Is a thermowell necessary? I’m looking to control temp a bit more accurately, and am not certain I can put the temp probe directly into liquid.
Right now I have a saison with 3724 ripping along at 85F. I have the fermenter in a tub of water and am heating the water with an aquarium heater. I’m not sold on the precision of the dial on the heater for setting temp. I’d prefer to plug the heater into a temp controller.
Basically, I’m just trying to figure out if I can drop the temp sensor from a Ranco (or other controller) directly into the water, or if I need to protect it in a thermowell of some sort.
Well, from Mr. Cheap’n’Easy…for me a thermowell is not necessary. I use an Auber TD100 temp controller. I put the sensor underneath an old sponge that I duct tape to the side of my bucket, so that the probe is sandwiched between the sponge and the side of the bucket. The temp controller shows the same temp as the the fermometer strip on the bucket and the beer turns oput well, so I have to assume it’s working
I do the same thing as Denny, but with a homemade STC-1000 controller. I tape a chuck of Styrofoam over the sensor, and I’ve never seen it more than 1o off from the temp strip on the carboy. I figure that’s well within a good tolerance for both the sensor and the strip.
Yep! That’s what I do. Took a chunk of foam, cut a groove big enough to fit the probe, and taped it to my conical. I just insert the probe when its time to ferment. I used the aluminum tape and the foam stays put, even when cleaning.
+1, exactly the same set up with an STC-1000, works great. I don’t use tape though, I just use a bungee cord wrapped around bucket to hold the foam block in place
I use styrofoam as well, but I take a drill bit and use it to dig a small groove into one side of the styrofoam. I make the hole wide enough to fit my thermometer but just shallow enough that the thermometer stil physically touches my ferementer. That way I can get a better seal where the wiring comes through.
I have been taping the probe to the side of the fermenter then a folded towel over that. I like the bungy cord/Styrofoam idea! That would work great for the electric fermentation wraps as well.
I attach the temp prove to the side of my fermenter with an elastic base ball belt (see link below). I fold up a wash cloth to insulate the probe from ambient.
If you pick an unpopular color the tee ball belts are cheap. They are adjustable. I have been using one for several years.
Champro Elastic Baseball Belt with 1.5-Inch Synthetic Tab (Black, 28-52-Inch) Amazon.com
I carved a replica of St. Peter’s Basilica out of styrofoam and wrap the colonnades around the fermentation vessel. I carved a small space in the front of the basilica for the probe so it looks like the probe is conducting mass over the beer.
You’re not quite alone: I’m the other guy… I’m happy using thermowells because I find them easy. I imagine because they require a second hole, there might be more risk of infection, etc., but I’ve never had that problem–though to make sure I put a piece of aluminum foil over it. I like that they allow the probe to be in the middle of the fermenter, but I’m not certain there’s much difference in measured temperature between the center and outside. The one complaint I have is that the thermowell doesn’t always fit snuggly in the stopper–allowing gas to escape rather than letting the airlock do its job. But once I realize this, a little push at the top seals the leak and gets that airlock going. For all this, though, maybe I should try the more popular method to see if there are benefits.
Add another guy that uses a thermowell. I have a Johnson A419 controller and picked up a 16" SS thermowell that goes into a bung with a hole for the thermowell and a hole for an airlock. I did it more for the ease of just dropping the probe into the thermowell and not having to tape it to the side of the carboy. I do have a sticky thermometer on the side of the carboy as well and that reading seems to be just as accurate.
I have dual use for the thermowell. On brew days, I insert the thermowell into my mashtun with the probe so I can run my HERMS. Works great.
