Heating idea

[dangerman]

I've been racking my brains for a low cost method of keeping my brews warm. I decided against a brew belt/tray because of the ongoing cost of energy. Same with the brew fridge and also the effort to make that put me off. My wife has evicted me from the house and so all fermentation must take place in my cold damp garage. The freeze is coming and I worry it might ruin my booze. Can the cold ruin it or is it just going to slow it down?

Anyway. I discovered on youtube an idea that could be modified and used anywhere. Stick a few tea lights (2p each) into a tray, light em and put a small clay plant pot over them. Then a bigger plant pot over that. It apparently becomes a convector heater. Those candles burn for a good few hours. in poundland you can get those reflective emergency shelters for, you guessed it, a squid!

For me, it seems a no brainer (although I do lack common sense sometimes) that I could get an old desk that someone might be throwing away and put some holes in it, then put the heater below (maybe on a step to get it off the cold ground and a bit closer to the holes) and the brew can go above the desk. Throw the emergency shelter over the whole thing and the heat should keep for ages.

Am I wrong? Are there any obvious flaws in my plan?

 

[graysalchemy]

All you need is an insulated cupboard or box and a 50 watt tube heater. A temp controller would be best as well to control the temp. I don't think tea lights in a cold damp garage will keep you up to fermentation temps.

Up to you but controlling temps is fundamental to good consistent brewing. :thumb:

 

[dangerman]

Yeah, this is a constant dilemma for me. Cost vs quality. I always side with cheap because I'm stingy and can't really afford the hobby any other way. A 50 watt heater, correct me if I'm wrong, would cost about 70p a day. Same as a heating belt or tray. Tea lights are tuppence each and they knock out quite a good amount of heat (I know from my old caravan owning days).

I'll have a little think. Thanks for the heads up on the cardboard though.

 

[dangerman]

I'm looking on ebay and can't seem to find any 50 watt heaters anyway - unless, would a fish tank heater do?

 

[graysalchemy]

Ok 60W

here

If you have a temp controller and an insulated cabinet it won't be on for much of the time once it is up to temp. Certainly not 70p a day. :thumb:

 

[PD]

I dont think I'd have as much confidence in having lighted tea lights/candles burning unattended for a good length of time during fermenting, as I would over an electric heater.
and I'm a Yorkshireman, but there are times when safety over rides cost.

 

[mojonojo]

I dont think I'd have as much confidence in having lighted tea lights/candles burning unattended for a good length of time during fermenting, as I would over an electric heater.
and I'm a Yorkshireman, but there are times when safety over rides cost.

there is always the lightbulb in the tincan method or the aquarium heater in a bucket of water techniques

 

[aneray]

I use an electric blanket, the one that can be unclipped and stuck in the washing machine. Laid out flat it keeps my brew at a steady fermenting temperature with no risk of overheating like the belts and pads.

 

[brewtim]

For me, it seems a no brainer (although I do lack common sense sometimes)

I hate to point out the obvious - but an open flame under a desk in a shelter.........possibly asking for trouble :wha:

 

[winelight]

By the time you've got an insulated cupboard, heater and temperature controller, you may as well make a brew fridge. It really doesn't take long.

 

[marksa222]

Yeah, this is a constant dilemma for me. Cost vs quality. I always side with cheap because I'm stingy and can't really afford the hobby any other way. A 50 watt heater, correct me if I'm wrong, would cost about 70p a day. Same as a heating belt or tray. Tea lights are tuppence each and they knock out quite a good amount of heat (I know from my old caravan owning days).

I'll have a little think. Thanks for the heads up on the cardboard though.

If it was 50 watts, say you pay 12p per kWh (1000 watts), the heater would cost 0.6p per hour to use or 14.4p per day. That's if it on all day. If you used a temperature controller to regulate when it's on, it wouldn't be on for very long to heat up a small area (fermentation cupboard) and if it was well insulated, it would be a while before it needed to be back on.

I personally use a brew belt with a temp controller for fermenting. A blanket wrapped around it insulates it ok. I set the temp to 18 degrees with 0.5 degree allowance. The brew belt is off for alot longer than it's on, so hopefully won't cost too much. Should have a fridge for it soon, fingers crossed.

 

[dangerman]

Thanks for the help youse. The brew fridge idea is appealing, and there seem to be plenty of them on freecycle for the taking. Whenever I see videos or instructions though they all look really complicated. Wiring looms and all that. Plus, once done it doesn't really fit that much in it. One of my five gallon drums would just about squeeze into a big one. A few demijohns too maybe. Plus, how much to run a fridge? £60 a year? Or do you hook up one of those 60w heaters to it? I'm so confused.

Anyone got a dummy's guide for me to weigh up?

 

[graysalchemy]

ultimately what you want is a fridge and a heater controlled with a temp controller which switches off the heating and switches to cooling. They are easy to wire up and an STC1000 is teh controller that you need.

HAve a look at Kev's excellent wiring diagram here.

 

[dangerman]

Right. And that wires up straight into a fully working fridge? Anything else I would need? Still looks quite intimidating. I prefer just setting fire to stuff as a rule.

 

[Dave1970]

Brew fridge is the way to go for garage brewing if you can pick up a free fridge. You won't be running the fridge all year, for most of the winter the fridge would hardly come on and it just becomes a well insulated cabinet with a 60 watt heater in. In summer the fridge will run but not as much as in normal use because you'll only be trying to maintain a temp of 18-20C rather than the 5C the fridge normally operates at. Between brews the whole lot gets switched off and costs nothing.

The temp controller can be wired straight into a fridge but normally it would be wired to 2 sockets (heat & cool on the wiring diagram), the fridge and the 60W heater then plug into the 2 sockets and are switched on & off by the controller

Mine looks like this...

 

[31bb3]

Wrap it in a sleeping bag or old blanket may take a little longer to ferment but will keep it warm fermentation creates its own heat my friend ferments his wine kits in the garage like that

 

[PD]

watch how easy it is....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30TvX1Zz1-Y

 

[LeithR]

@graysalchemy,
Kev's diagram is at variance with the You Tube clip that PD offered above. I used the Video to guide me thru my successful build and its spot on. The diagram is mentioned in the Vid, its just that the heat and cool are the wrong way round. Nothing that can't be overcome.

 

[winelight]

I wired my STC-1000 into my fridge's existing connector blocks rather than create a separate unit with power sockets, if you see what I mean. It meant some head-scratching but the end result is simpler and cheaper. It's one of these things that's much easier to do than explain!

 

[dangerman]

That video is excellent. Feel much more more confident about that now. Spoke to my brother and he wants to make one too. Makes sense this way rather than my fire hazard way. Thanks everyone for the chat.

I'm gonna try and get a fridge today. Does it matter if the fridge is broken? Surely in this part of the world it would never get too hot.

Also, I've found a bar heater to stick inside (it was in my utility room not getting used). If my brother wants one, would he be better off getting a brew belt or tray than a bar heater?