You might need more than 5v. I started with a 6v power supply and couldn't get much with my 2" bar magnet. So I ran to the store down the street that has a basket of used supplies for $5-$10 and got a 12v 1amp model and just put a resistor in line from the power supply to the potentiometer.
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I used the instructions from this thread to make my stirplate....worked out great.I took an old computer ...robbed the power supply from it, the power switch and the hard drive.Used the power supply and fan for the project box (just had to remove all the un-necessary guts and cut out an opening in the top for the fan.Robbed the magnet from the hard drive....Heck the only things I had to buy were the potentiometer, the knob , and the stirbar for a grand total of 14 bucks.I used an old 12v powers supply from a rechargeable flashlight.Once I got the magnets situated right it worked at full speed with a 1 gallon growler that has a concave bottom.Thanks to the op and all the fine folks who contributed to this
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How I brew: Stir plate starters, Extract, Full boil in a Keggle, 10 gallon batches.
Brewing upgrades in progress: temp controlled ferment, stir plate re-work, building mash tun, milling station
Planned House Ales: an Amber, an IPA, a dark IPA, a Mango Ale, a blueberry oatmeal stout, a dry Irish stout, a honey wheat, Apfelwien
Can't answer that exact Q, but I use a 2" stir bar in a 4L flask. I have two stacks of magnets spaced about 2" apart. One stack is flipped to get opposite polarity. The magnets are the little round rare earth ones that are 1/2" diameter by 1/16" thick. I hold everthing together with hotglue. I posted some pics here.
You can order those online or if you have a store nearby. I used them with a 2" stirbar and I stacked I think 3 or 4 on the fan with a spacer. It works very well and they were cheap. I have two left over holding things on the fridge.
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Just renewed my subscription, glad to see this is still going. Keep up the good work guys!
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You can't be a real country unless you have a beer and an airline - it helps if you have some kind of a football team, or some nuclear weapons, but at the very least you need a beer.
--Frank Zappa
Not bad. I'd be a bit concerned about the suitability of the materials for your homemade stir bar. I'm not sure that the wire insulation or hot glue are food safe. If you were just doing it to test with water that's fine but I would either think about getting a real stir bar or finding a better suited coating (food safe) for the homemade one.
Thanks to the op and all the fine folks who contributed to this
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