Jaycar Fridge Controller

[Goat]

I know there are heaps of forum thread about fridge controllers, and I'm sorry if this is a repeat but...

I came across this controller in the Jaycar catalogue today :

http://www.jaycar.com.au/productView.asp?I...=&SUBCATID=

It's a lot cheaper than what I paid for my controllers a few years ago.

 

[chovain]

It seems like it'd be a pain to set the temperature - it looks like you need to press the little button when the temperature is where you want it...

 

[bljpoad]

Nice One of the guys I work with is down at Jaycar now getting some stuff for work, just asked him to pick one up for me. Looks ok, 4-30 degrees temp control. Crikey, I only picked up my new (secondhand) freezer last night too
- Berwyck

 

[troydo]

youd be better off with a fridgemate for $7 more!!
http://www.craftbrewer.com.au/shop/details.asp?PID=718

 

[bconnery]

I hope it works OK though. I picked one up very cheaply on ebay recently, a lot cheaper than fridgemates go for on there..., so hopefully it is all good.
Even if it is just good enough for a spare at 10 bucks I won't complain...

 

[grinder]

I have one of these operating my brew fridge.
You have to build the ******* first. Then to change the temp you have to shove a small screwdriver into the hole on the side to adjust the resister. (the hole that you have to drill)
There is also no way of accurately setting the temperature unless you pull it apart, put your multimetre leads on pins 2 and 4 of the IC and checking the reading. The only other way is to check the fridge temp at intervals to see wether it is going up or down.
Personally, I would not buy one of these again, Just go with the fridgemates.

 

[Rossy]

I just bought a chest freezer for the kegs, as being a sparky I was a bit worried about using anything that removes power totally from the fridge as this would stop the sump heater in the compressor ( depending on cycle time ) and shorten the life of the unit.So there I was allready to build up some control gear but on closer examination of the original thermostat I noticed an adjusting screw, after about 2 hours I had her controlling at about 4 DEG

 

[Yeasty]

I just bought a chest freezer for the kegs, as being a sparky I was a bit worried about using anything that removes power totally from the fridge as this would stop the sump heater in the compressor ( depending on cycle time ) and shorten the life of the unit.So there I was allready to build up some control gear but on closer examination of the original thermostat I noticed an adjusting screw, after about 2 hours I had her controlling at about 4 DEG

can you do this on any chest freezer, or just the one you had? I can see a lot of guys here interested in the details of this :lol:

 

[bljpoad]

youd be better off with a fridgemate for $7 more!!
http://www.craftbrewer.com.au/shop/details.asp?PID=718

True, but I like building stuff and I have it now Chances are I will probably buy a fridgemate eventually anyway, this circuit is controlled by a couple of transistors so I am not sure how great it will be. But all the same, all in the name of furthering my brewing experience
- Berwyck

 

[Batz]

A little 'off' topic but I will have a couple of the fridge controllers for sale within the next few days,used but in perfect working order.





Batz

 

[amita]

A little 'off' topic but I will have a couple of the fridge controllers for sale within the next few days,used but in perfect working order.
View attachment 15900
Batz

Hi Batz, how much will they be going for?
amita

 

[schooey]

I bought two of theseon the cheap to make a hybrid type controller so I could set one for heat and one for cool. I didnt like the idea of the trimpot that you adjusted through the little hole either, so I spent a grand total of $6 for two of these and two knobs and put them through the front of the case. I wasn't real keen on having to have a 12 DC power supply to run it either so I bought a $6 12V AC centretap transformer and wired it in with a bridge rectifier to convert it to DC so I only needed one power socket to plug it in.

It ended up looking like this..



After I first set it up to run, I just marked the front of the case with a nikko for certain temps I wanted. The linear pots make it easier to judge temps in between. I'd have no problem with using them again and it only took me about an hour to solder two of them together.

 

[Vlad the Pale Aler]

I bought two of theseon the cheap to make a hybrid type controller so I could set one for heat and one for cool. I didnt like the idea of the trimpot that you adjusted through the little hole either, so I spent a grand total of $6 for two of these and two knobs and put them through the front of the case. I wasn't real keen on having to have a 12 DC power supply to run it either so I bought a $6 12V AC centretap transformer and wired it in with a bridge rectifier to convert it to DC so I only needed one power socket to plug it in.

It ended up looking like this..

View attachment 15901

After I first set it up to run, I just marked the front of the case with a nikko for certain temps I wanted. The linear pots make it easier to judge temps in between. I'd have no problem with using them again and it only took me about an hour to solder two of them together.

In English please.

 

[schooey]

Sorry. I'm no sparky or electronics poindexter, but it didn't take much working out.

 

[grinder]

I bought two of theseon the cheap to make a hybrid type controller so I could set one for heat and one for cool. I didnt like the idea of the trimpot that you adjusted through the little hole either, so I spent a grand total of $6 for two of these and two knobs and put them through the front of the case. I wasn't real keen on having to have a 12 DC power supply to run it either so I bought a $6 12V AC centretap transformer and wired it in with a bridge rectifier to convert it to DC so I only needed one power socket to plug it in.

It ended up looking like this..

View attachment 15901

After I first set it up to run, I just marked the front of the case with a nikko for certain temps I wanted. The linear pots make it easier to judge temps in between. I'd have no problem with using them again and it only took me about an hour to solder two of them together.

Are they 2 of the Jaycar controllers, just with the added trimpots?
What are the digital gismo's on the front? And what do they do??

 

[schooey]

They are just two cheapy fridge thermometers. I stick the sensors of those with the sensors from the jaycar controller so I have a display temp. I got my two Jaycar controllers on the cheap, and all up with the box and the bits it cost me abot $ 70 and my time to build it, but it works well for what I wanted and it's in one tidy box. If I had to buy it all retail I would have probably just bought two fridgemates and went that way for the same amount or less money

 

[Rossy]

can you do this on any chest freezer, or just the one you had? I can see a lot of guys here interested in the details of this :lol:

Not sure about all, but most mechanical type thermostats should have some way of calibrating them



Hard too see but the allen grub screw is in the middle and down between the brown and white wires ( turn power off), on a side note its these two that should be used with a controller and not the incoming mains :huh:

 

[Simon W]

Hiya Goat
There was another thread about this controller, might be worth checking that out too:
Coolmaster

 

[cfresh]

I made one of these kits but found the parts supplied when checked with a multimeter varied from the supplied value perhaps due to cheap parts. After setting the temp I wanted I found the temp variation was as much as 12deg so I ditched it and bought a mash master instead. Much better IMHO and barely much more than the kit that you have to build first.

 

[Simon W]

I made one of these kits but found the parts supplied when checked with a multimeter varied from the supplied value perhaps due to cheap parts.

Thats normal. Components have a tolerance value, usually 5% for resistors and 10% for capacitors, tho Jaycar usually supply metal film resistors with a 1% tolerance.
A multimeter will read a percent or two out from the correct value unless you have a very expensive one, particularly with electrolytic capacitors.

I agree tho that the Mashmaster is the better choice.