your order. I should say that hops can quite easily handle a few hot days in transit and the dry yeast is fine without the ice packs. The liquid yeast is really the issue though and they degrade quite fast in hot conditions so would recommend people purchase the ice packs during checkout especially if you look at the forecast and you see days above 30C.

 

[user3673]

I note that your website still lists hops at 100g +/- 10% are you going to update this to 90g to reflect legislation and be respectful to the other site sponsors who comply?

 

[KegLand-com-au]

Did anyone who received underweight hops actually get in touch with Kegland and discuss the issue before posting here, also that post re-marking the hops as 90g seems a very good response.

We only had 2 people contact us as far as we are aware and we offered both customers a partial refund on the hops.

 

[user3673]

That is irrelevant. You may not label items sold by weight at anything other than a minimum net weight

 

[KegLand-com-au]

Agreed! It looks like they are really trying, and not shying away from the fact there are issues. They could just not respond, but are actively engaging and trying to do the right thing despite some opposition.

The new bags have just arrived by the way. As mentioned previously we will pack the new hops that have been packed to a +5% tolerance in a different bag. We have gone for a foil membrane as this gives the best barrier from gas transmission and light. The bags will be used on all new packed hops with the higher packing tolerance as requested by you guys on the forum. It's taken a few weeks to get these custome bags made up but you can see what they look like in the link below.

As mentioned previously when we start using these new red bags the price of the hops will increase very marginally but they will still be very competitive.

 

[KegLand-com-au]

I don't look for negatives without good reason, I was waiting on the Fermentasaurus 2 but got sick of the excuses, ended up getting the original.

That's a real shame. We have been testing out the new FermZilla Fermenters today and we will probably do a video on the product next week:

We have been very keen to release this product earlier but the reality is we don't want to release a product that we are not 100% happy with. As you can see from the photos above we already have the fermenter pretty much finished. But we would like to make some very minor adjustments to the lid and dump valve assembly as we have some other features that we would like to also include in this product.

We have spent thousands of hours in product development on this one product and even though we might make a few extra bucks by releasing this new fermenter early we are in this business for the long term and we believe it's worth waiting slightly longer for us to make a good product an excellent product. What I can assure you is that this new fermenter design will change the home brewing industry.

Certainly previous fermenter designs were great but once you have used the new FermZilla we really believe you will be able to appreciate the benefits of this new design.

We have also invested heavily in a much larger production facility to manufacture these containers. This new facility has significantly higher output than the previous blow moulding plant. The previous plant was able to produce 1 fermenter in about 90-100 seconds. One the new plant has been completed it can produce a fermenter every 3-5 seconds.

We have optimised the polymers used, we have made the lid opening larger, the dump valve double the size, the stand has been improved and as you can see from the images. We have a new collection container with 3 openings so you have more options as to how to use it and this will be explained in detail later.

The lid itself we have also made several optional extras that can be sold separately that we will talk about in the coming months.

We are now at the point where I am really not sure it's worth purchasing a stainless conical as these new plastic ones are far better value for money and are more feature packed and most of the stainless fermenters can barely hold enough pressure to carbonate in.

 

[KegLand-com-au]

I have ZERO affiliation with Kegland, I live in Brisbane so definitely aren't on the payroll. I've purchased from them and my experience has been nothing short of perfect, some of the best service I have received.

I agree underweight hops is an issue, personally for hops etc. I would go to my LHBS regardless however my point it is, it was brought up here (and probably directly) and they seem to have responded and also seem to be actively working resolve the problem and also to improve their services and products.

What I have seen is people who do have valid issues coming in all guns blazing, other jumping in for good measure and it's all super negative. Bottom line Kegland are providing good product, good prices and competition in the market.

People need to approach issues from a more positive angle instead of what I have seen here.

Thanks for that TheBeerBarron. We really appreciate the support. We have got competitors who hate us. That's no secret and I am quite sure we have those competitors commenting on this forum. With that said, for any genuine customers we believe that any feedback we get (positive or negative) we do what we can to respond in the best interests of our genuine customer. At the end of the day we are hear to serve you guys so if we don't do that we don't have a business.

 

[DazGore]

Hi Kegland,

I have a question about using the Icemaster G40 chillers pretty much exclusively for fermenters (and perhaps chilled fonts as a bonus), rather than mainly for chilling warm beer as intended. I have an Ss Brewtech Unitank and have ordered the FTSs kit, but I've now discovered I fundamentally mis-understood the difference between using the FTSs kit with the their glycol chiller vs the Icemaster chiller. While doing some research I came across how the Icemaster 100's are produced and sold in the US (example https://www.morebeer.com/products/icemaster-100-glycol-chiller-stainless-bulkheads.html) and now I'm wondering if it would be possible to adapt the G40 to operate in a similar manner?

As I'd initially only be using it to chill one fermeter, the easiest option would be if it's possible to squeeze the FTSs submersible pump down into the reservoir and run the coolant lines and power cable through the hole at the top of the unit (the hole for the agitator power cable), but it's hard to tell from pictures how much room there is in there. The other option, considering I'd be willing to forgo ever being able to chill beer, is to cut two or more of the eight "beer in/out" lines (one in, one out) and run hose off those to a submersible pump and return line straight back onto the tank (as described in the MoreBeer ad). The agitator pump may or may not be able to stay in place, but may not be needed anyway.

Anyway, hopefully that all makes sense? I'm really looking for ways to make my situation work, but sometimes I miss something important, so this might not be possible. I'd be interested to hear any other suggestions you have that might work with the equipment I have (Unitank with FTSs kit). I'll probably end up calling to discuss in more detail, but thought it might be worth posting here as well in case it helps someone else in a similar situation.


Thanks,
Steve

Hi Steve,
I have the g40, and have taken the stainless coils out of it, and have 3 of the ftss submersibles in the reservoir running out through the holes from the coils. I have john guest pushfit fittings immediately upon exiting and also have them at my ssbrewtech cooling coils. Works great.
I'm able to run 14 G fermenter, and 2 of the 10 G Brite tanks easily. Also having my flooded font cooled by the g40's impala pump.

 

[Nullnvoid]

Thanks for that TheBeerBarron. We really appreciate the support. We have got competitors who hate us. That's no secret and I am quite sure we have those competitors commenting on this forum. With that said, for any genuine customers we believe that any feedback we get (positive or negative) we do what we can to respond in the best interests of our genuine customer. At the end of the day we are hear to serve you guys so if we don't do that we don't have a business.

Keep up the good work guys!

Friday I was lucky to pick up a kegerator! After watching the instruction video online was a simple setup! Only comment I'll make is I should have got the duotight fittings for the barbs on the shanks. Trying to get the 4mm hose over the barbs was a friggen pain in the arse! But after a lot of effort and swearing we got there! Will still swap them over in due course!

Looking forward to pouring many many beers out of this!

 

[Twent]

Can someone tell me if the stainless steel floats fit in a normal CUB keg opening?