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10-26-2009, 02:01 PM
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#1
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Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Fredericksburg, VA
Posts: 360
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Waterbed Heater - Fridge - Ranco Dual Stage
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I have an upright fermentation fridge setup in my garage. I am using a Ranco dual stage controller to switch on/off between the fridge and a waterbed heater that is inside.
The problem I am experiencing is uneven heating caused by the waterbed heater which I have placed in the bottom of the fridge about six inches below the rack that the carboys are on. The bottoms of the carboys get much warmer than the rest. I tape the Ranco probe to the middle of a carboy and set the temp at 66°F.
I have also placed a sheet of cardboard between the heater and the carboys as a direct heat shield. That helped a little, but not a whole lot. I have noticed that on a couple recent cold nights, fermentation gets explosive despite the Ranco's reading of 66°F. The bottoms of the carboys are getting warmer than the middle where the probe is taped.
Does anyone else use a waterbed heater in a fridge? If so, any advise or lessons learned about placement or setup of the heater to minimize uneven heating?
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10-26-2009, 02:05 PM
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#2
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Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Fredericksburg, VA
Posts: 360
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one more thing, I was contemplating placing a small fan in the fridge also on the heating circuit of the ranco. whenever the waterbed heater runs, the fan would too. i think this would help distribute the heat more evenly.
any thoughts?
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10-26-2009, 02:06 PM
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#3
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Senior Member
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: Piscataway, NJ
Posts: 19,419
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Yes, a small fan blowing directly at the heater is how I would handle that. In fact, running a fan on low full time wouldn't be such a bad idea either because it would keep temps even everywhere.
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10-26-2009, 05:10 PM
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#4
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Pissing in Post Toasties
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Shady Shores, TX
Posts: 9,521
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Not sure how much room you have to work with but I'd try putting a shallow rubbermaid filled with water directly on top of the heater. Tape the probe to the side of the rubbermaid container or one of the fermenters.
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Nothing to worry about, but really hard to get enough for a whole bowl of cereal. - bull8042
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10-26-2009, 05:16 PM
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#5
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Hobby Collector
Join Date: Nov 2007
Location: Southern Ohio
Posts: 34,507
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the temperature of fermenting beer will be greater than that of the water in the container due to the heat output of the yeast doing their thing.
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Tap Room Hobo
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10-26-2009, 05:52 PM
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#6
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Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Fredericksburg, VA
Posts: 360
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thanks for the responses. i am going to put a fan in there this evening.
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12-03-2009, 11:42 AM
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#7
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Senior Member
Join Date: Mar 2009
Location: Fredericksburg, VA
Posts: 360
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UPDATE:
6 weeks ago I installed a fan that runs nonstop in the fermentation fridge. Works like a dreram. Now the carboy temps are uniform and the waterbed heater never gets as hot as it used to.
Now I think that a fan is a necessary piece of equipment for this type of setup.
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