Has anyone been successful with those coolers that wrap around that carboy to keep it at the right temperature?

I could only find one Fermentation Chamber that seems worth much. The Son of a Fermentation Chiller seems like a lot of extra work.

Thanks for answers.

Roger.

This is my current method for temp control, its pretty crude but seems to be working rather well.

Fermenter in a plastic tub full of water, with a blanket over the top.



I cool the water by putting frozen 500ml bottles of water down the side. The water temperature is a lot more stable than air temperature and cool water absorbs the heat from the fermenter better than cool air. Its also very easy to monitor the water temperature with a coffee thermometer (the same one I use to check mash temps during my stovetop partial mashes).

At the moment I'm doing a lager and its keeping it at a constant 55 degrees fahrenheit, though the room temperatures are changing contsantly day and night. I don't think I'm going to bother with a more complex system, this cost nothing and didn't involve any effort to make.

Joseph.

Joseph, how many water bottles do you add to the crate and how long do they last? You said the room changes temp. throughout the day, what are the ranges? Sorry for the questions, I'm just trying to find the best solutions for my upcoming brews.

The temps have been ranging from the low 70's down to the low 60's (between 16 and 21 degrees celcius). At the moment I only have one frozen bottle of water in there which I change over twice a day. If the room temperature was warmer I'd add more bottles and probably take on Wild's advice to drap wet towels/tees over the fermenter and then run a fan over it intermitantly. At the moment however its fermenting at 53F approx, which is about as cool as it can be with the yeast I'm using. Hope that helps,

Joseph

i use an old kegerator that does not run. When its hot i put a couple frozen jugs in there. Keeps things cool even when its 80 or 90 in my shop. In the winter i use a thermostat and a light bulb to keep warm.

With the tee shirt wick method is there any issue with mold growing on the surface of the shirts or equipment?


Screwy Brewer

http://www.thescrewybrewer.com

Not if you add a little star san or idophor sanitizer to the water.

I have modified 2 of these Igloo Cube coolers to help keep my fermentation temps under control. The results have been fantastic! Plus, since the cooler has wheels, it makes it really easy to move your carboy around.

Building an Ice Cube Fermentation Cooler
http://given2flybrewing.weebly.com/fermentation-cooler.html