Mini-fridge lagering?

[Jasper18]

Hey all. So ive been reading up on refridgerators for keeping beer at constant ferm temps and also lagering, and was wondering what type of mini fridge would hold one or two 6.5 gallon fermentation buckets, and what type of temperature controller it would need. Trying to do it relatively cheap but without too much jerry-rigging and custom building (ive seen people build wooden boxes and such). What fridge and controller would you guys recommend? My first ever batch is fermenting away and I'm at my temperature limits at around 64 degrees. If i ever want to branch out and do lagers it won't be enough.

Thanks

PS: why is the search function so crap on this site? I searched the entire forum for "fermentation chamber" and as a thread title search, but just a bunch of other useless stuff pops up. The signal to noise ratio is ridiculous.

 

[MrHopScotch]

I don't have an answer about lagering, but if you want to search the site, go to google and type your search terms and "site:homebrewtalk.com"

It's a little out of the way but then you can use google's search algorithms to search the forums instead of the built-in search

 

[broadbill]

If it were me, and I was interested in both ale and lagering fermentation as well as keeping beer at lagering temps; I would disregard mini-fridges all together. I don't think they have the oomph to change the temperature of that much thermal mass in a reasonable amount of time, and all bets are off when you start sticking boxes on them to expand capacity.

A standard chest or up-right freezer can do all this capably and right out of the box. Just add a temp controller and you are off to the races (build it yourself if you want to do a bit of DIY). Used freezers are a dime a dozen on Craigslist.

 

[Teromous]

I lager in a Frigidaire mini-fridge without any collars or anything. I use a STC-1000 that I built to control the temperature. Buckets are too wide but it can hold a Big Mouth Bubbler with a little bit of work and a carboy fits just fine. If you wanted to you could also ferment in corny kegs. When I don't lager I use the same fridge as a keggerator and it holds 2 kegs.

 

[Murphys_Law]

I use a Magic Chef 4.4cf and an Inkbird controller. I had to cut some on the plastic inside the door but it works well for 1 bucket.

 

[Jasper18]

I use a Magic Chef 4.4cf and an Inkbird controller. I had to cut some on the plastic inside the door but it works well for 1 bucket.

Yeah I would trim the excess crap from inside the fridge. How much did your setup cost and what temps can you go down to?

 

[Pangaia]

I second the chest freezer idea. That way you have room for ten gallon batches if you decide to expand in the future. Or you have the option of turning it into a keezer. Lots of options

 

[Jasper18]

Well for what it's worth I never want to use kegs. And also I don't think I'll ever go past 5 gallon batches. Might even go down to 3. We'll see about that part.

 

[Murphys_Law]

Yeah I would trim the excess crap from inside the fridge. How much did your setup cost and what temps can you go down to?

I think the fridge was regularly $158 at HD but I got it on sale for $125. The controller is something like $16 plus a few bucks for a project box, power cord and outlet.

You have several choices, actually -- go to Amazon and search "inkbird". You can also search "Inkbird" and/or "STC-1000" on the DYI page here. One option is the controller which you put into a project box and wire it with a power cord and outlet (easy to do, instructions are on this web site somewhere!) or you can buy something more "plug and play".

I was going to get a small freezer but it was slightly larger than I wanted and I thought I'd only be doing one bucket at a time so the fridge works for me. I can easily put one bucket with airlock, or a 6G glass carboy with blow off tube (airlock is too high). I use a ferm wrap for the heat source, if needed.

I just cold crashed a lager @ 32 degrees w/o any issue!

 

[Jim311]

I have what you'd consider a "standard" college kegerator which is essentially a mini fridge. It can hold 3 corny kegs but using buckets or carboys i could probably only fit two side by side. Width will be the concern. I don't have any doubt it's capable of lagering temperatures because mine is like a 1980s dinosaur and this weekend it brought 5.5 gallons of 80 degree wort down to 47 degrees overnight. It's designed for full sized 15 gallon kegs, so it's up to the task. I think a keezer would probably cool it faster, but mine is already set up with a tap tower and a shelf for co2 and everything, no collars or parts or anything. I recommend it. I "lager" in the keg. I say lager but I basically start drinking beers as soon as they carbonate so they rarely sit around long enough to really "lager" them

 

[Scturo]

If it were me, and I was interested in both ale and lagering fermentation as well as keeping beer at lagering temps; I would disregard mini-fridges all together. I don't think they have the oomph to change the temperature of that much thermal mass in a reasonable amount of time, and all bets are off when you start sticking boxes on them to expand capacity.

A standard chest or up-right freezer can do all this capably and right out of the box. Just add a temp controller and you are off to the races (build it yourself if you want to do a bit of DIY). Used freezers are a dime a dozen on Craigslist.

This was my choice after looking into mini fridges. I bought a use 5.0 cu ft chest freezer, and added an inkbird controller. Works like a charm. I have plenty of room for fermenters, and some brew to boot. For 2 6.5 gal fermenters, you may want to go with a 7.0 ch ft chest freezer.