After a few years of trying to make CS with my own setup and not being very happy with the results, I decided to go with the Silvergen.
What I wanted to know from people who use this machine is about how long the silver rods/ribbons last? Like approximately how many gallons? I found out from Trem that they are each strip is 2.90 Grams of silver. They give you 2 sets with the SG6 but I just don't know if I should get a backup (3rd) pair when I order.
The Science behind this recognizes that PPM is the same as mg/l. 2.9 grams is 2900 mg. If you brew a concentration of 10 PPM, you could end up with around 580 liters (you are using 2 electrodes).
However, things never work out as simply as that.
Trem at SilverGen may be able to give you a better guess. I would guess that you should be able to get somewhere between 300 - 400 liters of 10 PPM from a set of electrodes.
I weighed my electrodes and one was 2200 mg and the other was 2800 mg. I didn't weigh them initially, but if I use your 2900 mg weight, I have used about 40 mg of silver.
If I take 40 mg over 5 liters, I end up with about 8 PPM. After initially playing with the unit, I have stabilized on making 10 PPM solutions. If I have made 4 liters, I would be at 10 PPM and everything would match. This is a reasonable estimate but I don't have accurate records on this. Still it will give you an estimate to base your guess on.
Thank you Tom. As always a very detailed and thoughtful answer.
Yeah, I did contact Trem about this question too but it was Friday night and I don't think he's around till Monday so I thought I'd get a jump on the answer from an actual customer of the product so I could put my order in sooner. I'm pretty sure it's gonna be the Silvergen and not the Puppy mainly because of the variable PPM dial and the magnetic stirrer. Prior to this decision, my last resort was to get a thermal stirrer from the Silver Puppy guy to use with my DIY setup and I wasn't happy with the results so I'm pretty sure I'm gonna spring for the Silvergen.
I decided to spend a few extra dollars for the Silvergen for the set it and forget it convenience. My memory won't win any awards these days (except for maybe a Razzy or two), so I figured I'd get better results overall.
After a couple years and many gallons of CS the Silvergen is still going strong and someday I'll do a spreadsheet to see how much in trips to the doctor dollars it's saved the family (but several thousands at least). Actually it's also helped with absenteeism at work since I give bottles to employees when they're sick. Talk about a cost effective healthplan!
I like the fact that you never get a yellow batch - which no doubt has to do with the target PPM and auto shutoff. Can't go wrong with the Silvergen.
Glad I could help! One thing you do when you first get your CS maker is produce a ton of it at 20 ppm, drink lots and generally throw it around (remembering when you used to pay $20 for 8 ounces of the stuff).
Personally I was getting stomach aches from drinking so much and ended up dialing it down to 10 ppm. It's just as effective at 10 ppm and you don't really notice the metallic taste or stomach upset anymore. That's probably the reason most of the commercial stuff in healthfood stores is 10 ppm.
But you'll love the Silvergen - it's all so effortless.
I just found this message. I haven't been on the board for a while so I wanted to reply with a "thanks" for that valuable info about the stomach distress you got from drinking lots of high PPM. Although mine has been under 10ppm, I have been taking much more than usual lately 'cause I'm specifically treating an ailment, but with the sensitive stomach I have, I'll keep an eye out for that.
Home
To Silvergen owners: question about silver ribbons 
