azazel1024
Well-Known Member
So I am FINALLY getting around to temp control for my brewing after 18 months of winging it with a cool basement (I really want to do lagers and couldn't really, though my Dopplebock seems to have done fine with an ice bath...but I am doing the temp control quick so I can now properly lager it with fermentation just now finished).
I have an STC-1000 and other necessary bits on order and I can either temp use my current bottle mini-fridge, as it amazingly enough will fit a 6 gallon fermenter by only removing the bottom rack from the door (which pops right out. Yay!), or else modifying my brother-in-laws minifridge he is letting us have, which my in-laws are dropping off this weekend.
One of the things I am wondering about is how to improve the efficiency of the fridge itself. I realize I won't be running the thing 24/7 or at super cold temperatures, but I still wondering if I can up efficiency.
Any ideas? I'd prefer it not to be a horribly ugly hack, but I was thinking of two basic things I could do to improve efficiency.
1) I can spray paint black some foam board and then glue it around the sides and top of the fridge and possibly even do the same to the door and fashion a handle to fit through the foamboard. I'd have to leave the rear alone, as that is where the condenser coil runs (though there might be room to fit some thin foamboard between the coil and the back of the fridge, unknown till I look at it closer
2) Install a 12v PC on the second socket of the outlet for the STC-1000 (I have no need for heating control, so I'll have the cooling relay control both sockets of the outlet) so that it blows air across the condenser coil, as currently it is passive convection and radiative cooling only. Along those lines, I was thinking I could install a shroud over the coil and have it draw air in the bottom and exhaust out the top.
I would think #2 especially would improve efficiency a lot as even a little 120mm fan only burns maybe 2w of power, but I'd think it could easily generate more than that in efficiency savings.
Thoughts?
Both 1 and 2 are longer term goals as I probably won't be able to get around to them for a few weeks at least, where as I am hoping to have the temp controller setup and the Dopplebock lagering before next week is out (it is currently sitting at 63F on my concrete slab, or so says my thermometer strip).
I have an STC-1000 and other necessary bits on order and I can either temp use my current bottle mini-fridge, as it amazingly enough will fit a 6 gallon fermenter by only removing the bottom rack from the door (which pops right out. Yay!), or else modifying my brother-in-laws minifridge he is letting us have, which my in-laws are dropping off this weekend.
One of the things I am wondering about is how to improve the efficiency of the fridge itself. I realize I won't be running the thing 24/7 or at super cold temperatures, but I still wondering if I can up efficiency.
Any ideas? I'd prefer it not to be a horribly ugly hack, but I was thinking of two basic things I could do to improve efficiency.
1) I can spray paint black some foam board and then glue it around the sides and top of the fridge and possibly even do the same to the door and fashion a handle to fit through the foamboard. I'd have to leave the rear alone, as that is where the condenser coil runs (though there might be room to fit some thin foamboard between the coil and the back of the fridge, unknown till I look at it closer
2) Install a 12v PC on the second socket of the outlet for the STC-1000 (I have no need for heating control, so I'll have the cooling relay control both sockets of the outlet) so that it blows air across the condenser coil, as currently it is passive convection and radiative cooling only. Along those lines, I was thinking I could install a shroud over the coil and have it draw air in the bottom and exhaust out the top.
I would think #2 especially would improve efficiency a lot as even a little 120mm fan only burns maybe 2w of power, but I'd think it could easily generate more than that in efficiency savings.
Thoughts?
Both 1 and 2 are longer term goals as I probably won't be able to get around to them for a few weeks at least, where as I am hoping to have the temp controller setup and the Dopplebock lagering before next week is out (it is currently sitting at 63F on my concrete slab, or so says my thermometer strip).
