Time for new equipment- focusing on temp control

[bradleyhunt]

Back story- I have been brewing since 2009. Went from Mr. Beer, to 5 gal batches, back to smaller batches (when I lived in Korea and space was limited), and now back to 5 gal batches. I am comfortable with computers (29 years old) but haven't done computer coding or software writing.

I am currently deployed to Afghanistan, so what do you do when you can't make or drink beer? You plan out your upgrades.

What I have decided to focus on is really nailing down my temperature control.

My idea, is to start with an SS Brewtech 7 Gal Chronical Brewmaster Edition (wanting to move to more fermenters in the future). I am not completely thrilled with their FTSs controller due to not being able to use a pump or heat pad of my choice with it. From there, I plan on using an ice chest as a coolant reservoir using ice and water as the cooling medium. Moving to a full glycol chiller in the future. I live in Utah (now) and the winters can get cold. So I would like the ability to also heat the Chronical as required.

What I don't want: a fermentation chamber. I don't want to repurpose a refrigerator or freezer as a chamber for my fermenters.

So here's the research question I am currently working on. What would be the best piece of equipment for controlling what I want to do? I have looked at a few options. The FTSs controller, but as I said before, I don't like that I can't use other than their pump/heater. The STC-1000 seems like a pretty good option. I am very comfortable doing the basic electrical required to build a nice little setup. The last option I looked at (that the techy side of me really wants this to work) is the BrewPi or Spark.

To re-cap. I want to be able to monitor fermenter temps while cooling/heating as required, but not in a fermentation chamber. Being able to data log would be awesome, although not required. I am comfortable with electrical but not coding. And the ability to expand would be awesome.

Thanks a lot for all the help.
Brad

 

[dmcman73]

Do you need to heat and cool at the same time? In other words, some brewers need to cool during the morning/afternoon and heat at night as temps fluctuate where they live.

I don't have this problem so what I do is I use the FTSS chiller kit from SS Brewtech (the pumps work great BTW and they are near silent). I then use an aquarium chiller that chills a small cooler filled with water and Glycol (the glycol is only in there to keep the water from turning funky). To heat when needed, drop an aquarium heater into the cooler full of water.

Now here is where it gets a bit complicated for the chilling part. I have a separate pump that pumps water through the aquarium chiller. Rather than have the pump running constantly I have it connected to an Inkbird temp controller that only turns the pump on when the temp in the cooler rises. The reason I do this is because before I used to leave the pump running 24/7 but then noticed that the water temps in the cooler would fluctuate, the reason being that the water was cooling the pump since it was heating up from 24/7 use. So to make it more efficient I hooked the pump up to an inkbird temp controller and it only goes on to pump water through the aquarium chiller when the water temp in the cooler rises.

I currently have 2 Conicals both using a dedicated FTSS system with two separate pumps and controllers for each in this setup. If both conicals are fermenting and require 70 - 65 degrees F temps, I keep the water in the cooler at 50-55 degrees F.

Another option beside an aquarium chiller is to hack up a small A/C unit and place the condenser coils directly into the cooler full of water. The plus to this is that you'll be able to get the water temps down far enough to cold crash if you want to and you can chill the water in the cooler directly without additional pumps. The Con is if you're in an apartment or it's in your house, it's a bit noisy (since the whole unit is in your house and not hanging out the window) and can generate some heat. The pros of the aquarium chiller are that it's much quieter than an A/C unit, fits cleanly anywhere and looks nicer. The Cons of the aquarium chiller are that it can only go down to 39 degrees (you could probably hack it to remove that limit but I haven't looked into it) and you need a separate water pump for it.

 

[madscientist451]

What I have decided to focus on is really nailing down my temperature control.


What I don't want: a fermentation chamber. I don't want to repurpose a refrigerator or freezer as a chamber for my fermenters.

Just curious, why the objection to using a fermentation chamber?
I'm thinking about using an upright freezer with the idea if I get tired of brewing or upgrade to something else, I can use it as an actual freezer or sell it.
Thanks for posting your question, I'd like to keep an open mind as to what options are available.

 

[bradleyhunt]

So... Do I need to heat and cool at the same time? Most likely not. Do I want the option? I would like it, if I could do it in a clean configuration.

I like the FTSs system, and would not be against going that way, it just seems that you are tied into using their specific equipment due to the connectors. Seems to limit customization, but may not be as big of a deal as I think. I have been looking at aquarium chillers, what size is yours? I was looking at the 1/4 to 1/3 HP models to get around the 2000-2500 BTUs. Not cheap ($400-450), but cheaper than a comparable glycol chiller ($850). I'm not totally sold on taking apart a window a/c, mostly because I wouldn't know how to do it. That being said, if I found a good thread about on that didn't look like a Frankenstein water chiller, I wouldn't mind giving it a shot.

 

[broadbill]

If you don't want a fermentation chamber than go with a glycol chiller. Personally, I think hacking apart/hacking into various cooling appliances to make them into temperature control units is largely a fool's errand.

I totally get the fun of DIY, but sometimes you just need to buy the best tool for the job.

 

[bradleyhunt]

Just curious, why the objection to using a fermentation chamber?
I'm thinking about using an upright freezer with the idea if I get tired of brewing or upgrade to something else, I can use it as an actual freezer or sell it.
Thanks for posting your question, I'd like to keep an open mind as to what options are available.

Just preference. I'm military, so moving fermenters and the associated chilling equipment is easier (to me) than multiple fridges. In reality, it's totally just me not wanting to go that particular route.

 

[bradleyhunt]

If you don't want a fermentation chamber than go with a glycol chiller. Personally, I think hacking apart/hacking into various cooling appliances to make them into temperature control units is largely a fool's errand.

I totally get the fun of DIY, but sometimes you just need to buy the best tool for the job.

I grew up with a dad with all Snap-On tools, and have inherited the same desire. I'm leaning towards your same recommendation.

 

[stratslinger]

The STC can certainly do what you're asking - I've had one controlling (sorry!) my fermentation chamber for a few years now, and it does the job. It monitors a single temperature probe (so expand-ability may be a concern), and you can easily set it to drive independent cooling and heating circuits. I got mine back before the STC-1000+ was a thing, so it works in C only - but I maintain my fermentations +/- .5C handily (and right now, with the bonkers weather we're seeing in New England, it's a toss up whether it's heating or cooling at any given time - it's still doing both very capably).

If I had it to do again now though - I'd definitely be taking a hard look at either the BrewPi or at Strangebrew Elsinore, both running on a Raspberry Pi. I'm less familiar with BrewPi, but I just finished building an ebrewery control panel centered on a Pi running Elsinore, and I can tell you that it's pretty damn slick. You can do all the same kind of stuff with it that the STC can do, plus you have a web interface, there is built in logging, and it's expandable up to the number of available GPIO pins on the Raspberry Pi. You use up one pin for your bus of temperature probes (so you can monitor your fermenter from multiple points, or monitor multiple fermenters), and then one pin for each heating and cooling source that you want to control. You can set up "virtual PIDs" to tie to the temperature probes and the heating/cooling sources together and give you the capacity to control temperatures. You can also set up triggers, so if you wanted to program in a fermentation profile (say, maintain 65F for the first 3 days, then rise up to 68 to finish up), that's do-able, and not something my STC can do. The only challenge I can think of might be in tuning the PID settings for this kind of setup - tuning them for a kettle with a 4500W element was a bit of a challenge, but to do so for this kind of setup wouldn't necessarily be difficult, but potentially a bit time consuming.

 

[bradleyhunt]

I'd definitely be taking a hard look at either the BrewPi or at Strangebrew Elsinore, both running on a Raspberry Pi.

Is there an "Idiot's Guide" somewhere? Because I get somewhat dizy when I look at most threads about the RasberryPi. Does it make more sense when you actually have it?

 

[stratslinger]

Is there an "Idiot's Guide" somewhere? Because I get somewhat dizy when I look at most threads about the RasberryPi. Does it make more sense when you actually have it?

Yes!

It was definitely a little bit intimidating at first - I'm a tried and true Windows guy (actually, a Windows guy by trade), so there's definitely a bit of a learning curve using a Linux system - but if you go with Strangebrew, check out the Reddit for it - in fact there's one post there right now about fermentation control - and there's a few step-by-step guides there for setting up the Pi, installing Strangebrew, and where to go from there. I'd imagine BrewPi has a similar online community somewhere.

If you're interested in doing it, just do yourself a favor and get the Pi and one of the cheap prototyping kits first, and play around before you do any permanent physical installations. I had an 18"x18" board that I temporarily mounted my Pi to, a Sainsmart relay array (which is all you'd really need for a fermentation controller), a breadboard to lay out my connections in an easy-to-follow manner, and my pair of SSR's, just so I could run the software, wire everything up, and verify it all worked as expected. Definitely learned a thing or two in that process that would have been a little more painful had I done post-physical-install.

 

[bradleyhunt]

If you're interested in doing it, just do yourself a favor and get the Pi and one of the cheap prototyping kits first, and play around before you do any permanent physical installations. I had an 18"x18" board that I temporarily mounted my Pi to, a Sainsmart relay array (which is all you'd really need for a fermentation controller), a breadboard to lay out my connections in an easy-to-follow manner, and my pair of SSR's, just so I could run the software, wire everything up, and verify it all worked as expected. Definitely learned a thing or two in that process that would have been a little more painful had I done post-physical-install.

So, looking more into the How to make a BrewPi controller, https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=466106, I kind of like that idea. Talking with one of my young enlisted guys that is really into computers made it sound like it wouldn't be all that difficult. And the pictures make it look like its mostly just wiring, not a lot of circuitry building. (I had to look up what a breadboard was and my brain exploded).

I also had to look up what PID was, how i saw it explained was like "a memory" so it knows when to shut heating and cooling off to arrive at set temp. I know BrewPi has that function, does Strangebrew? I'm having a more difficult time trying to find a comparison of the two.

 

[stratslinger]

Breadboards are actually a lot simpler than they look - the first time I looked at one I had a similar reaction. Then one came in the mail with my Pi, and a lightbulb went on. It makes it VERY easy to make connections and change connections at will - and if you do like I did and mount the whole thing on a piece of luan, you can make notes all around it to help keep things straight in your head.

As to the PID functions - yes, Strangebrew has a PID function. That's its primary strength for control panel work; you can set up as many software PIDs as you have temperature probes attached to your Pi. The one thing I'm seeing that may make BrewPi a little more friendly for fermentation control is that it does have an autotune function for its PIDs, where Strangebrew makes you manually tune them. Manually tuning on something where you're introducing 4500-5500W of heat to is one thing - doing it where you have more limited chilling and heating capacity could be a bit more challenging (or at least time consuming).

Or you could go really nuts (cost wise it's way more expensive) and look into a BCS system. But that's probably more bells and whistles than you're looking for, and you could buy 4 Pi's for less than the entry level BCS.

 

[jrcrilly]

Just curious, why the objection to using a fermentation chamber?

I use one (a 15cf chest freezer) and I can tell you what the down side is. There are 5 fermenters in there now. If it were up to me, they wouldn't all be at the same temperature. I always have to set a compromise temperature.

 

[bradleyhunt]

I use one (a 15cf chest freezer) and I can tell you what the down side is. There are 5 fermenters in there now. If it were up to me, they wouldn't all be at the same temperature. I always have to set a compromise temperature.

One of my reasons not mentioned earlier. Being able to have one at ale temps and one at lager or cold crashing.

 

[bradleyhunt]

As to the PID functions - yes, Strangebrew has a PID function. That's its primary strength for control panel work; you can set up as many software PIDs as you have temperature probes attached to your Pi. The one thing I'm seeing that may make BrewPi a little more friendly for fermentation control is that it does have an autotune function for its PIDs, where Strangebrew makes you manually tune them. Manually tuning on something where you're introducing 4500-5500W of heat to is one thing - doing it where you have more limited chilling and heating capacity could be a bit more challenging (or at least time consuming).

I think i may start down the brewBrewPi route and see where that gets me.

Is this what you were talking about with the prototyping kit? Seems like a lot of stuff I may not use? http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01C6Q4GLE/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

 

[stratslinger]

That ones got a little more than you need. You definitely need the Pi and power supply, the case is a nice to have, and the hdmi is good if you don't have extras laying around. Really, you want a breadboard and a bunch of jumper wires. Also, if brewpi uses onewire for its probes, you'll need at least one resistor (I forget the size off the top of my head, but it should be easy enough to track down)

 

[augiedoggy]

using the STC-1000+ with alphaomegas firmaware on them is a good option as well... I currently use a few of these to control all my conicals with a single glycol chiller and individual heater strips. I use cheap blue "discharge hose" like found at home depot wrapped around the outside of the conical and then I insulated the conical wit 2 layers of double bubble foil faced insulation. its cheap effective and easy to clean.

The stc 1000+ allows me to set up to 10 programmed temp profiles with ramping capability. I use 24v soleniod valves to turn on and off flow to each conical off of a manifold that uses the same pump in my chiller to cool all 4 conicals (I only have 3 connected at this time) There are pics at the end of my build thread below if your looking for ideas... The insulation made a HUGE difference. I have no problems keeping lagers and ales at thier respective temps with this setup and a single chiller that doesnt have to run all that often (havent used it in the summer yet) It is in my house.

Many people told me the discharge hose wouldnt work well but I actually get frost on the inside of the conical wall where the hose is wrapped, its very quick.. It works better than my "coolzone" carboy cooling jacket.
I also used thin walled surgical tubing on one of my conicals and it works just not as quickly as the discharge hose.

 

[jrcrilly]

One of my reasons not mentioned earlier. Being able to have one at ale temps and one at lager or cold crashing.

Yup. I had two freezers, but one died. Until I repair or replace it, I am stuck with one temperature.

 

[stratslinger]

One other thing worth noting about the BrewPi vs Strangebrew setups: Strangebrew only needs a Pi (and whatever devices you want it to monitor or control - so your temp probes and relays, etc). I just started reading up on the BrewPi, and that also requires an Arduino, and I'm not sure yet how the two interface... It still sounds, on the surface at least, like BrewPi might be the better suited overall solution of the two for fermentation temp controllers, but it also appears to carry with it some additional complexity in terms of the hardware and (maybe?) the setup.

 

[bradleyhunt]

So, one of my buddies at work did some Nerd Wizardry and now I feel quite a bit more comfortable. He even said he would help me out saying it would be "easy." Using FuzzeWuzze's schematic, this is the parts list I came up with. Please look over and provide input. I'm in Afghanistan, so would like to order this tomorrow evening (my time) tomorrow morning (US time) to get it here before I leave in a couple months and have something to burn up the time here. I was wanting to do 3.5mm jacks for the temp probes, also thought about rj12 connectors.

RPi 3
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01C6Q2GSY/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I1DHUD0532T8T7

UNO
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E5WJSHK/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I3B4VQHME7FMCO

2 Channel Relay (Could I go Solid State?)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0057OC6D8/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=IFPMOPLYEM1N7&psc=1

Terminal Bar
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008X0NNEY/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I30OTZS4Z34G3K

6 Color 22G Solid Hook Up Wire
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B4ZRPEY/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=IUA4961SODJWL

4.7k Resistors
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0185FC5OK/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=IP7MC1OEVN8D7

Temp Sensorshttp://www.amazon.com/dp/B0012DRL4C/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I245VT2Z1J5DD6&psc=1
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CHEZ250/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=ITWSQJIKNHASC&psc=1

Power Cable for 120v and internal outlet wiring
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000510ZO/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I3APCYF0RU5QP9&psc=1

Haven't decided which outlet
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008J80J1A/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I1J0S0E6SZCW4F
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0012DRL4C/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I245VT2Z1J5DD6&psc=1

Project Box
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002BSRIO/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I1343ZWLG4TNPO&psc=1

The 3.5mm jacks seem to be hit or miss.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B013AP77T8/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I324PFHUTLL3QX
http://www.amazon.com/uxcell®-Plastic-Housing-Headphone-Connector/dp/B00MFRZ2SG/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1457734599&sr=8-8&keywords=3.5mm+jack
How would you do the temp sensors if you wanted to have a place to plug them into the box instead of a hard wire option. 3.5mm jack, RJ12? Something else?

I really appreciate everyone's help! This is definitely making this deployment go by faster.

 

[Base2Brewery]

First of all I would like to thank you for your service.
I used a brewpi set up for about a year. I had good luck with the brewpi set up, but found myself tinkering with it, and always worried about crashing and freezing. Although we have a lot of support and knowledge on this forum, that would help you build exactly what you want. My personal preference was moving to an ohmbrew controller. I have both cool and heat functions, and can store multiple temperature profiles and can transfer information from my laptop to the controller via SD card. I have been happy with with every function and have been using it for over a year now with no issues.
View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1457749912.550919.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1457749994.806137.jpgView attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1457750085.484779.jpg

 

[bradleyhunt]

Anyone have an opinion on these items?

So, one of my buddies at work did some Nerd Wizardry and now I feel quite a bit more comfortable. He even said he would help me out saying it would be "easy." Using FuzzeWuzze's schematic, this is the parts list I came up with. Please look over and provide input. I'm in Afghanistan, so would like to order this tomorrow evening (my time) tomorrow morning (US time) to get it here before I leave in a couple months and have something to burn up the time here. I was wanting to do 3.5mm jacks for the temp probes, also thought about rj12 connectors.

RPi 3
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01C6Q2GSY/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I1DHUD0532T8T7

UNO
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E5WJSHK/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I3B4VQHME7FMCO

2 Channel Relay (Could I go Solid State?)
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0057OC6D8/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=IFPMOPLYEM1N7&psc=1

Terminal Bar
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008X0NNEY/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I30OTZS4Z34G3K

6 Color 22G Solid Hook Up Wire
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B4ZRPEY/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=IUA4961SODJWL

4.7k Resistors
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0185FC5OK/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=IP7MC1OEVN8D7

Temp Sensorshttp://www.amazon.com/dp/B0012DRL4C/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I245VT2Z1J5DD6&psc=1
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CHEZ250/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=ITWSQJIKNHASC&psc=1

Power Cable for 120v and internal outlet wiring
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000510ZO/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I3APCYF0RU5QP9&psc=1

Haven't decided which outlet
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008J80J1A/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I1J0S0E6SZCW4F
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0012DRL4C/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I245VT2Z1J5DD6&psc=1

Project Box
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0002BSRIO/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I1343ZWLG4TNPO&psc=1

The 3.5mm jacks seem to be hit or miss.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B013AP77T8/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=25JBUZJP3FPOH&coliid=I324PFHUTLL3QX
http://www.amazon.com/uxcell®-Plastic-Housing-Headphone-Connector/dp/B00MFRZ2SG/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&qid=1457734599&sr=8-8&keywords=3.5mm+jack
How would you do the temp sensors if you wanted to have a place to plug them into the box instead of a hard wire option. 3.5mm jack, RJ12? Something else?

I really appreciate everyone's help! This is definitely making this deployment go by faster.

 

[stratslinger]

Still not familiar enough with the BrewPi setup to say much beyond the very general - but your idea for 3.5mm jacks could be hard to pull off. Talking to the Arduino may be different, but if you use onewire natively on the Pi there are 3 conductors you need to connect - not sure how many 3.5mm jacks do more than 2, personally - but if you have a line on some that'll handle 3 you should be good.

Personally, I just used rj45 connectors for all my probes, since I already had a box of those connectors lying around.

 

[augiedoggy]

Still not familiar enough with the BrewPi setup to say much beyond the very general - but your idea for 3.5mm jacks could be hard to pull off. Talking to the Arduino may be different, but if you use onewire natively on the Pi there are 3 conductors you need to connect - not sure how many 3.5mm jacks do more than 2, personally - but if you have a line on some that'll handle 3 you should be good.

Personally, I just used rj45 connectors for all my probes, since I already had a box of those connectors lying around.

3.5mm stereo jack is a 3 conductor connection.. (left, right channels and common negative connection)

 

[FuzzeWuzze]

One other thing worth noting about the BrewPi vs Strangebrew setups: Strangebrew only needs a Pi (and whatever devices you want it to monitor or control - so your temp probes and relays, etc). I just started reading up on the BrewPi, and that also requires an Arduino, and I'm not sure yet how the two interface... It still sounds, on the surface at least, like BrewPi might be the better suited overall solution of the two for fermentation temp controllers, but it also appears to carry with it some additional complexity in terms of the hardware and (maybe?) the setup.

Having both, i use SBE for my brewery hlt/mash/boil controls and BrewPi for fermentation works great. Dont get me wrong SBE is the ****, but i'd still use a BrewPi over it for Fermentation control. That may change at some point since SBE is still developing, but BrewPi does everything i could realistically ever want. Honestly the only feature BrewPi is really missing is simple multiple fermentation control...which leads me too...

That said, there is also work (in the coming weeks!) being done on a fork of the BrewPi code to only require a RPI and no more Arduino. Its currently in testing and once we get it healthy enough im thinking most new builds will use that method. It will cut the cost a bit(you could use a RPI Zero since you dont need to USB power an Arduino)

The Arduino was chosen to control currently because microcontrollers are much more stable platform than a small microprocessor like RPI. Having said that RPI, and Rasbian OS have come a long way in stability and its not really an issue anymore. Not to mention the rather "weak" gpio's on the RPI compared to an Arduino.

 

[bradleyhunt]

Having both, i use SBE for my brewery hlt/mash/boil controls and BrewPi for fermentation works great. Dont get me wrong SBE is the ****, but i'd still use a BrewPi over it for Fermentation control. That may change at some point since SBE is still developing, but BrewPi does everything i could realistically ever want. Honestly the only feature BrewPi is really missing is simple multiple fermentation control...which leads me too...

That said, there is also work (in the coming weeks!) being done on a fork of the BrewPi code to only require a RPI and no more Arduino. Its currently in testing and once we get it healthy enough im thinking most new builds will use that method. It will cut the cost a bit(you could use a RPI Zero since you dont need to USB power an Arduino)

The Arduino was chosen to control currently because microcontrollers are much more stable platform than a small microprocessor like RPI. Having said that RPI, and Rasbian OS have come a long way in stability and its not really an issue anymore. Not to mention the rather "weak" gpio's on the RPI compared to an Arduino.

So, would you recommend I just get an ITC-308 type control and wait it out for what will be coming out?

 

[bradleyhunt]

That said, there is also work (in the coming weeks!) being done on a fork of the BrewPi code to only require a RPI and no more Arduino. Its currently in testing and once we get it healthy enough im thinking most new builds will use that method. It will cut the cost a bit(you could use a RPI Zero since you dont need to USB power an Arduino)

The Arduino was chosen to control currently because microcontrollers are much more stable platform than a small microprocessor like RPI. Having said that RPI, and Rasbian OS have come a long way in stability and its not really an issue anymore. Not to mention the rather "weak" gpio's on the RPI compared to an Arduino.

Maybe a better way to phrase my question, FuzzeWuzze, with the items mentioned above, I believe I can make what I want (a brewpi fermentation temp controller). When the "new stuff" comes out, will I be able to use most of these same items?

 

[jschein]

Here, you need this; http://www.brewjacket.com
I have 2 of the cool models and love them.
The new model also heats, I am buying one
Carry on.

 

[FuzzeWuzze]

Maybe a better way to phrase my question, FuzzeWuzze, with the items mentioned above, I believe I can make what I want (a brewpi fermentation temp controller). When the "new stuff" comes out, will I be able to use most of these same items?

Yes you will be able to use all the same items, minus the Arduino.

If your just building a single chamber setup, the Arduino isnt a big deal, its when you start having 2,3,4 chambers while possible with BrewPi all the setup can be a bit of a pain.

 

[bradleyhunt]

Say, for the sake of argument, one already had the full FTSs setup with their chronical, but want to start dipping their toes in BrewPi. Could you buy an RPi and temp sensors only, so that you could have data logging? I understand that you would lose the ability to control temps from it, but that could be added later. Am I correct?

 

[dmcman73]

Say, for the sake of argument, one already had the full FTSs setup with their chronical, but want to start dipping their toes in BrewPi. Could you buy an RPi and temp sensors only, so that you could have data logging? I understand that you would lose the ability to control temps from it, but that could be added later. Am I correct?

If the brewpi can be setup to use relays and programmed to open the relays at certain temps, you wouldn't lose temp control. the pump motors that come with the ftss are just DC pumps, you just need to match the connector and verify polarity.

Or, if you use the flat top lid on your conical, the ftss temp controller can monitor temps from the top thermowell and then insert the brewpi temp monitor into the thermowell on the front of the conical.

 

[bradleyhunt]

Do you need to heat and cool at the same time? In other words, some brewers need to cool during the morning/afternoon and heat at night as temps fluctuate where they live.

I don't have this problem so what I do is I use the FTSS chiller kit from SS Brewtech (the pumps work great BTW and they are near silent). I then use an aquarium chiller that chills a small cooler filled with water and Glycol (the glycol is only in there to keep the water from turning funky). To heat when needed, drop an aquarium heater into the cooler full of water.

Now here is where it gets a bit complicated for the chilling part. I have a separate pump that pumps water through the aquarium chiller. Rather than have the pump running constantly I have it connected to an Inkbird temp controller that only turns the pump on when the temp in the cooler rises. The reason I do this is because before I used to leave the pump running 24/7 but then noticed that the water temps in the cooler would fluctuate, the reason being that the water was cooling the pump since it was heating up from 24/7 use. So to make it more efficient I hooked the pump up to an inkbird temp controller and it only goes on to pump water through the aquarium chiller when the water temp in the cooler rises.

I currently have 2 Conicals both using a dedicated FTSS system with two separate pumps and controllers for each in this setup. If both conicals are fermenting and require 70 - 65 degrees F temps, I keep the water in the cooler at 50-55 degrees F.

Another option beside an aquarium chiller is to hack up a small A/C unit and place the condenser coils directly into the cooler full of water. The plus to this is that you'll be able to get the water temps down far enough to cold crash if you want to and you can chill the water in the cooler directly without additional pumps. The Con is if you're in an apartment or it's in your house, it's a bit noisy (since the whole unit is in your house and not hanging out the window) and can generate some heat. The pros of the aquarium chiller are that it's much quieter than an A/C unit, fits cleanly anywhere and looks nicer. The Cons of the aquarium chiller are that it can only go down to 39 degrees (you could probably hack it to remove that limit but I haven't looked into it) and you need a separate water pump for it.

What is the Max flow on the FTSs pumps? I can't make it out on their website.

 

[dmcman73]

What is the Max flow on the FTSs pumps? I can't make it out on their website.

I honestly don't know the answer to that and currently, both of the pumps are installed and "glued" to the bottom of a cooler that is filled with Glycol/Water and chilling two fermenters at the moment so i can't even read the labels (Glycol makes the water a cloudy).

 

[dshepard]

What is the Max flow on the FTSs pumps? I can't make it out on their website.

I have a brand new one not installed in glycol yet. Per the label:

Max Head: 12ft
Max Flow: 8L/Min

Interesting mix of engineering units.

 

[bradleyhunt]

I have a brand new one not installed in glycol yet. Per the label:

Max Head: 12ft
Max Flow: 8L/Min

Interesting mix of engineering units.

Thanks for looking! I work that out to about 120 gal/hr.