Fermentation chamber heating AND cooling

[monkeymootj]

Hello fellow HBT members. I am currently in the process of building a fermentation chamber that will be large enough for two 6.5 gallon buckets.

I am basing my design loosely on the son-of-a-fermenter design, only twice the size. I live in California and as the summer approaches, temperatures can change fairly drastically. I will need the ability to cool and heat, sometimes in an hours notice. I really like the idea of frozen water bottles forcing cool air via a computer fan as well as a brewing space heater.

Unfortunately, my research has only found techniques for one or the other. I like the idea of a thermostat with a relay to run the fan. I have also seen controllers than can heat or cool but require a jumper to be changed.

Any suggestions that can control both, perhaps a double throw type switch?

I have no problem converting from ac to dc. Thanks for your info!

 

[BigBlueDog]

I just build a temp controller based on this thread in the DIY forum. It was pretty easy. There was also an article in BYO a couple of issues back that described basically the same project.

 

[william_shakes_beer]

I just bought a chest freezer, a brew belt and a 2 stage temperature controller. Wired up the controller to a duplex receptacle with one outlet wired to the heat relay and the other to the cool relay. Plug freezer and brew belt in, you're good to go. However, you may want to consider 2 chambers. What happens if one batch needs heat and the other needs cooling at the same time? I have a 1 bucket chamber, so its not a problem for me.

 

[monkeymootj]

I just bought a chest freezer, a brew belt and a 2 stage temperature controller. Wired up the controller to a duplex receptacle with one outlet wired to the heat relay and the other to the cool relay. Plug freezer and brew belt in, you're good to go. However, you may want to consider 2 chambers. What happens if one batch needs heat and the other needs cooling at the same time? I have a 1 bucket chamber, so its not a problem for me.

Ahh, I like that idea. Unfortunately I don't have an extra freezer. However, I could implement this idea with an ac/dc converter. What kind of temp controller do you use?

 

[dbrewski]

I got mine on ebay. Search for temperature controllers. If you are willing to wait a couple of weeks for a package from Hong Kong it is worth doing, $20 for a two stage controller. I also have a Johnson Controls A419 but this works just as well.

Example.

 

[GilaMinumBeer]

Hello fellow HBT members. I am currently in the process of building a fermentation chamber that will be large enough for two 6.5 gallon buckets.

I am basing my design loosely on the son-of-a-fermenter design, only twice the size. I live in California and as the summer approaches, temperatures can change fairly drastically. I will need the ability to cool and heat, sometimes in an hours notice. I really like the idea of frozen water bottles forcing cool air via a computer fan as well as a brewing space heater.

Unfortunately, my research has only found techniques for one or the other. I like the idea of a thermostat with a relay to run the fan. I have also seen controllers than can heat or cool but require a jumper to be changed.

Any suggestions that can control both, perhaps a double throw type switch?

I have no problem converting from ac to dc. Thanks for your info!

Ranco DPDT Digital. I use it. I like it.

 

[monkeymootj]

I got mine on ebay. Search for temperature controllers. If you are willing to wait a couple of weeks for a package from Hong Kong it is worth doing, $20 for a two stage controller. I also have a Johnson Controls A419 but this works just as well.

Example.

Ok! Looks good. Thanks for the input. I appreciate the help