Tip of the week: An Improvised Fermenter Heater

With brew day for my batch #3, "Mother's Day" organic Belgian farmhouse style strong blonde ale only a day away, i resolved to do something about the a very cold week where my fermenter temperatures have been stuck at around 62º F. I visited Mountain Homebrew & Wine Supply at their brand new location, with a plan to buy a FermWrap Heater to sustain a better temperature range in the carboy closet. Since the shop's newsletter had featured the heater just as the cold spell began, they had, of course, sold out long before I got to the store.

FermWrap heater, yet another "must have" gadget for my wish list.

The new store location is just two doors away from the old shop, is twice the size, and has a walk-in cooler with a bank of beer taps. I can't wait to see what they do with those taps. The guys at the store were very excited about a future of serving beer, too. But with no heaters in stock, Kevin had three great suggestions to make my yeast happy.

Kevin's first brilliant suggestion was to heat my fermentation space with an unused carboy full of hot water. My fermentation space is one half of a pine Ikea standing wardrobe with a dividing shelf that I have propped up and reinforced with 2x4s. I can fit two carboys in the top half and two in the bottom half. His next suggestion was to use a drugstore heat pad, which I'm already way too familiar with from strained lower back muscles, to gently warm the carboy(s) or just the space from time to time. I already wrap the carboy(s) in wool and fleece blankets for better insulation, but the third great tip is to get insulation panel material from the hardware store and line the walls and door of the compartment. I can already picture it looking like a pot grow booth, minus the sun lamps. Now I have been able to maintain a temperature between 68º and 70º F for three days running.

More precise control of the fermentation climate is possible with more gadgetry. The recommendation from More Beer is to use a Thermowell probe and a digital temperature controller  with the Fermwrap heater inside a refrigerator. Who knew beer brewing had such a gadget fetish?