Adding a thermometer to a bucket

[toledoBrewer]

As we are in the summer months and the basement is beginning to get a little warmer, I would like to have a better idea of the internal temperature of the fermenter.

The ambient air in the basement is around 66 degrees right now. I cool the wort to 65 before I pitch, and then once the sticker thermometer hits 68 and the airlock is bubbling, I stick the fermenter into a water bath. Once in the water bath the sticker says the temp is like 68-70 when fermentation is in full swing.

Has anyone ever added a thermometer to a bucket lid? Or drilled a whole for a rubber stopper, then drilled a hole in the stopper for a thermometer?

Cheers!!!

 

[BigFloyd]

According to the folks who have measured temps in both places, you're likely to read only about 1*F warmer in the very middle of the fermentation vs. the side of the bucket at the peak of active ferment.

I simply tape the sensor of my STC-1000 to the fermenter bucket and insulate it with bubble wrap. Works for me.

 

[toledoBrewer]

Thanks, I'll have to look into giving that a try. That sounds like it is a simpler solution.

 

[SteveLikesBeer]

I use a thermowell with a probe on a carboy. The LHBS had some and it seems to work fine. On my buckets I simply use the fermometer and add a degree.