where do you ferment your lager?

[RippinLt]

So while searching for a spot on my property that is a steady 45 degrees, I only found one spot, my refrigerator. My fridge on its lowest setting might be fitting for a lager but i dont know if i can get the temp that high.... Where do you guys primarily ferment your lagers? Is this where the auxiliary thermostat comes into play and shuts off your fridge for half of the day?

 

[scrambledegg81]

Haven't done a lager yet, but I know the majority of people on here (from reading) make their own lagering chests or fridges with temp controls.

 

[jollytim]

Dorm fridge, with home made temp control....just like this:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/diy-temp-controller-build-133364/

 

[jason.mundy]

Fridge I purchased on CL for $30.

 

[RippinLt]

Fridge I purchased on CL for $30.

so without modification your fridge has a setting that is warm enough...

 

[jason.mundy]

so without modification your fridge has a setting that is warm enough...

I went out and bought a digital temp controller. I think it was the Johnson 409. That does well Spring, Summer, Fall. During the winter, I add a shop light with a 25watt bulb (NOT CF) inside the fridge. The light stays on all the time. It makes enough heat to keep the beer from freezing. The fridge makes enough cold to over come the heat and cool the beer.

Jason

 

[snevey]

I have one of these above my fridge with a remote temperature probe that I monitor my fridge temps. It has an Ethernet port and I setup forwarding on my home router so I can check the fridge and room temps from any web browser and my blackberry. I have an extra one of these devices minus the remote temperature probe I could let go for $250 if anyone is interested:

http://www.itwatchdogs.com/product-detail-weathergoose_ii-1.html

 

[snevey]

If you go to the above site, they have a live demo of the device you could try. If you're an IT professional, and don't have environmental monitoring devices setup in your data centers, shame on you. This has thresholds in both directions for temp, humidity, light, water, sound levels, etc. AN AWESOME gadget! My wife thinks I'm a dork for using on for brewing. I haven't lagered anything yet, but I'm set now. Plus it's nice to have a graph of the temperature fluctuations...

 

[nebben]

I do it seasonally, when outdoor temperatures are favorable to lager fermentation. I put a carboy into a 30G trash can that is partially filled with water. The idea is that the thermal mass will be much greater with that much liquid, and air temperature fluctuations wont be as much of a problem. I put a 100W aquarium heater in that is connected to a thermostat that kicks on the power if below 50F water temp. This works well for me even with 26F nights and up to 55-60F days, assuming the daily mean temp isn't higher than 50F.

 

[COLObrewer]

so without modification your fridge has a setting that is warm enough...

My fridge goes down to 46ish (without controller) in summer which is where I like to ferment lagers, The cellar gets down there at certain times in winter so then I use it to ferment and then lager in the fridge.

 

[steinsato]

I only brew lagers in the winter. Unless we have company spending the night, we don't heat one of the bedrooms and bathrooms during the winter which makes for perfect lager temperatures.

 

[TomSD]

Fridge I purchased on CL for $30.

Same except I got a chest freezer for 30 that was in bad shape and refurbished it. A little money at Home Depot, a Love controller and a couple hours work and it works great. I need to prime and paint the outside with chalk board paint still though. Make it easier to keep track of what is going on inside if I can write all over it.