Muddy Waters Posted August 20, 2009 Share Posted August 20, 2009 I've finished work for the day and now it's time for more important things.:wink: I want to set up a fermentation fridge and thought I'd do some research while I try to track down a suitable and cheap fridge. I haven't got much space at home but if I can find a bar fridge that is big enough to hold a fermentor I'll be able to squeeze it in under a bench. :?: Plenty of people seem to have used a FridgeMate for temp control but has anybody used the TempMate? I like the sound of it as the one unit can control the fridge and a heat source and it's only $25 extra. This is the unit I'm referring to: http://www.craftbrewer.com.au/shop/details.asp?PID=2592 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Posted August 21, 2009 Share Posted August 21, 2009 Hi Muddy, I've got the fridge mate, and that controls a heat belt as well! (You just need to program some settings for the heat source - takes 1 min!) Good luck finding a bar fridge to fit your fermenter! :shock: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muddy Waters Posted August 21, 2009 Author Share Posted August 21, 2009 Hi Luke, I thought that the Fridgemate could only be wired for cooling or heating but not both?!? Yeah, I've set myself a hard goal in trying to get a small fridge that'll fit the fermenter. I had the perfect fridge 6 months before I started brewing but I gave it away :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Posted August 21, 2009 Share Posted August 21, 2009 Nah, it's got some function settings that you change, dead easy! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muddy Waters Posted August 21, 2009 Author Share Posted August 21, 2009 I guess you haven't got it wired to the fridge then Luke??? The few I have seen in operation have been wired to the fridge so it would be a hassle to remove it to use for heating. An old mate actually had 2 fridgemates set up; 1 for cooling and 1 for heating. From what I can gather via the ever reliable (and always accurate :wink: ) internet, the major difference between the fridgemate and the tempmate is that the tempmate switches automatically between cooling and heating Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Posted August 22, 2009 Share Posted August 22, 2009 Hi Muddy, the fridgemate is portable! It isn't hardwired into anything! You actually plug your fridge into it and it turns the fridge on & off to control the temp. You actually wire up an extension lead to it. I'll post some photos of mine soon so you can see how it looks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Posted August 23, 2009 Share Posted August 23, 2009 The grey plug on the right is the fridge plugged into the controller. The wire running down the front of the fridge is the temp probe which I tape to the inside of the fridge and just close the door over the wire. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muddy Waters Posted August 23, 2009 Author Share Posted August 23, 2009 Thanks for the photo Luke. I understand now - I think I was just overthinking the whole thing! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Luke Posted August 23, 2009 Share Posted August 23, 2009 You could cut the fridge plug and wire that into the controller, but then you couldn't use it for the heat belt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muddy Waters Posted August 23, 2009 Author Share Posted August 23, 2009 I like the way you've done it better Luke. Now I'm just wondering if there would be a time when brewing ales in summer where it would be useful to have something that can switch from heating to cooling automatically???? It's only an extra $25 for the tempmate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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