Cellaring without a beer fridge

I keep mine in a basement and do not use a fridge. I think at that temp range you are probably ok

 

I am in the same boat as you. I have an extra fridge, but it stays in the low 40s (42 to 44ish). I keep all my stuff in a cabinet that hovers around 64 to 68. I have only started aging things in the past 2 years or so, and I have not had a problem. I am kind of torn. Should I invest in a fridge to keep them around 50?

 

It sounds like you have the extra fridge. You could add a temperature control unit like the Johnson A419 for about $70 or DIY one from ebay for about $25.

 

I'm curious, do all you people actually check your temperatures with thermometers super frequently?

Regardless, if you're only keeping things in there for a year or two then I highly doubt that "60's with 5-7 degrees of variation" is a problem.

 

Tendency on this forum is for people to overthink the process. Your beer will be just fine.

 

I use this wireless thermo hygrometer. Mine was Honeywell but I think they are Meade now. Can link up to 3 remote sensors. I have one sensor where I keep my beer in the cellar. Can keep the display anywhere to monitor temps & humidity. ~$25 at your favorite retailer (includes 1 display and 1 remote sensor. Additional sensors sold separately). Works great for me.

 

I went the cheap route and bought a wall-mount thermometer from Amazon for like $7. I was just curious because I see a lot of awfully specific temperatures quoted and it seems unlikely that everyone has thermometers for these things.

Regardless, I really want to take a thermocouple/computer logger from work and put the probe into a bottle filled with water and leave it a few days. The air temperature matters, but the liquid will be moderated from swings somewhat. One of these days I'll stop being lazy and do it.

 

I have my homebrewing supplies in the same place, so whenever I am down there, I look at the thermometers. I do not track daily; just an average range.

 

My beers are at 69F everyday in the closet. No problems yet. I refrigerate any ipa and other hop heavy brews and anything brewed with coffee since that can fade quicker with heat.

 

I used to just store things in the basement but then I noticed summer basement temps creeping over 70 so I put them in the fridge now. I bought a little mini-fridge with a built-in thermometer which is awesome so I just leave it at 53.

 

70 is kind of the magic number it seems. Below that and don't worry about it - higher temps will just mean faster aging. Somewhere shortly after 70, undesirable reactions begin to take place.