Condensation w/collar mounted ITC-1000F

[pHimbalance]

I have an Inkbird ITC-1000F that I would like to, preferably, mount into the collar of my modified keezer. I grabbed some 2x6" boards and made a collar around a 7.x cu.ft. freezer, mounted my taps, ran lines, etc, how I'm at the point of addressing the temperature controller and sensor. I'm fearful of the condensation or corrosion potential with the back of the controller being in the freezer so asking for a few pointers.



Ideally the temp sensor would mount likely opposite the taps, and maybe run some conduit on the inside collar and through the back of the collar above the compressor, and run the line down from there, maybe in mounted/glued/calked conduit along the back. When thinking about recessing the temp sensor (yeah, I know, I used 2x6... should have used 1x8 but that's for Rev.2!) it occurred to me that I should probably worry about moisture. This is Ca - Bay Area, East Bay (not dry, but not humid either). Is it even worth it to recess it? I'd just think it would look soooo much better if I did this, but I do worry about the sensor, wiring it cleanly, and keeping this in service until I select some hardwood and revise my notes from this build. Thoughts?

 

[Beholder]

Not sure what you mean by recessing - into the collar? On my old collar, I drilled a through hole, mounted the controller on the back and plugged the hole with some foam insulation and ran it into a container with some water in it to avoid large temp swings and stratification effect of the air.

 

[pHimbalance]

So the temperature controller is roughly 5" deep, but my collar is around 2" thick, so it'll poke through to the inside and the terminals will be exposed to the inside elements of the freezer. I'm planning on installing some fans, and I do already have a rechargable mini dehumidifier, but I'm worried about corrosion or condensation buildup on the controller. It's that a thing in these builds I should be concerned about, and has anybody done anything more to abate it? Looking for ideas, or of what I'm doing is overkill, enough, etc.

 

[pHimbalance]

When I mount the temperature controller through the collar, I want the face flush with the collar is what I mean by recessed

 

[Beholder]

When I mount the temperature controller through the collar, I want the face flush with the collar is what I mean by recessed

Ahh, understood. I had a Johnson, so just attached on the back with no flush mounting. Well, the body of those controllers isn’t sealed so will be exposed to the humid environment. The bead dehumidifiers can keep it pretty dry though, so I would expect the controller shouldn’t see too much corrosion of the internals. That is, if you keep up with the recharging - a digital hygrometer would be helpful to trigger when to recharge those / replace when needed, as it is an easy thing to forget. They even make ones that come with multiple wireless sensors along with temperature if the need fits.

 

[satph]

My collar is a 1x10 or 1x12 with 1/2” rigid insulation. I covered the insulation with thin plywood. I made boxes out of the same insulation to encase the electrical box on the back and the recessed STC-1000+ on the front. The insulated boxes are wrapped in hvac foil tape which I had on hand. Probably overkill, but it’s been in continuous service for 7 years in an enclosed sunroom/brewery which gets to the 80 in the summer and 40 in the winter. I get liquid on the floor of the freezer sometimes, but have never seen any condensation around the collar. My only complaint is that the drip tray is too high.