How to Heat your Brew?!

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talltwits

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Hello,

Being a beginner in the home brew front I have so far been relatively successful in my first two brews! I have now caught the bug and want to brew on and improve.

One of the things I found most challenging was maintaining the correct temp. About 18-20 degrees c for my ale.

I was wondering what you folk do to keep your brews at the correct temps. I was thinking about a hydroponic tent with an electric heater and thermo stat socket. I don't know if this will work and even if it is safe.

Please do share your ideas!

Thanks!
 
If you dont want to go down the brew fridge route (yet) A water bath and aquarium heater is what most (not me as I'm usually trying to get my fermentations cooler) people in your position do. Buy a builders trug for a few quid, fill it with water put the FV and aquarium heater in there and bobs your uncle. There's loads of threads on the forum abouts this here's one to get you started

http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=59707&highlight=water+bath
 
Oh just stick a heater still straight into the fv

Yep - as long as you only want to heat and not cool (I'm in Scotland, and at this time of year - most times of year even - cooling is not necessary for ales)
I brew my cold-weather beers with an immersed aquarium heater. I had a very tricky brew a month or so ago & wondered if the heater was to blame. I'm now sure it wasn't:

http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=59004
 
The aquarium heater system looks good and I might have adopted it as a method, had I realised it was an option. :doh: :doh:

As it is, a spare section of clip-together shelving sits on top of my workbench.

I used spare shelves to make an enclosure on three sides and the top and insulated the lot with some old blankets and sheets that hang down at the front and allow me full access.

It's big enough to take two 25 litre FV's at the same time (complete with air-locks on top) and with a shelf fitted halfway along it can hold an FV and 40 x 500ml bottles as they carbonate.

The temperature is controlled with an Inkbird ITC 1000 which up to now has switched on and off a combination of light bulbs, a heating pad and an immersion heater via a variety of 3-way plugs and cables. (There is very little need to cool anything in my garage, even in the summer!)

The system has given me a wide variety of options and I have managed to maintain the temperature of the FV's at +/-2 degrees of what was required. (However, because the bulbs kept blowing, I have a 40 Watt tube heater on order to replace them!)

I have only one piece of advice to offer and that is:

"Whatever you decide to build or buy think of the future
and ensure that it will be big enough for your needs."​

Remember that not only does the FV need to be kept at the right temperature but so do the keg or bottles during carbonation; and that may very well coincide with another brew or you may even be considering more than one brew at a time! :thumb: :thumb:
 
the ambient temp in a centrally heated home is ideal, the yeast when active will generate thier own heat too, So just wrap the bucket in an old sleeping bag to ward of the day/night fluctuations and you will probably be fine.

If its a chilli spot, then thats kinda good news for the summer as keeping beer cool is a lot more difficult than heating it slightly.

But if you have the room for a tent? it sounds like you have room for a brewfridge so listen out for a freebie from family n friends buying no=ew ones.. or freecycle..
 
Hey. Thanks for all the advice.

I had never thought of submerging the FV and using a water heater. I will explore this further.

I do like the sound of the brew fridge though and will certainly be keeping an eye out for a freebie from
Family and friends.

Some great advice!

Thanks again!
 
My room is well insulated so, this time of the year, no need to cool.. So I use a STC-1000 connected to a space heater.
Come summer, ill pick up some old fridges.
 
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If you are not into wiring a controller this will take all the work and possible risk out of making your fridge - http://www.thehomebrewforum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=59644.

That looks pretty class if I was to buy it with this http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00ID7UF7A/ref=pd_aw_sim_60_2?ie=UTF8&dpID=41kgFJ55iBL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL100_SR100%2C65_&refRID=1NNGRKMR5EQV0V13V59X#featureBulletsAndDetailBullets_secondary_view_div_1455353081408 as suggested on Amazon. I could turn the Hoover cupboard into a brew cupboard?

I use the Hoover cupboard with a brew belt at the moment but I struggle with a consistent temperature- I've been using a timer switch and having it on an hour off an hour.
 
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Hi!
Some tubular heaters have a thermostat control which may be sufficient in an indoor cupboard to maintain a consistent temperature, but I don't know how sensitive the thermostat is. The Inkbird temperature controller would remove all worries.
One further point - I have two tubular heaters, 60 Watt and 45 Watt. I find that the 45 Watt struggles to maintain bottle-conditioning temperatures in my home-made fermentation box but the 60 Watt copes well.
 
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That looks pretty class if I was to buy it with this http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/aw/d/B00ID7UF7A/ref=pd_aw_sim_60_2?ie=UTF8&dpID=41kgFJ55iBL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL100_SR100%2C65_&refRID=1NNGRKMR5EQV0V13V59X#featureBulletsAndDetailBullets_secondary_view_div_1455353081408 as suggested on Amazon. I could turn the Hoover cupboard into a brew cupboard?

I use the Hoover cupboard with a brew belt at the moment but I struggle with a consistent temperature- I've been using a timer switch and having it on an hour off an hour.

Yeah I've seen that combination come up a lot on Amazon and also as people have said before to put one of these heaters into a fridge. Then you hav the best of both worlds if it's a working fridge. I think that maybe be the route I go.

I'll need to start hunting for a cheap used fridge!
 
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Yeah I've seen that combination come up a lot on Amazon and also as people have said before to put one of these heaters into a fridge. Then you hav the best of both worlds if it's a working fridge. I think that maybe be the route I go.

I'll need to start hunting for a cheap used fridge!

I don't have room for a fridge yet. We are planning a house extension including adding a utility room so my Mrs can get a dishwasher and I can get some more brew space but that's probably a couple of years away
 
I don't have room for a fridge yet. We are planning a house extension including adding a utility room so my Mrs can get a dishwasher and I can get some more brew space but that's probably a couple of years away

Well I'm currently working on her allowing me more space. Would probably be the garage but if it's heated here's no issue. I love how the extent of future planning going here!
 
Maybe I'm thinking too simple but I wonder if that same principle, build an insulated box but attach it to the freezer part of the fridge. You know those small fridge freezer things. Add a few PC fans to circulate the air.... I wonder if it would work? I have a couple of those dinky things... A lot of you guys are really technical in that sense... A lot more than I. See any potential problems?
 
Well I'm currently working on her allowing me more space. Would probably be the garage but if it's heated here's no issue. I love how the extent of future planning going here!
Hi!
I brew in the old wash-house at the rear of the house. I was lucky enough to have a larder fridge going spare, so SWMBO gave her permission for me to use it as a brew fridge :grin:. As the temperature is always low in winter, I also built a fermentation box out of odd bits of wood I had left over from previous projects, insulated it with bubble wrap, polystyrene ceiling tiles and corrugated cardboard. With a tubular heater and an Inkbird controller it can maintain a fermentation temperature of 18 degrees. I don't need to worry about cooling. It ain't pretty, but it works.
Could you build a fermentation box in the garage? I went down the low-cost route, but if I wanted to spend money I would have used building insulation slabs joined with glue and gaffer tape. It doesn't have to be strong, just a barrier to hold in the warm air.
 
What about one of these?
Heated brew belt
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001PQU73S/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
Never used one, but have been looking into solving a similar heating problem (though I'm pretty short of space, so no tent for me!)

I've got one but I have trouble keeping a steady temperature with it. I ended up hooking it up to a timer switch and having it set to an hour on then an hour off. I've also found it doesn't fit around my bottle crates so I'm really struggling with secondary carbonation- I end up blasting a fan heater into my brew cupboard for an hour each night then re-insulating my bottle boxes.

I'm going to invest in a tubular heater and clad the inside of my cupboard with polystyrene before I do my next brew!
 
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