Fermenting in a Sanyo 4912

[memphomaniac]

Tomorrow will be my first brew day in about nine years.

From reading here a couple weeks I'm thinking one problem I experienced before was letting my primaries get too hot in my apartment closet (lots of ester and fusel as a result).

I have a 4912 and thought I could use it in my garage as a fermentation cabinet. I have been using one of my remote bbq thermos to monitor the temp inside the fridge, and I'm able to maintain pretty constant high 50's to low 60s. Don't have a controller yet (lower temps are easy, but above low 60s are more difficult).

I understand that the temp inside the carboy will be higher during initial fermentation. I thought I should keep the carboy temp around 68 or lower.

What do you think a good ambient temp would be to shoot for in the fridge? Should I put the probe in a jar of water?

Any assistance is greatly appreciated.

 

[Tankard]

I think 68 will be a great temp to set it at. I'm planning to do the same thing with a chest freezer.

For a mini fridge like the 4912, I would suggest putting the probe in a jar of water because the instant you open up the door, you will start to lose the cold temperatures inside. So even though the beer is staying at a constant temp, the temp controller will think that it is warmer than it really is and will turn on the compressor. Setting it in a jar of water will get you a temperature that is much closer to the actual temperature of your beer.

It is true that the temperatures in the carboy will be warmer, but as long as your ambient temperature is set low enough, it won't spike anywhere near the level that will cause off flavors.

I guess it is a little different with a chest freezer because when you open the lid, the cold air doesn't escape very much because cold air doesn't rise high enough to escape the freezer.

 

[memphomaniac]

Thanks, Tankard. The problem is that without a controller yet I can't get the Sanyo to run at that high of a temp. Maybe with the mass of the carboy in there I can.

I can't find the post now but I thought I read where someone set the temp in his fermentation chamber to the high 50s, but I can't seem to find that now.

I'll just jump on in there and see what happens. If I have to I'll turn it off and put frozen 2litres in there. I'm just trying to avoid keeping the carboy inside the house for now because my wife is still not sure if she's going to let me have this hobby.

 

[Mirage]

Hope she lets you man. SWMBO actually brews with me, so getting a mini fridge was no problem. Her sister gave it to us! I also want to turn mine into a fermentation chamber, what do you recommend for a temp controller? I didn't realize I would need one.

 

[memphomaniac]

Thanks, Mirage. I'm just guessing, but you might not need to buy a controller depending on how high of a temp your reefer will hold. I'm very new at this, so I wouldn't be able to recommend a controller yet. Here's a helpful thread where I asked about them the other day:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=77040&highlight=temp+controllers

Just a note, I ended up turning off both fridges last night and putting in frozen 2 liter bottles of water. My batches were finished at around ten last night. When I left the house this morning at around eleven, the temp inside the 4912s was about 60, and the fermometers were both reading 70. The carboy I pitched with dry yeast was vigorously fermenting, and the other that I pitched with a liquid White Labs was popping a few bubbles every minute or so.

EDITing to say: And the 4912s are in my hot garage in Florida.