Brew Temp & Regulating Chests

I live in Champaign, IL and am lookin to brew here soon. its still warm here most of the time. i keep my AC aroun 78 for billing reasons. whats the best way to keep a brew temp lower in the high 60's low 70's? i cant sit it on my AC either...cuz their ceiling mounted vents.

My other idea...is build an insulated chest with a temp regulator....anyone got good instructions on this? and a cheap way to do it?

I'd suggest starting simple -- Get a rubbermaid type container large enough to fit your carboy/bucket in. Put the bucket in it, add six or so inches of water, and then put an old t-shirt over the fermenter so it hangs into the water. Point a fan at it, and you've got an instant swamp cooler, good for several degrees of cooling.

If that's not cold enough, fill the container with more water, and add a frozen water bottle or two. If you get 4 water bottles, you can cycle them from container to freezer as they melt and gain a few more degrees of cooling.

More involved projects include "Son of Fermentation Chiller" and a converted fridge/freezer with a Ranco or Love controller. Even more involved would be to excavate a basement so you can ferment year-round.

Seriously, a search should give you a lot of ideas. Here's an example

thanks man. if anyone else has info let me know

Here is mine:


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Changing out 3# of ice twice a day (soda bottles in the freezer work great) and running the fan it holds steady at 62. Today I have Orfy's Mild in there I have just ice without the fan and it is holding at 65-66. Ambient room temp is 74. You'll need a little more ice at 78 but it will still work great.

those swamp coolers are great ideas, u can also think about storing your carboys closer to the ac where the temp will be lower, or if you really want... u can try to find a free chest freezer on craigslist and i will help u wire a controller and everything to it next month when i come down