An Idiots Guide to Temperature Controllers

[cshelden]

I can agree with insulating it well, I just never had the accuracy of simply taping it with out some bubble wrap etc. Just saying a thermowell works nicely if you don't mind spending 15$. I just got tired of having to tape something up. By all means if you have a system that works it's golden and don't change it. cheers!

 

[Dean Tummers]

Agreed. If it's in layman's terms and I get a squillionth of a bit smarter at the end of the article, I'm a happy man.

 

[Tytonegro]

Of course this overview mentions a few popular choices, but I use an ALVA controller, which is a programmable universal temperature controller that has two outputs (so dual stage)
It can be programmed for many steps over many weeks and can even do (slow) temperature ramps (up or down)
It is actually sold as a Brew controller, but because of it is easily programmable it can be used for many purposes.

 

[ruddyscot]

great article. But I need HELP. I bought a stc 100A. worked fine for the first week and now I can't get temps below 52 F in my keezer. Can't find any instructions, but kinda sorta followed the ones for the STC1000. Should I just buy another controller [very limited budget] or can someone tell me what I'm doing wrong. The You-Tube video involving a fish tank wasn't helpful.
thanks for your time

 

[TheMuffinMan]

Hey definitely agreed there. Thermowell >> than taping with insulation >> ambient.

 

[bacgabe]

Very nice article. I just wanted to chime in and recommend against placing the temp probe in a jar of water in the ferm chamber. I actually initially did this for about 3-4 batches when I first began using a ferm chamber (freezer and a ranco digital controller [now an inkbird]). In concept it is a good idea to keep your ferm chamber from rapidly cycling on and off due to having the probe in the ambient air, susceptible to large temperature swings. However, the problem is that it does a very poor job tracking and combating the heat given off by fermentation. In other words, your fermentation bucket/carboy will rise 5-10 degrees above ambient as it enter peak fermentation. The heat produced thereby gradually warms the ambient air in the ferm chamber. That ambient air then very slowly warms the jar of water. When that jar of water finally warms enough to trigger your controller and start the cooling cycle, your bucket/carboy temp is already 5-10 degrees higher than you want. Then, the cooling cycle kicks on, and continues to cool until your jar hits your setpoint - but at the same time, the volume in the fermenter which is 50x the volume of the jar [and which also has the heat from fermentation] has likely not noticeably cooled. So while the jar method has the advantage over putting the probe in the ambient air, in that it provides greater buffer, since that buffer is independent of the heat source, it actually decreases the ability of the ferm chamber to counteract temperature swings in your fermentation chamber. In fact, in my opinion, a water bath or a ferm chamber set at a static temp several degrees below your desired fermenation temp would probably be better than a ferm chamber using the jar method, in that at least the former methods eliminate the temp swings/excessive heat spikes you get with the jar method. All that to say, if you don't have a thermowell, just find a way to slap your temp probe to the side of your fermenter with some sort of insulation...that way your fermentation chamber is directly controlling the temperature of the wort with little to no delta.

 

[mike]

This is what I used for a Thermowell. http://www.homedepot.com/p/Homewerks-Worldwide-1-2-in-x-20-in-Chrome-Plated-Copper-Faucet-Supply-Line-7226-20-6-12-2/203672694
Only about $7 at Home Depot. Just pinch the one end and solder the seam. Drop through an opening in your fermenter, and drop the thermocouple from the temperature controller down the tube. Nice close fit, so there is good thermal accuracy.

 

[mike]

Lead free solder, of course... ;oP

 

[PlanetDan]

Does the ceramic heat lamp produce any wavelengths that could be detrimental to the beer? A lot of reptile bulbs are designed to produce UV.

 

[Henry]

bought an inkbird itc 308------just want to turn on a fan when my garage gets above 85 degrees-
programmed it [i think] with the set temp--plugged my fan into the 'cooling' plug--
it turned on the fan when it went above 86 degrees--but when the temp dropped down to 75 the unit 'heating' light came on, and the cooling light went off [nothing plugged in to heat plug] and the fan kept working [my cooling device]-
i obviously have some other parameter set wrong--can anyone give me specific settings for all of the possible settings ?--Thanking You in advance--hh