ebay aquarium temp controller build

[snaps10]

Yup this stuff is like crack. You get hooked on a 25 dollar kit and 1000 bucks later your deciding what the next upgrade is gonna be. Mine is a walk in ferm chamber I can lager in during the hot part of the Florida summer. Wish me luck getting that past the SWMBO minister of finances....

Wheelchair Bob

I had the same dream and settled on a cabinet fermentation chamber with a lagering chamber. If I ever finish it I'll be able to ferment both of my conicals at ale temps, plus lager/cold crash, etc 8 buckets, with a little storage area for aging bottles.
SWMBO was not having the thought of the space a walk in would take.

 

[socalboomer]

I am picking up a commercial freezer at the end of the month... It is addicting.

 

[Danno81]

Just waiting on the control module and my fern chamber will be up and running!
Also you can see my side by side kegerator on the left specifically the perlick tap with flow control (best tap ever IMO)

 

[cincybrewer]

What is everyone using as the line in power? Just an old power plug that you strip one end off? Or are you running it off of an existing outlet?

 

[uatuba]

What is everyone using as the line in power? Just an old power plug that you strip one end off? Or are you running it off of an existing outlet?

I'm using an old extension cord.

 

[Danno81]

I had an extra replacement cord for a saw laying around. You can use anything just make sure it has a ground plug

 

[cincybrewer]

Cool thanks. I have lots of old grounded plugs laying around.

 

[HopinJim]

Got mine last week - Amazon had the deal for the box (same as the OP) and controller for $25 shipped. Made it to my doorstep in 4 days even with econo shipping. Put it together this past weekend, and it is working great. I am using it in an old, non-working kegerator as an insulated box with a fan on the cool side, and a brew belt on the heat side. Ran the wires down thru where the tower was then stuffed it with a hunk of foam. 2 2-liter bottles later, I am keeping a fermenter bucket full of water at at 16C (no heater installed) out in my rather hot garage. Bottles appear to last about 24 hrs, so looks like I'll finally be brewing again this weekend!

 

[Danno81]

I ordered mine last Saturday night and it was @ my door this afternoon! Extremely fast! Already up and running! Works great

 

[barrooze]

Got mine last week - Amazon had the deal for the box (same as the OP) and controller for $25 shipped. Made it to my doorstep in 4 days even with econo shipping. Put it together this past weekend, and it is working great. I am using it in an old, non-working kegerator as an insulated box with a fan on the cool side, and a brew belt on the heat side. Ran the wires down thru where the tower was then stuffed it with a hunk of foam. 2 2-liter bottles later, I am keeping a fermenter bucket full of water at at 16C (no heater installed) out in my rather hot garage. Bottles appear to last about 24 hrs, so looks like I'll finally be brewing again this weekend!

I've used ice bottles to supplement my cooling system as well. Keep in mind that fermenting beer creates heat, so you may need to cycle your ice bottles sooner than anticipated. Have a great brew day this weekend!

 

[cincybrewer]

I used a 6x4x2 for mine.

How did you cram the controller in that? I just bought a 7x5x3 and the box doesn't seem deep enough for the controller. Is everyone just cutting holes in the back of the box to allow the controller to stick out the back?

 

[JuanMoore]

How did you cram the controller in that? I just bought a 7x5x3 and the box doesn't seem deep enough for the controller. Is everyone just cutting holes in the back of the box to allow the controller to stick out the back?

I used a 6x6x2 for mine, and it's pretty tight, but there's a fair amount of room to spare behind the controller. *shrug*

 

[cincybrewer]

Well I just decided to change the layout to provide some additional room. Now just to figure out how to cut the box to pop the outlet in. Utility knife not working so great right now.

 

[Danno81]

Keep at it I used a dremel

 

[HopinJim]

The box I used was 8X6X3. I (and the OP did as well) removed that little plate on the back that "guards" the terminal area. Had enough depth without it to mount it in the cover.

 

[BiteSize]

I am going to build two controllers for a fermentation chamber build I am about to undertake. Has anyone wired in computer fans to the controller such that the fan will turn on when either the cool or heat receptacle is powered on. Essentially I want the fan to run while temp controls are engaged and to be off when temps are steady. Any thoughts?

 

[peter78]

That is covered somewhere in the thread. I remember reading about it. You have to wire a relay or something. I thought about doing it myself, but decided to go with the fan always on to start with. Now I don't see a real benefit to have it stop when heat/cool stops.

 

[alien]

I tend to agree, I think leaving it on all the time makes sense, especially if you use dehumidification.

 

[IslandLizard]

I just ordered 2 STC-1000s off Amazon (@ $18.00). Decided to build 2 H/C controllers for the price of one Auber TD100A I had set my mind on last week.

But we should not really compare apples with oranges here. The Auber has a much better sensor encapsulated in silicone, The STC has a cheap NTC in a PVC sleeve.

Does any of you have a link to those black project boxes? 8x6x3" seems to be the norm to house 2 AC wall sockets?

 

[alien]

Radio shack carries them

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062285

 

[IslandLizard]

That is covered somewhere in the thread. I remember reading about it. You have to wire a relay or something. I thought about doing it myself, but decided to go with the fan always on to start with. Now I don't see a real benefit to have it stop when heat/cool stops.

Continuous circulation is probably the best, although it maybe overkill.

If you want one fan (or one group of of fans) to run for an additional x amount of time after the fridge or heater kicks off then you need to design some sensing and control circuitry to operate the fan(s). There is no simple plug in adapter that could work like that AFAIK.

 

[IslandLizard]

Radio shack carries them

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2062285

Thank you! It's on my shopping list now.

 

[HopinJim]

I just ordered 2 STC-1000s off Amazon (@ $18.00). Decided to build 2 H/C controllers for the price of one Auber TD100A I had set my mind on last week.

But we should not really compare apples with oranges here. The Auber has a much better sensor encapsulated in silicone, The STC has a cheap NTC in a PVC sleeve.

Does any of you have a link to those black project boxes? 8x6x3" seems to be the norm to house 2 AC wall sockets?

Try Radioshack. That's where mine actually came from.

 

[cincybrewer]

Just finished my build and works as intended, now I just need to figure out the proper settings. In testing it out my chest freezer drops way below the desired setting.

 

[marshallwms]

I just ordered an STC-1000 for a HB club member. I got it from Amazon, and on the bottom of the page, they offered a project box. I did not buy it...

Cigar box! I get them for $2 at the local cigar emporium. Much cheaper, much easier to work with, most people love the look, and the inside of the box smells great. The downside? I really haven't found one. I make them essentially at cost for my club members. Of course, you need a fairly large box.

Mine runs and extended mini-fridge, a 35W soldering iron in a stand, and an always-on PC fan.

 

[marshallwms]

Just finished my build and works as intended, now I just need to figure out the proper settings. In testing it out my chest freezer drops way below the desired setting.

Where is the probe? Is it attached to a vessel? It should be.

Are you using a fan in the freezer to keep temps fairly even inside?

How are you measuring the temp in the freezer? If you have the probe on a keg, and you are measuring the air temp, yes, it will drop below your "desired" temp, but the beer won't. And the beer temp is what you care about.

Alternatively, you can just dangle the probe in the freezer and eventually it will get the beer to about the temperature you want. For fermentation, I tape the probe with insulation to the newest, most active fermentation. For my keezer, I dangle it in the air. I don't care THAT much about my exact serving temp.

 

[Yretsof]

I just ordered an STC-1000 for a HB club member. I got it from Amazon, and on the bottom of the page, they offered a project box. I did not buy it...

Cigar box! I get them for $2 at the local cigar emporium. Much cheaper, much easier to work with, most people love the look, and the inside of the box smells great. The downside? I really haven't found one. I make them essentially at cost for my club members. Of course, you need a fairly large box.

Mine runs and extended mini-fridge, a 35W soldering iron in a stand, and an always-on PC fan.

Looks awesome, On my next build I may use a cigar box to hide the controls. Where it looks like a regular cigar box, but open it and inside you would have the control panel. All wires will run through the bottom of the box and to plugs in a different location. So as to look like a cigar box just sitting on top of the fermenter, or a table/bar. I do wonder though, whats the soldering iron for? Surely its for heating, but, what advantage does it have over other heat sources?

 

[chaser2440]

Just finished up mine, works like it should. Can't wait to see if it makes a difference in my beer.

 

[uatuba]

Has anyone had any issues using stranded wire? Code tells me that only solid wire should be used, but common sense tells me that extension cords are stranded and many people use them permanently to plug in their freezers. I've read a thread on another forum that says stranded wire is a better (easier) application because of its flexibility.

I'm a little uneasy about using clippings from the extension cord for all of the connections. Any advice?

 

[TripleHopped]

Has anyone had any issues using stranded wire? Code tells me that only solid wire should be used, but common sense tells me that extension cords are stranded and many people use them permanently to plug in their freezers. I've read a thread on another forum that says stranded wire is a better (easier) application because of its flexibility.

I'm a little uneasy about using clippings from the extension cord for all of the connections. Any advice?

The cord for the freezers and refrigerators are stranded.

I take a lot of electrical equipment apart that has stopped working to reuse what I can in building things. I would say that 99.99 to 100% of the wire used in the various electrical equipment is stranded. Therefore I don't see a problem with using the stranded wire for this project.