Temp Contoller Woes

[pbrosnan]

Hi all,

My little 2 tap Tucker Box dispensing unit is giving me grief. I just can't seem to set the temperature reliably. The controller is a black box with a bulb type probe that is inserted into the freezer box along side the kegs. The temp is set via a knob on the box which is attached to the outside of the freezer and is wired directly onto the compressor (i.e. the box doesnt have a female pin setup for the power).
Anyway I've check the probe line for kinks etc and found none but the temp seem to fluctuate at random in a range from 0.5 to 10 (a new high) C.
Any suggestions welcome but I'm thinking that a new controller may be in order.

 

[peas_and_corn]

Do you have any pics?? It's hard for me to visualise your setup

 

[Justin]

Pbrosnan,

Is the temp of your beer fluctuating from 0.5C-10C or is it the air in the fridge around your beer that is varying by this much? This is important, if your measuring the air around the beer then the liquid wont be changing in temperature as much as the air is. Put a thermometer in a bucket of water and see what the temp swing of the liquid is like. If it stays around your serving temp then there's no real problem.

But I agree, that is quite a bit temperature range/swing. Was the controller working well before hand or is this a new controller? A hystersis of 5C is quite typical, appears yours seems around 10C.

By the sounds of your controller it wont have an adjustible hysteresis so assuming it is wired correctly I can only suggest you try the above and then come back to us with the results.

Good luck.

Cheers, Justin

 

[pbrosnan]

Ta Justine,

I've got the thermo attached to the side of one of the kegs via a suction thingy but its a good idea to be sure so I'll do the glass of water thing. The controller is not new and did appear to be behaving as within limits. Anyway thanks for the suggestions.