STC 1000 temp control - looking for help

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Pelican521

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Hi all, I did a test run of my stc1000 tonight and ran into some issues regarding temp control when I hooked it up to my fridge.

I have a full sized fridge plugged into the cooling outlet and the "paint can heater" in the heating outlet. The sensor probe was submerged in a gallon jug of water. I had the unit set at 17 (c) and kept the orig factory settings for the other settings.


Turned it on at 8pm, by 9pm it was reading 15 (c) which kicked on the heater. An hour later
 
After setting the temp, did you press the power button to "confirm"? It's an easy step to forget/not know about.
 
I think some of your post is missing. Your fridge should have cut off at 16.5 at the lowest and maintained that temp. If the heat is coming on and the compressor is still cycling then you have changed the spread setting instead of the temp. F1 is the set temp. F2 is the spread. F3 is compressor delay time, and F4 is temp calibration. It is possible to set the spread to 15 and cause the issue you are describing. Also check that the Positive is the correct blade of the plugs and that the correct Positive and neutral wires are in the correct place. What kind of temp probe are you using? 2 wire or 3 wire. Ktype or something else? That can make a difference too.

Wheelchair Bob
 
Heh, sorry. I literally fell asleep while I was writing!

The unit works correctly with the outlets controlling the proper heating/cooling.

The problem is the cooling will turn on and when the temp gets to the set temp (17c) the power turns off like it supposed to but since the fridge is very cool it continues to cool the gallon of water lower than 17c. Then the heat kicks in since its colder and it warms up and it gets hotter than 17. It kept over shooting and under shooting the set temp.

I wonder if the problem is the container I have the probe and water in. It's a Poland spring 3liter jug, which is a little thicker plastic than the typical 1 gal jug.

Any suggestions?
 
I'm wondering if a 60watt light bulb is too high and I should move down to 40watt. Maybe that would help with the swings?

The settings I have are F1 - 17, F2 - .5, F3 - 3, and F4 - 0.

Are these settings ok or should I change anything to help with the temp swings?
 
Heh, sorry. I literally fell asleep while I was writing!

The unit works correctly with the outlets controlling the proper heating/cooling.

The problem is the cooling will turn on and when the temp gets to the set temp (17c) the power turns off like it supposed to but since the fridge is very cool it continues to cool the gallon of water lower than 17c. Then the heat kicks in since its colder and it warms up and it gets hotter than 17. It kept over shooting and under shooting the set temp.

I wonder if the problem is the container I have the probe and water in. It's a Poland spring 3liter jug, which is a little thicker plastic than the typical 1 gal jug.

Any suggestions?

Yes, the volume of the jug is probably too big - it's adding a lot of lag. I use a quart glass spaghetti sauce jar. I drilled a hole in the lid and filled it with water.

The bulb is probably fine.
 
^ FWIW I use a 40 watt bulb and it's plenty of heat for my fermenter cabinet. I also agree you might consider a smaller jar for your temp probe, and the thick walls of the jug you mention probably aren't helping either.

Lastly, I generally set my heat setting 1 degree lower then my cool setting and give the heat a 1 degree spread while I give the cool a 2 degree spread. My rationale is that a bulb can cycle on and off many times and replacing it is cheap, whereas my compressor would be a bit more costly to replace if I have it cycling too often.

Another discussion here which might be helpful:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f163/tape-temp-controller-carboy-insulate-really-411263/
 
thanks for the replies guys! I was wondering if I should use a small amount of liquid but wasn't sure, I'll look around for something smaller and I think I'll get a 40watt bulb to replace the 60watt and see how that works.

Jbay, that's for supplying that discussion, it was very informative and addresses a bunch of questions/concerns I had.

I have a PM kit of Sierra Nevada's Torpedo I'm waiting to brew, I just want to make sure I have my fermentation chamber in working order before I brew it.

On that note, I'm using the Wyeast 1056 American Ale yeast in this kit, what would you suggest I set my STC1000 temp to? I was thinking 17.5c, does that sound good or should I use a different setting?
 
^ This is just my personal way of doing things, and I'm sure there's lots of ways to make good beer..so there's that disclaimer;

But....I generally look up the yeast manufacturer recommendations on temp, and start a few degrees below the bottom of the range, letting the yeast warm up naturally to the low end of the range. I leave it there until high Krausen, then I slowly ratchet the temperature up one degree per day or so until I'm at the high end of the range. Usually when I hit the high end of the range fermentation has really slowed down so that limits off flavors, but the higher temps help the beer finish out. Then (and this is something that many will say isn't neccesary, but I do it anyway) I raise the temps to 72 or so and leave it for a solid 3 days after primary is totally over. Then I cold crash (since the beer is in the temp controlled chamber anyway) for 2 days to clear it out, rack it, and either wait 3 weeks if bottle conditioning, or wait a week with it on gas in the keg..and drink. Good luck!
 
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