Will 30L Speidel fit in Son of Fermentation Chiller?

[dlaflamm]

Will the 30L Speidel fit in Son of Fermentation Chiller?

Is anyone using a 30L Speidel in a SOFC? With the Speidel airlock?

Just the inside dimensions of the SOFC would be enough for me to figure it out you have a SOFC but not a Speidel.

I tried a few searches with no success. Someone must have asked this before, so apologies for duplicating if that is the case.

Thanks!

To be clear, I'm talking about this SOFC built to specs:
http://home.roadrunner.com/~brewbeer/chiller/chiller.PDF

 

[jett78]

Did you ever get an answer for this?

I was curious myself.

If I'm reading the dimensions correctly on the build instructions, it looks to me that the height is 32 in, but lose 2 in on the bottom and 2 in on the top, to give an interior height of 28 inches. MoreBeer lists the 30L Speidel as being 18.5 in tall, with out the airlock. The airlock is 5 3/8 in and the stopper is 1 3/8. Some of that will be fitted inside one another, but we'll just say 7 in for the airlock and stopper, add to 18.5 in for the the container, plus an 2 in for some room is 27.5 inches interior height needed.

The interior width looks to be 16 in.

The depth looks to be 17 in. (29 in long, minus 2 in each for the two outer walls and 1 interior wall, and minus 7 in for the baffle)


Seems like it should fit fine with a couple inches to spare all around.

 

[dlaflamm]

Did you ever get an answer for this?

No, I never got an answer. I'm still building my SoFC, but it is far enough along to confirm that the 30L Speidel with the enormous airlock does fit with two inches to spare above it.

 

[jett78]

Good deal. I'm going to start mine this weekend. I found the foam board at Lowe's for $24 (8x4x2in)

What did you use to make the cuts?

 

[dlaflamm]

I found the foam board at Lowe's for $24 (8x4x2in)

What did you use to make the cuts?

My Lowe's didn't have the *extruded* polystyrene, but I found it at a local lumberyard. It was $40. My understanding is that the blue/pink stuff at Lowe's and Home Depot generally isn't extruded. I don't think there are enormous insulation value differences, but rather some structural strength differences. Anyway...

I used a jigsaw to make the cuts. It worked reasonably well.

What I found the most challenging was gluing it up. I tried to do it all at once and my joints aren't as perfect as I would like. I eventually used some large clamps that helped a lot while the glue was setting. If I ever build another, I'll plan on gluing it up over several days. The extra time will be worth it to me for a better end result. Your experience might be different, of course.

Good luck with it. Have fun!

 

[jett78]

I'll have to double check the specs on the sheet at Lowe's, but it looked like what I needed.

I have the fan and temp controller, just need to get off my butt and get the board and liquid nails. .. I'm missing out on precious brewing time because I can't keep my fermentation temps down.

Thanks for the update. I may have more questions later this week

 

[dlaflamm]

The one deviation I made from the original SoFC plans (unrelated to dimensions) was the thermostat. I bought a cheap digital programmable version online and turned it into a remote sensing thermostat. It is battery-powered. My fan, of course, still connects using an old wall wart. I de-soldered the thermistor, soldered it to the end of extended wires, and soldered those wires to the thermostat where I had removed the thermistor. Might sound complicated, but really it was easy. I hadn't soldered anything in about 35 years. All credit to the author of the guide I used here:
http://www.wortomatic.com/articles/Remote-Sensing-DIY-Controller-for-Less-Than-$25

I got a different thermostat than he used, but the thermistor was easy to identify because it responds to body temperature when touched. Of course the batteries have to be in for that part.

MoreBeer support pointed me to this thermowell to fit the Speidel:
http://morebeer.com/products/hood-thermowell-65-gallon-threaded-neck-carboys-15.html

I threaded it on and it seems to fit fine. It will be tested, along with my SoFC, when I brew my next batch on 8/13. It all feels like a big upgrade to me.

 

[jett78]

I pulled a 12VDC fan out of a broken computer I had laying around and was going to splice it to a 120VAC to 12VDC power adapter charger that I found and don't know what it was for. Then plug that into my extra Ranco. I'll change it over to a thermostat if I ever need my Ranco back.

I was curious about a thermowell for my Speidel, but when I click on the link with my phone, it takes me to the other link you attached for the thermostat. I'll try again on PC when I get a chance.

Thanks for the info!

 

[jett78]

I wasn't paying attention to the "extruded" part of the material, and you are right, all the local foam board I have found is expanded. Home Depot has the extruded foam with the correct dimensions listed on their site, but not found in local stores. Not sure if they can order it for me. I'll check around at local lumbar yards, unless you think expanded foam would work okay?

EDIT
I did find the extruded available at a Home Depot about 45 minutes away. $31, may need to make a brewery trip out of it.

 

[dlaflamm]

I wanted the strength of the extruded, but the expanded might be OK if you don't have to move it around much and are gentle with it. It was worth it to me.