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02-24-2006, 03:26 PM
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#1
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Member
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Missouri City, TX
Posts: 58
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Conditioned Fermenter "Chamber"
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Hey all,
I was wondering if anyone uses a special container for maintaining the exact (or rough) temperature you desire for fermentation?
I keep my house at 75 F and didn't want to lower it, so I made a 2L x 2W x 3H feet fermentation chamber out of 3/4 inch insulated sheeting, doubled up to make 2-ply 1.5 inch walls. I went to an electronic parts store and got everything to make a home-made thermostat to power a peltier cooler with heat synchs and fans for circulation. This was mounted on top.
You can see pictures here. (Still need to dress wires properly 
I have been keeping the temperature inside the chamber at a constant 69 degrees, but it can easily go lower.
Just wnated to share my method, and was wondering if anyone has done anything similar?
- Bill
Last edited by billism; 02-24-2006 at 03:39 PM.
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02-24-2006, 03:37 PM
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#2
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I use secondaries. :p
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Cary, NC
Posts: 11,114
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I've just got an old fridge in the garage with an external thermostat. Since the weather here seems to fluxuate a lot and my garage is not well insulated or heated, I have to be careful about the carboys getting too cold at night or on colder days when the outside temp is below 60 degrees.
To deal with temp drops, I have an old lamp in the fridge with a 20W lightbulb in it that I leave on all the time when it's cold. This way it never gets too cold or too warm inside the fridge, even if the outside temp drops to freezing or rises up to 100 degrees.
Ideally, I would like to have the lamp on a second thermostat so that it only turns on when the temp drops too low, but I haven't had time to actually do this yet.
-walker
__________________
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Help me give childhood cancer the middle finger and donate to the St. Baldrick's Foundation.
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02-24-2006, 03:38 PM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Clemson, SC
Posts: 150
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Very cool... what was the parts total?
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02-24-2006, 03:39 PM
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#4
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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Houston, Baja Oklahoma
Posts: 3,599
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A lot of people build fermentation chillers, but they're a lot smaller than yours, and usually cooled by ice blocks. How much did that peltier cooler run you?
__________________
[/I] Up Next - Hobgoblin
After That - Czech Pilsner
Primary - Humboldt Hop Rod (4/24)
Primary - NOT Wheat AG SNCA (5/5)
Secondary -
Conditioning - SNCA Clone (3/3),
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02-24-2006, 03:40 PM
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#5
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Beer Bully
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Barony of Fuquay-Varina, NC
Posts: 5,421
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Well, I'm not sure what 'billism' is, but your website is filtered as 'pornography' here at work so I'll have to check it out when I get home. Sounds very similar to the Son of Fermentation Chiller: http://home.elp.rr.com/brewbeer/chiller/chiller.PDF
I haven't built one, but am considering it this summer. Your substitution of a peltier cooler for the rather primitive blocks of ice sounds quite intriguing, however! I'll check the link when 'the man' doesn't have his foot on my neck. |
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02-24-2006, 03:42 PM
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#6
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Clemson, SC
Posts: 150
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What temperature range is that peltier cooler capable of, anyway?
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02-24-2006, 03:46 PM
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#7
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Member
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Missouri City, TX
Posts: 58
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The peltier cooler (with heat synchs attached) was $12.95. The parts for the thermostat were a total of like $55. The most expensive parts were the transformer (for built in power supply), which was $18.95 and the aluminum enclosure, which was $18.50. All other parts are pretty cheap. Oh, and the insulated sheeting was like $10 each I think and I needed 3.
Total cost of about $90.
My father, who lives near me, was the engineer for making the thermostat. =) I can supply the schematics if anyone wants them. I found it hard to find a pre-made thermostat for something like this.
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02-24-2006, 03:49 PM
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#8
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Member
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Missouri City, TX
Posts: 58
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by BeeGee
Well, I'm not sure what 'billism' is, but your website is filtered as 'pornography' here at work so I'll have to check it out when I get home. Sounds very similar to the Son of Fermentation Chiller: http://home.elp.rr.com/brewbeer/chiller/chiller.PDF
I haven't built one, but am considering it this summer. Your substitution of a peltier cooler for the rather primitive blocks of ice sounds quite intriguing, however! I'll check the link when 'the man' doesn't have his foot on my neck. |
porn? I have no porn on my site. I do drop the F bomb (rarely, though) when warranted. It is my personal web site.
Ice. wow. I don't think I would want to fool with that. Peltier coolers are great. Though quite power enificient, they do the job very well. My brother calculated it out and it probably costs about $3 a month to run it with teh fans if power is 14 center per kWh. |
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02-24-2006, 03:53 PM
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#9
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Member
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Missouri City, TX
Posts: 58
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Quote:
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Originally Posted by bobbyc
What temperature range is that peltier cooler capable of, anyway?
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I am not totally sure. The cool side gets pretty cold from what I can feel. I would guess in the lower 50s, maybe 40s. I have no way of really telling for sure right now.
I was kind of shocked and happy to find a peltier cooler with built-on heat synchs. |
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02-24-2006, 03:55 PM
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#10
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Senior Member
Join Date: May 2005
Location: Houston, Baja Oklahoma
Posts: 3,599
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Hey billism, where'd you get the parts...EPO?
Could you PM me your address, and leave your back door unlocked so I can come over and borrow that thing, ninja style? 
__________________
[/I] Up Next - Hobgoblin
After That - Czech Pilsner
Primary - Humboldt Hop Rod (4/24)
Primary - NOT Wheat AG SNCA (5/5)
Secondary -
Conditioning - SNCA Clone (3/3),
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