Is it worth attempting? Any one try this before? If so, is it worth the time and effort to save around $40 building your own, or should I just bite it and buy a pre-made one. Here is a link I came across for those of you who haven't seen or heard of this before. http://byo.com/mead/item/398-build-your-own-stir-plate
Option 3 is to find one used. I got one through an online dealer in used science equipment. It may have been through ebay - it was several years back. It might be this model http://www.ebay.com/itm/CORNING-PC-...461600?hash=item5b1f518ae0:g:JwwAAOSw5dNWnV6O
Made this one for $12. Cigar box and magnets were free from a friend. Make sure you put the magnets the right way or the stir bar will stand up. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00080G0BK?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00
I tried to wire mine with a USB charger and it wouldnt work. Im waiting until i come across a 12v power source to try again. hopefully the computer fan i used isnt broken
The variable voltage ones like this work great to control the speed if you don't have a potentiometer! http://www.amazon.com/Super-Power-S...=1-9&keywords=12+volt+adjustable+power+supply
I used one I made from a cigar box and CPU fan for years before one of my buddies gifted me a lab one recently..
I've done it both ways. First stir plate was DIY and saved a few bucks . . . it did a fine job. Then I bought one and have to say it was superior in all ways (quieter, yeast grows faster, spins a 3L flask, less stir-bar aggravation).
I bought a used one that cooked my yeast because of a bearing heating up or something. Sure enough looked up the model and other people had the same problem. Trash
Thanks all. I need a new project this winter so I may try building one myself. Good to hear that some of the ones you all have tried have worked well. Brewing equipment 'wants' get expensive and any time I can save a few bucks here or there is definitely worth it! I'm getting a healthy culture of brett C. going, and this will speed up the cell count drastically.
I built mine a few years back out of a cigar box and cpu fan. I have built up 4L+ starters on it with no issue.
If you are a homebrewer why wouldn't you build your own? Sure you can buy everything these days, but let me tell you. Back in the day when I was a young homebrewer we had to wind our own copper tubing if we wanted a immersion chiller. A used hard drive was the only way to get a decent magnet because we didn't have Amazon. And if we needed a flask we had to "borrow" it from a lab where a friends brothers uncle worked. And we didn't complain. So yeah, build it. You make your own beer. DIY man. It's a fun project. Cheers.
It's all fun and games until you get electrocuted lol. Be careful with working with electricity. leave the homebrew in the fridge when working with electronics. I shocked the piss out of myself when I was drunk working on my ferm chamber
DIY Stir Plates typically run on low voltage DC power from a wall wart, so it would be pretty hard to get shocked.
You can spend your time making stuff or you can spend your time brewing beer. Or, in my case, wasting time on the internet
I'd definitely get more satisfaction out of building my own for cheap, rather than buying an overpriced one that's pre-built.
