Fermentation temp control, wort boil monitor

[Joerg]

Time to give back, at least some information.

Summer out here is too hot for brewing so an old fridge needed to be
rigged to control the fermentation temperature to whatever is ideal and
keep it there. Luckily we have an old (1956) Bosch fridge in the
basement. It runs off 230V from a transformer I made for it. Even in the
defrost mode fridges rarely allow their internal thermostat to be set to
higher than 55F. For Lagers that might barely work but not for Pale Ale.
One way of controlling them is to have a probe inside and then switch
the power externally. This will cause the light not to come on when
opening the door but that won't matter if all you've got in there is a
6.5 gallon fermenter bucket.

First I tried the cheap method. I bought a baseboard heater thermostat,
disassembled, bent the bimetal into reverse, assembled, worked! Only
then did I find out that the internal switch was erratic, had a bad
contact which looked like a manufacturing defect. Hurumph! Of course,
now I could not return it anymore. $15 in "learning fees" paid :-(

Everybody said electronic controllers either need to be home-built or
cost $200. However, then I found this from China:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00V4TJR00

It arrived last week and so I could start brewing yesterday. It keeps
the fridge nicely at 68F-69F which is the mid-value for the Pale Ale I
am brewing. Setting it to other temperatures is easy via set and up/down
buttons. It can also be set for heating or for cooling, meaning power
comes on either below the set point or above. That can be helpful if
fermentation has to take place in a basement in winter. There is also an
alarm beeper if you fear someone could take a peek and leave the fridge
door open.

The hysteresis (difference between on and off) can be programmed and I
set this to 2 degrees Fahrenheit so the compressor won't do short
cycles. It can be operated at 120V or at 230V. Just keep in mind that it
has no Schuko socket for German plugs (which my fridge has) and I used a
home-made adapter UK-Germany. If you use US plugs and 120V no problem.
The tiny sensor on a thin cable hangs half way down next to the
fermenter. It easily squeezes through the rubber door seal on our fridge.

There is also a more expensive electronic thermostat (around $40) by
Ink-Bird which looks like it can do heat and cool simultaneously if
someone has a very fancy setup.

Another feature you can achieve with such thermo-controllers is
gradually stepping down the temperature for flocculation towards the end
of the stationary phase, like breweries do that sometimes.

While at it I bought another gadget that helped me during the wort heating:

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIAAD043B3145&cm_re=barbecue_thermometer-_-9SIAAD043B3145-_-Product

The "well done" limit beeper can be overridden via a menu. Since I only
had a 1kW burner and, therefore, heating three gallons took forever I
could go do something else while keeping an eye on things remotely. It
also helped keep the steeping temperature constant at 155-160F. A steel
wire made sure the probe time didn't slip into the wort pot. This also
cocked the lid a wee bit, reducing chances of a boil-over.

Oh, and I found out that I could cool the wort real fast in our swimming
pool, probably raising the pool temperature by 0.01F :-)

[baloonon]

Post by Joerg
Time to give back, at least some information.
Summer out here is too hot for brewing so an old fridge needed to be
rigged to control the fermentation temperature to whatever is ideal
and keep it there. Luckily we have an old (1956) Bosch fridge in the
basement. It runs off 230V from a transformer I made for it. Even in
the defrost mode fridges rarely allow their internal thermostat to be
set to higher than 55F. For Lagers that might barely work but not for
Pale Ale. One way of controlling them is to have a probe inside and
then switch the power externally. This will cause the light not to
come on when opening the door but that won't matter if all you've got
in there is a 6.5 gallon fermenter bucket.

Interesting stuff. For what it's worth, look around online for recent
info on the effects of fermentation temperature on taste.

If you search http://brulosophy.com for "fermentation temperature" you
get some interesting test results. In general, it appears that strict
control is very often not nearly as critical as a lot of the older
literature insists. I'm sure that it varies for some yeasts, but the
side by side blind taste tests they carry out show people aren't tasting
a difference, for instance, between a lager fermented at 50F and another
at 70F.

I suspect there are times when temp may play more of a role in
combination with other factors, such as the amount of yeast that is
pitched, oxygen, temperature consistency and so on. And without a doubt
trying to brew a lager at 90F is going to have odd results. But I find
it encouraging to know that older warnings can often be far too strict.

[Joerg]

Post by baloonon

Post by Joerg
Time to give back, at least some information.
Summer out here is too hot for brewing so an old fridge needed to be
rigged to control the fermentation temperature to whatever is ideal
and keep it there. Luckily we have an old (1956) Bosch fridge in the
basement. It runs off 230V from a transformer I made for it. Even in
the defrost mode fridges rarely allow their internal thermostat to be
set to higher than 55F. For Lagers that might barely work but not for
Pale Ale. One way of controlling them is to have a probe inside and
then switch the power externally. This will cause the light not to
come on when opening the door but that won't matter if all you've got
in there is a 6.5 gallon fermenter bucket.

Interesting stuff. For what it's worth, look around online for recent
info on the effects of fermentation temperature on taste.
If you search http://brulosophy.com for "fermentation temperature" you
get some interesting test results. In general, it appears that strict
control is very often not nearly as critical as a lot of the older
literature insists. I'm sure that it varies for some yeasts, but the
side by side blind taste tests they carry out show people aren't tasting
a difference, for instance, between a lager fermented at 50F and another
at 70F.

I am also quite sure it's not that critical because when we brewed 35
years ago we had no control about temperature. What concerned me was
when I read about fusel oils developing if the temperature gets way
above 75F or so for Pale Ale, and it did down in the basement for
several days. In the summer it can rise to around 80F. I just wanted to
create something that allows me to brew all year round. Next weekend the
two weeks of fermentation are up and it's bottling time. Can't wait how
the first beer comes out after such a long break where I had forgotten
and had to re-learn almost everything about brewing.

For the winter when the basement drops below 60F I could possibly use a
simple heating blanket or pad and switch the controller to heat mode.

Post by baloonon
I suspect there are times when temp may play more of a role in
combination with other factors, such as the amount of yeast that is
pitched, oxygen, temperature consistency and so on. And without a doubt
trying to brew a lager at 90F is going to have odd results. But I find
it encouraging to know that older warnings can often be far too strict.

Like the warnings we heard as kids about the consequences of not eating
enough spinach :-)

[Tom Biasi]

Post by Joerg
Like the warnings we heard as kids about the consequences of not eating
enough spinach :-)

I would suggest that stay within the yeast's recommended fermentation
temperatures.

[Joerg]

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg
Like the warnings we heard as kids about the consequences of not eating
enough spinach :-)

I would suggest that stay within the yeast's recommended fermentation
temperatures.

That is what I am doing with this method. I set the fridge to the middle
of the recommended temperature range and then give it +/-1F hysteresis
so that the compressor won't run lots of short cycles (compressors do
not like cycling too often).

[Tom Biasi]

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg
Like the warnings we heard as kids about the consequences of not eating
enough spinach :-)

I would suggest that stay within the yeast's recommended fermentation
temperatures.

That is what I am doing with this method. I set the fridge to the middle
of the recommended temperature range and then give it +/-1F hysteresis
so that the compressor won't run lots of short cycles (compressors do
not like cycling too often).

You don't need to be as tight as +/- 1F, yes you don't need to cycle the
compressor that much.

[Joerg]

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg
Like the warnings we heard as kids about the consequences of not eating
enough spinach :-)

I would suggest that stay within the yeast's recommended fermentation
temperatures.

That is what I am doing with this method. I set the fridge to the middle
of the recommended temperature range and then give it +/-1F hysteresis
so that the compressor won't run lots of short cycles (compressors do
not like cycling too often).

You don't need to be as tight as +/- 1F, yes you don't need to cycle the
compressor that much.

Good idea, I could ease that to +/-2F or 3F. But it's not too hot yet so
the compressor only comes on once or twice per hour and then just for a
few minutes.

I am wondering whether I should gradually ratchet it down to 45F over
the last few days like the breweries do, to flocculate and arrive at a
more clear beer. This Pale Ale is my first batch after a 35 year break
from brewing so maybe I should not stray from the recipe just yet.

[Tom Biasi]

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg
Like the warnings we heard as kids about the consequences of not eating
enough spinach :-)

I would suggest that stay within the yeast's recommended fermentation
temperatures.

That is what I am doing with this method. I set the fridge to the middle
of the recommended temperature range and then give it +/-1F hysteresis
so that the compressor won't run lots of short cycles (compressors do
not like cycling too often).

You don't need to be as tight as +/- 1F, yes you don't need to cycle the
compressor that much.

Good idea, I could ease that to +/-2F or 3F. But it's not too hot yet so
the compressor only comes on once or twice per hour and then just for a
few minutes.
I am wondering whether I should gradually ratchet it down to 45F over
the last few days like the breweries do, to flocculate and arrive at a
more clear beer. This Pale Ale is my first batch after a 35 year break
from brewing so maybe I should not stray from the recipe just yet.

I used to take my pale ale down to 40 F when ready to force carbonate.

[Joerg]

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg
Like the warnings we heard as kids about the consequences of not eating
enough spinach :-)

I would suggest that stay within the yeast's recommended fermentation
temperatures.

That is what I am doing with this method. I set the fridge to the middle
of the recommended temperature range and then give it +/-1F hysteresis
so that the compressor won't run lots of short cycles (compressors do
not like cycling too often).

You don't need to be as tight as +/- 1F, yes you don't need to cycle the
compressor that much.

Good idea, I could ease that to +/-2F or 3F. But it's not too hot yet so
the compressor only comes on once or twice per hour and then just for a
few minutes.
I am wondering whether I should gradually ratchet it down to 45F over
the last few days like the breweries do, to flocculate and arrive at a
more clear beer. This Pale Ale is my first batch after a 35 year break
from brewing so maybe I should not stray from the recipe just yet.

I used to take my pale ale down to 40 F when ready to force carbonate.

I don't know what you mean by force-carbonate, I plan to just stir up
the usual sugar solution, drop that into the bottling bucket and then
gently rack the beer into it. Some time this coming weekend. Carbonation
would need to take place at whatever room temperature is, right now
around 75F, because there isn't sufficient fridge space for all the bottles.

[Tom Biasi]

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg
Like the warnings we heard as kids about the consequences of not eating
enough spinach :-)

I would suggest that stay within the yeast's recommended fermentation
temperatures.

That is what I am doing with this method. I set the fridge to the middle
of the recommended temperature range and then give it +/-1F hysteresis
so that the compressor won't run lots of short cycles (compressors do
not like cycling too often).

You don't need to be as tight as +/- 1F, yes you don't need to cycle the
compressor that much.

Good idea, I could ease that to +/-2F or 3F. But it's not too hot yet so
the compressor only comes on once or twice per hour and then just for a
few minutes.
I am wondering whether I should gradually ratchet it down to 45F over
the last few days like the breweries do, to flocculate and arrive at a
more clear beer. This Pale Ale is my first batch after a 35 year break
from brewing so maybe I should not stray from the recipe just yet.

I used to take my pale ale down to 40 F when ready to force carbonate.

I don't know what you mean by force-carbonate, I plan to just stir up
the usual sugar solution, drop that into the bottling bucket and then
gently rack the beer into it. Some time this coming weekend. Carbonation
would need to take place at whatever room temperature is, right now
around 75F, because there isn't sufficient fridge space for all the bottles.

Your good. Force carbonation is adding pressurized CO2 to the beer at a
specific temperature to allow it to absorb the desired amount of CO2.
The lower the temperature the less pressure is required to do this.

[Joerg]

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg
Like the warnings we heard as kids about the consequences of not eating
enough spinach :-)

I would suggest that stay within the yeast's recommended
fermentation
temperatures.

That is what I am doing with this method. I set the fridge to the middle
of the recommended temperature range and then give it +/-1F hysteresis
so that the compressor won't run lots of short cycles (compressors do
not like cycling too often).

You don't need to be as tight as +/- 1F, yes you don't need to cycle the
compressor that much.

Good idea, I could ease that to +/-2F or 3F. But it's not too hot yet so
the compressor only comes on once or twice per hour and then just for a
few minutes.
I am wondering whether I should gradually ratchet it down to 45F over
the last few days like the breweries do, to flocculate and arrive at a
more clear beer. This Pale Ale is my first batch after a 35 year break
from brewing so maybe I should not stray from the recipe just yet.

I used to take my pale ale down to 40 F when ready to force carbonate.

I don't know what you mean by force-carbonate, I plan to just stir up
the usual sugar solution, drop that into the bottling bucket and then
gently rack the beer into it. Some time this coming weekend. Carbonation
would need to take place at whatever room temperature is, right now
around 75F, because there isn't sufficient fridge space for all the bottles.

Your good. Force carbonation is adding pressurized CO2 to the beer at a
specific temperature to allow it to absorb the desired amount of CO2.

Sound like you are the expert brewer with pro equipment. I don't (yet)
have any pressurized CO2 and no kegs.

Post by Tom Biasi
The lower the temperature the less pressure is required to do this.

Aha, thanks. Now I begin to understand why more sugar is required at
higher temperatures per the nomograph in the middle:

http://howtobrew.com/book/section-1/priming-and-bottling/priming-solutions

First I always thought that the remaining yeast must be less active at
lower temperature but it seems that's got nothing to do with it. So
probably the reason is that it takes more pressure in the vacant part of
the bottle neck to create enough CO2 in the beer.

[Tom Biasi]

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg
Like the warnings we heard as kids about the consequences of not eating
enough spinach :-)

I would suggest that stay within the yeast's recommended fermentation
temperatures.

That is what I am doing with this method. I set the fridge to the middle
of the recommended temperature range and then give it +/-1F hysteresis
so that the compressor won't run lots of short cycles
(compressors do
not like cycling too often).

You don't need to be as tight as +/- 1F, yes you don't need to cycle the
compressor that much.

Good idea, I could ease that to +/-2F or 3F. But it's not too hot yet so
the compressor only comes on once or twice per hour and then just for a
few minutes.
I am wondering whether I should gradually ratchet it down to 45F over
the last few days like the breweries do, to flocculate and arrive at a
more clear beer. This Pale Ale is my first batch after a 35 year break
from brewing so maybe I should not stray from the recipe just yet.

I used to take my pale ale down to 40 F when ready to force carbonate.

I don't know what you mean by force-carbonate, I plan to just stir up
the usual sugar solution, drop that into the bottling bucket and then
gently rack the beer into it. Some time this coming weekend. Carbonation
would need to take place at whatever room temperature is, right now
around 75F, because there isn't sufficient fridge space for all the bottles.

Your good. Force carbonation is adding pressurized CO2 to the beer at a
specific temperature to allow it to absorb the desired amount of CO2.

Sound like you are the expert brewer with pro equipment. I don't (yet)
have any pressurized CO2 and no kegs.

Post by Tom Biasi
The lower the temperature the less pressure is required to do this.

Aha, thanks. Now I begin to understand why more sugar is required at
http://howtobrew.com/book/section-1/priming-and-bottling/priming-solutions
First I always thought that the remaining yeast must be less active at
lower temperature but it seems that's got nothing to do with it. So
probably the reason is that it takes more pressure in the vacant part of
the bottle neck to create enough CO2 in the beer.

What you are doing is naturally carbonating. It does depend on the
viability of the remaining yeast.Sometimes it's necessary to add a
little yeast at priming.

[Joerg]

[...]

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi
Your good. Force carbonation is adding pressurized CO2 to the beer at a
specific temperature to allow it to absorb the desired amount of CO2.

Sound like you are the expert brewer with pro equipment. I don't (yet)
have any pressurized CO2 and no kegs.

Post by Tom Biasi
The lower the temperature the less pressure is required to do this.

Aha, thanks. Now I begin to understand why more sugar is required at
http://howtobrew.com/book/section-1/priming-and-bottling/priming-solutions
First I always thought that the remaining yeast must be less active at
lower temperature but it seems that's got nothing to do with it. So
probably the reason is that it takes more pressure in the vacant part of
the bottle neck to create enough CO2 in the beer.

What you are doing is naturally carbonating. It does depend on the
viability of the remaining yeast.Sometimes it's necessary to add a
little yeast at priming.

Hopefully it'll be ok. It's my first batch since forever, I don't have
any brewer's yeast left and can't get to the store until bottling day.
Knocking on wood ...

[Kerr Mudd-John]

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg
Like the warnings we heard as kids about the consequences of not eating
enough spinach :-)

I would suggest that stay within the yeast's recommended fermentation
temperatures.

That is what I am doing with this method. I set the fridge to the middle
of the recommended temperature range and then give it +/-1F hysteresis
so that the compressor won't run lots of short cycles (compressors do
not like cycling too often).

You don't need to be as tight as +/- 1F, yes you don't need to cycle the
compressor that much.

Good idea, I could ease that to +/-2F or 3F. But it's not too hot yet so
the compressor only comes on once or twice per hour and then just for a
few minutes.
I am wondering whether I should gradually ratchet it down to 45F over
the last few days like the breweries do, to flocculate and arrive at a
more clear beer. This Pale Ale is my first batch after a 35 year break
from brewing so maybe I should not stray from the recipe just yet.

I used to take my pale ale down to 40 F when ready to force carbonate.

I don't know what you mean by force-carbonate, I plan to just stir up
the usual sugar solution, drop that into the bottling bucket and then
gently rack the beer into it. Some time this coming weekend.
Carbonation
would need to take place at whatever room temperature is, right now
around 75F, because there isn't sufficient fridge space for all the bottles.

Your good. Force carbonation is adding pressurized CO2 to the beer at a
specific temperature to allow it to absorb the desired amount of CO2.

Sound like you are the expert brewer with pro equipment. I don't (yet)
have any pressurized CO2 and no kegs.

Well done sir! Proper beer needs no fizz.

Post by Joerg

Post by Tom Biasi
The lower the temperature the less pressure is required to do this.

Aha, thanks. Now I begin to understand why more sugar is required at
http://howtobrew.com/book/section-1/priming-and-bottling/priming-solutions
First I always thought that the remaining yeast must be less active at
lower temperature but it seems that's got nothing to do with it. So
probably the reason is that it takes more pressure in the vacant part of
the bottle neck to create enough CO2 in the beer.

[baloonon]

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg
I am wondering whether I should gradually ratchet it down to 45F over
the last few days like the breweries do, to flocculate and arrive at
a more clear beer. This Pale Ale is my first batch after a 35 year
break from brewing so maybe I should not stray from the recipe just
yet.

I used to take my pale ale down to 40 F when ready to force carbonate.

In general I try to cold crash a couple or so days after the fermentation
seems really and truly done and if it's a lighter colored beer I'll often
fine it with gelatin. I think it tends to make bottling easier due to a
more compact layer of trub, but I've skipped it too and can't say it's
ruined anything in my recollection.

[baloonon]

Post by Tom Biasi

Post by Joerg
Like the warnings we heard as kids about the consequences of not eating
enough spinach :-)

I would suggest that stay within the yeast's recommended fermentation
temperatures.

My 2 cents is that you calibrate your thermometer. Preferably before you
start. I remember one time I pulled a thermometer from whatever I was
doing at that time, had it sitting out on the counter for a while, and
realized it was reading about 20 degrees higher than room temp. Everything
worked out OK, but now if it's been a while since I use a thermometer I
always make I boil water for a test while I wait for the mash water to warm
up.