Another Fermentation Chamber Thread

[kerklein2]

I'm in an apartment currently and trying to figure out how to do a fermentation chamber. I have a built in desk in my kitchen and the space under it is perfect to fit several carboys. I'm planning on framing in it with some 2X4s and then insulating it (nothing permanent, its an apartment remember. What I am trying to figure out is how to cool it. I've seen the son of a fermentation chiller with the ice and fan and that would work perfectly but it has the hassle of using ice. I have an old mini-fridge but I have no idea if harvesting the cooling parts of it are feasible (its too tall to fit in the space). Has anyone taken the guts out of a mini-fridge? Are there any other good methods for cooling the space? Some type of miniature air conditioner or something along those lines? Thought you guys might have some ideas.

 

[kerklein2]

Anyone got anything?

 

[AnonyBrew]

You covered the options. I think I saw someone had used ducting & some fans to circulate air from a fridge to & back from an insulated box. I also saw someone air duct from an AC vent in their house to a box.

From what I read, dismantling a mini-fridge is not worth the effort and it can easily be damaged in the process.

 

[kerklein2]

Well I just had a flashback to heat transfer class and remembered thermoelectric cooling devices (peltier effect) and decided to see what was on the market. I found a couple small (200 btu) thermoelectric A/Cs designed for electronic enclosure cooling and requested a quote. Then I remembered about electric coolers and went and found some cheap electric coolers (~$50) on Amazon. Since these don't use any coolant or compressors, I imagine it would be pretty easy to rip the cooling unit off one of these and wire it up to a temp controller. Anyone done anything like this?

 

[Hang Glider]

I don't remember the exact threads - do a search for Peltier in the DIY forum and I'll bet you get plenty of info...

 

[Mongo64]

I'm building something similar right now and am using the ice w/ fan method. I have a temperature controller that I plan to use with this. I'm planning to see how the ice works out and may replace it with a mini fridge in the future.

I think I remember someone trying to use a peltier cooler and found that it could not keep up with the heat produced by fermentation. If you have to buy more that one peltier cooler it ends up costing too much. You can buy a mini fridge on craigslist for $30-50. That might be a better solution.

 

[jevchance]

How about hacking the door off the mini fridge, then mounting it against a hole in the cabinet? The door seal would seal up nicely against a flat cabinet surface. Also, you wouldn't have to modify the mechanicals of the fridge.

 

[kerklein2]

The mini-fridge is too big for the space.

 

[ClutchDude]

Check out my build thread. I used 2x4's, foam insulation and the guts from a fridge.

 

[kerklein2]

Thanks Clutch, it looks like you had an identical minifridge as mine to work with. My only problem would be properly ventilating the radiator on the back. I'm looking to close this in under a desk and the only solution that would work would be to put it up against the wall on its side with enough air gap to hope it can cool itself. Maybe some slits along the side for more ventilation for the radiator?

For clarification, here is a quick (read: 5 minutes so don't laugh at my stock textures and boxiness of everything) model of the space I'm working with.

 

[jevchance]

What about attaching the fridge, or the guts of the fridge, to the outside of the desk (left side of the picture)? You'd have to put some holes in that wall...

Thanks Clutch, it looks like you had an identical minifridge as mine to work with. My only problem would be properly ventilating the radiator on the back. I'm looking to close this in under a desk and the only solution that would work would be to put it up against the wall on its side with enough air gap to hope it can cool itself. Maybe some slits along the side for more ventilation for the radiator?

For clarification, here is a quick (read: 5 minutes so don't laugh at my stock textures and boxiness of everything) model of the space I'm working with.

 

[kerklein2]

That would work, but this is an apartment I am renting. Putting large holes in a wall is not a good idea.

 

[jevchance]

Just for clarification:

Forgive my even poorer image.

If cutting holes in that side of the desk is not an option, you could also do the venting idea with a couple of hoses.

These are the only ideas I can think of keeping the fridge intact. If you're willing to gut the fridge, you could feasibly mount the radiator and compressor onto the front door, or to a piece of wood on the side.

 

[jevchance]

One more thing to consider is, what are your target dimensions inside vs. available space. If you are going to mount the radiator/compressor inside the hole, you could mount it under a false floor if you have enough vertical room.

 

[kerklein2]

I don't think I have the vertical space, but I have space in pretty much every other dimension. I could figure out something, but it would probably be more complicated that I would like. After getting some quotes back on some thermoelectric A/C units and realizing that a cooler peltier probably doesn't have the capacity to cool this I think I'll probably pick up a $30 mini fridge that is small enough to fit under there and work with that.

 

[jevchance]

Excellent. Pics when finished, please.

 

[kerklein2]

Will do. Probably won't be anytime soon though.