Head pad/ring?

[Jono Galuszka]

I've got to get either a heat pad or a heat ring for my fermenter because it is bloody cold here in Palmy; my shed barely gets beyond 10C some days, and the house isn't much better.

 

Just wondering what people use and what they thnk is the best option.

[Chris Banks]

Hey Jono what you want is one of these

 http://www.forum.realbeer.co.nz/photo/fermv2?context=latest

To control one of these (or similar depending on the style of fermenter you are using) http://www.thebrewhouse.co.nz/webapps/p/88908/215726/589760 

all combined in a cupboard or box preferably insulated so your not trying to heat up all of palmy with a 60w heater!

I use a disemboweled fridge - speaking of that in a  months time (when it warms up) you will probably need to add cooling to control your ferments so maybe time to start looking for a working fridge that will fit your fermenter to get the best of both worlds.

Pauls controllers can control the heatpad and the fridge at the same time as nessecary to maintain a stable ferment temp.

Cheers

Chris

[Rhyno]

Hey Jono,

If you can find an old fridge lying around that would be perfect to brew in as Chris has said as you can have perfect control over your fermentation temps. As someone else has said on this site before, its one of the main things you can do to improve the quality of your beer by keeping it at the right fermentation temp.

I have just rigged up a light bulb in the bottom of mine to provide the heat, with it and the fridge connected to one of these, only about $30-$40, you just have to wire it up yourself is all.

There are some pics on my page here, and Damian has a blog here on how he wired up his. Best to find a sparky mate to do it for you if dont understand electrical circuits that well.

Otherwise just a heat belt or pad from your LHBS will work, just not that precisely is all.

Hope that helps