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My new Polyscience Sous Vide Circulator just arrived from ChefsSteps.

Brandon__67713

To start things off I am doing a artichokes with white wine and olive oil. I am shooting for 85C but I am maxing out temp at 68C and it is dropping as I add food and not recovering. I put a lid on to see if that helped and it did a bit and I am able to keep it at 73C, but no higher.

I am using 30 Liters of water in a cambro tub.

What am I doing wrong or not understanding???

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Comments

Brandon__67713

I would just like to say that Edward has done an exceptional job at handling the situation. Thanks @Edward.

Brandon__67713

Thanks, PM sent.

Edward_33547

@Brandon,

This should not be the case given that you received a brand new unit and it was defective. They should be offering you a drop shipped replacement.

I would be happy to talk with PolyScience on your behalf. Can you send your order information to me at edward@chefsteps.com? I cannot seem to find your order or your name in our customer database. Maybe someone placed the order on your behalf? Please do send me your info and I will call them and clear this up.

Brandon__67713

@Edward,

Thanks for your help. FYI, they said that only the classic series is handled by them sending you a new unit, then returning the defective one.

With the other two series you have to mail in the unit and then wait for it to be repaired. So the wait time could be a few weeks.

seijoed

Just having talked to @Edward a while back I'll second that, customer service par none.

Jack_Mayer_85396

@Brandon - I received a defective unit from PolyScience and, with some help from @Edward, they resolved the issue promptly for me. I had a replacement unit in my hands 3 days after my initial phone call to them. If there's anything I can do for you, just ask! And @Edward was extremely helpful!

Edward_33547

@Brandon,

Absolutely. PolyScience will handle the return directly. Call them at (800) 229-7569. Tell them the problem, and that you would like to get a replacement unit. They will send you the replacement along with return instructions and postage paid to return the defective unit. Be sure to ask that return postage is included.

Please let me know if you have any issues. You can reach me at edward@chefsteps.com.

Brandon__67713

@EdwardStarbird, any help with returning this???

Brandon__67713

I did cover the bath.

Ansgar_Hallberg__66022

Did you cover the bath? You can use plastic wrap if you don't have a lid with a cut out.

Tim_Sutherland_52834

I would take the back cover off the unit to make sure nothing is obviously amiss or fouling the unit.

I would then test the unit in a smaller container (5-7 litres) to see if it can reach the temp set. Using room temp water (25C) I would set the temp to 40C, cover the container and see if it can reach and maintain a steady temp. If a steady temp is held I would pour a glass of cool water in to mimic food going in. The temp should drop slightly but quickly come back to set temp. If the set temp is maintained for 10 minutes I would increase the set temp to 50C and repeat the process. This I would do in 10C jumps to 90C. If the water can not be heated to temp, there may be issues with the heating element. If the temp fluctuation is more then +/- 0.2C from the set temp, the thermostat may have issues.

I have not had issues using hot water. I use hot water (~50C) from the tap to fill the cambro, set the temp and go from there. If I need to increase the cooking temp (i.e. proteins cooked at 60C and I want to cook vege at 85C) I pour 90C water from my kettle into the cambro. I add ~1.5 litres (the size of my jug) and pour it at the end opposite the circulator. If I need to add water during a long cook I try to have the water as close to the set temp as possible. If I need to reduce the cooking temp I either remove a jug of water and replace it with cold water and/or add ice, depending on temperature change.

I try to match the water bath size to the volume of food I'm cooking. One egg I cook in a 6 litre cambro, 2kg of oxtail I cook in 15 litres of water. Long cooks (12+hr) I always cook in 15 litres of water. If the circulator is on, the lid is on the cambro, unless I'm reducing the water temp. While my unit can circulate 30 litres of water I have never needed to go above 20 litres. My truck red lines at 6,200 RPM, I don't need to drive it like that everyday (only next weekend at the Texas Raptor Run).

Brandon__67713

is there a potential problem adding water close to the temperature you need by add near boiling water to tap to save time?

seijoed

My tap water is 56C, I start with that if I'm going high.

I use the 4.75 Gallon cambro, I'm guessing that amounts to ~15-17 L of water, the last few degrees up from

75 or so to 84 does take a while, once they are up there it seems rock solid.

Brandon__67713

Thanks for the quick reply. No warning signs.

Just temp, heat, and circulation.

separate Q... What is the optimal water temp to start you bath off with?

Edward_33547

@Brandon,

This sounds like a defective unit. But before we contact PolyScience, I just wanted to check with you, does the unit have any warning alarms going off on the screen?

Brandon__67713

I have the Chef Series.

It says max 30L and I have measured out 30L. So I am at max, but it should still reach temp.

Brendan_Lee_56950

If you have the creative series your using 10L more water than it's maximum water capacity. The chef series is rated at 30L max so i'd probably pull some water out of there. I have a lab grade circulator akin to the classic polyscience model and I run it around 15-17L max.