Temperature controller

[Pickles Jones]

1 hour ago, Thirsty Jim said:

Way to go John E.  I am going to have a crack at that.   Did you use High or Low setting on the slow cooker ?

 

Turn it to high setting, the Inkbird will then control the temperature you have set.

[John E Miller]

9 hours ago, Thirsty Jim said:

Way to go John E.  I am going to have a crack at that.   Did you use High or Low setting on the slow cooker ?

 

I used the low setting. I'm not sure if it makes a difference when you have the controller on it though? There is also a "keep warm" setting on my slowcooker 

[Thirsty Jim]

I thought it may the affect the speed with which the slow cooker was able to maintain temperature but if it worked for you on Low I'd imagine it would work on High as well, only a little quicker in terms of restoring the temperature.  Thanks gents, I'll let you know how I go.

[Pickles Jones]

20 minutes ago, Thirsty Jim said:

I thought it may the affect the speed with which the slow cooker was able to maintain temperature but if it worked for you on Low I'd imagine it would work on High as well, only a little quicker in terms of restoring the temperature.  Thanks gents, I'll let you know how I go.

The Inkbird becomes the master controller and works independently of the appliance thermostat.   You should set the appliance thermostat to maximum (high in this instance), the Inkbird can then work within the full range turning the appliance off and on to maintain the temperature you have set on the Inkbird.

[Thirsty Jim]

I get it now.  It's a single thermostatically controlled element.  In general, Low setting on a slow cooker = 95ºC and High setting = 150º C. but these temps are only achieved by the length of time the element is heating, not the temperature of the element. 

So if my Inkbird is set -0.5º from the target temp the Inkbird engages the  slow cooker element when the temp drops below the range and keep it on for as long as it needs to to raise the temp 0.5º.   Whether it is High or Low doesn't matter because the temperature of the element doesn't change for either setting, only the length of time it engages for changes.   

 

[Thirsty Jim]

I am all for different applications of the Inkbird.  I raised seedlings in a polystyrene box with the heat belt wrapped around a tray of punnets set to 21º.   Melbourne's early spring can have chilly overnights and even frost on occasion.  Soil temp is essential for germination.  A mat would have been ideal but the heat belt did the job.  Everything jumped up in 10 days.  

 

[John E Miller]

I've got a pale ale going at 20° now. Can anyone comment on the placement of the temperature probe? It is just under that blue tak. Just want to know if this should give an accurate reading. There is only 7 litres of beer fermenting in there, hence the low position of the belt. 

[Lettucegrove]

3 hours ago, John E Miller said:

Can anyone comment on the placement of the temperature probe?

Looks like it'll do the trick.

[John E Miller]

The thermometer built into my fermenter is reading 15°C and the inkbird probe is reading 21°C. Who should I trust? 

[Pickles Jones]

2 hours ago, John E Miller said:

The thermometer built into my fermenter is reading 15°C and the inkbird probe is reading 21°C. Who should I trust? 

If you can get a cup of water and put the Inkbird probe in it with a thermometer and check the readings against each other.

Or an easier way is to put the thermometer directly into the brew.

[John E Miller]

1 hour ago, Pickles Jones said:

If you can get a cup of water and put the Inkbird probe in it with a thermometer and check the readings against each other.

Or an easier way is to put the thermometer directly into the brew.

Problem is I am using a heat belt, directly heating the fermenter rather than an insulated airspace (I have no dedicated fridge).

The dial thermometer is in direct contact with the liquid inside the fermenter. Inkbird probe is stuck under blu-tak.

Does anyone here dangle their probe directly inside the fermenter? Any sanitation issues? I imagine that would give the most accurate reading. 

[Lab Cat]

7 minutes ago, John E Miller said:

Problem is I am using a heat belt, directly heating the fermenter rather than an insulated airspace (I have no dedicated fridge).

The dial thermometer is in direct contact with the liquid inside the fermenter. Inkbird probe is stuck under blu-tak.

That's the reason for the 2 readings. Your Inkbird is detecting the temp of the fermenter shell, which is directly being heated by the heat belt. Your fermenter dial is telling you what's going in inside.

Ignore the Inkbird, it's can't possibly get a reliable wort reading from the outside of a steel shell. Most of us use plastic FVs, so the temp reading is far more reliable.

[John E Miller]

21 minutes ago, Lab Cat said:

That's the reason for the 2 readings. Your Inkbird is detecting the temp of the fermenter shell, which is directly being heated by the heat belt. Your fermenter dial is telling you what's going in inside.

Ignore the Inkbird, it's can't possibly get a reliable wort reading from the outside of a steel shell. Most of us use plastic FVs, so the temp reading is far more reliable.

Ah, okay, this changes everything then. So maybe I should increase the inkbird temp 5 degrees or so until the inbuilt thermometer reads 20 degrees. Next time I might put the probe directly in the wort.

[Lab Cat]

7 minutes ago, John E Miller said:

Ah, okay, this changes everything then. So maybe I should increase the inkbird temp 5 degrees or so until the inbuilt thermometer reads 20 degrees. Next time I might put the probe directly in the wort.

I would. Sanitised, it can't hurt. then you'll get a reliable reading

[Shamus O'Sean]

6 hours ago, John E Miller said:

Next time I might put the probe directly in the wort.

A more expensive option is to install a temperature well into your fermenter that you can insert the Inkbird temp probe into.  This is what I use for monitoring my heating my sparge water in a 19L stainless steel pot.

[John E Miller]

19 hours ago, Lab Cat said:

I would. Sanitised, it can't hurt. then you'll get a reliable reading

I have put the probe inside the fermenter... now inkbird says 23.6° while thermometer says 19.5°. I can't get it right

[Shamus O'Sean]

11 hours ago, John E Miller said:

I have put the probe inside the fermenter... now inkbird says 23.6° while thermometer says 19.5°. I can't get it right

Seems to me you need at least one other temperature measurer.  Otherwise, both the Inkbird and the thermometer could be wrong.  To me, the Inkbird sensor being in the brew should give the best reading.  However, I have two Inkbirds and they were a couple of degrees different.  They can be calibrated though.  I compared them against a couple of cheap LCD digital temperature gauges and a good mercury thermometer.  The LDC's and the mercury thermometer and one of the Inkbirds read the same.  Just calibrated the second Inkbird to be the same too.

[Pickles Jones]

11 hours ago, John E Miller said:

I have put the probe inside the fermenter... now inkbird says 23.6° while thermometer says 19.5°. I can't get it right

As Shamus suggested you now need third reference. Get a good quality thermometer bind this together with the Inkbird prob and put it into the wort this should give you a definitive answer. as you will get both readings from the same location in the wort. 

If you come up with different readings well that's .............

[John E Miller]

It turns out the thermometer that came with the fermenter is reading 5° too cold.

The manufacturer said it just needs to be calibrated by gently twisting the dial around the probe. 

Problem is - how do you know when to stop, when the heat from your hand makes the temperature rise as well?! 

It doesn't turn too easily. 

I might have to put some towel in a vise to get a firm gentle grip without affecting the temperature.

[Journeyman]

1 hour ago, John E Miller said:

Problem is - how do you know when to stop, when the heat from your hand makes the temperature rise as well

My coffee thermos adjst that way - I used hand on the dial and needle nose pliers on the adjusting nut.

Also for calibration, during the IB birthday sale I got one of their thermos for BBQ's, baking etc. Boiled some water and while it was boiling, stuck the probe part in - hit 100° and stayed there, then started dropping almost as soon as the kettle switched off - with the top open the water temp drops from boiling pretty quick and the thermo followed it, so I was confident it was accurate enough for my needs.

Then I used that to calibrate my other thermos and even my 2 sous vides.