Heat source for fermentation fridge

[delzep]

Have read about tube heaters and brew belts....any recommendations there? Don't fancy the idea of a lightbulb so I'm ruling that one out. What are the pros and cons of tube heaters and brew belts?

[delzep]

Just don't seem safe to leave on for days on end

[imark]

I use a bulb in mine. It's only on for a few minutes of the hour. Had planned to get something more sophisticated but the good old incandescent bulb does the trick nicely and has the benefit of very cheap and available replacement should it die mid fermentation.

[LordEoin]

i use a brew belt, never let me down so far.

[DEMPSEY]

Use a brew belt meself. Often thought that those who fancy the bulb method have a penchant for indulging in torture. As in "Vee Vill leave on  the light all day and night and you yeasties Vill Vork and vork until you produce the beer,vork vill set you free" 

[alealex]

I use bulb in one of my fermenting fridges and hairdryer in the other.
The one with hairdryer does great job. Hairdryer is ionic or anti static - so it makes stouts really silky and smooth.

[Beerbuddha]

2kw  electric fan heater with overheat protection.
Should pick one up for 8 Euro. Sold in woodies B&Q

[Garry]

There's a great experiment on JBK about STC probe placement. He found that a tube heater with the probe stuck to the side of the FV gave the least temperature fluctuation in the beer.

As for tube heater Vs bulb? I reckon there's not much between them. If you take a tube heater apart, it's just a very thin wire wrapped around the inside of the tube. Similar to a bulb's filament.

I used to use one of those 2kw heaters too. But after getting a few scary ESB bills last winter, I put it into retirement!

[DEMPSEY]

Yeast don't have eyes so they don't notice the light on.

So they would make good porn stars so as they make babies.

[Sorcerers Apprentice]

I remember people used to use ceramic infra red lamps in greenhouses, no light just heat
http://www.ceramicx.com/ceramic-bulbs/

[delzep]

Yeast don't have eyes so they don't notice the light on.

So they would make good porn stars so as they make babies.

[imark]

The bulb I use is 30W. I'd be kinda nervous of using anything that was much more powerful than that.

[DEMPSEY]

I remember when I was a little boy my granddad would put up a heating lamp over the banbh's after they were born to keep them cosy and allow them to grow up into great bacon.

[Will_D]

I remember when I was a little boy my granddad would put up a heating lamp over the banbh's after they were born to keep them cosy and allow them to grow up into great bacon.

He must of put two over your cot!

Sorry Mr D. couldn't resist 

[baphomite51]

iv got the same question. is it possible to have the fridge at its cool temps and have a brew belt controlled by an STC heating the carboy, so you could keep beers cold in the fridge but keep the beer warm in the carboy?, or is it more a case of controlling the ambient temp in the fridge? would using a brewbelt on the glass carboy crack it?