Brew Belt vs. Ferm Wrap vs. Brewers Edge Space Heater

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anico4704

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Hello,
I have a 7.1 cu ft chest freezer that I keep in my basement. I live in Wisconsin and it is about 65 degrees down there so I take it during the winter its probably going to drop to about 55 or so.

I want to continue to brew ales and was looking for something to use with my Johnson Controls temp controller.

I use BB carboys and I was thinking about keeping them in the freezer and using one of these methods:

Brew Belt:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001D6IUB6/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Brewers Edge:
http://www.williamsbrewing.com/BREWERS-EDGE-SPACE-HEATER-P518.aspx

Ferm Wrap:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0064O92WS/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

I was leaning toward the Brewers Edge space heater as I was thinking about using it on 2 at one time by just sticking it to the wall of the chest freezer. I was going to get some Damp Rid so the chest freezer doesn't condensate too much to make it dangerous.

What does everyone think? I know the whole light bulb, and aquarium heater thing, but I think I have narrowed it down to these 3 unless anyone has a valid reason these wont work.

Thanks!
 
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Another option.....

I use a big cooler filled with water and then an aquarium heater I can ferment in cool weather and use it to ferment saisons at as high as 90. degrees.


Works great.
 
Another option.....

I use a big cooler filled with water and then an aquarium heater I can ferment in cool weather and use it to ferment saisons at as high as 90. degrees.


Works great.

The only issue with that is that I wouldn't have enough room in the chest freezer for 2 carboys anymore. I would have to take them out and buy a cooler or something to put them in. Definitely a possibility but I was trying to avoid that.
 
I don't think you'll be happy with the "space heater" to heat to batches. It's only 25 watts. The ferm wrap is 40 watts and really heats only 1 carboy.
 
If your looking for something to heat up the air in the freezer (Brewer's Edge) instead of applying heat directly to the vessel (Brew Belt) then there is a cheaper DIY option you may wish to consider. I forget what its called but some home brewers mount a light bulb in a metal can and use that to heat up the inside of their fermentation chamber (chest freezer for instance). Another even simpler option would be to just wrap the light bulb in tinfoil.

My chest freezer is only 5 cubic feet and I don't think (haven't tried anyway) that I could fit 2 fermentation vessels in there so I just use a brew belt. I made up a temperature controller using an STC 1000 based on instructions I found in a thread in the DIY forum here. The brew belt plugs into the hot side and the chest freezer plugs into the cold side. I'm only on my second brew with this rig but it seems to work pretty good so far.
 
I wouldn't worry too much about the Brewers edge being lower power. It is designed to heat air inside an insulated box (freezer). The fermwrap is intended to heat an un-insulated container. You need more power to do this due to ambient heat loss.
 
This might sound crazy, but I use a simple oscilating desk fan in my chest freezer. I think the fan is about 8".

I thought it would be helpful during the summer to help blow the chilled air onto the carboys. I found out the motor put off more heat and actually RAISED the temps. I now use it to keep ferm temps up and it works great! My garage only gets down to the low 50's/high 40's though so maybe others need more heat. Just wanted to throw out what has been working for me.

cheers,
~j
 
It takes very little heat to warm up a chest freezer. I just use a spare seed germination mat -- here's one from amazon for $21, basically the same as (but larger than) the Brewers Edge unit:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0001WV010/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

I have 2 mats but 1 works perfectly fine. Just toss it in anywhere; it makes no difference, and certainly does NOT need to be wrapped around the fermenter.

Some folks may suggest a blow dryer, but the safety of that setup is questionable -- seed mats are designed for continuous use; blow dryers are not. And blow dryers are overkill anyway.
 
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I'm using this: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003XDTWN2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

It's plenty powerful and circulates the air when it's on. It does take up a bit of space, though. I haven't used it to maintain a raised temperature yet, but when I've stepped up the temperature for a diacetyl rest, it tends to turn on for a minute or so, turn off while the air temperature equilibrates with the fermenters, and turn back on after a few minutes.

I would NOT recommend using it in a situation where you are monitoring the beer temperature at the center of a carboy, it will take it quite a while to raise that temperature appreciably, and I suspect the air temperature could get dangerously hot. I use a thermometer probe taped to the outside of the carboy, so it largely reflects the beer temperature, but also responds to the air temperature.
 
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That's another reason to dislike blow dryers/heaters -- frequent cycling. Probably not designed for that.

And even if you can turn the heat all the way down, there are still hot spots internally and perhaps some very hot air coming out. Far from ideal in a small enclosed space. Belts/mats are barely warm to the touch, making them inherently safer.

And then there's the water safety issue. Belts/mats are designed for a wet environment, blow dryers/heaters are not.

In short, there are numerous reasons to avoid blow dryers or heaters.
 
The cycling shouldn't be a problem for the heater. Certainly not for the heating element---that's completely passive, and is not very different from a heating mat. The fan could conceivably suffer, but there's not a lot of wear on an electric fan due to starting and stopping. Cycling is a problem for fridges because starting the coolant circulating is hard on the system, but I don't think there's much to worry about for the heater.

Water safety is a good point. Condensation is probably not great for the heater, and you certainly want to be sure it doesn't wind up sitting in a puddle.

I'm not sure I agree with respect to hot spots. As long as you're well coupled to the air temperature, with the fan going (and some attention to where it's blowing) I would expect pretty good distribution of heat. The air temperature gets a bit above the set point, but the warmest it's ever set to is still cooler than typical room temperatures.
 
I use a ranco dual controller and plug my freezer in and a simple heating pad you can buy from a grocery store. This is the first cold season I've used it but so far so good. Keeps my fermentation vessel between 66 and 68. The freezer is even located in an uninsulated garage with highs in 70s and lows in 30s. Hoping I have the same success this summer when it stays 100 and humid in my garage all day. This is the reason I went with the ranco, because the Johnson II I was using would cause my freezer to over cool, but now I've got a heating element and cooling element working... It's just delightful
 
It takes very little heat to warm up a chest freezer. I just use a spare seed germination mat -- here's one from amazon for $21, basically the same as (but larger than) the Brewers Edge unit:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0001WV010/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

I have 2 mats but 1 works perfectly fine. Just toss it in anywhere; it makes no difference, and certainly does NOT need to be wrapped around the fermenter.

Some folks may suggest a blow dryer, but the safety of that setup is questionable -- seed mats are designed for continuous use; blow dryers are not. And blow dryers are overkill anyway.

Nice find, just ordered a slightly smaller (and cheaper) one that an Amazon commenter says he uses successfully in his brew fridge.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0044U4F5I/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
I'm planning on using this in a kegerator kept in an uninsulated garage, so it really just has to keep the thing above freezing on the colder Denver winter days.

Anyone know if there would be any danger in painting one of these pads to match the kegerator interior? Generally seems like a bad idea but they're only supposed to get up to ~ 90 degrees so the risk of flaming paint seems somewhat reduced.
 
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Since this thread has a decent number of views, I just wanted to say that I ended up getting the brewers edge head pad. I taped it to the side of the chest freezer (7.1 cu ft.) and it works absolutely amazing. I have no fear of it causing any fire, or shocking as it is very mild output, it gets just warm at best, yet it easily heats up the entire chest freezer within a couple hours to anything I want it to within reason 60-75 degrees. Highly suggested.
 
Quick question. Would you worry about mounting the brewer's edge heat pad to plywood rather than the plastic interior of a fridge? Seems like heat output is minimal so it should be fine.
 
The heat output is in fact very minimal, though i still wouldnt mount it to wood. Thats just me though i'm sure there would be no issue as long as it doesnt stay on forever even if it did i don't think there would be an issue
 
Quick question. Would you worry about mounting the brewer's edge heat pad to plywood rather than the plastic interior of a fridge? Seems like heat output is minimal so it should be fine.

I mounted mine to a sheet of aluminum with two holes drilled in the sheet above the heat pad. Then I mounted two removable 3M Command hooks to the wall of the freezer to hang the sheet from. Works great, and can move it to another freezer without destroying the pad.
 
So if I have a Johnson controller (digital) I just switch to heat mode then throw the heater pad in the chest freezer and set to temp desired and good to go in the winter?
That seed germination pad is a nice inexpensive find, thanks!
 
kennyg said:
...
That seed germination pad is a nice inexpensive find, thanks!
You're welcome. I actually use them for .... seed germination of all things. Then one day looked and it and thought -- hey!
 
So if I am reading this correctly... I can get the $17 heating pad and use a ranco controller to keep my keezer at serving temps year round and not worry about the beer freezing in the winter? My keezer is in a detached uninsulated garage. I live outside Philly so we can get down into the teens in the winter.
 
So if I am reading this correctly... I can get the $17 heating pad and use a ranco controller to keep my keezer at serving temps year round and not worry about the beer freezing in the winter? My keezer is in a detached uninsulated garage. I live outside Philly so we can get down into the teens in the winter.

I don't live in a climate like that, but I'd say yes, that should do it!
 
Hello,
I have a 7.1 cu ft chest freezer that I keep in my basement. I live in Wisconsin and it is about 65 degrees down there so I take it during the winter its probably going to drop to about 55 or so.

I want to continue to brew ales and was looking for something to use with my Johnson Controls temp controller.

I use BB carboys and I was thinking about keeping them in the freezer and using one of these methods:

Brew Belt:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001D6IUB6/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Brewers Edge:
http://www.williamsbrewing.com/BREWERS-EDGE-SPACE-HEATER-P518.aspx

Ferm Wrap:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0064O92WS/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

I was leaning toward the Brewers Edge space heater as I was thinking about using it on 2 at one time by just sticking it to the wall of the chest freezer. I was going to get some Damp Rid so the chest freezer doesn't condensate too much to make it dangerous.

What does everyone think? I know the whole light bulb, and aquarium heater thing, but I think I have narrowed it down to these 3 unless anyone has a valid reason these wont work.

Thanks!
Beer golf, I know it's an old post about the cooler, do you use the same cooler after for carbonating in bottles?
 
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