Fermentation fridge in cold garage, how to warm up

[lakedawgs]

HI

Just moved my fermentation fridge, with temp controller, to the garage to help make space in the basement.

What do I do in the winter when temps get below freezing here to keep my ferm temp at 62, or whatever I choose on my controller. It is in an uninsulated garage.

THANKS,
Lakedawgs

 

[Pkrd]

How many watts is your heater? I use heat pads (~25W) and need to put an extra one in during the winter, holds 20°C fine with the extra boost.

 

[slym2none]

Some use the IR lights that keep reptiles warm, some use a "paint-can heater", which I think is nothing more than a 60-watt lightbulb & fixture in a metal paint can, hooked up to your controller. I am sure people with experience will come on and tell you more ways/better explain things.

 

[johnsant]

Many buy small heaters with fans on Amazon and plug into the heat side of controller this will move the heat and only turn on when needed.

 

[Singletrack]

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000079896/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20

I use this, because the wattage seems right and I think there is very little risk of fire -- if installed intelligently.

 

[Warbirdbrewer]

My chest freezer is also in the garage. I purchased this a few weeks ago and it works great.
http://www.txbrewing.com/fermwrap-fermentation-heater.html

You can wrap it around your bucket or carboy, but you can also just tape it to the inside of the freezer and it will keep the whole chamber up to temp. I have a bucket and a carboy in the freezer now and it keeps them both just right.

 

[d3track]

Ceramic heater

 

[ncsuwerewolf]

The box is insulated. I use a 60 watt light bulb plugged into the warming side of my temp controller. You could always increase the wattage if the climate is more severe.

 

[DurtyChemist]

I bought a fermwrap heater and plugged that into my ITC 1000. Others as mentioned above install a light bulb because if you've ever touched a light bulb you know how hot they get. I never liked the light bulb idea just because I've only seen one that protected the light bulb itself. I don't trust myself not to break that every time I put a carboy into the fridge.

 

[ncsuwerewolf]

I stripped the fixture out of a torchiere and put it in a large glass vase to keep it from breaking and to buffer the heat.

 

[lakedawgs]

After this thread and a bit of research, I think I am going to go with a 100 watt bulb in a paint can with vent holes and a computer fan.

Thanks
lakedawgs

 

[SEndorf]

Over time, I've experimented with many ways to heat a fermentation fridge in a winter garage. In my experience, the 100 watt bulb is too hot even in a sub zero Minnesota winter. I found it doesn't take much heat to maintain a proper temp. The key is planning ahead to ramp it up, and resisting the urge to constantly open the fridge.
I've found the most even heat comes from a small ceramic heater but with these heaters you need to maintain a reasonable temp all the time (even between fermentations) because trying to push the heat from sub zero to ~65 degrees will kick in the auto shutoff feature.

 

[lakedawgs]

Thanks SEndorf,
I am assuming you turn the heater up and just let the heat side of the controller, control it?

Thanks
Lakedawgs

 

[pretzelb]

I use a lizard heat pad from the pet store. I put foil on the sticky side and I just put it on the bump away from the carboy.

 

[SEndorf]

Thanks SEndorf,
I am assuming you turn the heater up and just let the heat side of the controller, control it?

Thanks
Lakedawgs

Yes!. Turn it to max heat.

 

[kombat]

I've had success with the light-bulb-in-coffee-can method.

That said, it burned out my freezer's compressor the first winter. Fridges and freezers are not designed to work in cold spaces like an unheated garage in the winter. It confuses the thermostat, and in particularly cold instances, can thicken the oil and burn out the compressor, which is what happened in my case. I only got 1 year out of it. When spring came, it couldn't get the temperature down below 50° F, even running continuously. I had to scrap it and buy a new one, which I brought downstairs to my (heated) basement, where it belongs.

 

[user 163849]

I have had great luck with the little ceramic heater that you can see on the door shelf in the attached picture. Like SEndorf said though, if you are trying to make drastic changes to establish a higher temp the safety shut off will get you. I keep mine very close to the same temp all the time by monitoring a 5 gallon bucket of water when I have nothing in a fermenting bucket.

Edit: Of course a cold garage in Texas is a bit warmer than your cold garage up there.

 

[gometz]

I use a ferm wrap. Just ran into the same problem, first time brewing with the fridge in the garage. My rubble dropped to 50 the first night, so I wrapped it and set the controller for 64. This morning it was 66, so I cracked the lid. This should allow excess heat to escape while the wrap and controller will maintain the temperature.

 

[Brettomomyces]

I have had great luck with the little ceramic heater that you can see on the door shelf in the attached picture. Like SEndorf said though, if you are trying to make drastic changes to establish a higher temp the safety shut off will get you. I keep mine very close to the same temp all the time by monitoring a 5 gallon bucket of water when I have nothing in a fermenting bucket.

Edit: Of course a cold garage in Texas is a bit warmer than your cold garage up there.

I have that same heater and a chamber twice as big, works great and it was only $15-20 on Amazon.

 

[Bankrupter]

Also use that heater in my mini fridge controlled by the stc-1000. 3 amp load in an unheated space in the North East snow belt..

I do cover all the glass in the winter to help it hold in the heat better ... it only cycles on for 5-6 seconds at a time for this small fridge. Area is about 40F dead winter. 50 right now..

EDIT:
Heed kombat's warning and kill the power to the compressor below 40's No fridge will handle that! But when its that cold you wont need the chill, just the heat.

 

[GHBWNY]

I've had success with the light-bulb-in-coffee-can method.

That said, it burned out my freezer's compressor the first winter. Fridges and freezers are not designed to work in cold spaces like an unheated garage in the winter. It confuses the thermostat, and in particularly cold instances, can thicken the oil and burn out the compressor, which is what happened in my case. I only got 1 year out of it. When spring came, it couldn't get the temperature down below 50° F, even running continuously. I had to scrap it and buy a new one, which I brought downstairs to my (heated) basement, where it belongs.

This is definitely something to consider.

 

[lakedawgs]

Ended up going with a very small ceramic heater with a fan. Have it running with the controller. Seems to be working well.

Thanks
Lakedawgs

 

[lakedawgs]

Here is the setup I went with. Seems to be working great, garage temp has been 30-40 degrees, controller is set at 65 degrees. Just need to work in time to brew, that will be tough in the near future.

Thanks for the help,
Lakedawgs
https://www.dropbox.com/s/6nabu69ga1zdb2j/beerfridge.jpg?dl=0