It's been a while since I've been on this forum. Distilling took a backseat to life for the past 6-8 months, but I’m firing up again.
I recently purchased a couple of RAPT pills from KegLand and wanted to share my findings (paying it back after all the awesome advice I've received here).
WHAT IS IT?
A floating, waterproof WiFi enabled capsule that sits in your fermenter, collects data (via wifi) at increments and provides info (via app).
HOW DOES IT WORK?
Once setup, you insert (float it) in your fermenter and it collects data every X minutes (adjustable increments set in config) and sends it to your RAPT account (free to setup) via WiFi. The rechargeable battery (apparently) goes for months.
WHAT DATA DOES IT PROVIDE?
It logs and graphs gravity, temp, estimated ABV, estimated sugar consumption and battery level.
HOW HARD IS IT TO SETUP/CONFIGURE?
Personally, I'd say relatively straight forward, but I'm pretty tech savvy. In saying that, I had issues with connecting my 2nd pill, but after many hours worked out the simple issue and fix. If you don’t like tech and like to keep things old school, I’d say don’t bother.
HOW MUCH IS IT?
About $70 AUD - only from KegLand (it's a KegLand product).
IS IT PERFECT?
No, it’s far from perfect. The app has minor glitches occasionally; however, it’s mostly stable and the glitches are generally brief. As a web/app developer, I’d say the setup and app is a little bit clunky and not super intuitive but there’s easy to follow videos and I’m sure it will improve over time.
SHOULD I RUSH OUT AND BUY ONE?
Not necessarily. It’s a gadget. I’m sure the experienced distillers know through experience (probably without testing) when their wash is ready to run. If you like gadgets and are pretty techy, I'd consider it.
IS IT WORTH IT?
I think so, but others may disagree. $70 for a pill… $10 for a hydrometer.
If you’re unsure and in no hurry, it might even be worth holding off until the next generation is launched. I’m just guessing/assuming this will happen (zero fact involved). Purchasing beyond 2nd generation nearly always delivers much improved products and tech.
MY FINAL REVIEW
I love it because I’m into tech toys, I’m relatively new to distilling and I track/record everything. I love data. I’ve also accidentally dropped 3 hydrometers in 12 months (tiled floors are unforgiving).
TIPS IF BUYING ONE:
- They only connect via 2.4Ghz wifi and the router/access point needs to be as close as possible. If you’ve got an old router and the know-how you can (like I did) setup a wifi extended or access point right next to the fermenter.
- On setup there’s a step where you enter the pill’s MAC address. Don’t manually add the “-“ (dash). The system will auto populate. Just type the MAC digits. This cost me several hours of frustration.
- Make sure the pill is fully charged before use – 24 hours. If the battery indictor on the app shows 0% you can either put it back on charge or ignore and charge it before 2nd use. It has no effect on its operation. The 2nd charge must reset it.
- There are good video tutorials on setup and tips. Watch them first before you configure.
Post if you have any questions.
Happy distilling!