Chest freezer tips?

[MrBJones]

I'm going to buy a chest freezer tomorrow; already have an Inkbird to use with it.

It'll be in the garage, so will also need a heater of some sort. What kind should I get? The sort that wraps around the carboy? The sort that's a pad, and the carboy sits on it? Something else?

Also, any tips for handling wires that need to go into the freezer? Trying to figure out a way to minimize gaps in the lid seal.

Thanks!

 

[McKnuckle]

I have a chest freezer in my garage in New Jersey, and do not use a heater. My garage probably gets down to 40ºF at the absolute coldest, even in the dead of winter, since it's attached to the kitchen. I keep my InkBird controller set to 42-45ºF. Even if there is a slight dip below this, I considered it not worth the trouble to add a heater.

As for the temperature probe wire, it slides under the seal on the side - the only breach of said seal - and causes no gaps or leaks worth troubling about. I realize one could go to extremes worrying about that, and I initially considered drilling another hole in the collar to accommodate it, but decided against it. I forgot about it shortly thereafter and all is good.

 

[kh54s10]

I have my freezer in my basement so heat is not something I have needed. I would go with a wrap style heater, but that is me.

I wouldn't worry too much about the wires creating a gap in the seal. It will be very small if it doesn't seal around the wire anyway.

McKnuckle: It sounds like yours is a keezer. It seems the OP is using his as a fermentation chamber. He will require a different temperature range.

 

[McKnuckle]

^Ah, you are probably right... duh. Yes, I serve from mine. I ferment in a small fridge in my heated basement. Sorry.

 

[Jtk78]

I bought a wrap from reptilebasics.com. I ended up buying 5' and had them make two 30" pieces and they put the connections cords on. So I got two wraps pretty close to the price of one from homebrew supply spots. They work great and are very nice quality. With a second temp controllers, I can even keep the two ferm temps different. I've achieved 6F difference between the two.

Agree with others on the cords. They just go out past the seal and I have not noticed any performance loss.

 

[stz]

I've a chest freezer and managed to get the power for the heater and thermocouple through a drain plug in the bottom. It isn't like the constant drain in a fridge, more like a rubber plug to a pipe routed through for draining it if you defrosted it. If I couldn't I'd have drilled it, turning it on to try and 'see' the chiller lines inside the walls in the frost. Instead just drilled the rubber bung, threaded the wires and reattached the plugs. I've a little 60W greenhouse heater, like a sealed tube. The wire is unfortunately/fortunately quite fat because it is designed for exterior use and I'd have never been able to deal with having it hanging out under the seal. Any air that can get in will condense and exasperate moisture issues.

I like the tube heater because it is on a little bracket a few inches off of anything out of the way and is quite small. Moisture/fermentations coming over/beer would have made a pad and wrap dirty. Moving heavy items like cornies and gas bottles might have damaged a pad and I'd have hated having to keep taking a wrap on and off and finding somewhere to put either when not in use as the wire would have been threaded through the body of the freezer.

If I was to do it all again and time and expense were no object I'd have liked exterior electrical connections inside the freezer so I can connect and disconnect items, a false bottom to keep items out of any moisture build up, an interior light and a method to circulate air.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

The GE 7.1 hold 2 buckets. Not sure about the footprint of a carboy. The wire under the weather strip will be no issue. I heat with a lightbulb and it works fine. There my be better ways

 

[Dog House Brew]

I have always used a small ceramic heater when I have the same yeast temp ranges going. I would like to get the wraps, then I could heat at different ranges. My 21 cu ft freezer just quit on me. I found a local that has new 11 cu ft for $200. I’m getting 2!

 

[Tarpon87]

I use a seedling mat in my 7 cuft freezer. Easily holds 2 6.5gal BMB with room for containers for blowoff tubes. I just run the wires under the lid, no issues with it being able to hold temp.

 

[jbraaten]

Wrap vs pad, I think at some point you are just talking about energy efficiency as well. A wrap is going to be more controlled than a pad under the carboy because of how you are addressing the heat source. What I would offer is a heat source in a central location to address the ambient temperature within the chamber and controller based on that. You just need to ensure that wherever you are measuring with your Inkbird is going to be most representative of the overall temp of your brew. Putting the temp sensor above.the carboy when the pad is below it will likely not give you a true representation of the temp of your beer. As well, a pad will heat from the bottom first, so it is possible that the bottom of your carboy may always be a degree or two warmer than the liquid at the top.

 

[MrBJones]

One thing I should have mentioned is that, from mid-autumn to mid-spring, temperatures in Dallas can go past limits in either direction; it can be in the 30s one day or night and - literally - in the 70s or even 80s the next. So the freezer and the heater will both need to be plugged in and ready to go at all times. Would a wrap heater tend to insulate the carboy and lessen the effectiveness of the freezer?

 

[PADave]

I use a germination pad for seedlings as a heat source in the winter. Provides a nice gentle heat, and safe. I keep several gallons of water in the chamber, to act as a heat sink, and the pad sits under them. Works really well. The process of fermentation gives off heat, so not much is needed. Mine only kicks on when fermentation is ending/done and I raise the temp to finish out. When setting mine up, I didn't like the idea of a light bulb, or a space heater, too intense of heat.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

One thing I should have mentioned is that, from mid-autumn to mid-spring, temperatures in Dallas can go past limits in either direction; it can be in the 30s one day or night and - literally - in the 70s or even 80s the next. So the freezer and the heater will both need to be plugged in and ready to go at all times. Would a wrap heater tend to insulate the carboy and lessen the effectiveness of the freezer?

The controller has 2 plugs one for the heat and one for the fridge. It will kick on which ever one is needed at any time to one deg difference. If the temp drops one deg the heat comes on if it rises one deg the freezer comes on. It keeps the temps constant. The freezer is insulated.Outside temp swings will have minimal or no effect on inside temps.

 

[PADave]

One thing I should have mentioned is that, from mid-autumn to mid-spring, temperatures in Dallas can go past limits in either direction; it can be in the 30s one day or night and - literally - in the 70s or even 80s the next. So the freezer and the heater will both need to be plugged in and ready to go at all times. Would a wrap heater tend to insulate the carboy and lessen the effectiveness of the freezer?

Remember, the freezer has insulation, and the inside isn't going to change nearly that much. Also, putting bottles of water inside the freezer can act as a heat sink and prevent temp swings.

 

[Dcpcooks]

One thing I should have mentioned is that, from mid-autumn to mid-spring, temperatures in Dallas can go past limits in either direction; it can be in the 30s one day or night and - literally - in the 70s or even 80s the next. So the freezer and the heater will both need to be plugged in and ready to go at all times. Would a wrap heater tend to insulate the carboy and lessen the effectiveness of the freezer?

You can run a reptile heater, small personal ceramic heater or a light bulb in a can. They’ll all work. Personally I used a seedling mat heater since they are waterproof. I wouldn’t worry about a wrap heater insulating a carboy.

Make sure your isolating your temp probe from ambient air.
Probe in a thermowell in your wort is best.
Probe on the side of your carboy covered and wrapped with some insulation. Second best..

Probe in a jar of water or hanging free in the freezer is a bad idea.