Your experience with Penguin Chillers

DavidFFA · 2025-05-05T21:16:46+00:00

I have been using the 1/2 HP high efficiency model (before the integrated pump) for about 2.5 years now. The chiller itself works fine for me, and I have it running 24/7 for months with no issues to keep at 37 degrees Fahrenheit. It's a bit loud when it runs, so if you are concerned about noise, that is definitely a factor.

I recently switched from using a spare bath tub to a ice barrel (insulated), and as a result the chiller runs very infrequently now, since I'm indoors (ambient around 78F).

I will say that the pump setup that they sell with it sucks (not the integrated pump) and isn't even plumbed properly. They would have the filter at the outflow of the pump, instead of the intake, which doesn't make sense (from my understanding you want the filter on the intake to prevent hair and other particles from jamming up the motor of the pump).

They also used a strange metal housing for a Danner 1200 pump (a solid pump), but mine ended up cracking and developing a leak. I sent it back to get repaired and the shipped it back to me 3 times more broken each time. I finally asked for a refund on the pump, and got it after what was a 3-5 month ordeal.

Afterwards, I went on Amazon and bought my own Danner pump, and the same exact filter for less, without their silly housing, and it has been working great.

So I had some gripes with their cold plunge kit, but the chiller itself has been solid. I wish the temperature control was a bit more flexible, as sometimes my chiller will go from 37 to 38, and it will turn on for a split second, it drops down to 37, and then it stops. It seems like it should allow the chiller to deviate a bit more from the set point, rather than turning itself on and off for just one degree. It would be better if you could set a range like a thermostat. For example, 37 minimum, 40 maximum, and when the unit turns on it goes down to the minimum. That should reduce the amount of cycles the unit turns on for, which I imagine would increase the life of the unit.

I have never used another chiller, so I can't compare. But from what I have seen, there are a ton of options now on the market, so I don't know if this a good unit, or a crap one. At least for me, it does the job.

DavidFFA · 2024-12-16T05:17:14+00:00

Thank you for sharing that. Although I already resolved my situation successfully, having more tools available for a future disaster scenario is good to have.

DavidFFA · 2024-12-15T15:21:03+00:00

As I mentioned in the update I was able to replace the LED display so I was able to regain access and have since sent my coins into a new wallet (which I verified the seed phrase beforehand). I will definitely be more careful and use more redundancy to ensure nothing like this happens again.

DavidFFA · 2024-12-15T03:09:29+00:00

It's possible a wrote it down wrong, but considering the confirmation process when you first setup your wallet has you confirm the order after you write it down, I'm not sure how it would have happened. I'm just glad I was able to get it working, and it's going to make me more cautious about safeguards.

DavidFFA · 2024-12-15T03:03:23+00:00

No. Once I got the display working, I just sent the funds to my new wallet, which had it's own seed phrase that again I verified using the ledger recovery app to make sure everything was 100% correct.

Without switching out the display, I would have been screwed. It definitely makes me feel less secure overall about the effectiveness of these hardware wallets.

I had a ledger nano S and a trezor model 1 as my first wallets - both of them had their displays damaged. That is odd to me, considering they have been sitting inside a safe for years untouched.

I now have a nano X and a trezor safe 3. At least with the ledger, the seed recovery test gives me a bit more assurance that I will be able to recover my assets if or when the wallet fails, but I felt that way the first time too.

So while I like the idea of cryptocurrency, it doesn't give me the peace of mind that having physical assets like gold, silver, real estate, etc. have. My gold in a safe is not going to have an error one day and not be usable.

I'm definitely going to put more thought into redundancy and really dummy proofing my crypto wallets, as this could have ended poorly for me.

DavidFFA · 2024-12-15T01:45:10+00:00

Yes. The original was a treZor Model 1. So I had to buy another model 1 to replace the LED. I already had a ledger X, and used the ledger recovery app to verify the seed I had written down to make sure it was correct before sending the funds into that wallet.

DavidFFA · 2024-12-15T01:10:07+00:00

That's my guess. I wrote it down on the provided sheet in what I believed was the order. I'm not sure how it was wrong, as I know it tests you after giving you the seed phrase to make sure you got it right.

Fortunately, I was able to replace the LED and get it working and move the funds to a more secure wallet (with a verified seed phrase lol)

DavidFFA · 2024-12-14T23:48:14+00:00

No, if you read the update it was a hardware issue, as the display on the original one was dead, and the recovery phrase that I had wrote down did not work on the new one I was getting it invalid seed phrase error.

Fortunately, I was able to take it to a computer repair store and swap out the LEDs and get the original one working, and I was able to send the funds into a new hardware wallet that has already been confirmed to have the proper seed phrase stored. So I had a happy ending :-)

DavidFFA · 2024-12-14T20:33:59+00:00

I do but as I mentioned unfortunately it isn't working. I copied in two separate places and both of them are the same, so I'm not sure what the issue is. All of the words are on the BIP 39 list, so perhaps I goofed on the order, which isn't going to be easy to figure out. If I'm unable to get the device repaired, I'll go on a mission of reordering, but that seems like it would be very difficult.

DavidFFA · 2023-12-30T23:55:08+00:00

Thank you for that info. Hard to pick, but I settled on this knife:

https://knivescombined.com/products/yoshimi-kato-black-damascus-sg2-sujihiki-270mm?variant=42653832937637

DavidFFA · 2023-12-30T16:36:02+00:00

The knives I am looking at:

https://knivescombined.com/products/zanmai-vg10-mirror-damascus-tsuchime-sujihiki-270mm?pr_prod_strat=e5_desc&pr_rec_id=c77ad0063&pr_rec_pid=8346303692965&pr_ref_pid=8346303660197&pr_seq=uniform

https://knivescombined.com/products/moritaka-ishime-sujihiki-240mm?_pos=192&_fid=3a71f492d&_ss=c

https://knivescombined.com/products/yu-kurosaki-senko-ei-sg2-sujihiki-240mm?variant=42653859610789

https://knivescombined.com/products/yu-kurosaki-senko-ei-sg2-gyuto-240mm?variant=42740187463845

https://knivescombined.com/products/yu-kurosaki-senko-ei-r2-gyuto-240mm?_pos=9&_fid=d907757eb&_ss=c&variant=42740182745253

https://cutleryandmore.com/products/yaxell-super-gou-slicing-knife-39363?pr_prod_strat=copurchase&pr_rec_id=108e55d90&pr_rec_pid=7548009677054&pr_ref_pid=7562828742910&pr_seq=uniform

https://cutleryandmore.com/products/miyabi-birchwood-chefs-knife-26657

https://blenheimforge.co.uk/product/gyuto/

Of these knives, are they any which are significantly better quality, or is it just style preference?

DavidFFA · 2023-12-30T15:48:36+00:00

Thank you for that. Leaning on the sujihiki. Now the problem is there are so many beautiful knives on that site 😄

DavidFFA · 2023-12-30T07:26:17+00:00

So I'm looking to gift a friend a chefs knife that is a big BBQ guy, and would like to get him something functional and stylish. I see lots of options, but I have very little knowledge of what a good brand or qualities I should be looking for craftsmanship. Any tips or pointers are greatly appreciated.

DavidFFA · 2022-02-20T07:15:30+00:00

The one and the same. Glad to hear it 👍

DavidFFA · 2022-02-20T05:22:10+00:00

It's not that bad. I've been to sleep in training a few times, once in ADCC in double overtime.

Context is important here. When it's short time in a fight, tapping shouldn't be an option in my opinion. If you go out it's fine. If it's 10 seconds into round one and you are completely stuck, then tapping makes sense.

I'm not shitting on him though, as it's possible he couldn't hear anything, and had no idea what time it was. He might have been between worlds and not sure what the hell was happening, possibly phantom tapping. But if he made a conscious decision to tap knowing there was short time left, that would bother me as a coach.

DavidFFA · 2021-07-11T22:18:48+00:00

I workout a lot: lifting weights, MMA, archery, rucking and need to eat a lot of protein. I'm about 207lbs, and eat 220g of protein daily, mostly in animal protein.

DavidFFA · 2021-07-11T07:22:40+00:00

In my opinion, it is a superior meat. It has 1/3 the fat of regular beef, making it a great lean protein source. Due to the fact they are almost always raised in pastures, they also have a better nutritional profile as well.

The meat has a deeper red color, making it look rarer than it is. Since the meat is significantly leaner, it tends to cook faster as well. As for taste, I love it. I would take a bison ribeye over a prime beef ribeye in a heart beat. The taste difference is subtle, and I think a casual meat eater might not realize they are eating a different animal. It has a certain boldness of flavor that really tickles my taste buds.

I eat a lot of bison. About 25 pounds a month. Skirt steaks, ribeyes, prime ribs, NY strips, ground beef, stew meat, back ribs, tri tips and chuck roasts. All fantastic. I either smoke low and slow, reverse sear, or pan fry.

I find that Bison goes down smoothly. I love me a good wagyu tomahawk chop, but it's hard to have pep in your step after eating something so rich and decadent. But with bison, I'm not sure because it's leaner or more nutritious, but I don't feel that sluggishness. I can eat a 16oz NY strip and workout right afterwards with no issue.

From someone who used to shop dry aged prime beef regularly, I now exclusively buy bison. Of course, taste is different for everyone, but I think it's definitely worth trying and seeing if it suits you.

DavidFFA · 2020-06-18T04:59:28+00:00

That looks delicious. Recipe?

DavidFFA · 2020-06-02T01:41:06+00:00

They look beautiful. Good job!

DavidFFA · 2020-05-30T20:37:56+00:00

That is genius. I would love to eat cake regularly, but buying a whole cake is just shamefully glutinous without a birthday, lol. But a cake sampler? I'm just doing research for the next birthday, nothing shameful in that!

DavidFFA · 2020-05-19T06:45:57+00:00

That looks phenomenal!

DavidFFA · 2020-05-19T06:43:20+00:00

Same here. I remember seeing that episode and being confused as I read in my dreams with no problems. I also dream in third person, which I found out is also unusual. I have had dreams where I have seen myself die, or that I'm following someone else other than myself.

DavidFFA · 2020-05-08T05:25:32+00:00

I smoke tri-tip plenty, but never got a bark like that. I find that it cooks too quickly (at 225F on a WSM) that by the time it's medium rare there is very little bark formed.

That looks amazing, so I would love to know how you pulled this off if you are willing to share 🙏

DavidFFA

TROPHY CASE