Flexwatt/fermwrap pics/info?

[daphatgrant]

Hey everyone, I'm almost done building my fermentation chamber but need to add a heater. I've looked at most of the commonly used options (bulb in can, heat wire, hair dryer, space heater, etc) but am drawn to the heat tape because of it small size.

I've done a fair amount of looking but haven't really found any good solid walk-throughs on attaching it to the walls of a chest freezer. How much to use? All 4 walls? Just one?

If any of you out there that are using flexwatt or fermwrap attached to your interior walls of the freezer as opposed to around the fermenter itself would you mind posting a pic or 2? Or describe where you placed it, how much you used, how long it takes to raise temps, etc.

Thanks

 

[narcolepticsniper]

Overnight my temps went from 57 to 69 by hanging my fermwrap in the chamber. I just plugged it in and let it hang by the cord. I have a ferm chamber that's about the size of a standard chest freezer, can hold 4/5 buckets in it. cooled by a minifridge and uses a cheapo ebay temp controller. I noticed the other day that the temps were really low, so I just grabbed the wrap and hung it up in there. It worked, at least over 24 hours to raise the ambient temp 10 deg+

 

[drgonzo2k2]

OP, I've got two fermentation chambers setup just like you describe. Reptile heat tape is definitely the way to go in my opinion. It's super safe, easy to install, and doesn't cost a lot of money to run.

In my smaller chamber (re-purposed wine fridge) I've got about 2' of it lining the back wall only. I use that one for most of the things I ferment in the 55-75F range, and it has no problem holding those temps even when it gets down to about freezing with an uninsulated garage.

In my larger chamber (chest freezer) I've got 6' of it, and it lines all 4 walls of the freezer. I use that one for saisons and sours, and it has no problem getting up to 100F, again in an uninsulated garage.

As far as attaching it to the walls go, aluminum foil tape (used for HVAC work) is your best friend. I tried duck tape, gorilla tape, etc., and nothing worked, but I tried the aluminum foil tape about 8 months ago and have had no problems since.