Managing Your Temp Control Chamber

[Ashevillain]

I am interested to hear how people like to manage their temp control chambers when brewing and storing over 2 batches at once at different stages in the fermentation.

The reason being is that I just started fermenting in 5gal kegs, which allows me to fit 4+ kegs very comfortably in my fridge where before only 2 buckets would fit before.

I brewed one batch monday, another friday, and I am taping/insulating the probe to the keg. There is some of those heating/incubator strips lining the back wall for heat. So with one batch its easy to keep temps exactly where I want it.

When you start juggling more than one fermentation it becomes more tricky, the one that's past peak I want a little warmer ~68, but the one at peak is requiring me to monitor it with the probe to keep it from going way higher than ~65, which in turn makes the ambient much lower than the probe ~58, and makes the batch that's ready to be warmed up cold ~62.

I imagine there are workarounds that will give me some consistent results, any suggestions?

 

[JLeuck64]

My solution to this same problem has been to simply just set my fermentation chamber to one temperature... say mid to upper 60's. If it takes a little longer for a batch to ferment out because I can't raise the temps I am ok with that. The end result is those batches always ferment out just fine ( ;

 

[RM-MN]

Temperature control is only necessary for the first few days as the yeast gorge themselves on the easy sugars. That's usually 3 to 5 days. When the fermentation slows down you can take the fermenter out of the chamber and let its temperature free rise without causing off flavors. Always put the temperature probe of your controller onto the batch that is doing the initial ferment. That's the one that needs the temperature control.

http://www.brewgeeks.com/the-life-cycle-of-yeast.html