Keeping the Fermenter Cool

[homebrewaddict]

Hey all.

I live in the D.C. metro area where the summer months are VERY hot and humid. I usually keep the air on at around 72 F. However, the second bedroom (where I brew) is usually around 75 F, and on the real hot days (we turn the air off when we go to work) it gets upwards of 80 F!

Needless to say these are not ideal conditions for brewing good beer. Apart from brewing only 5 months out of the year, what can I do to keep the temps down in my fermenter while also not taking up lots of space?

Thanks.

Dan

[fidcastro]

I have the same problem in SoCal. I got the advice from this board to soak a t-shirt and drape it over the carboy (if you're using a carboy).

I do this every day, and it keeps my beer fermenting at about 68-72, even though the room is 78-85, depending on the time of day.

[tubetek]

Howdy -
here in KY. we have the same situation...
I usually used a cotton towel and kept the end dipped in a pan of water. The wicking action of the cotton keeps the towel moist... worked fine until I could afford a used fridge and thermostat.
BTW- I was born in DC and spent my first 21 years (til 1980) in PG county MD (Oxon Hill)
just out South Capitol street. How is it these days??

[YamahaXS]

One of the more elaborate solutions to this problem that I have seen was when i was in texas over the summer. I saw that a brwe shop (Dr. Jeckylls Beer Lab) in Arlington was sell a low tech cooling jacket for carboy. It was made of styrofoam, and had a compartment for the fermentor, and then another for a bunch of ice. There was a small vent connecting the two and a fan to circulate the air.

[homebrewaddict]

Originally posted by tubetek

I usually used a cotton towel and kept the end dipped in a pan of water. The wicking action of the cotton keeps the towel moist... worked fine until I could afford a used fridge and thermostat.
BTW- I was born in DC and spent my first 21 years (til 1980) in PG county MD (Oxon Hill)
just out South Capitol street. How is it these days??

How often do you change the water, and how cold should the water be? Do you put the fermenter in anything (plastic bag) to keep water from getting everywhere?? What about also having a fan blow on the towel?

As for PG county, I couldn't really tell you as I am living in Alexandria and don't get over there much.

[sullydavid]

Hey there, resident of Centreville here, nice to see another local.

I have a pretty cool basement so this isn't much of a problem for me but in regards to your previous question:

Most people sit the carboy down into a tub of water then the towel/shirt goes over the carboy with some of the cloth still down in the water. If plain water doesn't work for you, ou can also add small amounts of ice and certain intervals.

I usually do 10 gallons at once so have 2 primaries to worry about. I was thinking of using a kiddie pool if I had heat problems

[Tweek]

How often do you change the water, and how cold should the water be? Do you put the fermenter in anything (plastic bag) to keep water from getting everywhere?? What about also having a fan blow on the towel?

I have never done this but in theory you wouldnt need to have a fan or ice, unless you are talking about extreme temps. The idea behind this method is to copy the functionality of sweating. The evaporating water will in thoery keep the beer cool.

[Fast_Eddy]

Sweating and beer cooling(by the wet T-shirt method) work because of the "Latent Heat of Vaporization" - the amount of energy that it takes to change a liquid to vapor.

[Nealz]

Yup. I also use an old t-shirt on the carboy... an old brewpub one actually, I figured it had good mojo. I live near Phoenix and certainly know about too-warm fermenting temps. I use the bathtub in the hall bathroom - coolest room in my house - and place my carboy and t-shirt cover in a large 17 gal. plastic bucket filled with water to the same level as the beer in the carboy. I also use a small fan blowing on the wet t-shirt and will drop some ice in the bucket from time to time. I can maintain a 65 to 68 F temp range that way.

Some guys around here use a small 'swamp cooler' setup with a tray and recirculating water bath through a filter media surrounding the carboy. Good luck.

-Nealz

[Beerconnoisseur]

A spare refridgerator with analog temp controller is the easiest method, and what I use for brewing in Southern Texas during the hot summer months. I've tried beer that I brewed at high temps, and it's not nearly as good.

Most of MoreBeer's conical fermenters have some internal/external cooling options, which is on the more expensive side, but if you're going conical anyway, it's worth a look.


But, if you had more spare time than money, I suppose you might even be able to hook a solenoid up to a refridgerator's ice maker button, and set a timer to trigger it on 1 to 2 hour intervals. Then you could leave your carboy in a container filled w/ water, and have automated cooling. And no, I've never done this. But someone has to be the first, right? :)

[homebrewaddict]

Okay, so the best option for me (since I am worrying about space) would be to go with the t-shirt/towel method. I just got back from the container store where I picked up a small plastic box (~ 6" high) that the carboy can sit in. I figure that by keeping some cool water in the bottom and draping a t-shirt over the carboy that should do the trick...right? Would it be best to add some ice every now and again over the week that it usually takes to ferment?

[Nealz]

[i]Would it be best to add some ice every now and again over the week that it usually takes to ferment? [/B]

That's what I do. I'll freeze some small plastic containers and drop 'em in the container to keep it cool. Works pretty good too.

-Nealz

[homebrewaddict]

Originally posted by Nealz
That's what I do. I'll freeze some small plastic containers and drop 'em in the container to keep it cool. Works pretty good too.

-Nealz

You also indicated that you keep the water level at the same level as the beer in the primary. Is that necessary or is simply keeping the bottom of the t-shirt in the cool water okay so that you get the wicking action?

[sullydavid]

Enough for wicking is fine.....if you fill it up to the level of the beer then you won't get the same amount of evaporation.

I would guess that it would be best to only have a six inches to a foot to maximize the evaporation, but that is just theory without experience.

[toneyc]

I've been thinking of building something like this:

http://www.overclockers.com/articles389/

I kinda hope I move to Ohio before I get around to building it, though.

:)
Toney.

[oakgrovebrew]

Does your place have central air? I live in NC and it gets quite warm and sticky in the summer. I place my carboy in the air intake for the blower unit. just have to put a wire grate over the hole. have a digital thermometer in there and the temp never gets over 72. Just close it back up and you never know its there. It freak my wife out though when the fermentation is realy going and it keeps making that gurgling sound and she doesn't know where it comes from.

[jsmurphy]

Originally posted by oakgrovebrew
It freak my wife out though when the fermentation is realy going and it keeps making that gurgling sound and she doesn't know where it comes from.

LOL!

I've got my fermenter in a downstairs pantry where it's a fairly constant 72 degrees. (I keep my cigar humidor in there too, with an accurate digital thermometer). I'm using the wet shirt method also. My brew shop guy suggested keeping the fermenter in a plastic bucket with water, and adding frozen water bottles periodically. But, I think the constant temperature of the pantry and the wet shirt is more ideal, but hey I'm just a newbie at this. I guess I'll see when I taste my first brew in a few weeks.

[michaewa]

Has anyone out there ever tried the 'Son of a Chiller' method?

Esentially a box made of extruded polystyrene fit with a fan and a thermostat that blows cold air over the fermenter.

Here is a link (http://home.elp.rr.com/brewbeer/chiller/chiller.html).