SOFC question on my first time using it

[Tranesblues]

I built the son of a fermentation chiller and have it filled with my first brew using it. I am curious: I set it low at the beginning to get my wort to ferm temp. Once it hits that temp should I set my chiller to that same temp to maintain it? In other words, will it reach equilibrium inside the bucket and inside the chiller? Thanks.

 

[Tranesblues]

Just to clarify that question: Should my chiller be constantly set lower than the temp i want to maintain inside the bucket or will the wort eventually drop to that chiller temp?

 

[justenoughforme]

will it "eventually" reach equilibrium ? ...yes.

how long depends on a lot of factors.

 

[justenoughforme]

meant to add; fermentation is exothermic, so there is always heat generated in the bucket as long as there is fermentation happening.

 

[Tranesblues]

Yes. I understand a few degrees will be added in the bucket. I have the chiller set about 50 right now. But that feels low for the long run. If i want to ferment about 65 i feel like i should bringnit up closer to that temp. Any opposition to that?

 

[justenoughforme]

afaik, once the brew is at temp, trust the thermostat in your cooler to keep it at that temp.


getting it down to temp is a whole other issue, and not a fun one.

 

[Tranesblues]

No doubt, it took about 24 hrs to get it down about 14 degrees. I am gonna raise my setting to about 65 abd see what happens.

 

[CatFoodScience]

If your SOFC is reading ambient air temps, then your fermenting wort can be 5-10F higher especially at peak fermentation activity when controlling your temp is most critical. As fermentation slows, the temps between difference between your wort and the ambient air will be less. You might want to use a stick on liquid crystal aquarium thermometer to get a temp reading on the wort.

 

[Tranesblues]

I have a probe inside the wort so I know the exact temp. After thinking and reading this comment though I am gonna go with about a 60 degree setting. Worst case I will ferment around 65-70. And that is fine by me. Thanks for all the input.

 

[McKnuckle]

If your probe is in the wort, it's reading wort temp. So if you want the wort to be 65F, set the thermostat for 65.

In my case, my probe is about halfway down in the chamber, measuring ambient air. So I set it 4-5 degrees lower than I want the liquid to be (i.e. 61F in this example). The differential gets smaller as fermentation passes its peak, so I adjust accordingly.

 

[CatFoodScience]

I have a freezer and override the power with an STC-1000 that has a temp probe. I put the probe in a thermowell inside the wort and set the STC to the exact temp i'd like to maintain (+/-0.5C). If I were you, and am getting a temp reading of the wort, then I'd set the SOFC to the low end of the optimal range of the yeast. In the end you likely won't have any problems going a little lower then optimal, but fermentation may take a little long (or not).

 

[Tranesblues]

I went ahead and set it at 60 and gave a day. It is in the second day of fermentation so the temp in the wort is about 68 right now. I plan to check it and raise it slowly as the temp of the wort comes down. I figur i will raise it to about 65 until the chamber and wort meet there to finish out. Thanks for all the help gang!