Interesting problem: Converting refrigerator for fermentation chamber

[surista]

Hi guys - I've been looking to get a small refrigerator to use / convert into a fermentation chamber, when I had the good luck (?!) of having our refrigerator breakdown....kind of. Basically the freezer section works fine, but the refrigerator section appears to only cool to about 13-15 degrees Celsius (approx 55-60 degrees Fahrenheit) even when turning the thermostat control to max. So I'm thinking we'll buy a new refrigerator and I'll keep the old one for a fermentation chamber.

So, besides the obvious problem of the refrigerator section going completely kaput might be a question of when, not if....would I ever want / need to go below 13 C / 55 F and maintain for any length of time when fermenting?

 

[wilserbrewer]

You could certainly try it....but the main advantage of a fermentation chamber is precise temp control. When the yeast starts fermenting, heat is generated, it may be questionable if your limping fridge with reduced cooling capacity has the ability to remove that excess heat as fast as it is being generated???

It is also nice to have the ability to go colder for crash chilling to very cold temps for dropping yeast. Also, with the limited cooling ability, your current fridge may not be able to reduce the wort to yeast pitching temps in a timely manner if your wort starts out at say 80F .

Have you investigated repairing your current fridge, might be something simple as a fan b/w the fridge and freezer?

It's free, with an inexpensive ST1000 it might suit your needs???

 

[Pkrd]

You might want to get down to around 3C for cold crashing and lagering.

 

[cannman]

There are 2 issues I can identify.

1. You can't cold crash
2. The fridge may have to fight unusually hard to hit lagering temps, causing an even greater strain on a dying unit, leading to catastrophic failure in the middle of a batch.

Your best bet is to research the STC-1000 on this forum and run ales at about 19c. Keep a good eye on the temp and have a plan B if the machine gives up.

Should be a fine in between unit for a few batches.

 

[RM-MN]

Before you throw out or try to repurpose that refrigerator, totally defrost it. Unplug it and open the door for a few hours. You may find that it works just fine again. Our old one got a build up of ice where it couldn't be seen and gave the same symptoms. If the freezer works good, the refrigerator should too. It that doesn't fix it, then think about making it into the fermentation chamber.

 

[ericbw]

Before you throw out or try to repurpose that refrigerator, totally defrost it. Unplug it and open the door for a few hours. You may find that it works just fine again. Our old one got a build up of ice where it couldn't be seen and gave the same symptoms. If the freezer works good, the refrigerator should too. It that doesn't fix it, then think about making it into the fermentation chamber.

Yeah, but if that works, you've taken away his fermentation chamber!!

 

[Black Island Brewer]

Before you throw out or try to repurpose that refrigerator, totally defrost it. Unplug it and open the door for a few hours. You may find that it works just fine again. Our old one got a build up of ice where it couldn't be seen and gave the same symptoms. If the freezer works good, the refrigerator should too. It that doesn't fix it, then think about making it into the fermentation chamber.

Yeah, but if that works, you've taken away his fermentation chamber!!

So buy the replacement fridge first, then check!

I second RM-MN, if the freezer works, then the issue is likely an air circulation problem, either a crapped out thermostat in the fridge section, a burned out fan motor, or the fan has iced up. Let's hope!

 

[RM-MN]

Yeah, but if that works, you've taken away his fermentation chamber!!

Not necessarily. He/she can find a cheap refrigerator or freezer on Craigslist and use that for fermentation. It will likely be much cheaper than a new refrigerator and that means more money to spend on grains.