Fermentation Chiller

OK... starting my first DIY project for a fermentation chiller. I have found the plans online and seen some of the ones here on the site.

I decided to double the size of the plans I found online so I could hold 3 or 4 carboys.

I had a couple of questions... on the plans it says to cut 2 square area out of the piece between where the ice goes and where the carboys are, but it says to only use 1 fan. why is that?

Also, since cold air drops to the floor... wouldn't it be better to have the fans at the bottom of the chiller then at the top?

Would it work to have a fan on the bottom blowing air into the carboy chamber and one fan at the top, sucking air out... in effect, circulating the air?

Please... any advice or input would be appreciated.

BTW... here is a rough design so far.



Measurments are:
Width: 36"
Height: 33"
Depth: 41"

It will be made with Omega board that I can get from work and have 2" Polystyrene for insulation inside.

UPDATE: I might have to make the width a little smaller... just measured and it won't fit through my front door.

Well as to where the fan goes, it's a closed system so all you want to do is get the air circulating - this is what the other hole is for as well.

Can't you just build it where it's going to stay?

Chairman Cheyco said:

Can't you just build it where it's going to stay?

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I live in aparment and will be moving next school year to get my daughter in a better school district. So, I need to be able to get it out... But now that I think about it, I could just take it part.

Have you increased the area where you keep the ice? Just thinking that if you increase the area to be cooled the area that does the cooling would need to increase as well. No idea if this is what is needed... just seems logical to me.

I pretty much just doubled the width of these plans. So I would think if they are correct with the cooling area for a single carboy it would work for a double carboy.

Sounds right to me. You'll be able to put more cold stuff in there at any rate

Just wish I understood the math for figuring out airflow/volume, so I knew what size fan to put in it.

FYI the carboy area has 11.64742 cubic feet of volume.

Beer Snob said:

Have you increased the area where you keep the ice?

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Am I the only one thinking of doing this with peltiers so you can both raise and lower temp depending on if youre doing lagers in summer or belgians in winter.

Cheers
Jakob

Hi Vels,
Check out dyerneedofbeer's peltier fermentation chiller. He might be a good resource to bounce some of your ideas off of since he has built a couple of these already. He might be able to help with the choice of peltier device.
Here is a link to his gallery.
https://cdn.homebrewtalk.com/gallery/showimage.php?i=115&catid=member&imageuser=962

I was a bit leary of peltier devices, but apparently they really do work, and there are some success stories with them. I'd love to see one in action and witness the results. The concept is pretty cool (no pun intended).

The biggest drawback I can find is the price. A peltier device big enough for a carboy or two costs a lot more than insulating a box and using ice.

Some things to concider are;

#1 - Flappers

My Brother scoffs at mine but I truly think they do help.

I glued a soda straw onto a piece of scrap carboard, bent 2 finish nails into a 90 degree angle and pushed the assembly into the foam.

Like this...

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And like this...

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I am very pleased with such a simple addition.

Also, those Folgers containers are terriffic and free.

There was some discussion about having the intake high and the exhaust low, which is what I did. I think it only makes logical sense.

Cheers,

knewshound

Well.. got the pieces cut on Friday, so hopefully I will be getting it together soon. I still need to purchase the insulation, fans & temp controller. Looks like it might take me a few weeks to get finished.

What about water condensation? Should I line the ice compartment with something waterproof?

Cregar said:

What about water condensation? Should I line the ice compartment with something waterproof?

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Only a small problem out here during monsoon. Toss a towel down on the bottom of the ice chambers. I elevate the ice containers with some quarter-round and dowels to elevate them about 10". Don't need the towel when the humidity is low.

I havent been having much of a condesation problem with mine, even in the humid Wisconsin summer, but then again I do keep a dehumidifier in my basement too. Any condensation I do it is very easily removed with 1 towel when I change out my 2 liter bottles of ice.

BTW I did the same thing. I doubled the size of the plans and can easily fit 2 carboys in there with no problems. I can also fit 14 2 liter bottels of ice in the thing at 1 time. I put it through it's paces for a short run in the late sumer and it worked great. I cant wait until July / August of next year to really see what she can do.

I only went with 1 fan since all ya want to do is move the air fast enuff to keep it cool. You dont need it to pass by the bottles a billion times to cool of, thats just a waste of fans IMHO.

I built a fermentation chiller for one carboy. Probably pilfered the same plans you did. Works great! I used a muffin fan that I had left over from an old PC power supply. I've fermented in the 68 - 72 * range and one gal of ice lasts about 12 hours on average. The beer requires more cooling during the higher activation stages of the yeast. I used an old wall thermostat and the fan cycles maybe for 10 minutes every 45 min. to an hour. Again, dependent on the activity level of the yeast. Gallon milk jugs tend to rupture in the freezer and it is not evident until later (bummer). But the clear plastic ones that juice comes in are really good. Been using them for six of seven weeks now, haven't had them leak once. Guess I'll set a course ... Whoops!

Good luck!

JAB said:

Gallon milk jugs tend to rupture in the freezer and it is not evident until later (bummer). But the clear plastic ones that juice comes in are really good.

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Don't fill them to the top and keep the cap off while freezing them. I've used them many times without rupture. You gotta give it a way to vent.

Yes. That's just how I was processing them but stretch marks would appear on the first, second or third cycle through the freezer and that is the tell-tale sign that a thinning of the wall has occurred. Subsequent leaking was always the result. I do use a bottle that originally contained windshield wiper fluid and it appears to be made with the same plastic but with a thicker wall. Glad you're able to use the milk jugs. There are enough of them out there.

Keep on Brewin'
Lee

Yeah, that's probably so. I just never noticed the stretch marks 'cuz I used new bottles as I finished with the milk. I probably did that due to reading somewhere that they would break eventually.

I was going to use dry ice at one point, but too much trouble to source. You have to order it about 24hrs in advance, it has to be kept dry, blah blah blah.

I have found the Peltier plates for ~$15 each for the 40x44mm plates. Look here.

Ive build one very similar to, it works great, I can drop the temp to 10° C.
LINK: http://fiebrecervecera.blogspot.com/