Kegotator Mk2 Build

[GTS350]

........The freezers origional thermostat doesnt measure direct air temp...... its under the skin of the metal in the compressor hump to buffer it from air temp fluctuations.

Trust me :wacko: im a doctor

There is another old thread on this topic "where to stick your temp probe"
http://www.aussiehomebrewer.com/forum//ind...your+temp+probe
or use the search function = stick temp probe

My humble opinion is it it depends on the size of your thermal mass, as Tony said.

Temperature acceleration/deceleration will always occur, if you have a large mass like 60 litre fermenter, with the probe in a diptube, in the wort, you need to control your temp +/- 0.1 degree , and be happy with the overshoot/undershoot of only a degree or so..

Dont trust me, Im not a doctor :icon_cheers:

 

[komodo]

Makes sence. Same principle as a full fridge is more energy efficient than an empy fridge. More thermal mass less temp fluctations caused by air movement. Thus if the probe is in a liquid with similar thermal properties to beer / wort then you will achive more predictable temp control with shorter and less compressor cycles.

Makes sence in my head. Hope im barking up the same tree as tony LOL

 

[Tony]

Ok.......... we have done that to death

I grew a pair of testicals the size of basket balls tonight and drilled a 25mm hole in it to get all the cables and gas lines in.

I figured........ it would be silly to run hot or cold lines right next to the origional thermostats tube...... which went up into the compressor hump.

So, i drilled right next to where it went in and hit nothing It was nice to get that one done.

Now i just have 4 x 6mm holes to drill in the compressor hump to hold down the pump for the glycol.

then all i need is a few fittings to plumb it all up and im set.

Its looking good

cheers

 

[Tony]

Ahhhhh its coming together!

Mounted the Pump for font chilling duty and wired it in. I mounted an on/off switch above the temp controller.

Re-ran the temp probe cable and hooked it back up.

Tomorrow night i want to get the air circ fan hooked up and the wheels mounted on the bottom.

Does anyone have pictures of how you have mounted the fan in your keg freezer?

cheers

 

[Tony]

here is my pump. Will plumb it up with some hose to a 25 liter jerry can.

 

[troopa]

nice wrok Tony
Is there anyway to set up the glycol pump to a timer so that you can have it kick in at say 3.30 as you knock of work and have the font nice and cold by the time you get home at 4?

Just the hippy in the wife coming out at me... can see her sighing at all the extra power already (just picked up yet another fermentation fridge the other day .. 2 down and a freezer to go

Tom

 

[Tony]

Hell yeah there is. Im a Leco and a Control System Engineer....... thats easy

Next time im in the office im planning a trip to the electrical distributor and get a digital 7 day timer.

Mon - Fri.... on 3pm, off 10pm
Sat, Sun.... On 10am off 2 am

 

[clean brewer]

Sat, Sun.... On 10am off 2 am

:beerbang: Nice one....



:icon_cheers: CB

 

[Tony]

Have done some work on here over the last week.

I have the font mounted and the water recirc was tested today..... all day, for leaks and not a drop! Took a bit of "strip and rebuild" to stop the drips but all i can say is thank god for Loctite gasket goo

I have installes a fan to recirc air, and mounted a PT100 temp probe into an old JD bottle. THe bottle will be filled with metho (never goes bad) and placed where it works best. may take some experimentation.

here are some pics.

Here is the font mounted up on the freezer....... god i cant wait to get it running!

The inside mount of the font. I had to cut a bit of water proof ply to help support it through the thin metal lid. Once its working i will plug this with some foam insulation to insulate it.

The temp probe in JD bottle. I mounted the probe into the lid so it screws on and off and is water tight. Very happy with this!

The cold water tank for the font and the pump and plumbing. Ive put a ball valve on the pump outlet to regulate the flow......... this pump really goes hard. Id say 2 to 3 times the flow of a march pump and not much bigger. Identical design but a bit bigger is all.

The return to the cold water tank..... nice and simple.

ANd an over all pic of whats in there so far.

Im planning on just adding a cup of sea salt to the cold water for the font. I wont be freezing it, its just cooling for the lines all the way to the taps so all i need to do is stop the water going bad. Salt should do this.

Im interested in peoples experience and opinions with this.

I have the gas manifolds built one for serve, one for carb....... all i need is for a few fittings to arive in the mail and im in buisness.

Will be getting a couple beers in there and chilled down and carbed ready for the fittings to plub up the beer lines..... which i forgot to order........ DERRRRRRRRRRRR!

Should have a beer from the tap by next weekend.

I have a Porter, Maibock thats CC'd for 2 months now and a Saison Stout thats fermented for about 3 months.

Its looking good.

more to come

Cheers

 

[Cocko]

looking good mate!!

Keeps it coming! :beerbang:

 

[Tony]

Oh i will!

 

[geoff_tewierik]

I'm liking the changes you've made Tony, well done.

BTW what taps are you using? In the process of getting my own cobra font and will eventually need some taps.

 

[Tony]

I got new Perlick taps from Ebay in the USA.

HE has put his prices up a couple dollars per tap now but only cost me $134 aus to my front door for 3 taps and handles within a week. miht a be bit more now but still cheap as chips.

http://cgi.ebay.com/Perlick-Perl-525ss-sea...id=p3286.c0.m14

I sent him a message and he sant me a papal thing with the combimed postage.

great to deal with

 

[geoff_tewierik]

Thanks for the info.

 

[MarkBastard]

Gday Tony,

I've been working on my build today too. I have a recessed drip tray so I got the angle grinder out and cut into the top of the chest freezer for the recess.

Just a note to anyone else, if you have a fisher and paykel chest freezer don't just assume where the electrical cord for the interior light goes. Mine actually went right around the front of the lid before looping back for some strange reason. Needless to say I've cut right through it. Not the end of the world but I was thinking of replacing the light with a fan and trying to reverse the logic of the on-off switch. Needless to say that idea is out the window now.

 

[Tony]

Oh bugger.

I was drilling the side to mount the fan and as i was drilling the freezer wall.... the drill didnt go through like it should. I stopped and fond a tiny shard of copper on the end of the 1mm drill bit i was using. Glad i stopped....... needless to say i tried drilling in a different spot and got lucky.

Nerve wrackin stuff!

Its realy hard to tell whats inder the skin of these things.

 

[MarkBastard]

Oh for sure, it's impossible. I was grinding away and got to a bit that was heaps harder to grind, turned out there was a couple of layers of metal above where the electrical cord was and that's why it was harder to get through that bit. But doesn't matter in the long run.

Mate won't salt water rust the inside of your font and some fittings etc? Are you worried about that? Wouldn't even metho again be a viable option?

Also I've been thinking of ideas regarding the flooding of the font with a pump. My freezer is slimline so the kegs are arranged in triangles / rhombuses if you know what I mean. That means there's a half keg space in the back left corner. I was thinking if I made a multi-chamber cooling water storage system it may be better? The water from the font drips down into the first chamber, which drips into the second champer, and then into the third chamber, where the pump sits (submersible) and pumps back into the font. I'm not scientist but I figure the top chamber would be warmer but by the time the water gets to the pump in the bottom one it may have had more of a chance to cool down properly, where as if it was a big chamber it may all just because the one temperature, which I'm guessing is about half way between ambient and fridge temperature, which would sort of be useless if you ask me.

 

[Tony]

Not really sure what it will do yet. I figure some cooling is better than none.

The salt wont rust any fittings. There all brass. The font is anodised brass too i think.

Id like others opinions on this......

i just have water in there ATM for leak testing and i found a small one thismorning :angry: Now i have to drain it and pull it apart again. Its all getting gasket goo this time.

cheers

 

[schooey]

IMO.. You'd be better off going with some food safe glycol, it has corrosion inhibitor built in.. With salt water and alloys, think boat engines and sea water... If you don't flush them, it usually attacks the brass welsh plugs and the aluminium... Not sure of the science, but others will chime in I expect.

 

[Tony]

Mmmm yeah true!

Now to try and track down some food grade Glycol.

It never seems to end.