Late to the Tilt party

[J A]

I've never used nor been particularly eager to use the Tilt devices. Part of it has always been the price. Also since I've used stainless conical fermenters almost exclusively, taking gravity samples is not difficult. Another thing is potential sanitation issues - I'm very leery of anything plastic and anything with a gasket that can get skundgy.

The last used equipment I bought included a bunch of extra stuff amongst which were a couple of Tilt units. I feel inclined to toss one into a fermenter and see how it tracks. Since it's already in hand, there's not much downside as long as the chance of infection is small.

So...if you use a Tilt or similar device do you find it particularly helpful or useful? Did it change your life for the better? Do you think you brew better beer as a result of having it. Have you experienced infection issues that might be attributable to having it in your fermenter?

 

[west1m]

Tilt is a great way to track your frementation progress. No guessing when it finishes. You will know temp at all times and you can even keep track from anywhere if you are on a trip for some reason.
I was a board operator at an oil refinery for a lot of years, staring at trends 12 hours a day. With Tilt I can watch all I want to.
No problems with infection , changing batteries can be frustrating with re calibrating but they last a really long time.

 

[Sandy Feet]

I just keep Star San in my plastic fermenter a few days before I Brew and wipe it down when I'm done. I've used a plastic fermenter for every one of my beers, and I don't have issues with sanitation.
I just leave the thing for 14 days, and I know it is done. If I were in a hurry, I might want one of those toys.

 

[Minbari]

I've never used nor been particularly eager to use the Tilt devices. Part of it has always been the price. Also since I've used stainless conical fermenters almost exclusively, taking gravity samples is not difficult. Another thing is potential sanitation issues - I'm very leery of anything plastic and anything with a gasket that can get skundgy.

The last used equipment I bought included a bunch of extra stuff amongst which were a couple of Tilt units. I feel inclined to toss one into a fermenter and see how it tracks. Since it's already in hand, there's not much downside as long as the chance of infection is small.

So...if you use a Tilt or similar device do you find it particularly helpful or useful? Did it change your life for the better? Do you think you brew better beer as a result of having it. Have you experienced infection issues that might be attributable to having it in your fermenter?

Almost no risk of infection. they are pretty smooth. just wash em and dunk in starsan before using.

They are actually decently accurate. great for trending. instead of the "just ferment for 2 weeks" method, you can tell if it is done or not. you can tell when fermentation starts too! so understanding what to do to get quicker starts is easier.

As for the stainless issue. i use ss brewtech stainless and i can pick up my tilts on phone in basement through the floor

 

[Dave Y]

@J A

I’ve got two tilts so far and they work as expected. I really like knowing what’s going on during fermentation and the tilt lets me monitor progress by way of gravity. I further use with the Grainfather cooling kit & app so I can drop the temp as needed.

As to sanitation / use. I use stainless conicals, and you’ll need to be close to get a gravity reading - a few feet away. I have an inexpensive Android(?) tablet to run the tilt app and a screen alive app. I have it write to the cloud so I can pull up history if I want.

IIRC, Tilt doesn’t recommend harsh cleaners, so I generally pull from the kettle and immediately wash it with hot water, if necessary I’ll use paper towels to dry and then store. Just prior to use, I again give it a generous hot water bath/shower.

I measured both tilts against my hydrometer and refractometer, they’re dead even with my hydrometer, and my refractometer reads 0.002 - 0.003 higher.
In the 2+ years I’ve been running the tilts I’ve never had an infection. I say go for it.

 

[BarbarianBrewer]

I think the Tilts are really cool and I would love to get one but, can't justify $135, just so I can package my beer a few days earlier. Temperature tracking and iffy gravity tracking just aren't enough benefit for the cost. At least not for me.

 

[J A]

I think the Tilts are really cool and I would love to get one but, can't justify $135, just so I can package my beer a few days earlier. Temperature tracking and iffy gravity tracking just aren't enough benefit for the cost. At least not for me.

Yeah...I just never could justify the additional cost. With most yeasts, it's easy to tell what's happening just by airlock or blowoff activity, even if you don't have the benefit of actually seeing inside the fermenter. I know when it's time to pull a sample and I always make sure there's plenty in the fermenter so grabbing a few ounces 4 or 5 times is no problem.
Since I have a couple now and there doesn't seem to be much worry about infection, it'll be interesting to see what it does. I'll have to rig up a way to track it and store the info but I have a friend who's an EE specializing in smart technology and connectivity. He's also a compulsive tinkerer and really likes my beer. He'll be happy to fix me up with something that grabs the data and connects to wifi for storage and retrieval.

 

[Josh Hughes]

I agree with everyone above except my buddy @BarbarianBrewer haha. I like being able to see the temperature and trending what’s going on. I find it quite accurate and only periodically check with a hydrometer anymore. For me a lot of it is so I know when to spund. I don’t have a dedicated fermentation fridge or area so I move around for temps the tilt makes my methods possible.

 

[Sandy Feet]

I agree with everyone above except my buddy @BarbarianBrewer haha. I like being able to see the temperature and trending what’s going on. I find it quite accurate and only periodically check with a hydrometer anymore. For me a lot of it is so I know when to spund. I don’t have a dedicated fermentation fridge or area so I move around for temps the tilt makes my methods possible.

I do have a dedicated fermentation fridge, and I love simple, lazy brewing, but doing something more than pushing buttons. I like to think the extra time does something. Normally, after I crash, they keep getting better and better for a few weeks anyway. If I were in a hurry or making a living off it, I would think differently.

 

[Dave Y]

I do have a dedicated fermentation fridge, and I love simple, lazy brewing, but doing something more than pushing buttons. I like to think the extra time does something. Normally, after I crash, they keep getting better and better for a few weeks anyway. If I were in a hurry or making a living off it, I would think differently.

I’ve seen some interesting results having the tilts. I was fermenting a session APA sitting at 1.017 late afternoon. Based on what I’d observed before, way too soon to cold crash, but I was hoping to keep it from going too low. Over night it went from about 1.031 to about 1.017, but it was slowing. The range of the yeast was 64-72. so I started dropping the temp in the fermenter to about 59-60F. I figured that was low enough to keep it about 1.014-1.013 and it landed at 1.012 so I started the cold crash.

I’ve also had lagers that were still pushing airlock activity as low as 38F (mangrove jacks Bavarian Lager). Not fast, but it was still bubbling. Not that I’d ferment at that low a temperature but I was a little surprised there was still activity that cold.

It’s a little .. ok, a lot geeky, but cool information.

 

[BarbarianBrewer]

I agree with everyone above except my buddy @BarbarianBrewer haha. I like being able to see the temperature and trending what’s going on. I find it quite accurate and only periodically check with a hydrometer anymore. For me a lot of it is so I know when to spund. I don’t have a dedicated fermentation fridge or area so I move around for temps the tilt makes my methods possible.

jk @Josh Hughes!

Yeah with spunding you have more of a need for near-real-time data. In my case I just ferment a little longer without impacting anything. Now if they cut the price in half, I'd definitely buy one; if it was even $100 I'd consider it. For me the bang for the buck just isn't there. But I keep looking at them. So one day, in a moment of weakness, or succumbing to peer pressure, I may get one.

 

[FrostyBeach]

I'll have to rig up a way to track it and store the info but I have a friend who's an EE specializing in smart technology and connectivity. He's also a compulsive tinkerer and really likes my beer.

Have your friend look at https://www.tiltbridge.com/ the ESP32 is cheap and easy to program. I use VSCode and Platform IO to program these type of micro controllers. I never did get around to making a case so mine lives in a quart Ziploc bag. I just place a foot or two from the stainless fermenter and the Bluetooth signal is plenty strong.

 

[Brew Cat]

I just use my trusty refractometer and temperature probe. I guess if I thought I needed to know what was happening with my fermentation when I was away I might get one

 

[J A]

Have your friend look at https://www.tiltbridge.com/ the ESP32 is cheap and easy to program. I use VSCode and Platform IO to program these type of micro controllers. I never did get around to making a case so mine lives in a quart Ziploc bag. I just place a foot or two from the stainless fermenter and the Bluetooth signal is plenty strong.

I'm curious...can a single device monitor multiple Tilt units? Seems like I'd need one for each fermenter that's using a Tilt.

 

[Dave Y]

yes. I’ve run 2x fermentations several times, and monitored both, several times with a single tablet, both uploading cloud data in addition to the cool phone/tablet display.

 

[Minbari]

I'm curious...can a single device monitor multiple Tilt units? Seems like I'd need one for each fermenter that's using a Tilt.

One bridge will monitor 8 at once

 

[Donoroto]

I use a Pi Zero W with the free-download-from-tilt MicroSD card image, and that takes the bluetooth signal and sends it over WiFi to the web. My tilt is in a stainless fermenter which sits inside a stainless small fridge.

 

[west1m]

I use the Arduino . Bluetooth from inside a refrigerator to wifi to Brewers friend.