I am fermenting my first temperature controlled fermentation beer. I have a 5cu ft chest freezer using an external temperature Controller set at 61 degrees. I am making a raspberry American wheat. All seems good other than I had a blow up after the second day and had a real mess. I am planning on keeping the beer in the primary for 4 weeks, no secondary unless I decide to use raspberry purée instead of the extract that came with the kit. My question is should I keep the carboy in the temperature controlled freezer for the 4 weeks? Or should I remove it and let it sit at room temperature after a certain amount of time in the freezer? With warmer climate temperatures coming, my basement will be around 75 degrees.
Thanks
Brad
I’d leave it unless you need to take it out to fit another one in there :cheers:
Is 61* ambient or actual beer temp? If ambient the actual ferm temps are likely 66* to 68*. I would leave it there at those temps until fermentation is completed. If you chose to go with the real fruit, you will want to leave it at those temps as well as fementation will restart.
If the actual ferm temps are 61* I would suggest raising it to about 68* after the bulk of fermentation is complete. This will assist the yeast in finishing up fermentation and cleaning up by-products.
If purely aging, the high temps don’t matter as much. In fact, a beer will age quicker at warmer temps.
At this point I have no reason to remove the carboy from the freezer if I don’t have to.
I have the temperature probe placed about a 1/2 inch away from the side and half way down the side of the carboy, so it is looking at ambient air temperature at the carboy. I have the controller set for 1 degree of variation, the read out never goes above 61, but I have seen it as low as 56 degrees. I’ll just leave it for the four weeks unless I need to rack to a secondary for the fruit addition. Thanks for the replies!
Brad
Take an old sock, place the temp prob on next to the carboy, place sock over the prob and tape it on.
Then you are measuring the beer temp.
[quote=“Nighthawk”]Take an old sock, place the temp prob on next to the carboy, place sock over the prob and tape it on.
Then you are measuring the beer temp.[/quote]
Maybe this is just me and the condition of my “old socks” but I wouldn’t want those anywhere near my carboy. Not because I think they would leak infection in through the glass (although I wouldn’t put it past some of them) but just because they are pretty nasty looking.
More serious though, interesting fix to a common problem.
I use an ace bandage so I don’t have to deal with tape residue… or dirty nasty socks.
So you guys don’t have a cloths washing machine?
If you are paranoid of the socks, use a dish cloth. That must be clean as you are using it on the dishes you eat off of.
:roll:
A machine for washing cloth? Bah! If my wife tires of the creek bed, I will plant in her the seed of another child to share in the task.
Ace bandage…that’s a nice idea. Think I’ll give that one a try.
+1 Stole that idea off of here a while back. Had an old ace bandage with velcro from knee surgery a few years back. It’s golden.
[quote=“Nighthawk”]So you guys don’t have a cloths washing machine?
If you are paranoid of the socks, use a dish cloth. That must be clean as you are using it on the dishes you eat off of.
:roll: [/quote]
Nighthawk… I just don’t know if I would drink your beer… 
That ace bandage job sounds cool, plus it will help keep the temperature probe clean if my carboy pukes it’s guts out all over the place in the freezer.
[quote=“Loopie Beer”][quote=“Nighthawk”]So you guys don’t have a cloths washing machine?
If you are paranoid of the socks, use a dish cloth. That must be clean as you are using it on the dishes you eat off of.
:roll: [/quote]
Nighthawk… I just don’t know if I would drink your beer… [/quote]
If after washing a pair of socks, or any other piece of clothing, you don’t feel safe putting in on the OUTSIDE of a fermenter, I wouldn’t want to put it on my body.
