Upright Freezer with temp control in garage during winter

Discussion in 'Cellaring / Aging Beer' started by bdemarco, Jun 15, 2016.

Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.
  1. bdemarco

    bdemarco Aspirant (289) Aug 6, 2015 Canada (ON)

    So I tried googling this and I've found partial answers on this forum and others. Let me know if you have a similar experience.

    I just bought a 2nd hand upright freezer to store beer in my detached garage. It's hooked up to an Inkbird 308 and set a 52F. I hadn't really thought much about winter storage with this and now it has me thinking... I'm in Toronto and the coldest temp my garage got was around 5F. I assume it wouldn't get that cold in the freezer since it is sealed, but even floating around 30F isn't ideal.

    The Inkbird has a two stage control on it which gives it the ability to add heat to the freezer, I'm pretty weirded out with the lightbulb in the paint can, as much success it's given to others...

    Would it be worth it to try and add a heat source (such as a heat mat https://www.amazon.ca/Hydrofarm-MT1...903&ref_=sr_1_2&sr=8-2&tag=ca-skim1x160564-20) or do I need to cut my losses when the weather drops really low and bring everything inside. Have any other's had a similar experience?
     
    #1 bdemarco, Jun 15, 2016
  2. sdm9465

    sdm9465 Initiate (0) Dec 23, 2011 Canada (NS)

    If the temperature in your garage stays much below freezing for an extended time, you are going to have a problem. Your freezer should have pretty good insulation, so I would think it would take quite a while for the temperature to drop to dangerous levels. I can't see any reason why you shouldn't try to add a heat source. If you use a mat, I would suggest not setting bottles directly on it though. Because of the freezer's insulation, I don't think you'd need a very large heat source.

    If it were me, I'd do nothing now, monitor the temperatures closely when it starts to get cold and react based on what I was seeing.
     
    #2 sdm9465, Jun 16, 2016
    bdemarco likes this.
  3. bdemarco

    bdemarco Aspirant (289) Aug 6, 2015 Canada (ON)

    Thanks for your reply! It helped me reassure my thought process.
     
    #3 bdemarco, Jun 16, 2016
  4. BradC

    BradC Initiate (0) Dec 21, 2008 Pennsylvania

    I use an upright fridge in my garage in PA for beer cellaring. Its hooked up to a controller and holds about 53F all summer long. In winter, I almost always end up moving my stash into my crawl space, I've found that my fridge lags a few days behind with the insulation, but it will end up at the same temp as the air eventually. Its on my list to add a heat source, moving 100+ bottles is a PITA.
     
    #4 BradC, Jul 6, 2016
    bdemarco likes this.
Thread Status:
Not open for further replies.