Sorry to add to your inbox to correct my original typos but one correction is needed to make sense. I sent the original post via Blackberry and my bad vision doesn't let me proofread very well. Changes in bold
Dee To a large extent I am like Wayne. I just can't make CS without a meter to measure voltage and current. However, unlike Wane I would supplement my DIY rig with a commercial unit. There are times when I would like the "Fire and Forget" operation of a commercial unit. From what I have read on the manufactures web sites and comments from users in this forum I think they do a really good job. But for people like Wayne and myself they don't provide all the flexibility and monitoring visibility we like. (I would probably modify it to let me measure current flow though . I know it's a sickness but I can't help myself. ) The more you learn about making CS the more you see the tradeoffs you make when you do things to vary brew time or ppm strength. And the tradeoffs don't always have a good/bad threshold but are better/not better results and so the tradeoffs you make are personal decisions you make based on what you know (or what you think you know) and what end result you desire. So we can't give a definitve answer to seemingly simple questions that are asked here. I don't think you are making a mistake by moving the electrodes to 1.5" separaton but doing so can affect the automatic measurements your unit makes. The unit is calibrated with a specific electrode spacing and changing the spacing can affect the automatic measurements. Also, if you want to speed up the process but maintain the low particle size your unit usually generates, I would start by doing what you have done to get a measurement of the time a brew takes and then the next time I did a brew I would move the electrodes to their normal spacing one half hour before the expected completion for the rest of the generation. This will sacfice a little time savings though. Again it is a tradeoff based on what I would want. But what you have done is good. I might think that what I would do is better by enough to make it worth the effort . Is it really? Every person might have a different opinion on that. So , often we try to help others understand the issues and trade offs so they can decide what is the best alternative for them. I know this was a little long but I hope it helps answer your concern. - Steve N
