Fermenter In Fridge

[PAPPAS]

Is it possible to ferment in the fridge? as the heat in Mackay is a pain in the arse to brew with, I use ice blocks in the laundry tub but there must be an easier way.

 

[Pennywise]

Plenty of info on AHB about this, alot of us ferment in fridges. You'll prolly need a temp controller like a fridgemate or tempmate, I'm doubt even the warmest setting in a fridge would be warm enough for ales, lagers maybe, I don't know. But to answer your question, yes it's possible, and for alot of us, necessity in the middle of summer if we want to brew a half decent brew

 

[Dazza_devil]

Look into a tempmate, fridgemate or you could use a timer on your fridge.

 

[earle]

G'day Pappas. I'm just up the road from you in Proserpine and brew in a freezer with a tempmate temperature controller. Much better brews now and can brew all the way through summer. No more brews fermenting out in less than a couple of days due to ferment temps over 30C, gets rid of the off flavours too.

 

[PAPPAS]

G'day Pappas. I'm just up the road from you in Proserpine and brew in a freezer with a tempmate temperature controller. Much better brews now and can brew all the way through summer. No more brews fermenting out in less than a couple of days due to ferment temps over 30C, gets rid of the off flavours too.

Where do you get the tempmate contraption from fella's??

 

[QldKev]

As the others have said,

Try the searches for fridgemate, tempmate and ebay temperature controller
The fridgemate, tempmate are sold by the sponsers above, and they provide excellent service. It's the first big step to making good beer. I tried the ice block trick, never again; you will never look back.

QldKev

 

[Pennywise]

http://www.craftbrewer.com.au/shop/details.asp?PID=718

http://www.craftbrewer.com.au/shop/details.asp?PID=2592

 

[Murdoch]

Is it better to have the temp probe in the wort of the fermenter or in the fridge space ?

When making up a brew do you place the fermenter in the fridge & then let the temp come down to your aim temp before adding the yeast, or do you add yeast as soon as you place in the fridge ?

Thanks in Advance

 

[Dazza_devil]

I read up on this forum for nearly 12 months before I put a brew in.

 

[QldKev]

Is it better to have the temp probe in the wort of the fermenter or in the fridge space ?

When making up a brew do you place the fermenter in the fridge & then let the temp come down to your aim temp before adding the yeast, or do you add yeast as soon as you place in the fridge ?

Thanks in Advance

Where to put the temp probe is something I find most brewers have their personal preference on.

I stick mine to the side of the fermentor, and allow the back to be open to the air. I see this give the best between the wort temp and fridge temp.
Some stick it to the side and cover with foam to try and read the wort temp better.
Some stick it in the wort (some using a tube) This way you are directly measuring the wort temp. But the wort will get the full temp swing of the temp range set on the controller.
Some stick it in a glass of water/alcohol in the fridge next to the fermentor.


What temperature to pitch at? I would guess it the perfect world we you could get the wort to the correct temperature for pitching the yeast and then lower it to the fermenting temperature. In my case I often pitch onto a used yeast cake; so I don't get a chance to cool the new wort to perfect pitching temp prior to pitching. I'm pretty lucky cause my fridge can drop my 2 fermentors at over 1 degree per hour.

QldKev

 

[bum]

I read up on this forum for nearly 12 months before I put a brew in.

Whoa. How did it turn out, if you don't mind me asking?

 

[Dazza_devil]

Whoa. How did it turn out, if you don't mind me asking?

Pretty good bum, delicious if I don't say so myself. Better than any other homebrew I had tried before, put it that way.

I had a fridge controller by brew 3 if I remember rightly. The first two I used the fridge turned off with frozen PETs.

One of the best things about this forum is always learning more. The depth of knowledge is amazing.

 

[bum]

One of the best things about this forum is always learning more. The depth of knowledge is amazing.

Absolutely. Is Boagsy the first person ever to not stuff up their first brew? You should be made a mod for that or something.

 

[Bribie G]

Where to put the temp probe is something I find most brewers have their personal preference on.

I stick mine to the side of the fermentor, and allow the back to be open to the air. I see this give the best between the wort temp and fridge temp.
Some stick it to the side and cover with foam to try and read the wort temp better.
Some stick it in the wort (some using a tube) This way you are directly measuring the wort temp. But the wort will get the full temp swing of the temp range set on the controller.
Some stick it in a glass of water/alcohol in the fridge next to the fermentor.

...........................
QldKev

Thanks for that: Exactly what I was wondering - I birthed my FridgeMate last night and just looped it through the fermenter top handle and let probe hang down the side, but as it's a small fridge what space there is cools down very quickly and trips the switch so it's see-sawing a bit but settling down ok this afternoon.

To the OP - if you get a Fridgemate (and a little project box) from a sponsor at the top of the page it should handle the job adequately, as well as cheaper than the Tempmate, you need to wire it yourself but should only take an hour even if you are a total mechanical klutz like myself. Here's a good guide to setting it up. You'll also need a junior hacksaw, sharp Stanley knife, pliers capable of stripping cable, two airlock grommets and 3 cable connectors from any hardware. Edit: oh and an extension lead that you cut in half.

http://helms-deep.cable.nu/~rwh/blog/?p=29

Enjoy

 

[Oatlands Brewer]

I have a fridge set up with tempmate controlling the fridge on one side and a heater belt on the tuther.

Set and forget B)

I, like Boagsy live in "the undemocratic queens republic of Tasmania" (Long story but it has something to do with politics) and brew with this setup all year, hot cold, dosent matter

i insulate my probe to the outside of the ferm..someone once told me that there was up to a 4 deg difference between the centre of the wort and the outside of ferm

 

[Dazza_devil]

I have a fridge set up with tempmate controlling the fridge on one side and a heater belt on the tuther.

Set and forget B)

I, like Boagsy live in "the undemocratic queens republic of Tasmania" (Long story but it has something to do with politics) and brew with this setup all year, hot cold, dosent matter

i insulate my probe to the outside of the ferm..someone once told me that there was up to a 4 deg difference between the centre of the wort and the outside of ferm

Politics has always been a very dodgy subject 'down here in Tasmania' OB, nothing changes.

I have a heat pad sitting in the bottom of my fridge, away from direct contact with the bottom of fermenter and yeast cake. You tend to need one here in the winter, unless you are into lagers.
I can vouch for the probe stuck to the outside with tape and having a bit of styro taped over that making good beers. My tempmate readings seem to be very stable with this setup.

 

[johnyb]

I bought my fridge thermo control and all in one probe (its an all one unit used by aquarium keepers etc and requires no wiring- just plug it in to your wall socket and plug your fridge into it) from Danny at Quality Home Brew Supplies in Springwood QLD. It cost me $130, but I am the type of person who pays for convenience, and I am no electrician!

http://www.qualityhomebrew.com.au/ They are great guys and will help you no end (I have no affiliation with them, I am just a sattisfied customer impressed by their shop, helpfulness and friendly disposition)

I am onto my third temp controlled brew now, and even the young beer from the first ferment tastes alot better than my previous attempts at high temp. I keep my probe blue-tacked to the side of the fermentor, however, it does sound most reliable if placed in a glass of water to buffer changes.

Have a good weekend brewers!

JB

 

[kbe]

i insulate my probe to the outside of the ferm..someone once told me that there was up to a 4 deg difference between the centre of the wort and the outside of ferm

4 degrees from the outside to the middle, that is a huge difference really. What temp do you pick to hit a medium if there is that much variation?
I use mine in my fridge to read ambient temp by sitting the sensor on top of the fermenter.... heat rises is my excuse.

 

[Oatlands Brewer]

kbe,

i usually set my temp-mate at 2deg under what im targeting and set the difference at 1 deg

 

[Dazza_devil]

I reckon that the temperature of my probe remains stable for long enough to have the wort at close to the same temp. I set my difference @ 0.5 degrees C.