Temperature Control

What equipment recommendations do you guys have for someone on a modest budget looking to increase temperature control both in fermentation and during mashing? As far as mashing goes, I am currently using a 10 gallon cooler with slotted copper tubing. I can't ever seem to hold a steady temperature during the mashing process without multiple additions of hot water.

Controlling ferment temps is easy with a fridge and a temp controller. Controlling mashing temps is easy with a HERMS or RIMS (see my gallery)... but on a budget... you may be able to get away with some water and a towel for ferment temps... mash temp control will be pricey.

Your cooler should do a good job... maybe you just have hot and cold spots in the mash?

Well a digital temperature controller + a fridge and/or a fermwrap will take care of fermentation.

You could pull that same temp controller off of the fridge for a couple of hours to control mash temperature but you are also going to need a march pump to recirculate and some method to directly (eg RIMS) or otherwise (eg HERMS) heat the recirculating wort.

Now if you are really on a budget I would recommend preheating your mashtun and rigging some sort of insulated object to fill the headspace in your tun. That won't help you with fermentation even a little bit though.

I guess for $30 a fermwrap could be used for fermentation and also maybe below your mashtun to provide a modest heat boost to the mash but honestly I have very little trouble holding temps in a preheated cooler.

Everyone has a budget.... just depends what's in your budget. Are you looking at $20, $200, or $2000?

Pol has it right.

Insulating the in the tun is something I haven't thought of. I was going to try insulating the top from the outside, but this sounds like a much more efficient way of doing it. Any suggestions on what best to use for insulation?

And yes, I was looking into getting a fermwrap. And the general consensus seems to be that this would be a good buy.

Thanks guys.

Buy a piece of that rigid foam insulation board. Cut out a piece to fit inside your cooler, and place it on top of the mash. It will prevent heat loss into the head space.

Try mashing/lautering in a cooler, lots of people use the 10 gallon round coolers, but others will work as well.

conpewter said:

Try mashing/lautering in a cooler, lots of people use the 10 gallon round coolers, but others will work as well.

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I think in the OP he stated he is using a 10 gallon cooler.