Reddit reviews Johnson Controls A419ABC-1C Electronic Temp Controller

I have an older one of these that I acquired second hand because it's the right size for my cellar, allows for great display, and I have a completely dark room with good ventilation to keep it in.

Some caveats if you're looking for one of these:

1. The light in older ones is a fluorescent. You might want to replace it with LEDs, which will require a ballast bypass at a minimum, though this isn't terribly difficult and will allow you to use the existing fittings.
   
   
2. They're mostly designed to operate between 32 F and 40 F. This may be fine for some purposes, but is probably colder than most people would want their cellars. I've interrupted my compressor with a Johnson Controls A419 while setting the existing thermostat to its lowest setting to bypass it. This has generally worked well for me, and is easy as the sub-components of the fridge are connected to the power distributor by standard plugs and the temperature probe can be routed up the drain.
   
   
3. If you run the fridge warmer, the compressor may not run long enough to pull moisture out of the air when it's humid out, pushing the humidity too high and causing cap rust and label mold. I use an electric dehumidifier in the summer to correct this, as most common chemical desiccants work too slowly at cellar temperatures.
   
   
4. It's easy to find someone who will service a commercial refrigerator. It's easy to find someone that will service a refrigerator in a private residence. It is not easy to find someone that will service a commercial refrigerator in a private residence. Be prepared to really call around for service, but someone will eventually do it.
   
   
5. It's a big, commercial fridge. It takes over a pound of refrigerant. A compressor failure is a $1500 fix. Be prepared for unexpected costs. I have spent more on service than on the original unit. I'm still a long ways from the cost of a new unit, though.
   
   
6. Replace the brackets that hold up the shelves immediately. They're cheap, they wear out, and they can fail. It's worth the like $20 just to replace them if you're not certain they're in good shape.
   
   A big commercial fridge like this looks super cool and is great for some. I love mine. It's done a fantastic job while I've had it, but it's not for the faint of heart. Like an old car, it's a bit of a labor of love.

https://www.amazon.com/Johnson-Controls-A419ABC-1C-Electronic-Controller/dp/B0026NDC5O

One of those bad boys set at 36F. I have the temp probe dangling above the fan slightly out of view in my image.

Question One: Fridge Temperature Control
There are several different units available to adjust the temperature of your fridge. The Johnson Controls A419 will control only cold (or heat if rewired), but the Inkbird ITC-308 will control both cold and heat.

I’ve used both and the Inkbird better fit my needs and is less expensive by more than half. There are other options available as well. Google something like “temperature control unit homebrewing” and you have plenty to read. As for wiring your own, I’m sure it’s possible, but I have no expertise in doing so.

Question Two: Carbonation Pressure
There are many different ways to carbonate your beer and several different gas blends available. Oxygen is not a good choice, as it will cause your beer to oxidize quickly - this common tastes like wet cardboard smells.

I only use carbon dioxide (CO2), but I do draft line consulting for a bar that uses a “beer blend” of 80% CO2 and 20% nitrogen. I can’t taste a difference and it pours the same, but that gas blend costs a little more. There may be other reasons to choose a specific blend that I am unaware of.

As for carbonating your kegs, what you described sounds like burst carbonation. Brulosophy has a great write up on different carbonation methods. I normally use the Set It And Forget It method, but will use the Burst method if I’m in a rush.

Question Three: Infusions
Not sure if you mean infusing the beer with flavors in the keg or glass or if you mean adding fruits or other flavors during fermentation.

To infuse in the keg, I use a mess bag to keep the liquid diptube from clogging. To infuse in the glass you can use a coffee press or even a Randall The Enamel Animal.

As for adding things to fermentation, fruits, hops, oak, spices, and liquor all make good additions to the right beer. Google phrases like “beer infusion recipes, “adding fruit to fermentation,” and “keg dry hopping” for more information.

Happy home brewing and good luck. Kanpai.

You need a way to maintain low fermentation and lagering temperatures. This is usually achieved by a modified deep freezer or refrigerator plugged into a control unit such as Johnson Controls a419

Things like these are why I love Reddit. Two of my fave things coming together. I tried a few months ago with a REALLY basic setup, and got pretty good results. It was on homemade juice that was really simple, but it did well. For the record, here's my setup.
controller
container/heating element
It's a pretty good and cheap setup, eventually I'll add a aquarium pump to give motion to the water bath.

If you can use the fridge, you can use this temp controller (Johnson controls A419 in case the link doesn't post) to gradually lower your ferm temp.

http://www.amazon.com/Johnson-Controls-A419ABC-1C-Electronic-Controller/dp/B0026NDC5O

Good luck!

Temperature controllers are great. You can get a cheap-ish digital one at Amazon if you don't mind wiring it.

Another way: just get a cheap temp controller, like this: www.amazon.com/Johnson-Controls-A419ABC-1C-Electronic-Controller/dp/B0026NDC5O

Edit: STC-1000 looks better than that, imo anyway.

Probably the easiest way to do this. If you're like the OP (and me) and hardware hacking is your end goal, there is plenty of different ways, a couple quick ideas:

Relay: http://www.adafruit.com/products/268

Temp Probe: http://www.adafruit.com/products/381

Arduino R3: http://www.adafruit.com/products/50

Personally, I'd have it either hooked up to a PC, or wireless, to monitor it remotely. If you want the stand-alone setup, add buttons and LCD. It would be really easy to hack this together.

Apparently, this has been in the back of my mind, since I busted that out and the pseudocode in a couple mins... Now to make my mini fridge be able to hold my fermentation bucket...

Edit: Doesn't heat, of course, I'm assuming you're wanting to keep below room temp.

Johnson Controls A419ABC-1C Electronic Temp Controller https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0026NDC5O/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_tH-Pyb47HP8YT

These are used for that kind of application. They are a bit pricey though. What are you trying to make? And what is the budget?