brew fridge

[Peatbogbrewer]

Is there any step by step information on converting a small fridge into a fermentation cupboard?

[ManseMasher]

Do you want to use the fridge itself as the chamber, or use it as the cooling unit for a bigger cabinet?

[sbond10]

1) remove shelves and salad box
2)clean the crap out of it
3)build a wooden shelve to put fermenter on
4)buy an inkbird 308
5) get a heat source I use a 25w ceramic heat bulb
6) feed the probe cable and heater cable thru drainage hole
7)place beer in fridge tape probe to side of fv

Couldn't be easier

[gobuchul]

Loads!

http://www.berrybrew.co.uk/fermentation ... ew-fridge/

http://www.instructables.com/id/Convert ... ting-beer/

Also if you don't want to build your own controller you get one of these http://www.amazon.co.uk/Inkbird-Tempera ... ds=inkbird

[Peatbogbrewer]

Excellent cheers i intend to use the fridge itself as the chamber, i want it to go in the garage that gets pretty hot during summer and cold cold cold in winter, so need something to heat and chill accordingly, is this doable? (going to check those links now gobuchal)

sbond10, its as easy as that?

[ManseMasher]

It can be as simple as that! Or you can make it as difficult as you like really! I have both the stc1000 and the ITC308. If you want it simple, then the ITC is the way ahead - it really is pretty much 'plug and play'. What will be the limiting factor is the size of your fridge, and how much you can subsequently get in it. A decent supported shelf (mine sits on a wooden frame) to take the weight of a full fv is pretty important. Some folk butcher the inside of the door to make more internal space. As I said, it can be as easy or as difficult as you want it to be.

[Peatbogbrewer]

Cheers MM, its going to be for one fermenter at a time, and i'm going for the easiest option.....

[sbond10]

I'm awful at diy and I managed it hooray for inkbird filling a gap in the market. I don't think I'd of bothered if I had to wire up an st1000 anything electrical I'm hopeless at. The only wiring I had to do was for the ceramic heat lamp. Which was simply 2 wires

[orlando]

Try to get one without the little icebox at the top, takes up too much room and isn't needed.

[gobuchul]

i want it to go in the garage that gets pretty hot during summer and cold cold cold in winter, so need something to heat and chill accordingly, is this doable?

It should be. Once the wort is at the set temperature it is very thermally stable and a fridge is very well insulated, just don't open the door very often. The fridge or heater rarely kick in.

[Jocky]

Excellent cheers i intend to use the fridge itself as the chamber, i want it to go in the garage that gets pretty hot during summer and cold cold cold in winter, so need something to heat and chill accordingly, is this doable? (going to check those links now gobuchal)

sbond10, its as easy as that?

Won't be a problem in the garage. Mine is outdoors in a log shed, and goes down to -1 or up to 30c+ easily.

[sbond10]

Yep I tested my fridge over weekend and once it got within a set temp it stayed there.
If you tape the probe to the outside of the fv don't forget the plastic acts as an insulator. I was out by a degree or so but this test was with water, wort is thicker and I'd say was moving around when the yeast was active giving off an exothermic reaction I think.

Can someone confirm this who has actually used one with wort ?

[orlando]

Yep I tested my fridge over weekend and once it got within a set temp it stayed there.
If you tape the probe to the outside of the fv don't forget the plastic acts as an insulator. I was out by a degree or so but this test was with water, wort is thicker and I'd say was moving around when the yeast was active giving off an exothermic reaction I think.

Can someone confirm this who has actually used one with wort ?

It is a good idea to calibrate the STC or equivalent to your thermometer so you can check its consistency.Once you get a brew underway set the hysteresis of the STC to say .5 of a degree then check on consecutive days and see how it agrees with your thermometer, if it is consistently out by x degrees adjust the setting on the STC, you might find it is so close you don't bother.

[Peatbogbrewer]

I'm awful at diy and I managed it hooray for inkbird filling a gap in the market. I don't think I'd of bothered if I had to wire up an st1000 anything electrical I'm hopeless at. The only wiring I had to do was for the ceramic heat lamp. Which was simply 2 wires

Ditto with DIY too so the inkbird way looks most likely, glad to hear it should do the job, i live quite high up so our seasonal variation in temp can be as low as -10 and 27 degs....

[lord groan]

not sure about step by step but this is my fermentation fridge build, hope it helps!
lg
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