Garage temp swings..

[Nova5]

How do you folks handle temp swings in the garage? high 77 and low 48 tomorrow.. JC A419 is set to heat mode at 68 with a 2 degree allowance. 5min short cycle.

my garage hit 75 today and the high was 69.

 

[weirdboy]

You have a refrigerator in the garage, I take it?

Have you actually been checking the temperature of the fridge/fermenter in the morning when it is coldest? It might not even be an issue since the fridge is fairly insulated. If not, you might try just adding a significant amount of thermal mass to the fridge, which should even out temperature swings. A bag of grain, another big container filled with water, etc. would work pretty well.

 

[Nova5]

I have a wireless thermo in the fridge and the receiver in my media room. a second on in the garage. it made it to 72 in the fridge.

 

[weirdboy]

Wait...your complaint is that it's getting too HOT?

Well, the thermal mass should STILL help, but if your fridge cannot handle a high of 77F, I shudder to think what's going to happen over the summer.

 

[Golddiggie]

Wait...your complaint is that it's getting too HOT?

Well, the thermal mass should STILL help, but if your fridge cannot handle a high of 77F, I shudder to think what's going to happen over the summer.

Re-boiled wort perhaps?

I'm going to assume this is an old fridge that you're using. If it has a freezer in it too, how about cutting the divider out (between the sections) so that you get better cooling where the beer is fermenting?

Issues like this is just one of the reasons why I'm thinking of getting a new chest freezer to make my fermentation chamber from, as well as another for the keezer when it's time... Better off getting brand new, that you know will work well, than use something old that should do well, until you find out otherwise.

 

[Nova5]

Wait...your complaint is that it's getting too HOT?

Well, the thermal mass should STILL help, but if your fridge cannot handle a high of 77F, I shudder to think what's going to happen over the summer.

as i said in the OP. the JCA419 (temp controller) is in HEAT mode. When it hits the warmer seasons it will get set to Cool mode and connected to the fridge vs a space heater in the fridge. the issue is the swings high and low enough beyond the desired temp to cause a issue with either mode.

 

[ChandlerBang]

as i said in the OP. the JCA419 (temp controller) is in HEAT mode. When it hits the warmer seasons it will get set to Cool mode and connected to the fridge vs a space heater in the fridge. the issue is the swings high and low enough beyond the desired temp to cause a issue with either mode.

Set it to cool mode and add some mass like suggested earlier. I bet it will not hit the low nearly as fast as the high (if at all)

 

[ksbrain]

This is why I like winter and summer. Single-mode brewing. As the temperatures move from cold to hot, you have to keep your eye on it and adjust as necessary between heat mode and cool mode based on the weather.

The fridge will insulate against outside temperature to a certain extent. FWIW, I do mine in my basement, because it's quite a bit more stable temperature than a garage.

 

[iron_city_ap]

Sounds like you either need a temp. controller that can handle both the High and the Low temps (switch from 'heat' to 'cool') or keep an eye on the temp and switch it over manually. If its in 'heat' and gets too hot, obviously its time to switch it over to 'cool', if even just for the day and then switch it back over for the night.

 

[weirdboy]

It is not practical to switch a Johnson A419 every day between "heat" and "cool", since it involves opening the thing up with a screwdriver and moving jumpers around.

However, I still say just increase the thermal mass in there and you should be fine with it just in cool mode. In fact I had assumed it was already in cool mode, as should be clear from my first post in this thread.

 

[ksbrain]

I have a Brewers Edge Controller II (like this), which does require unscrewing the cover and moving two jumpers to change from heat to cool mode. It's really easy and takes like literally one minute to do. I may switch back and forth a few times during any given fermentation. Like cool mode to start then heat mode to finish.

 

[Nova5]

I've been considering modifying the A419 just a bit. Install a pair of switches flip to change it without opening. RatShack doesn't have the needed microswitchs thou! I have plenty of jumper wire/blocks as i do computer work. Hell If i still a few ancient turbo switches around they'd work! Although my other option is a relay network that can do the same reversal and i can have both the heat and cool devices plugged in. just flip the control switch and the relay network will handle the on/off as commanded by the A419 under the rules of the relay network.

 

[Nova5]

I have a Brewers Edge Controller II (like this), which does require unscrewing the cover and moving two jumpers to change from heat to cool mode. It's really easy and takes like literally one minute to do. I may switch back and forth a few times during any given fermentation. Like cool mode to start then heat mode to finish.

That is the Johnson Controls A419. Brewers edge just got it branded. JC is a big time PLC company.

 

[Nova5]

It is not practical to switch a Johnson A419 every day between "heat" and "cool", since it involves opening the thing up with a screwdriver and moving jumpers around.

However, I still say just increase the thermal mass in there and you should be fine with it just in cool mode. In fact I had assumed it was already in cool mode, as should be clear from my first post in this thread.

Then I suggest reading sober but Homebrew is like the call of a siren..

 

[weirdboy]

which does require unscrewing the cover and moving two jumpers to change from heat to cool mode. It's really easy and takes like literally one minute to do. I may switch back and forth a few times during any given fermentation. Like cool mode to start then heat mode to finish.

It's not that it takes a long time to unscrew the cover and switch jumpers. It is the fact that to do so you need to unplug the controller (you are unplugging it, aren't you?) which resets the anti-short cycle delay, then you also need to switch what you are connecting the controller to, and then make sure everything is working as expected when you reverse everything. Overall I don't feel like the trouble you'd have to go through to switch it back and forth twice a day is worth it when you can just stick the fermenter in a cooler filled with water, or at least stick another bucket of water in the fermentation chamber, and it will smooth out the temperature swings much more effectively than your temperature controller can anyway.

just flip the control switch and the relay network will handle the on/off as commanded by the A419 under the rules of the relay network.

I don't think that would work the way you intend, since internally the A419 would still be following the wrong logic for when to turn on/off.

 

[Nova5]

Actually it would work if the circuit layout software isn't lying to me. The switch would dictate whether the Heat or Cool plug gets power.

1. Set A419 to cool mode.
2. Relay Switch in Cool position. Output is in unison with A419.
3. Relay in Heat position. Output is Reversed from A419.


2 works by simply obeying the 419's output.
3 works by reversing it. Say your temp is set to 70. and a variance of 2 degrees. the 419 will command On when it hits 72 right? and Off when it hits 70. Now the relay network reverse this command, so when it hits 72 ,the heat devices turns off after having been turned on at 70. as long as the probes temp is above 72, the heater stays off because the relay network is being held open by the 419 turning ON wanting to cool the system.


Essentially its similar to the logic inside the 419 controlled by its jumper settings in the final point This is just circumventing its internal logic in favor of a flipswitch to change modes and devices without reconnecting anything. to automate it would be cost prohibitive compared to buying a 2 stage.

 

[ksbrain]

I dream of wiring up a little switch that would close or open the jumpers from the outside, but I'm a software guy so I struggle getting past the concept phase. DPDT, I think... Oh well, time to go switch into cooling mode

 

[Nova5]

Ratshack online has a set of microswitchs which would be perfect for that, and I've thought of ordering them. closest place that has them is 45 mins away.