Fermwrap & Temp controller question

[MapleGroveAleworks]

Hi all, I bought a Ferm Wrap off MoreBeer so that I could ferment a saison in the mid 70's up into the mid 80's in my basement which is always around 65.

I am using a Johnson blue box digital temp control. I insulted the probe against the carboy, then wrapped the FermWrap around that and the carboy and plugged it into the controller and then into the wall. I set for 75 degree and the Ferm Wrap never fired on. I tried the FermWrap without the controller and it fired up just fine. Why is it not firing on when hooked up the temperature controller? I now have it in a ferm fridge just plugged straight in and the fridge hooked up to the Johnson but that seems to be a weird way to do it.

Thanks

 

[summerofgeorge]

May be a dumb question but do you have it in cooling mode instead of heating mode? If it's turning the fridge on to keep the temp from exceeding 75, it's in cooling mode.

 

[stz]

I'm not familiar with that particular controller, but I've wired up a few atc-800's and stc-1000's. All I can offer is that I found it useful at first with new builds to test the output with some desk lamps or similar, something visual to give you a good idea of how it is working when switching. I usually panel mount mine with sockets for heating and cooling so it is easy to swap things over. Also controllers I've used and yours might be the same have both a band to set before switching and a delay before switching designed to help overcome hysteresis and prevent rapid cycling leading to constant overshoot/undershoot and subsequent equipment wear. I've known people get caught out waiting for those values, when by default they were like 3 minutes.

 

[MapleGroveAleworks]

May be a dumb question but do you have it in cooling mode instead of heating mode? If it's turning the fridge on to keep the temp from exceeding 75, it's in cooling mode.

I didn't know there were different modes on the fermwrap thanks. I thought it was just plug and go. I'll try and figure out how to switch it.

 

[summerofgeorge]

Not the fermwrap, the Johnson controller. If it's in cooling mode, it won't send power to the fermwrap until the temp is OVER 75. And then it would be working the opposite way you want (it would keep sending power until it got below 75 but that would never happen since it's heating).

The way you did it through the fridge works because the fridge kicks in if the temp gets above 75 and then stops cooling when it's below 75.