Space heater fermenting

[Seanwallner]

So I had an idea to use a small space heater in a chest freezer for fermenting. The heater has a built in ambient temperature sensor so I figure it will work great but have never seen it done. I saw a setup this weekend that was a wood enclosure that used an ac unit and a space heater and he says it works great but it was a large enclosure. I guess my question is 1- is there and electricity danger issues and 2- does it need some airflow to work properly. If you have done this please include pics. Thanks

 

[dmob29]

Sounds kinda dangerous to me, plus those things suck electricity.

Is it crazy cold up there and you need to heat? Granted I'm in So Cal, but I usually stuff my carboys into a coat closet in the middle of the house. Dark and stays about 70 degrees or so.

 

[horseinmay]

Are you suggesting to use a space heater inside a chest freezer to keep the freezer warmer than the temperature it's programmed for? While it appears to make sense, you are asking for a thermal nightmare. Doing this instead of installing a new thermostat or other modification is going to slurp a lot of electricity. The freezer will keep turning on to cool it off, and the heater will remain on to warm it up. They'll probably both run all the time. You'd be better off to invest in another method.

 

[Seanwallner]

I would install a temp controller or simply turn it off. it would only be used to lager or ferement. Even if i turn off my keezer the warmenst I can get it is about 60 or so. I need to control temp at 68-72 for my ales but also want to use it to lager. I know some guys who use heater blankets also but I was looking for alternatives