Lightbulbs for heated fermentation with clear glass vessels?

[adamyoung]

Howdy everyone - please forgive if this has been previously addressed...I didn't see it anywhere...

I am planning on building a crude wooden cabinet to put in my garage during the cold months (in NW Indiana) and was going to mount a computer fan and a lightbulb socket in it and then wire those to be powered off of a temperature controller/thermostat that would kick on power to start heating at a set point. Generally, I was going to use clear glass carboys and/or Big Mouth Bubblers in it, and I am concerned that the bulb I put in might make the fermenting beer skunky or lightstruck. Any advice on what type(s) of lightbulb might be good heat producers and also not create aforementioned flavor or aroma impact? Including maybe certain colored lightbulbs (i.e. red, orange)? Thanks!

 

[swampbrewcrew]

I used terra cotta flower planters. Lightbulb inside of the pot, and the base secured to the top of the pot. It blocked all of the light, and the terra cotta stayed warm for awhile after the light bulb cycled off.

 

[GPP33]

I use a heating pad I got off Amazon for about $20. No light to worry about.

 

[adamyoung]

Both of those are good ideas - thanks swampbrewcrew & GPP33.

GPP33: you happen to have a link to the heating pad you use? Also, how did you position it in your ferm chamber (i.e. have your fermenters sitting on it; have it on floor and fermenters slightly raised; have the pad dangling/suspended; etc.)?

I am definitely still interested if anyone else has determined a good light they can use to ambiently heat and also avoid the photochemical reaction. I did see some folks discuss on the Reddit homebrew site, but there wasn't discussion of the possibility of using colored bulbs to avoid "bad" light, or whether the heat coming form LEDs vs. others was sufficient or better. Would love to hear if anyone has dared to go the path of un-obfuscated light with those parameters in mind and had success.

 

[day_trippr]

Ceramic heat bulb. Zero spectrum issues beside some deep IR...
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017RCQ4JO/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

Cheers!

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

I use one of those clip on gadgets with a simple 60 watt light bulb, it works fine

 

[z-bob]

If you're going to use a light bulb, maybe use something like this: https://www.lightbulbs.com/product/industrial-performance-35135 I'm not sure that incandescent lights put out enough light of the wavelength that causes skunkiness anyway, but if you use a dark red light that should block all the troublesome shorter wavelengths. Just be careful you don't start a fire; lightbulbs get hot.

I use a cheap Sunbeam heating pad and an Inkbird controller and an insulating jacket to keep my carboys warm when my basement is too cold.

 

[mongoose33]

I'm a believer in heating the fermenter not the ambient space; sounds like you want a chamber that has multiple fermenters in it. The problem with that is having a common fermentation temperature for multiple fermenters. You may or may not hit your target for each one. Easier if there's just one fermenter or two brewed at the same time. It's also slow to heat whereas a heat mat directly applied to the fermenter is more responsive.

I've used both a fermwrap as well as a reptile heat mat. The fermwrap is 40 watts, but that heat is applied directly to the fermenter if you wrap it around the fermenter and secure with straps or bungee cords or whatever. The reptile heat mat works well as long as the ambient temp isn't too low. I've used both in a fermentation chamber/refrigerator, but it was in a garage that never drops below 32 degrees.

Here's a pic showing two BMB's using heat mats; the one on the left uses the reptile heat mat, the one on the right the fermwrap.

 

[GPP33]

Both of those are good ideas - thanks swampbrewcrew & GPP33.

GPP33: you happen to have a link to the heating pad you use? Also, how did you position it in your ferm chamber (i.e. have your fermenters sitting on it; have it on floor and fermenters slightly raised; have the pad dangling/suspended; etc.)?

I am definitely still interested if anyone else has determined a good light they can use to ambiently heat and also avoid the photochemical reaction. I did see some folks discuss on the Reddit homebrew site, but there wasn't discussion of the possibility of using colored bulbs to avoid "bad" light, or whether the heat coming form LEDs vs. others was sufficient or better. Would love to hear if anyone has dared to go the path of un-obfuscated light with those parameters in mind and had success.

Looks like it was $13, you can get several sizes or a 2 pack of the 10x20 that I got for $20. I just toss it in the chest freezer and it works for what I need. It’d Be more effective if it was tightly wrapped around the fermenter.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00P7U259C/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

 

[Jtk78]

I prefer wraps as well. I bought it from here http://www.reptilebasics.com/heat-tape/21-heat-tape/

They cut it to the length I asked for and I had them put the ends on.

With 2 temp controllers, I have kept an 8F difference between the two vessels in the same chamber. I haven't tried to go with a bigger delta yet.

 

[jack13]

I use a desk lamp with an incandescent bulb, and cover my fermenter with a towel to combat potential skunking. My 'chamber' is a cheap chest freezer with an inkbird. I don't know the maximum heating potential this setup allows, but I've had it set to 80 when the ambient temp was, I believe, 60 to 65.

 

[pinchegil]

put a light in a ceramic socket in this https://www.homedepot.com/p/BEHR-1-gal-Metal-Paint-Bucket-and-Lid-96601/100038785

 

[devils4ever]

Buy a new empty paint can from Home Depot and mount a ceramic socket in it. Use a 60W bulb. This is what I've used for years.

 

[LittleRiver]

I use a 16W heat mat under my Big Mouth Bubbler. It works great in an area where the ambient temp is 50-60F. The fermenter sits directly on the mat. My temp probe is in a 12" thermowell through the lid. The heat from the mat is very gentle and distributed, no worries of damaging the fermenter or overheating the beer.

If the ambient temp were lower, I'd probably add a ceramic heat bulb (like the one day_trippr linked to above). I would put it on the same "heat" circuit coming from the controller, so both go on/off at the same time. With a second controller the ceramic bulb could be programmed to come on at a slightly lower temperature, only when the heat mat can't keep up.

 

[adamyoung]

Right on everyone - thank you for the ideas. I guess having separate heat wraps in that space might be kind of nice for the reason mentioned of more granular/autonomous control for different batches. I'll see if I can find time in the next several weeks to get lumber and build this thing, and then also what I wind up implementing for heating and will try to report back here for anyone interested.

 

[charliethebum]

Buy a new empty paint can from Home Depot and mount a ceramic socket in it. Use a 60W bulb. This is what I've used for years.

+1 on this one. Cheap, simple and effective.

 

[mashpaddled]

Right on everyone - thank you for the ideas. I guess having separate heat wraps in that space might be kind of nice for the reason mentioned of more granular/autonomous control for different batches. I'll see if I can find time in the next several weeks to get lumber and build this thing, and then also what I wind up implementing for heating and will try to report back here for anyone interested.

A third option is to buy the reptile heat tape in a length that runs around the interior of your cabinet. They don't get directly hot enough to start a fire (unlike a light bulb) but they will heat the interior more evenly. The thing to keep in mind with your build with any type of light bulb is that there is going to be one very hot spot in the cabinet and the rest of the cabinet will have uneven temperatures.

 

[day_trippr]

Right, it's important to keep the chamber air stirred up. I use 60w incandescent bulbs in cheap ceramic fixtures with fans blowing over them...

Cheers!