Which extracting equipment to buy

[Miran]

Hi, I am going to shift from malt extracts to malt extract eqiupment. Yep time to do all by myself I checked a lot. Braumeister seems the best however it is too expensive. I am going to choose between Robobrew Brewzilla and Guten. I do not know which one is better? Any idea?

 

[wide eyed and legless]

Hi, I am going to shift from malt extracts to malt extract eqiupment. Yep time to do all by myself I checked a lot. Braumeister seems the best however it is too expensive. I am going to choose between Robobrew Brewzilla and Guten. I do not know which one is better? Any idea?

Greetings Miran, I would say one is nether any better than the other, I think the Guten is less confusing having just the one element switch. But they will both do the same job. Make sure to check and calibrate the temperature read out, and don't bother using the top screen.
I still haven't figured out its purpose, its more of a hindrance than anything, I can only put it down to the units out of China copying the Braumeister where the top screen is necessary.

 

[butisitart]

just curious, has anybody actually used guten AND grainfather, or brewzilla AND grainfather??
i'm on gen 1.0 grainfather and the others weren't around then. they look like copies. my next will be a 55-60L.
they're under half the price of a gf, so, is gf overpriced?? any quality or functional comparisons??

 

[kadmium]

I have a Guten, so I can only speak from my own experience but the quality is great for the price. I debated for a while over Guten / Brewzilla but in the end the thing which won me over was that with the Guten, the steps don't start until the unit reaches temps. With the Brewzilla, the steps start counting down the moment it starts heating. So for example

Guten:
Strike Temp - 70
Mash Temp - 66 @60m
Heating phase to next step - ?? but doesn't matter
Mash Out - 76 @10m (will only start once it's hit temp)

etc

Robobrew:
Mash Temp - 66 @60m
Heating phase to next step - ?? (Need to use a calculator to work out ambient temps, heating power, altitude, phase of the moon to predict how long to go from 66 to Mash Out temp)
Mash Out - 76 @10m but it needs to be set to 10m+previous calculation, maybe 21m or what ever

This is annoying, and pretty unintuitive. It means I can have a couple of recipes saved on the Guten, including Low, Med and Full mash profiles, a Hockhurz mash, etc (I think up to 9 recipes) and it will just jump per step without me having to do anything.

Other than that difference, they both make fantastic beers. I am not sure about the Brewzilla but the Guten comes with a 3 year warranty. That's a fairly long time. And if you consider the price point, you can afford 2 Gutens over 6 years for 1 GF!

Then again, sometimes it's nice to have nice things. I have become a believer in 'buy once cry once' and rather spend a little more for a good product, vs buying 7 Ozito Drills that I could have just bought a single Milwaukee (example)

However, there does come a point of diminishing returns, where you're paying more for not much more. At 3 year warranty, and almost a clone of the GF, both the Gutens and Brewzilla's make great beer.

 

[wide eyed and legless]

just curious, has anybody actually used guten AND grainfather, or brewzilla AND grainfather??
i'm on gen 1.0 grainfather and the others weren't around then. they look like copies. my next will be a 55-60L.
they're under half the price of a gf, so, is gf overpriced?? any quality or functional comparisons??

From what I have read the Grainfather seems to have quite a few problems compared to the others. It was overpriced as well it should have been, a simple single vessel brewery and the only other one at the time was the BM. This enabled Imake to overcharge and make lots of money. Even bought out SPL who was packaging and rebranding their Mangrove Jack malt and yeast range.

 

[Fro-Daddy]

With the Brewzilla, the steps start counting down the moment it starts heating

I believe the latest update addresses that, and it either is the same as the Guten or can be toggled to be the same.

I've had a 35L Robobrew and now have a 70L Guten.
Positives for me in the Robo were the bottom screen and manual mode without a timer.
Having to set a time on the Guten in manual mode ***** me. It should just be on until I say stop and press a button.

 

[kadmium]

Yep cool, there you go. So now, the difference is really not a lot. Just check warranty on Robobrew (I assume they would match KK with 3 years)

 

[Grmblz]

I believe the latest update addresses that, and it either is the same as the Guten or can be toggled to be the same.

Yep, they fixed it (cost me another upgrade) "sighs"
Currently at gen 3.1.1, I wonder what's next and how much it will cost?

 

[Cloud Surfer]

From what I have read the Grainfather seems to have quite a few problems compared to the others.

What are some of the problems?

 

[wide eyed and legless]

What are some of the problems?

Filter coming off or getting blocked, bottom screen not fitting properly, they are the ones I have read about.

 

[Grmblz]

Not to mention the price,

Grainfather $1145.00, 30Lt
Guten $399.00, 40Lt
Brewzilla $399.00, 35Lt

https://www.australianhomebrewing.com.au/grainfather-connect-g30-graincoat-blue-tooth-grainhttps://www.keg-king.com.au/guten-40ltr-micro-brewery.htmlhttps://www.kegland.com.au/brewzilla-35l-gen-3-1-1.html
I know there's some differences between GF, and KK/KL but holy smokes, someone is having a lend imo

 

[butisitart]

Filter coming off or getting blocked, bottom screen not fitting properly, they are the ones I have read about.

on filters, i believe they have changed that design subsequent to vers 1.0. the main cause of coming off was by being belted by a mash paddle while whirlpooling. that'll do it. mine's never budged, and nor has it clogged. although i use a morgan's ss hop sock, after ditching another metal hopsock, after ditching the mesh ones. morgans (about $50) is the best fit for a gf. i also don't put as much hops in as some users, so i probably haven't tested the filter to full.
bottom screen - mine is snug and has never been an issue, but not to say somebody else may have had a problem.
at 174 brews, i've had to replace the reverse chiller tap - $25, so no complaints on its capacity to do the job. i never did update any of it.
but yes, i was idly looking at the new 70L gf, and tripped over the brewzilla and guten. the prices blew me out, hence my post above.
if i was starting again, i'd have to be honest and say that price-wise, i'd have a really good look at those 2 with a view to going towards a decent fermenter with the savings