Fermentation Chamber Build Q

[pvburton]

So i'm in the design phase for a planned 38DD MoFC build (as seen @ http://www.wortomatic.com/articles/38DD-Mother-of-a-Fermentation-Chiller) and am looking to mount dual 60W ceramic heat bulbs on each side of the enclosure. The main idea behind the two bulbs is I want to be able to create dual temperature zones via placing a divider down the middle of the chamber.

In order to maximize space, the logical conclusion I've come to is I'm best off mounting the bulbs through the top of the chamber via plain old porcelain sockets. While not optimal from a heat transfer point of view, I think 60W more than covers the heating demands I'll need in my semi-climate controlled garage during the winter (3 walls & ceiling conditioned space, most loss thru the garage door) so I need not worry _too_ much about optimal placement.

So now for the Q(s): how do I actually do the mount? Drill out a hole and just slide the socket in? Do I need to worry about how close the bulb socket come to the walls of the chamber? How about just drilling a wire hole and letting the bulb hang? Should I think about getting a mounting cage for the socket?

Anybody w/ experience in this area I'd appreciate the help. I'm a computer guy and working with my hands is a relatively new foray, so please forgive the n00bishness of these questions.

 

[sketerbuck]

I got a work light with a metal reflector and put it in a pie pan and ran the cord thru the door. This gives you the heat with no light.

http://s77.photobucket.com/albums/j56/sketerbuck/?action=view&current=CIMG5577.jpg

 

[mariojr]

With the design of the 38DD it would be hard to create dual zones unless you are building two smaller versions of the 38DD into the one enclosure. Because as soon as the fan kicks in to circulate air it's going to more or less equalize temps throughout the entire system. Unless I'm missing something from your post.

 

[pvburton]

sketerbuck : that would work well, however since I have pet heaters I don't think I need to worry about light-- I think what I'll do after poking around here some more is use a porcelain lamp holder (as I saw on some other projects) that usually mounts to an outlet box. TBR whether or not I actually run an outlet box into the enclosure or just go to the wall; thoughts?

mariojr: I plan to go dual zone via mirroring the baffle/fan chamber to both sides of the rear of the chamber. The middle bottom zone will then have the two vent holes in it as opposed to one on the opposite end (since there isn't one on the end anymore). I plan to use precut foam dividers (probably same 2" stuff as the chamber build) to slice things off when necessary. Based on the calcs I've done this will give me enough room for 2 5g ferments on each side, if I ever have that many brews in the pipeline at the same time.

I'll be going Love TSS2-2100 for the controller. Each fan/heater (4 total elements) will have their own 110v plug. I'll use power strips to get the right stuff hooked up depending on the mode I'm in.

 

[pvburton]

Now it gets more complicated. I was just able to come across an abandoned ~1.9 cu. ft. Kenmore mini fridge that still runs, so I think when I get around to this project, I'll go right for what I'm calling an 'Active Baffled Cooling' setup as opposed to ice trays.

Idea is to build chamber roughly the same as planned, but instead supply cooling from a baffled mini fridge tipped into a chest freezer configuration a la http://www.instructables.com/id/How-to-Convert-a-mini-fridge-to-a-chest-refrigerat/.

I'll add a keezer collar to this, with pipe-wrap insulated corrugated tubing connecting to the ferm box for supply and return. The collar would be baffled so that I could pull the cold air from the bottom of the unit, and return to the top. Since the unit I have has the freezer compartment, I'll probably orient it to pull the cold air through that compartment, kinda flipping the 'top' of the unit towards the 'back' of the fermentation chamber.

I'll try to get diagrams together before I do anything, perhaps that'll help folks visualize and tell me if I'm nuts.

 

[pvburton]

The saga continues...

So (most) materials ordered, I'm pretty close to moving forward w/ this mini-fridge collared approach, however I'm not sold on tipping the thing on its side so I can maintain dual use out of it as an actual mini-fridge in my garage for a sixer or two. Plus, there's less chance of something going catastrophically wrong this way. After all, I'm not mechanical by trade.

Now, I'm a bit concerned w/ how to bond this vertical collar to the mini-fridge. The 2x6's are actually about 1/3rd of the depth of the thing, so I think its going to be front-heavy.

I guess I should put some scrap legs on the bottom so that it doesn't tip forward, but I think I might want to put some sort of strapping/banding around the sides/top so that it maintains a tight seal up against the real edge of the fridge; any suggestions? Am I in uncharted territory here?

The plan for piping the cool air into the ferm chamber stays pretty much the same; the hinge side of the collar will have 4 fan holes w/ PVC to corrugated drain pipe sealed by some 5 minute epoxy + worm clamps. The cold air intakes will be the lower two, the warm air returns the upper two. Fans will blow cold air out, suck warm air in.

In this configuration I don't think I'll need to baffle the collar in the fridge at all; I'm thinking the baffling inside the ferm chamber itself should be enough to discourage airflow when the fans are shut off. If I'm wrong, I could always add the baffling later.

Am I still nuts?

PS-- working on a google sketchup of the collar, I can post if somebody is interested.

 

[junior627]

I found this post while searching for Vertical Fermentation Chamber plans. i was wondering if anyone has any experience with building one. Or if this project was ever completed successfully?

Thanks in advance.