Temperature Control During Fermenting

[BVilleggiante]

My buddy and I are in the beginning stages of brewing and we're wondering what the best option is for complete temperature control. We're aware of options like ice baths, fridges (which at this point isn't an option), and the b3 ferementer. But, are there other options that will produce a constant temperature control?

 

[brettg20]

Are you trying to keep them cool or warm them up, or both?

 

[944play]

You need some kind of refrigeration to get total temperature automation. Absolutely no way around that unless you are fermenting in the Arctic.
There's this little glycol unit for a cool €3300:

It's sized for a 2-bbl fermenter.

 

[arover]

I think that unit is a bit much for what he's looking for. If you're looking to keep it cool, get a mini fridge off craigslist, then there's a wide variety of options you can go for to control the temp. You'll want some sort of temp controller as well as a waterproof probe. That probe will work for both heating and cool, so if you want to heat, get something like a fermwrap(?). You can find heating units on various homebrew sites.

P.S. Petaluma is where I spent the majority of my life. It's a small world ;-)

 

[dfc]

I bought an upright freezer and have a thermostat with a probe connected to it. The ice bath just fluctuates too much. I found the freezer used on craigslist.

 

[LCTitan]

You could try this or the Mother of Fermenter

http://web.archive.org/web/20070206150821/http://home.elp.rr.com/brewbeer/chiller/chiller.PDF

 

[BubbaK]

Here is my unit... Constant air circulation keep the temp from swinging too much.. The temp control turns the compressor on/off, but fan runs constantly.. First batch is coming out this weekend and the next batch is going in... Worked beautifully and looks great too.

 

[dhoerr]

Here is my unit... Constant air circulation keep the temp from swinging too much.. The temp control turns the compressor on/off, but fan runs constantly.. First batch is coming out this weekend and the next batch is going in... Worked beautifully and looks great too.

amazing. did you happen to have one lying around or what?

 

[BubbaK]

amazing. did you happen to have one lying around or what?

One of my other hobbies is collecting coin op stuff - soda machines and arcade games.. This is my garage machine.. It normally keeps my BMC beer and the kids sodas cold.. I have one other running in the basement gameroom I converted to shelves to keep my homebrews cold.. These machines normally have the bottles on their side.. I took out the shelves in my basement machine and made my own shelves to keep my homebrew standing up and cold. I've got 6 others right now just sitting in a pile..

Most soda machines use less power than a fridge, and with the constant air circulation, cool liquids down quickly and keep them cold. There is no cold like soda machine cold..

 

[BVilleggiante]

Small world indeed. I was born here but never actually lived here until now. Just bought a house on the heritage side of town and really love it. Think I'm going to look into the son of a fermenter idea posted above. I don't really have the room for another fridge right now unfortunately.

I think that unit is a bit much for what he's looking for. If you're looking to keep it cool, get a mini fridge off craigslist, then there's a wide variety of options you can go for to control the temp. You'll want some sort of temp controller as well as a waterproof probe. That probe will work for both heating and cool, so if you want to heat, get something like a fermwrap(?). You can find heating units on various homebrew sites.

P.S. Petaluma is where I spent the majority of my life. It's a small world ;-)