FermZilla Tri-Conical 27L and 55L Instruction Manual
Page
10
of
12
Last Updated 2/03/2022 3:06 PM
Using the FermZilla without pressure:
The FermZilla
’s were designed to be use
d optimally with a source of CO
2
pressure. While they were
not designed with gravity-only operation in mind, there is some workaround that will allow you to
get most of the FermZilla
’s benefits without a source of CO2.
Taking hydrometer samples and bottling
:
By attaching a ball lock post to the bottom of the collection jar, you now have a variety of removable
options at your fingertips. You can connect a sanitised picnic tap (KL00963) mounted to a disconnect
(to allow to take hydrometer samples. Simply slip some 10mm hose over the end of this and you
now have a simple bottling gun! Just make sure the FermZilla is elevated so that gravity can carry
your beer down to the bottle. You may need to squirt out some of the trub and yeast sediment
before getting clear beer. Crash cooling will make the trub compact faster.
Using the FermZilla under pressure:
Performing a Leak Test
If you intend to use FermZilla under pressure it is strongly advised to perform a leak test prior to
commencing fermentation.
This will require access to an external pressure source such as a CO2 cylinder with a Type 30 MK4
regulator. To thoroughly pressure test the FermZilla it is best to perform a pressure decay leak test
test.
Pressure Decay Leak Test Procedure
1.
Pressurise the FermZilla to a minimum of 15psi (but not more than 35psi).
2.
Turn the CO
2
cylinder off and leave to sit for a few hours.
3.
Check of the pressure within the vessel has decreased.
If the pressure in the FermZilla has dropped from the original set pressure then there is a leak
occurring from somewhere on the FermZilla.
This could be occurring from the carbonation caps, the lid, butterfly valve assembly or the collection
container assembly.
To Identify the source of the leak it is best to spray or sponge soapy water over all potential leak
sites and look bubbles being produced.
Fermenting under pressure:
Some people believe that beer that is naturally fermented under pressure is the traditional and best
way to ferment. Almost all large commercial breweries inherently ferment under some degree of
pressure due to the fact that they have tall tanks and the pressure at the bottom of the tank is
significant even if no pressure has been applied to the headspace of the tank. With the FermZilla it’s
possible to ferment at higher temperatures, faster speeds and produce cleaner beers. Not all beer
styles should be fermented under pressure, as some beer styles such as saisons and Belgian ales
benefit from non-pressure fermentation to produce the ester and phenolic flavours classic to these
