Controlling Temperature Ideas

[SydCrazi]

Hi Guys,

I'll start by saying 'I am on a tight budget at the moment' and am looking for the cheaper ways of managing temperature .. before moving on to more common and accepted methods..

I am starting out with a Coopers Lager Kit and it has been bubbling away nicely. I used a 20 year old Electric Blanket as a HEAT pad substitute and it has been working a treat at keeping it at 22 Degrees. Up to 3 setting for the cold nights and back down to 2 for days and even down to 1 setting for warmer days. I recommend this for anyone looking for a 'temporary' measure until buying the right gear.

Next is bottle fermenting and this is where I am trying to come up with another good idea.. (Before Stage One is complete) I need to achieve between 18 to 25 Degrees apparently.

I had heard of leaving a sealed box near your hot water heater under the house, but this does not seem ideal to me for constant temp??
I was 'thinking' maybe a box constructed from left over wood, with light globes or warming globes from Pet Shop fitted to keep box warm inside. I am 'thinking' that I could just add remove lights until desired temp achieved..

Anyone else got some idea's to get my bottles to between 18-25 ,, until I have more wiggle room in the finance department for more standard solutions?

 

[pdilley]

For cheap and dirty temperature maintenance I have used fish tank heaters and water baths. Good for fermenters and bottles and like all electric heat devices you can plug them into temperature controllers later on. Seeing how temp controllers are $16 delivered these days plus another $16 or so in misc. parts, why have you not considered them? At these prices it should be the consideration of beginning brewers today.

Cheers,
Brewer Pete

 

[QldKev]

Hi Guys,

I'll start by saying 'I am on a tight budget at the moment' and am looking for the cheaper ways of managing temperature .. before moving on to more common and accepted methods..

I am starting out with a Coopers Lager Kit and it has been bubbling away nicely. I used a 20 year old Electric Blanket as a HEAT pad substitute and it has been working a treat at keeping it at 22 Degrees. Up to 3 setting for the cold nights and back down to 2 for days and even down to 1 setting for warmer days. I recommend this for anyone looking for a 'temporary' measure until buying the right gear.

Next is bottle fermenting and this is where I am trying to come up with another good idea.. (Before Stage One is complete) I need to achieve between 18 to 25 Degrees apparently.

I had heard of leaving a sealed box near your hot water heater under the house, but this does not seem ideal to me for constant temp??
I was 'thinking' maybe a box constructed from left over wood, with light globes or warming globes from Pet Shop fitted to keep box warm inside. I am 'thinking' that I could just add remove lights until desired temp achieved..

Anyone else got some idea's to get my bottles to between 18-25 ,, until I have more wiggle room in the finance department for more standard solutions?

Check how many watts your elec blanket uses; it is going to cost you quite a few $ on your power bill running it 24x7. Say it runs at 200w = about 5c per hour. 5 x 24hrs a day = $1.20 x 30days for a month = $36 x a few months = ouch... You are also guessing the heat setting so in the real world the temp is probably fluctuating a bit.

Allowing you have the space get yourself a fridge and I would def get a stc-1000 temp controller as a starting point. A working fridge can normally be picked up pretty cheap, if not free. This time of year even if you got a broken one as a start, if not build yourself a wooden insulated cabinet. If you get/build a decent size fridge/cabinet you should be able to fit a fermentor and a lot of bottles in it. Chuck the fermentor in and even if you still used the elec blanket for heating but controlled from the temp controller. Rather than all that warm air escaping the fridge will warm up and can turn the blanket off altogether. I think it would not need to work hard, and you would save electricity to help cover the setup cost very quick. Yeasties behave very well at the correct temps, and also at a stable temp. The good thing is when summer hits even if the fridge doesn't work, you can use ice bottles to help keep it cool, and a fairly stable temp; if the fridge does work then that's a bonus.

Also what are you fermenting at 22?


QldKev

 

[SydCrazi]

Check how many watts your elec blanket uses; it is going to cost you quite a few $ on your power bill running it 24x7. Say it runs at 200w = about 5c per hour. 5 x 24hrs a day = $1.20 x 30days for a month = $36 x a few months = ouch... You are also guessing the heat setting so in the real world the temp is probably fluctuating a bit.

Allowing you have the space get yourself a fridge and I would def get a stc-1000 temp controller as a starting point. A working fridge can normally be picked up pretty cheap, if not free. This time of year even if you got a broken one as a start, if not build yourself a wooden insulated cabinet. If you get/build a decent size fridge/cabinet you should be able to fit a fermentor and a lot of bottles in it. Chuck the fermentor in and even if you still used the elec blanket for heating but controlled from the temp controller. Rather than all that warm air escaping the fridge will warm up and can turn the blanket off altogether. I think it would not need to work hard, and you would save electricity to help cover the setup cost very quick. Yeasties behave very well at the correct temps, and also at a stable temp. The good thing is when summer hits even if the fridge doesn't work, you can use ice bottles to help keep it cool, and a fairly stable temp; if the fridge does work then that's a bonus.

Also what are you fermenting at 22?


QldKev

Thanks for the tip.. :unsure: Geez.. You just made me think of the power bill.. DAMN.. :blink: Oh well.. Lesson learned as they say.. Guess my first brew will cost a little more than anticipated.. :drinks:

I got the standard Coopers Lager Kit.. It says to ferment at between 21 and 27 degrees in the instructions.. So figured 22 was acceptable..
Also learned it uses a Ale Yeast that comes in a 7g packet.. but most 'proper' Lager yeasts come in a 12g packet and can ferment at a lower temp,, which I will use next time..

 

[ekul]

Whats your ambient temp where you are? I keep my ales at 16.5C and my lagers at 10-12C. The instructions on the tins are wrong, if you keep your brew above 16 and below 20 you should be right if using ale yeast, however i think the yeast in lager tins is actually a lager yeast, so you might want to keep it lower. NOt sure if its a lager yeast though.

 

[kocken42]

For keeping my fermenter and conditioning bottles at ideal temp (to take them from cold to warm), I managed to snag an old 'seedling warmer'. It's like a rectangular pad (maybe 40cm x 60cm) and has a temperature dial which goes up to 40 deg C. It takes some fiddling to get the temps you want but I generally have it set to 25 deg C and then cover my fermenter/bottles with a blanket. This method keeps everything around 20 deg C in my experience.

Yeast aslo generate heat while fermenting, so treat your fermenter like a human and put some clothes on that muthalicka! This will keep the heat in and cause it to heat up naturally. Don't forget to insulate the base. I sometimes use an old camping mat (8mm thick blue rolls) and wrap it around the fermenter, then stuff a towel or two on top and sit the fermenter on a folded towel.

 

[SydCrazi]

Whats your ambient temp where you are? I keep my ales at 16.5C and my lagers at 10-12C. The instructions on the tins are wrong, if you keep your brew above 16 and below 20 you should be right if using ale yeast, however i think the yeast in lager tins is actually a lager yeast, so you might want to keep it lower. NOt sure if its a lager yeast though.

For keeping my fermenter and conditioning bottles at ideal temp (to take them from cold to warm), I managed to snag an old 'seedling warmer'. It's like a rectangular pad (maybe 40cm x 60cm) and has a temperature dial which goes up to 40 deg C. It takes some fiddling to get the temps you want but I generally have it set to 25 deg C and then cover my fermenter/bottles with a blanket. This method keeps everything around 20 deg C in my experience.

Yeast aslo generate heat while fermenting, so treat your fermenter like a human and put some clothes on that muthalicka! This will keep the heat in and cause it to heat up naturally. Don't forget to insulate the base. I sometimes use an old camping mat (8mm thick blue rolls) and wrap it around the fermenter, then stuff a towel or two on top and sit the fermenter on a folded towel.

Ambient temp is roughly 18-21 during the day and 5-8 at night.. Freezing lately.. Did some research and can 'confidently' say that the Coopers kit comes with an ale yeast..
Seedling warmer.. Hmm.. Mother in-law may have one of those.. Might check it out.. Also noted on the 'human theory' and will literally put a jumper on my Fermenter tonight along with the electric blanket on low.. This Friday arvo will be 7 days since starting.. Will take a Hydrometer reading Friday and hope for the best.. I will need to have something sorted for the bottles by then.. :unsure:

 

[SydCrazi]

Thanks again for tips..

OK I have run the numbers roughly and have an idea..

2nd Hand Fridge - $0 - 80 (Friends or ebay)
Heat Globes - $10 - 30 (Bunnings or ebay or pet shop)
STC-1000 Mini Temp Control - $20-30 (Online & ebay)
Wiring and Protection - $10-20 (Bunnings)
Total Cost = $40 - 160

1. Wire Temp controller to heat globes (positioned with glue or whatever 'jig' in top back left and right corners of fridge)
2. Wire Temp controller to Fridge
3. Put sensor in best position in your Fridge to monitor 'Ambient' Temperature.
4. Set Controller to desired Temp - If it gets to cold inside heat globes activate, to warm fridge activates.

This is just an idea that has most likely already been done or shot down..
But wouldn't this create a YEAR round Temp controlled environment, that you could set at any temp, no matter what the weather is doing??

You can get 'Infrared' Heat globes from Pet Shops that wouldn't put out damaging light but still provide heat.
Your wiring to globes would have to be protected enough to work in a fridge environment.

 

[Tanga]

I guess but why are you all worrying about the bottle temp so much. Do stop starts matter that much in the bottle or is it speed of priming you're worried about? If I had a fridge like that I'd measure the temp on the fermented/s and use a heat strap.

 

[stux]

Thanks again for tips..

OK I have run the numbers roughly and have an idea..

2nd Hand Fridge - $0 - 80 (Friends or ebay)
Heat Globes - $10 - 30 (Bunnings or ebay or pet shop)
STC-1000 Mini Temp Control - $20-30 (Online & ebay)
Wiring and Protection - $10-20 (Bunnings)
Total Cost = $40 - 160

1. Wire Temp controller to heat globes (positioned with glue or whatever 'jig' in top back left and right corners of fridge)
2. Wire Temp controller to Fridge
3. Put sensor in best position in your Fridge to monitor 'Ambient' Temperature.
4. Set Controller to desired Temp - If it gets to cold inside heat globes activate, to warm fridge activates.

This is just an idea that has most likely already been done or shot down..
But wouldn't this create a YEAR round Temp controlled environment, that you could set at any temp, no matter what the weather is doing??

You can get 'Infrared' Heat globes from Pet Shops that wouldn't put out damaging light but still provide heat.
Your wiring to globes would have to be protected enough to work in a fridge environment.

I think this is pretty much the standard way to do it

I just use a 100W incandescent as a heat source. I just mounted the wall mount bayonet fitting into the fridge cavity. I also use a thermowell so my temp controller actually measures beer temperature rather than ambient

When measuring beer temp, heat belts also work well as a heat source

 

[zabond]

Before getting my STC 1000 temp controlled fermfrige set up I used a waterbed heatpad,rolled into a circle held with clothes pegs and slipped over the ferm with a 10mm gap[like a fence]so that the pad didn"t touch the ferm walls,so no hot spots,kept it controlled nicely between 17-20*in winter,but your better off seting up a perm fermfrige as its set and forget for all seasons,pity your not in VIC as I just found a supply of exflood damaged fridges[working but with cosmetic damage] that will be going cheap[or free]

 

[1974Alby]

can you tell me more?? Im in geelong and currently have my deep sea diving fermentor dressed in a 5mm plush lined dive suit!...holding at 16-18 which is ok, but I am on the lookout for a cheap working fridge!!

 

[Bribie G]

If you have space, a great standby is to get a dead fridge - the likes of Good Guys should be glad to get rid of one if you pay them a delivery fee.

Then in the winter put the fermenter to bed with a couple of hot water PET bottles, or fit up a light bulb in a terra cotta pot, and in the summer, swap in frozen PET bottles.
Once you get the hang of it, you'll be able to achieve good enough temperature control.

A fementer of beer has quite a big thermal mass and it takes a while to turn it around (like steering the Queen Mary) so you can get a nice even temperature despite the ambient temperature swings you get outside the fridge in Victoria.

Won me quite a few medals in competitions and in fact I didn't get a Fridgemate until a couple of years into my brewing career, could even do lagers in the summer in QLD. Now I have temperature control like you wouldn't believe but I still made great beers using the el cheapo system.

Edit: also the beer can work with you in the winter, the first stages of fermentation are exothermic - heat producing - and as an example I just did a stout at 24 degrees (Irish ale yeast goes well at 24) and even though ambient in the garage is 18 ATM the brew went nicely at 24 in the turned off fridge as it created its own warm pod. I even had to open the door for half a day. Then fridge on and cold conditioned.

 

[zabond]

can you tell me more?? Im in geelong and currently have my deep sea diving fermentor dressed in a 5mm plush lined dive suit!...holding at 16-18 which is ok, but I am on the lookout for a cheap working fridge!!

Hi the friges are exflood damage working but need a good clean they are located in Garfield,their is about 6 or so I will try and get more info[size-price ect] over the weekend and post details in Market place asap
Russ

 

[going down a hill]

I ordered a stc1000 last week and am awaiting arrival; I can't wait to do lagers in summer and ales in wintertime. It really is the way to go.

Im in geelong and currently have my deep sea diving fermentor dressed in a 5mm plush lined dive suit!...holding at 16-18 which is ok, but I am on the lookout for a cheap working fridge!!

So do you go diving with your fermenter? That sounds very romantic.

 

[1974Alby]

only idiots drink and dive!!!...plus i would get too cold because I lent my dive suit to my fermentor...I figured a nice beer is more appealing than diving at this time of year.

 

[Stinger]

I don't know if this is a little low tech, but I generally find that the normal heating options for your standard house tend to bring the ambient temp up to around 20-22deg. I also find that a brew will tend to create 1-2deg of its own heat as it is fermenting away.

I have had good results bringing the fermenter into the house, in the kitchen or in my office (little distracting as it is bubbling away but also strangely comforting). Coopers Lager kits usually come with Ale yeast which you want to keep to 19-22 deg, they will stop fermenting under 18 deg in my experience (or slow down alot) you want to avoid fermenting at the higher end of the scale (25-27deg) unless you like estery fruity banana flavours.

Also have a look at an unmodified fridge, put a thermometer inside and turn the thermostat up to the warmest setting and see what the temp is? could be around 10-11 deg which would be all right for fermenting lagers, then for Lagering in secondary fermenter you could turn the setting down to 2-3 deg and leave for how ever long you want.

 

[Dribs]

My tightarse tips:
Use S-23 yeast in all beers. It does the job between 8 to 15 degrees. Pitch it at 20 degrees and let it drop. Cooper's lager kit yeast isn't a lager yeast.
Oil heater on the lowest setting in a small laundry, pantry or wardrobe to carbonate the bottles.
Beer might carbonate enough, though not as much as you'd like, if left at 15 degrees for 6+ weeks.

 

[dabre4]

All I do is put the fermented under an old desk with an oil heater. I cover the desk with a couple of blankets making sure all sides are also covered. You can then play around with the thermostat setting on the heater to keep the correct temperature. I use a small digital thermometer to check the temperature. Total cost.... nothing!

 

[Jonesy_sa]

I'll start by saying 'I am on a tight budget

Hi mate,
I to am on a tight budget and new to brewing (more a born again-brewer ;-)). The advantage of starting out on kits and working up is you dont reallt throw anything away so you may as well save up and spend that max $160 as you will always use it.

To keep costs down and if your not to bothered about buying a working fridge i would try local scrap and steel yards, plus anyplace that offers tradein on appliances. The amount of fridges i have tossed of at the steel merchant or seen collected by them is amazing and im sure you could pick one up for free. Also with the move to energy efficient products your bound to get one for next to nicks. If you have never done any wiring before make sure you take care or get some help. If your fridge sets fire to the house and your insurance notices you played with 240 you can forget your cover!

I just mounted the wall mount bayonet fitting into the fridge cavity. I also use a thermowell so my temp controller actually measures beer temperature rather than ambient

Hi Stux,
What temperature controller are you using, does it use a probe or the wire type sensor?


Regarding STC-1000, i just ebayed one and was pretty im pressed for $25 bucks. Its rated at +/-1C which is fine for our use. Im just wondering has anyone compared the results with their analogue probe etc (im a bit suss of these Chinese electronics)

Thanks