My new brewing fridge

[DoctorMick]

It's all up and running



It may be working a little bit too well!

 

[Chippy_Tea]

Time to make a blow off tube. :thumb:

 

[DoctorMick]

Time to make a blow off tube. :thumb:

I'm going to buy a 30l FV I think.

 

[Hoddy]

The moral of the story here is ALWAYS get a electrician/spark to check what you do or have done. Electricity kills and starts fires. I've seen some shocking stuff in my time (I'm a qualified electrical engineer) and sometimes a little knowledge is a dangerous thing. Plus I've got myself a fermenting fridge too, with an STC1000 from Amazon for £13 delivered next day

 

[Duffman]

On the subject of temperature control - the optimum solution is to immerse the sensor directly in the brew, this forms the most accurate way to measure and monitor the temperature as the fermentation process creates heat.
However this creates the issue of introducing possible contamination, therefore the next best solution would be to immerse in a small container of water inside the fridge, therefore a similar liquid environment to the brew, not ideal but better.
The third option is to secure the sensor to the outside of the FV, preferably inside some sort of thermal protection shielding it from the surrounding air, (bubble wrap works well in this instance) the air temperature surrounding the FV will be different to the temperature of the fluid, so taping the sensor to the inside of the fridge will give a false temperature reading, also when the fridge is active the walls tend to be the coldest part.

 

[ManseMasher]

http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=54503&highlight=temperature&page=2

Have a read of this - Twostage has done quite a bit of research into what results you get from different sensor locations...

On the subject of temperature control - the optimum solution is to immerse the sensor directly in the brew, this forms the most accurate way to measure and monitor the temperature as the fermentation process creates heat.
However this creates the issue of introducing possible contamination, therefore the next best solution would be to immerse in a small container of water inside the fridge, therefore a similar liquid environment to the brew, not ideal but better.
The third option is to secure the sensor to the outside of the FV, preferably inside some sort of thermal protection shielding it from the surrounding air, (bubble wrap works well in this instance) the air temperature surrounding the FV will be different to the temperature of the fluid, so taping the sensor to the inside of the fridge will give a false temperature reading, also when the fridge is active the walls tend to be the coldest part.

 

[Duffman]

http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=54503&highlight=temperature&page=2

Have a read of this - Twostage has done quite a bit of research into what results you get from different sensor locations...

Thanks for the link, it seems that its ambient temperature that you want to control not the temperature of the fluid inside the FV to negate the fluctuation factors - i think i'll dangle my sensor probe in mid air and have a 10 minute lag set on the STC-1000 and see what happens.
Whatever the result it has to be better than right now, the temperature of my current brew is ranging from 20c to 26c during the day, which ain't good !

 

[Birkin]

Just done a similar thing! Except I used a cheap Chinese version of that controller which was £7 includin postage..

My house is nice and warm so I've just made an inline temp controlled cut out, it seems to switch on and off at the right temps!

 

[Birkin]

On the subject of temp control, I think the best approach is to strap / tape the controller temp probe to the fermenter with some bubble wrap over it so its measuring the fermenter temp and use the fridge stat to limit air temperature. So the temp controller will power the fridge up if the fermenters too warm but the fridge stat will cut the fridge off if the ambient gets to 5 degrees or whatever its set at, you don't want a big delta otherwise you'll the fermenter will end up too hot in the middle and too cold on the outside..

Or at least that's my thinking

 

[Inkbird]

It's all up and running



It may be working a little bit too well!

Wow, cool.

 

[Dutto]

Many thanks for the photographs!! :thumb: :thumb:

I pointed them out to SWMBO and explained how some people used an old fridge as a brew cabinet.

"Would one of those get rid of that contraption you have on the bench?" (The particular "contraption" being my own carefully and lovingly crafted Warm Cupboard made from a spare section of shelving covered with recovered chipboard shelves and insulated with a variety of BBQ covers, old sheets and blankets! I will admit that it's not very beautiful, but it manages the "keep warm" part of brewing okay!)

When I nodded (being unable to speak at the insult of my handiwork being called a "contraption") SWMBO carried on with "Well you may as well get one that works and slide it under the bench to give yourself more room."

WHAT?? SWMBO suggesting that I spend money on my brewing gear? I was almost in a coma when she carried on with ...

... "There's that secondhand shop just along the road. They sell nothing but fridges, freezers and washing machines so you should easily find a secondhand one there that works."

Still speechless, I nodded in agreement and have spent most of today measuring up the garage to find out what's the biggest possible fridge I can fit in there!! :whistle: :whistle:

So again, "Thanks for the photographs!" :thumb: :thumb:

 

[stuart_A]

I've taken the advice in this thread and started to build a brew fridge. I now have the second hand fridge, the thermostat and the heater. My only concern is that I underestimated the space I'd need and im struggling to fit the fridge in my outbuilding/utility room.

My question is (and there's only one answer im wanting as there's no plan B): will it be ok to have my tumble dryer (light weight old school one so not heavy like a washing machine) on top of the brew fridge?

 

[Chippy_Tea]

I have 6 DJ's of wine sat on top of my fridge freezer most of the time and have had no problem, i would imagine that's 30Kg.

The down side i can think of is the rocking motion of the drier may make your beer move about in the FV.

 

[stuart_A]

Yea it's the rocking I'm concerned about. Hopefully won't be an issue . Over the course of the fermenting period it's only going to be on a few times and for relatively short bursts

 

[Bigcol49]

Hi!
How are your DIY skills? I would fasten a horizontal batten on the wall to rest a length of kitchen worktop (or a piece of MDF or ply) and make a couple of legs at the front. The dryer can stay on the floor, the fridge can sit on the work surface for ease of access.

 

[stuart_A]

My DIY skills are pretty poor BUT I've managed to take the bottom off the cupboard that was above my freezer and put the brew fridge above it. The remaining sides of the cupboard even act as a safety feature if the fridge was to try to topple.

Sorted. should be no movement now and the FV will be at a nice height to bottle directly from!