Old freezer to fermentation chest w/ light bub

I did this over the weekend: I hauled my very very old upright freezer to the basement, where the temp is pretty steady around 58-62.

I wired up a $12 120v line thermostat (like what you'd use for baseboard heat) and a porcelain light fixture w/ a 15 watt bulb.

It works fine: the thermostat isn't calibrated very accurately, but after some trial and error I have it holding steady at about 68 right now. I've going to be brewing some Belgians soon: this will really help hold that temp a little higher (I might shoot for more like 74 for the saison--I might need a higher watt bulb to hold that temp.)

The bulb fits perfectly in the chiller compartment of the old freezer so that the beer is protected from the light.

Sounds like a great setup. Regarding calibrating your thermostat, is it a mercury switch? If so, some of them can be calibrated by simply levelling it (or moving it slightly off level, if it is a bit off).

It is far from necessary, but I picked up an indoor-outdoor digital thermometer, the kind with a small probe on a wire. It records maximum and minimum temps over time, which I found really useful for adjusting my fridge. Just a thought.