SSBrewtech ferment temp control

[ChocolateMaltyBalls]

I think I'm going to start using my keezer for my chill water. I plan on putting ball lock posts on the outside and a bucket of water on the inside with the pump. I'll be able to easily unhook everything from the outside with the ball lock fittings when it's not in use. Not that changing out bottles twice a day is a big deal but it'd be nice to not have to worry about it if I'm going to be gone for a day or two

I think that's a good idea, but you will need to figure out the volume of water that will keep the temp where you want it, which will require some experimentation. Assuming you chill to pitching temps before you transfer to the fermenter and ferment in a climate controlled space it shouldn't take much near freezing water to keep ale temps, but depending on the insulation lagering may require a lot more. I think you will need significantly less volume this way than the frozen bottle method and it will be more reliable.

 

[blaster_54738]

I think that's a good idea, but you will need to figure out the volume of water that will keep the temp where you want it, which will require some experimentation. Assuming you chill to pitching temps before you transfer to the fermenter and ferment in a climate controlled space it shouldn't take much near freezing water to keep ale temps, but depending on the insulation lagering may require a lot more. I think you will need significantly less volume this way than the frozen bottle method and it will be more reliable.

I know water volume will be the important part. I usually chill to as low as possible so anywhere between 65 and 75 so yeah ale temps shouldn't be difficult to maintain but I would like to start lagering which we'll see what it can do. Maybe when lagering I can still use frozen bottles because I was able to maintain 52 using 2 two liter bottles

 

[PJoyce85]

I know water volume will be the important part. I usually chill to as low as possible so anywhere between 65 and 75 so yeah ale temps shouldn't be difficult to maintain but I would like to start lagering which we'll see what it can do. Maybe when lagering I can still use frozen bottles because I was able to maintain 52 using 2 two liter bottles

I was able to maintain 51 with 2 1.5 liter water bottles in 3 gallons of water with rotating fresh bottles in the morning and evening. Once the whole system is cool, you should be able to do 1 2 liter bottle twice a day. This was using the brew bucket.

 

[soonerpike1748]

I just ordered my FTSS for my half barrel fermenter. I'll keep you guys posted.

I emailed the guys at ssbrewtech a couple of weeks ago to ask how they were going to address the domed lid on the half barrel fermenter. Their reply was that the FTSS lid was going to be flat. Therefore, folks with chronicals will lose some headspace with the FTSS. Their recommendation was to switch out lids for co2 transfer.

Also, the half barrel comes with two coils.

 

[mjc999]

I received a FTSS as a Xmas gift for my 7 gal chronical.

I was able to set it up and use it for the first time this weekend.
Unlike all the previous posts (i believe), I'm using mine to heat versus cool. I set up a 48 qt cooler with about 3/4 filled with water and dropped in a 150W aquarium heater. It is holding the water at about 90 degrees.
My garage is roughly 45 degrees and I'm currently fermenting an IPA at 68. The system allows a 1 degree drop and then the pump kicks on until the temp hits 68. It overshoots a few tenths. It went in on Sunday, and outside temps have not gotten above freezing since and the unheated garage hovers 40-45. The system is holding temp and is happily bubbling away.

I notice that each time the warm water gets pumped through the fermenter, the airlock goes crazy. I can't imagine fermentation rate changes, but it is interesting. It got me thinking about whether there is local wort heating near the coil that might not be good.
We'll see.

I do want to do a lager on my next batch, taking advantage of my cold garage temps, but I can't find any instructions on how to program the controller for set temperature changes. I'm typically not near my fermenting beer during the whole fermentation process, so I'd need to program it. The very scant instruction manual says it can be done but has no description on how to do it.

Anyone done this?

Also, I will be trying to cold crash my current batch when it is time. We'll see how that goes.

So far, very pleased with the operation of the system.

Mark

 

[TrickyDick]

I received a FTSS as a Xmas gift for my 7 gal chronical.

I was able to set it up and use it for the first time this weekend.
Unlike all the previous posts (i believe), I'm using mine to heat versus cool. I set up a 48 qt cooler with about 3/4 filled with water and dropped in a 150W aquarium heater. It is holding the water at about 90 degrees.
My garage is roughly 45 degrees and I'm currently fermenting an IPA at 68. The system allows a 1 degree drop and then the pump kicks on until the temp hits 68. It overshoots a few tenths. It went in on Sunday, and outside temps have not gotten above freezing since and the unheated garage hovers 40-45. The system is holding temp and is happily bubbling away.

I notice that each time the warm water gets pumped through the fermenter, the airlock goes crazy. I can't imagine fermentation rate changes, but it is interesting. It got me thinking about whether there is local wort heating near the coil that might not be good.
We'll see.

I do want to do a lager on my next batch, taking advantage of my cold garage temps, but I can't find any instructions on how to program the controller for set temperature changes. I'm typically not near my fermenting beer during the whole fermentation process, so I'd need to program it. The very scant instruction manual says it can be done but has no description on how to do it.

Anyone done this?

Also, I will be trying to cold crash my current batch when it is time. We'll see how that goes.

So far, very pleased with the operation of the system.

Mark

Mark,
You're going to love the ability to do all those things, and cold crash, etc. I am using a similar setup in some DIY plastic conicals I rigged up. I am thinking about converting to stainless, and cannot wrap my brain around how to get my cooling coils though the lids in a sanitary manner. I'd greatly appreciate it if you could snap some detailed pics of how the FTSS coil fittings connect to the tubing and then to the underside of the lid as well as how the coil is fixed on the outside and kept airtight.

Thanks, and enjoy the new conical!

TD

 

[pvpeacock]

I bought mine to cool the wort during fermentation, but unexpectedly had a cold spell in Southern California, so I switched my ftss's to heat using a cooler with an aquarium heater as Mark did. The one thing I noticed was that the heat didn't reach the bottom of the conical. While the thermometer at the top of the conical attached to the ftss said the temp. was 66 degrees, the thermometer in the lower thermowell said it was 62 degrees. This makes sense since heat rises and cold sinks. I ended up rocking the conical gently in the morning and evening to get the wort swirling inside until the two thermometers met somewhere in the middle. I don't know how this will affect the end product.

 

[TrickyDick]

Maybe get some lizard cord and wrap the base of the conical on outside and you can use that to heat the base instead of rocking. I don't know if you could piggyback that into same controlled outlet that the pump runs on. They are pretty low wattage. I think 25 and 50 watt available.

TD

 

[mjc999]

Maybe get some lizard cord and wrap the base of the conical on outside and you can use that to heat the base instead of rocking. I don't know if you could piggyback that into same controlled outlet that the pump runs on. They are pretty low wattage. I think 25 and 50 watt available.

TD

Thought about this until I opened the system and saw that the pump power from the FTSS controller is DC via a small wall wort type of connector. There is not a 3 prong Ac outlet on the controller.

The other alternative is to use the lower thermowell and maybe lower the target temp a few degrees so the upper part off the wort/beer doesn't get too warm.

I'm not there to stir/shake, so I'm living with the differential...for now.

 

[mjc999]

Mark,
You're going to love the ability to do all those things, and cold crash, etc. I am using a similar setup in some DIY plastic conicals I rigged up. I am thinking about converting to stainless, and cannot wrap my brain around how to get my cooling coils though the lids in a sanitary manner. I'd greatly appreciate it if you could snap some detailed pics of how the FTSS coil fittings connect to the tubing and then to the underside of the lid as well as how the coil is fixed on the outside and kept airtight.

Thanks, and enjoy the new conical!

TD

I won't be back to the fermenter for a week or so. But will do so when I get there. I have to believe there are some pics online somewhere.

Essentially it is simple barbed ends affixed to a stainless coil arranged with a nut and o-ring to seal to the fermenter lid with the barbs protruding through.

Hope this helps.

This system definitely could be made DIY. Just need a coil, fittings and a STC-1000 controller...and the aquarium/pond pump.

 

[TrickyDick]

That might not be a problem if you're willing to do some wiring.

You couldfor instance go to RadioShack and buy a dc actuated 120v relay of the appropriate amperage rating. That would depend on what the wattage rating of your lizard wrap is. Then you could splice open the wiring of that DC output voltage in parallel, and use that to activate the relay whenever the pump is on. This would open or rather close the circuit to enable the lizard cord wired to a 120 V AC source to heat the base.

TD

Edit- I think regular relays require AC actuation. I think that you'd need a solid state relay to operate it. A 500 mA capable SSR would be able to run the 50 watt cord with headroom, and half that on a 25 watt cord. I have no idea how well a 25 watt cord is going to heat a conical, but it would probably solve/help the temp diff you have now. Heck, you could also maybe plug the DC output from the FTSS into a DIY project box or junction box that contained the circuitry to open and close a low wattage AC circuit, such that when you want to heat, plug the FTSS into the box, which would be plugged into a wall outlet and into which there would be an AC outlet into which you'd plug the lizard cord (s). That way you'd not have the splice the DC power cord.

 

[TrickyDick]

I won't be back to the fermenter for a week or so. But will do so when I get there. I have to believe there are some pics online somewhere.



Essentially it is simple barbed ends affixed to a stainless coil arranged with a nut and o-ring to seal to the fermenter lid with the barbs protruding through.



Hope this helps.



This system definitely could be made DIY. Just need a coil, fittings and a STC-1000 controller...and the aquarium/pond pump.

Thanks!

I do have a pic from the manufacturer, but still can't figure out how to replicate these same connections onto a 1/2" SS coil. I need to see higher detail. It looks like they welded a small TC ferrule slid over the coil end and apply and O-ring into the TC groove on the inside of the fermenter to achieve a sanitary, airtight closure. It's the outside that I can't figure. I know there is a double threaded nut that slides over the coolant tube. Anyway, I'm just not able to figure it out.

TD

 

[TrickyDick]

Still patiently, and desperately waiting to see detailed photos of how the coil and lid are setup.

Here is how I think it could be.

The SS coil has a TC ferrule sanitary welded on, with the end sticking up far enough to sanitary weld a FPT to hose barb adapter onto the coil tubing. An O ring placed on the TC fitting groove

There is a hole cut in the lid, through which the hose barb adapter is passed from beneath, and the hole is big enough that the threaded part of the FPT x hose barb passes through also. The TC fitting snugs against the under surface of the lid and the o ring forms a seal. The hole in the lid is big enough for the Hose barb to pass but not he larger diameter TC ferrule. No exposed threads on the inside of the fermenter.

On the outside of the lid, a o ring and SS lock nut is tightened over the FPT part of the hose barb, effectively sealing the hole in the lid from both sides, with sanitary inner surfaces. The coolant lines are connected to hose barbs with worm clamps.

Can someone confirm??

Also, where is the temperature probe installed on this fermentation?

Thanks!!

TD

 

[mjc999]

My batch is still in there waiting to be kegged.

Possibly this weekend.

Here is an observation on the "fermentation session"":
All of the components work. My setup with the aquarium heater and water at 90 degrees was sufficient keep the beer at 68 in a 40-45 degree garage...kind of.

I have the 7 gal chronical which has a thermowell over the upper drain valve. I used the system's thermowell in the supplied FSS lid for the temperature probe as designed. If I moved the probe to the thermowell on the chronical, there was a consistent nearly 10 degree (cooler) difference. Shaking/stirring the bee would tend to equalize between the two, obviously bringing the lid measured temp down and thus having the system apply heat. I brew at a place that is not my main home, so Im not there to give routine stirs. This is a problem for me. At the end of the day, I don't think the system can handle that temperature differential, at least on the cold side.

My thought is that the big stainless valves and to some extent the legs are significant enough heat sinks to remove heat from the beer in container. Using higher water temps I think would just create localized areas of really warm beer. I think a better coil design, one with a shape the covers more beer area might solve the problem, similar to some of the fancier immersion chillers.

On this batch, I missed my final target by a significant margin. I even reptiched in an effort to ferment down to the final target. No movement at all. Is this the FSS's fault. Can't say for sure, but I've never had this issue before.

So for me, using it to keep fermentation warm in a cold place is a no go. We'll see about the reverse. I still have not been able to find instructions on programming lager step profiles. Anyone?

Mark

 

[nicolas_james]

I just keep mine in a warmer location. My 67F house leaves no temperature difference between the thermowells.

 

[mjc999]

If i could guarantee a constant 67 or 68 or whatever, i wouldn't need the FSS...

But your point is well taken. I think a fermentation chamber is probably a better solution.

 

[nicolas_james]

Not really fermentation chamber. It's sitting in my spare bedroom. Temps would take off like crazy with ambient room temps of 67 without the FTSs.

 

[PJoyce85]

My batch is still in there waiting to be kegged.

Possibly this weekend.

Here is an observation on the "fermentation session"":
All of the components work. My setup with the aquarium heater and water at 90 degrees was sufficient keep the beer at 68 in a 40-45 degree garage...kind of.

I have the 7 gal chronical which has a thermowell over the upper drain valve. I used the system's thermowell in the supplied FSS lid for the temperature probe as designed. If I moved the probe to the thermowell on the chronical, there was a consistent nearly 10 degree (cooler) difference. Shaking/stirring the bee would tend to equalize between the two, obviously bringing the lid measured temp down and thus having the system apply heat. I brew at a place that is not my main home, so Im not there to give routine stirs. This is a problem for me. At the end of the day, I don't think the system can handle that temperature differential, at least on the cold side.

My thought is that the big stainless valves and to some extent the legs are significant enough heat sinks to remove heat from the beer in container. Using higher water temps I think would just create localized areas of really warm beer. I think a better coil design, one with a shape the covers more beer area might solve the problem, similar to some of the fancier immersion chillers.

On this batch, I missed my final target by a significant margin. I even reptiched in an effort to ferment down to the final target. No movement at all. Is this the FSS's fault. Can't say for sure, but I've never had this issue before.

So for me, using it to keep fermentation warm in a cold place is a no go. We'll see about the reverse. I still have not been able to find instructions on programming lager step profiles. Anyone?

Mark

I had this same problem but only with heating. Keeping things cool is much less of an issue.

The guys at SS Brewtech are aware of this problem and have created extensions that will lower the coil deeper into the fermentation vessel which "should" correct the temperature stratification problem. It's more money but I feel they are reasonably priced at $22.50.

 

[TrickyDick]

Care to share any pictures of how the coil mates to the lid and the coil extensions?

 

[PJoyce85]

They just went on sale today so I don't have first hand pictures but here is the site for the 7 gallon extensions:

http://www.ssbrewtech.com/products/ftss-chiller-coil-extensions-for-bucket-chronical-7

Coil mates to bottom and same mating as coil to lid

 

[nicolas_james]

Care to share any pictures of how the coil mates to the lid and the coil extensions?

I'll have mine dissembled next Wednesday after I bottle what's in there. I can get whatever pictures you want then.

 

[soonerpike1748]

Nicolas... How did it turn out? Details?

 

[pvpeacock]

I have no problems with the FTS when cooling during fermentation in the 7 gallon conical. The two temperature readings (lid thermowell and side thermowell) remain the same. However, when I undexpectedly had to use it keep the wort warm during a recent Southern California cold spell, I did get major temperature differences between the two thermometers and would have to rock the fermenter back and forth to even the termperatures up. I suspect it is simply because cold liquid sinks and warm liquid rises which gets a circulation going when in cooling mode. I'm glad they came up with the coil extensions and just bought a set for use when I need the FTS to keep the wort warmer. I will say, these guys stay on top of their product and react very quickly to the needs of their customers. That's great customer service.

 

[pvpeacock]

Still patiently, and desperately waiting to see detailed photos of how the coil and lid are setup.

Here is how I think it could be.

The SS coil has a TC ferrule sanitary welded on, with the end sticking up far enough to sanitary weld a FPT to hose barb adapter onto the coil tubing. An O ring placed on the TC fitting groove

There is a hole cut in the lid, through which the hose barb adapter is passed from beneath, and the hole is big enough that the threaded part of the FPT x hose barb passes through also. The TC fitting snugs against the under surface of the lid and the o ring forms a seal. The hole in the lid is big enough for the Hose barb to pass but not he larger diameter TC ferrule. No exposed threads on the inside of the fermenter.

for the FTS, there is a weldless thermowell in the lid.

On the outside of the lid, a o ring and SS lock nut is tightened over the FPT part of the hose barb, effectively sealing the hole in the lid from both sides, with sanitary inner surfaces. The coolant lines are connected to hose barbs with worm clamps.

Can someone confirm??

Also, where is the temperature probe installed on this fermentation?

Thanks!!

TD

Yes, you have it essentially right. The only caveat is that there are no worm clamps for the hose/hose barb connection. I added clamps on my water out line because it looked like it was leaking air into the water line when the pump was on. It may have simply been turbulence, but I could not tell. the clamp stopped whatever it was. No need for a clamp on the water in side, since I have not seen any water leaks.

As for the temperature probe, the FTS unit has a weldless thermowell which is attached to a third hole in the lid.

 

[nicolas_james]

Nicolas... How did it turn out? Details?

1.055 saison, pitched Yeast Bay Wallonian at 67, raised temp 1-2 degrees until it reached 76. Held till 3 weeks after pitch date, FG 1.001. Dropped temp back to 67 last night and added 2 oz of Mosaic for dry hop.

Edit: Also added the dregs of 2 bottles of Jolly Pumpkin Oro de Calabaza alongside the Wallonian.

Used a small aquarium heater in a cooler to maintain the 76 temps. Was a breeze to adjust set temps and switch between cooling/heating. I'll post pictures of everything later.

 

[mjc999]

Still patiently, and desperately waiting to see detailed photos of how the coil and lid are setup.

Here is how I think it could be.

The SS coil has a TC ferrule sanitary welded on, with the end sticking up far enough to sanitary weld a FPT to hose barb adapter onto the coil tubing. An O ring placed on the TC fitting groove

There is a hole cut in the lid, through which the hose barb adapter is passed from beneath, and the hole is big enough that the threaded part of the FPT x hose barb passes through also. The TC fitting snugs against the under surface of the lid and the o ring forms a seal. The hole in the lid is big enough for the Hose barb to pass but not he larger diameter TC ferrule. No exposed threads on the inside of the fermenter.

On the outside of the lid, a o ring and SS lock nut is tightened over the FPT part of the hose barb, effectively sealing the hole in the lid from both sides, with sanitary inner surfaces. The coolant lines are connected to hose barbs with worm clamps.

Can someone confirm??

Also, where is the temperature probe installed on this fermentation?

Thanks!!

TD

They just posted a new extension setup on the SSBrewtech website. It gives close ups of the connections that you are looking for.

 

[mjc999]

1.055 saison, pitched Yeast Bay Wallonian at 67, raised temp 1-2 degrees until it reached 76. Held till 3 weeks after pitch date, FG 1.001. Dropped temp back to 67 last night and added 2 oz of Mosaic for dry hop.

Edit: Also added the dregs of 2 bottles of Jolly Pumpkin Oro de Calabaza alongside the Wallonian.

Used a small aquarium heater in a cooler to maintain the 76 temps. Was a breeze to adjust set temps and switch between cooling/heating. I'll post pictures of everything later.

Did you make these adjustments manually or program them to occur at different times?

I agree it is very easy to manually change the set/hold temp.

 

[TrickyDick]

Thanks. I saw the link to the extension. That's what I needed. I think I might just buy some extensions and saw off the part I dont need and hire a welder to attach to ends of my coils.

Thanks!

 

[nicolas_james]

Did you make these adjustments manually or program them to occur at different times?



I agree it is very easy to manually change the set/hold temp.

I don't believe you can set them to do it automatically.

 

[pvpeacock]

Just received a set of the extensions for one of my FTS units. Will assemble it this weekend and brew. Unfortunately, it looks like winter may be over here in Southern California (go ahead and laugh now), so I may not need the extensions for heating the fermenting wort. I probably just need to use the FTS to cool the wort until next winter. Oh well, still glad they came up with the extensions so quickly after hearing about the heating issues some were encountering.

 

[Guigui]

Hi,

I bought the Brew bucket and was considering the temp controller but would like to know if some of you went into the lagering process using it. Is it possible, does it work well, and how did you proceed ?

 

[mjc999]

I have the FTSS and used it in an attempt to keep warm, not cold. As delivered without the additional cost of the extension system (which I have not tried), it is not very good for this application as the temperature differential from top to bottom is quite large, as much as 10 degrees in the two batches I've run.

I wanted to lager, but you should know it is not programmable, so if you are doing steps, you'll have to make those adjustments manually at the prescribed times. May not be an issue as you may need to manage the cooling fluid on a regular basis anyway (e.g., changing ice packs). For me, I'm not at my brew location on a daily basis, so it is not that practical for either reason.

I will be trying a cold crash next week and will report back.

It is a neat idea and avoids the need to build a fermenting chamber but it is limited.

 

[Feurhund]

How effective would a 5 gallon bucket of 40% glycol be in a chest freezer to be used with two 7 gallon Conicals with FTSS. I would want the ability to cold crash at 32F and I would be hooking the pump up to a STC100+ so I can control a heat wrap and program steps.

Just belaboring the decision between two FTSS setups or Two upright freezers.

Benefit of FTSS would be cost and footprint and I like the idea of effecting temp inside the ferment.
Cons: Pump could break; Dealing with Tubing; More edges in the ferementor.

Benefit of Freezers, reliable; can use with carboys and speidel;
Cons: Expense and space

Thanks for any input

 

[Feurhund]

Follow up question: will it be a problem for my 5 cubic chest freezer to hold hops and the reservoir for the glycol. I.e will it cause it to thaw or over cycle? Thanks

 

[silhouette]

I wonder how the SS FTS compares to a VERY similar solution.
http://www.gotta-brew.com/products/cool-zone-cooling-jacket.html

Upside for the coolzone might be:
– can use with other fermenters too.
– no cleaning or sanitization impact
– can add heating and a 2 stage controller at a similar price point as FTS

The SS FTS is prettier and has the custom neoprene jacket.. but i feel like I could pretty simply replace the jacket with a trip to home depot for a bit of insulation.

This assumes the coolzone is reasonably similar in efficiency. Anyone use one of the coolzone?

 

[abeasst]

How is everyone cleaning their FTSS? I just drained my first batch in my Brewtech half barrel fermenter and wanted to know the easiest way to clean the FTSS.

 

[dmcman73]

How is everyone cleaning their FTSS? I just drained my first batch in my Brewtech half barrel fermenter and wanted to know the easiest way to clean the FTSS.

I usually put the coils into my sink, turn on the hot water and spray the coils which washes everything off. I then follow up with washing the coils with hot PBW and a small non abrasive scrub brush I picked up at Home Depot (I don't fill the bosy of the brush with anything): http://www.homedepot.com/p/HDX-Soap-and-Scrub-Kitchen-Brush-139HDXRM/204465324

That's really about it and it comes out spotless.

 

[HDTVdevil]

How easy is it to replace the control unit? I'd prefer to use in combo with a Brewpi Spark.

 

[dmcman73]

The only thing the control unit provides is temp monitoring and turning on the water pump at a set temp drop/rise. I would think you could easily replicate that with Brew pi, connect a relay up to control power going to the water pump and your all set.

There are three wires on the control unit, power, temp probe and pump. The pump wire can be unplugged. The temp probe is hard wire so you would need a temp probe for your brew pi and the power wires can be unplugged as well.

 

[pvpeacock]

How is everyone cleaning their FTSS? I just drained my first batch in my Brewtech half barrel fermenter and wanted to know the easiest way to clean the FTSS.

I disassemble the coils and thermowell from the lid and rinse in the sink. Then I drop everything into a bucket 1/2 full with PBW and hot water. That includes the valves, elbow joint and tri-clamp washers. After a few hours or overnight, I rinse well with fresh water and reassemble.