Temp Control for healthy fermentation

[Scottatron]

What is everyone setting their temperature at on their temperature controller on their refrigerator? Say I want to ferment at 18 Celcius (65 F), what would I set my temperature at? Has anyone experienced a differential between what their temperature is set at and what the beer is actually fermenting at? I'm sure this could vary depending on what stage the yeast is fermenting at.

Thanks for any advice

 

[sandyeggoxj]

Tape the probe to the side of the carboy or use a thermowell so that the temp sensor is reading the actual beer temp.

 

[Scottatron]

Tape the probe to the side of the carboy or use a thermowell so that the temp sensor is reading the actual beer temp.

I would do that if I could but it wouldn't work in my situation. I'm using a long, narrow refrigerator that has a stainless table top. I can fit a lot of corny kegs in it, perhaps 10 or more. I'll be fermenting in corny kegs. I'd like to stick the probe in the fridge somewhere and have all the kegs ferment at the correct temp.

 

[govner1]

Do you have a fan to circulate the air inside your chamber? If so, put your probe in the middle & set your temp controller w/ a 2 degree differential, i.e ., 63-67.
Don't forget, it will take a long time for the liquid volumes you're talking about to vary much very quickly.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew

 

[schematix]

You can't control something if you don't have feedback on the variable (or another closely coupled variable) you're trying to control.

I understand your desire to idealize your situation, but the reality is that if you can't at least tape the temp probe to the keg you're just measuring the air temperature. You're better off than fermenting in ambient air, but you'll probably need to do some experiments to get your fermentation temperature in the right range. Further, if you're attempting multiple fermentations, you won't be able to control all of them at the same time.

I think most people report that during the early stages of ale fermentations, the internal temperature is 7-10 degrees higher than ambient. So what i'd take from that is if you want 65F, set the fridge to 55-58 for the first few days, then increase by maybe 2F per day until you reach 65F. Experimentation is going to be crucial here though.