Building Fermentation chiller...thoughts?

[emccarthy25]

I've decided to build the 38DD Mother of a Fermentation Chiller. While I have a fairly good idea how I'm going to build it, I wanted to know if anyone has/is using one of these and had any tips for small improvements over the original design and any short comings I should be prepared for.

I already have the 2" thick R10 rated foam and PL300 foam board adhesive for constructing the box. If I use the 'score and snap' method for cutting the pieces from the sheet of foam, will the edges be sufficiently clean and square for construction, or would it be better to to use something like a large kitchen knife or a hacksaw blade for cutting clean through?

Also I have my thermostat but I don't have am RH connection shown on the wiring diagram here I have an RY connection if I remember correctly. I'll have to double check to be sure what the actual letters are, but the thermostat is capable of heating and cooling so should be adequate for the task.

Another thing not clear, so I'll have to figure it out after constructing the box are dimensions of the plywood platform that holds the fan and ice. I'm not sure how tall I should build it, but I guess I can figure that out later.

Thanks for looking

 

[madcow_number_6]

A Hot Knife, check craft stores, will be your best friend for cutting foam board. Score and snap or a saw/kitchen knife will work but for perfect cuts every time a Hot Knife is best.

Also might want to line the ice chambers with something waterproof(cheap markerboard, scrap of plexiglass, something plastic). the frozen water bottles/tub of ice/whatever WILL condensate and get the plywood base wet. Over time this will cause problems like mold and rot.

 

[Rhuarc]

I have never seen one of these before. This looks amazing!

 

[emccarthy25]

Thanks for the tip. I hadn't heard of the hot knife tool...I'll look into one.

I was thinking of lining all the foam with something like linoleum(the stuff on a roll rather than adhesive tile) but I'm not sure if I can get a thin, non textured type of material like that. TBH, I had not thought of the plywood. Maybe linning the ice chambers in plastic drop cloth would be sufficient. I don't want to lose much space in that area of my chiller. If I can't get a thin enough material for the insides of the foam, I may line it with the same plastic sheet as I mentioned for the ice chambers.

 

[madcow_number_6]

My Lowes has a clearance section. Good place to find half a box of tiles of a mismatched roll of linoleum for cheap cheap cheap

 

[emccarthy25]

did some searching and found some info about hot knives. While I can certainly see the benefit to using one, it looks like you would lose quite a bit of the foam with each cut. Since I will be following the plans online as closely as possible, that means I'll need almost the entire 4' x 8' sheet of foam, and with at least a quarter inch of loss for each pass of the knife, I'll end up short in one section or another. Thanks for showing me an option, though.

You've got me thinking about Lowes, now. I don't ever remember seeing a clearance section, but that doesn't mean there isn't one. I'll have to stop in and see if they have one in my local store.

 

[jmf143]

I built one using a plastic utility knife - the kind where the blade slides out of the handle and you can snap off sections of it if it dulls. I'm talking the really cheap ones, not the kind that stores extra blades in the handle.

I use empty gallon jugs that previously held windshield washer solvent. They will get condensation on them, but the board seems impervious to water. I'll wipe the compartments with a towel once in a while, but the moisture has never been a problem.

This chamber was one of the best upgrades for improvng my brewing.

 

[HolyKrausenBatman]

I built something slightly different and a bit larger, but if we're talking the same giant sheets of insulation board, I used a hack saw blade and a gardening glove. I suppose you could do without the glove also.

 

[kapbrew13]

Holds 6 ish.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/fermentation-chamber-build-progress-250779/index7.html

 

[emccarthy25]

I cut my pieces today by scoring and snapping the foam. While the cuts were clean enough, they didn't end up perfectly perpendicular to the face. If I wasn't such an impatient man, I would have used a table saw over at the inlaws, but it is what it is. Should be fine, though, sine I have a friend with some plywood that I will use to construct a shell.

I plan to use expanding foam for any bad spots and caulk for the edges. All I have to dois be reasonable careful to make straight cuts and use corner trim to hide the imperfections. Hopefully I'll. Have a good enough seal that I won't need to use any weather stripping, but we shall see.

If I think far enough ahead I'll start taking some pictures of the build as it progresses

 

[Brewski31]

Hey guys, just made my own fermentation chiller and it works like a fridge! I used 1 1/2 in foam board from home depot. Put it all together with liquid nails caulk gun and some long screws for extra stability. I used a STC-1000 temp controller that is connected to 3 pc fans. And the reason why my setup works so well is the design of my baffled section I will post pictures of it soon. Here is the back baffled sections with the 3 pc fans and cooling bottles

 

[sd_brewbie]

I built one inside of a plastic cabinet, just had to scale the size to fit. Ended up getting a chest freezer after a couple uses as I was leaving for a vacation and couldn't be around to change ice. Ended up selling it on Craigslist which made me sad.

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[PADave]

A chest freezer is so much easier, and probably cheaper brand new. Why go through all the trouble, unless you like doing that kind of stuff?