Project Update #10: Pre-testing complete <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

Posted by Scott Heimendinger ♥ Like

Schedule

"When can I get my Sansaire?!" we hear you asking. Very soon!

If everything goes 100% according to plan, we’ll send out the very first units in the last week of November, when we conduct a trial production run to establish our standard operating procedures. If these units meet our standards we'll immediately begin assembly of the main batch.

This is a little later than we were initially hoping. It means that we’ll miss the opportunity for our US backers to celebrate Thanksgiving with a sous vide turkey this year. We thank you for your patience and understanding – we’re doing everything in our power to make the Sansaire high-quality and deliver it to you as soon as possible.

Certification Testing:

The feedback from our ETL certification testing continues to be positive. We’ve now passed 'pre-testing', an unofficial marker, but one that allowed us to order all our components. That was a big purchase order, and a huge step forward in the production process!

We are impressed by how rigorous the whole certification process has been. We began by supplying 20 units for the certification company to test. They put the units through grueling conditions to root out potential points of failure. After every test they documented the results and suggested design changes to fix any issues they encountered. All of the requested changes were small and easy to accomplish – one suggestion was to use a different kind of wire on our PCB, and another was to use a different micro-controller from the same family. After every change, our factory built updated units to resubmit. In total we’ve gone through 30 units in the testing process.

Once we’ve received the final, official word certifying our entire machine, we’ll be able to begin full-scale production.

Shipping:

We had a lot of questions about our shipping procedure. It is hard to answer in the comment thread because each country has its own import regulations and fee structures. So, we’ll need to treat each country separately. We know that importing goods can be a pain – often and expensive one – but we promise to do everything we can, in accordance with local laws and regulations, to make it as easy and inexpensive as possible to receive your Sansaire. Look for more details from us regarding the procedure for your region as we get closer to our shipping date.

By the Numbers…

We want to show you how diverse our backers are. In total 58 countries are represented! As we expected, the US, Canada, Australia, and the UK had the highest demand. However, Singapore, Denmark, Sweden, and Malaysia had surprisingly strong representation, particularly per-capita! Secretly we were hoping to get at least one backer from every continent, but Antarctica dropped the ball.

This data comes from the Kickstarter survey you all filled out. One of the most interesting fields in the survey was the freeform comments area. After looking at over 800 unique entries, we are extremely humbled, and we’re taking your suggestions to heart. Here are 5 comments that sum up the sentiment we experienced:

• “I request that you continue making rad stuff. ^_^”
• “I'd like the version with the friggin' laser beams! Thanks.”
• “give someone close to you a hug :-)”
• “I LOVE YOU!!”
• “ZOMG sooooo excited you guys!”

Using the Sansaire as a heat exchanger

We’ve received a number of questions asking us if you can use the Sansaire with liquids other than water. Some of you want to cook with oils and other want to brew beer. Yes, brewing is also best with done with precise temperatures!

However, the Sansaire cannot be in direct contact with anything other than water. Oils and wort (the precursor to finished beer) have a tendency to accumulate in the internals and coat the heating coils. It’s a pain to clean and over time the heating coils become less effective.

But we have a better alternative for you. The Sansaire makes a very handy heat exchanger. In the photo below we cooked a fresh salmon in a mason jar filled with olive oil (47C or 116F for 20 minutes). The water transfers heat from the Sansaire to the oil, which in turn cooks the fish. Wort is handled the same way except with larger containers.

In the same setup, if you fill the Sansaire’s container with ice and set the temperature to 0.0C, it will function as a convenient circulating pump to chill down other liquids. Please note the Sansaire only has heating coils, not “chilling coils”. Chilling baths are a whole ‘nother thing.

We’ve enjoyed the research and planning that have gotten us this far. However, we’re really looking forward to the next step: bringing the Sansaire to life, and delivering units to all of you!

Sincerely,

The Sansaire Team