fermentation chamber heater?

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BLM

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I am makeing a fermentation chamber that is heated not worried about cooling right now. I am going to use a ranco controller and was thinking on useing a under tank reptile heating pad but noticed it says to only put on glass not wood which is what the inside of my chamber is made out of so what will happen if I stick it to the wood or should I build a little bump out with a peice of glass to stick it to?

ETA or will a heating pad be a better idea
 
BLM said:
I am makeing a fermentation chamber that is heated not worried about cooling right now. I am going to use a ranco controller and was thinking on useing a under tank reptile heating pad but noticed it says to only put on glass not wood which is what the inside of my chamber is made out of so what will happen if I stick it to the wood or should I build a little bump out with a peice of glass to stick it to?

ETA or will a heating pad be a better idea
Click to expand...

I thought about the pad also. I opted for this. http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3716152. It's 50 watts and you can serpentine along two walls of your chamber. I put duct tape to the insulation and then used electrical tape to secure the cable to the duct tape. Works well with for my chamber whichs is about 4X3.
 
Reelale said:
I thought about the pad also. I opted for this. http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3716152. It's 50 watts and you can serpentine along two walls of your chamber. I put duct tape to the insulation and then used electrical tape to secure the cable to the duct tape. Works well with for my chamber whichs is about 4X3.
Click to expand...


thanks for the link that looks like a better idea plus the reptile pad is only 8 watts
 
BLM said:
thanks for the link that looks like a better idea plus the reptile pad is only 8 watts
Click to expand...


Yeah, putting in on 2 walls of the chamber at carboy/bucket height works well for me. I think it's more generalized radiant heat than a pad or ceramic bulb. Good luck on your build.
 
Reelale said:
Yeah, putting in on 2 walls of the chamber at carboy/bucket height works well for me. I think it's more generalized radiant heat than a pad or ceramic bulb. Good luck on your build.
Click to expand...

going to return the heat pad I bought get the rope
my chamber is only 30" wide 30" tall by 16" deep

where did you put your temp prob in the chamber?
 
BLM said:
going to return the heat pad I bought get the rope
my chamber is only 30" wide 30" tall by 16" deep

where did you put your temp prob in the chamber?
Click to expand...

I tape the probe to the fermenter, with bubble wrap or foam on the outside.
 
Reelale,
Do you have any pictures of how you set up the heat rope? I'm pretty sure I understand it, but I didn't think elec tape could handle the heat that well. I would have thought the adhesive would turn to goo..Thanks.
 
what about a submersible aquarium heater? i would see a reason why it wouldnt ork, just have to figure out a way to seal the chord
 
The_Dog_42 said:
Reelale,
Do you have any pictures of how you set up the heat rope? I'm pretty sure I understand it, but I didn't think elec tape could handle the heat that well. I would have thought the adhesive would turn to goo..Thanks.
Click to expand...

beertastic said:
The manufacturer says to use electrical tape:
http://www.zoomed.com/Library/ProductDBFiles/rhcheatcable.pdf

This is an awesome idea btw, and I think this is the way I'm gonna go when I build my chamber.
Click to expand...

Yep, instructions say electrical tape. I'm gonna put a few more strips of tape on mine. My chamber is kinda occupied at the moment, but maybe you can see it in the picture. And remember, this is 50W spread out over 23 ft. of cable. It doesn't get too hot.

ForumRunner_20110405_201928.jpg
 
I used a $15 Space heater. I rewired the fan to run all the time and the heater to run when the controller calls for heat. Works great. I find just the fan running creates heat too.
 
I use a 110v floorboard heating thermostatfrom home depot ($20) taped to the front of a small space heater. Works perfectly.

Sent from my myTouch 3G Slide using Home Brew Talk
 
Reelale said:
Yep, instructions say electrical tape. I'm gonna put a few more strips of tape on mine. My chamber is kinda occupied at the moment, but maybe you can see it in the picture. And remember, this is 50W spread out over 23 ft. of cable. It doesn't get too hot.
Click to expand...

That is awesome. I had no idea this stuff existed. Thanks:mug:
 
i use one of my wifes old hair dryers for my bottle conditioning chamber. I have a fan running 24/7 for circulation, the dryer only turns on for a short time when needed.
 
I use an 60watt infra-red lizard lamp with my eBay temp controller...works great.
 
well I went and got the heated cable put it on two side of the chamber hooked up the ranco and works great took about 15 min though to get fron 53 to 70 in there but I am happy with how it turned out and works going to try it out with a brew this weekend thanks to all that posted
 

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