@@DavidHeathHomebrew I do not have plumbers putty, but I am thinking of using blu tack instead. Any reason you could think of for putty to be a better option?
Nice review David. I have been using the non-WiFi version for several years. Very accurate and reliable. If & when it ever quits I’ll upgrade! Thanks again.
I have had a failure of the NTC thermo couple on my first InkBird and have since purchased the detachable type. I have two of these. One controls the temperature of my Sparge water heater and the other, after about September, controls Heat Mats ON/OFF overnight. They are not PID controllers and the termperature hysteresis is set at the narrowest and controls (the sparge water) to withing a couple of degrees. Up till now the probe has been dipping in the water (it is waterproof) but I like your idea of the Putty and will get some of that. I do not need another one as yet but Thank you.
No I am very happy with the InkBird. I still have the failed item and I will probably fit another NTC with it for a general task. NTC's are myriad and to get the correct one is almost impossible but the calibration ofsett adjustment will smooth it a bit. I have an engineering History in machines which required temperature control and for the temperature range of our hobby? a PT100 type is probably the best choice but they are expensive. the NTC is cheap and robust and perfectly adequete for our needs. In my situation I do not have any means or money to cool a fermenting or largered beer so it happens at room/house temperature but a couple of years ago I almost lost a brew when the temperature plunged overnight in my house which isnormally a steady 20-23 ish to the low teens. So in the winter - from September onwords I suppose I have trace heating type belts around the Fermenters under the control of the InkBird. Until now I have simply moniter air temperature but I will try the Plumber Putty suggestion. There is always an Offset but I can get by that. Errm! I appear to have wittered on a bit, sorry.
Note there are two app versions, the “normal” one and the “pro” one (certainly this is the case for iOS anyway) - and the pro one is hopeless, it has significantly less functionality than the non-pro one so don’t make the mistake of downloading the pro one by mistake!
Informative video as usual. A quick silly question, I am looking to use a chest chiller as a temperature control for the whole fermentation vessel. However from the information provided by the manufacturer, the operating temperature of the chiller is only from 0 to +10 degree C. I am assuming by incorporating this Temp controller i would be able to set the chiller to operate at a higher temperature range which is suitable for yeast fermentation like15 to 21 degree C as the temperature control of them are simply the same(turning on and off the cooling system so the temperature of the control space hover around the desired set temperature?)
Thank you. When using a temp controller with a chiller the best method is to have a heat belt or similar added to the set up. These are not expensive and offer direct heating for speed.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew I am living in a tropical climate country where the indoor temperature range is generally 22~28 degree C. What is the likely consequences if I only uses a temperature control with a thermowell on the fermenter without heating belt? I presume the temperature control would cut off the chiller when the sensor feed back reached the set temperature but I am wondering the reason behind you suggesting to use with a heat belt . Is it because there is a chance for the temperature to drop below the desired temperature even after the power for the chiller has been cut off and thus the need for a heating belt?
Hi David! Hope you are keeping safe and well. Thanks for the videos which are keeping me entertained whilst on lockdown! I wondered whether you had ever used the MyBrewBot system? It looks really interesting, and gives an estimate of gravity as well as being able to control temperatures remotely. I’d love to hear your thoughts if you have the inclination.
Are you using this controller in your current "real world" fermentation? If so, can you share all the components with us? Vessel, cooling and heating equipment, etc.
I sure am. I have a variety of different plastic fermenters, none of which that are branded but they are in various shapes and sizes. For heating I use standard heat belts, again nothing branded but they do the job well. I use these in a cool room and only heating is needed.
I am having issues using this in my greenhouse to control an exhaust fan. It's my first time with one of these units, so everyone take it easy on me. I'm quite frustrated. What I am trying to do is to adjust the hysteresis so that it comes on when the air temperature reaches 76 degrees F. Right now I have that as the maximum acceptable temperature. What happens is that the fan does turn on (it's plugged into the cooling outlet) but so does that annoying alarm ( I turned it to silent message and that is easier to ignore). I wish there was a way to have 76 degrees as the point where the fan turns on but around 85 degrees would have the alarm associated with it. The second problem is the second it reaches 1 degree below the 76, it switches to cooling. I would like a 20 degree lag or hysteresis before it does so. I'm sure there is a way to set this all up but despite a lot of experimentation, even with the app, I am having zero luck. It got so freaked out today that, even though the high temperature alarm was going off, it switched to the heating mode. I had to plug the fan into the heating side to get it to come on. UGGGGGGggghhhhh! I would greatly appreciate any help or suggestions that you have as you seem to be a pro at this thermostat!
Hi, I know you recommend to use putty to place the probe to the outside but can you confirm the probe is waterproof please so I can place in water, many thanks
Excellent video! Around 01:02 you mention that "it pairs very well with the Plaato and Tilt". Do you mean that either the Inkbird can receive commands/settings from the Plaato or Tilt?
It's a nice device the the mobile app has a flaw. It is unable to connect to phone's wifi hotspot. It always insists on another wifi. 😢 There's a workaround with a second phone but that's impractical.
Great video as always David! I can't figure out if the ITC-308 + Wifi offers any data logging functions? I can see there's a temp over time graph in the App, but am curious to know if this can be exported somehow. I'd likely not watch the unit constantly, might/might not react to alarms, but would be more inclined to look at the graph as I finish my brew to see how stable things were (or weren't). Cheers, Sam
Hey @@vreb87 ... I did not thus far :( but since setting the IB up, I took off for two weeks and came home to our new world order (quarantine!). I'll dig around and see if I can figure something out / hack something!
@@vreb87 ... Have a look at the comments in this Amazon(.ca) thread ... www.amazon.ca/ask/questions/asin/B07PW841PR/ref=ask_mdp_dpmw_ql_hza?isAnswered=true and do a search for "csv". The new App InkBird Pro apparently supports export to ... ummm ... CSV!
A quick question regarding plumbers putty. A quick search for 'plumbers putty' here in Australia only finds epoxy putty. I'm assuming this isn't what you are using. Is linseed based glazier putty suitable?
Very interesting but how do you connect the Tilt? I had a weak moment and actually bought one recently. It's a bit costly but it's great fun and very useful to see how your fermentation is going on. However, as far as I know it only does bluetooth not Wifi. Being able to control the temperature controller with data from the Tilt would be awesome, then you could do the whole fermentation schedule in one go: warming up a little bit when gravity is getting close to FG as you say in the video. Then when the gravity has been stable for 24 hours it could automatically get up to room temp to do a diacetyl rest and then a couple of days later turn the temp down to crash the beer. Sounds great to me! Also, the Tilt can provide the temperature to the controller, what's better than having the probe actually in the wort?!
The tilt can be connected via google sheets. There is a guide on the tilt website :) Having the probe in the wort is best avoided as for one it is never going to sit where you want it. Secondly it is not designed to be left in wort just like the cable. Thirdly how to keep it airtight?
You can install the probe in a thermowell mounted in the side of the fermenter. That's effectively as good as having the probe actually in the wort, but this way, it doesn't touch the wort at all and it's air tight. Regards
I’m using mine to control a lacto fermentation crock which is pottery and rather thick walled. This has an insulation effect on the contents. I think measuring the outside surface temp with the probe is likely to mean the inside may well be warmer?? Does the probe measure air temp? Most recipes refer to air temp range for fermentation.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew ah I assume it’s more insulating. One thing has me confused though. If you want a temp setting of say 65 deg F. Say you want the heater to come on no lower than 60 deg. Then is it Cd you set to 5 deg or the Hd?
Good informative video, thank you! I'm going to get one of these, but I'm confused about what my fridge thermostat setting should be? It goes from zero to 6, with zero meaning no refridgeration is going on and the fridge is essentially off. Presumably, if I'm trying to achieve a temp of 19°C as a constant, the fridge thermostat should be set quite low? Say, 2 or 3? Sorry if this is a dumb question, I'm just trying to get my head around it.
Thank you. With fridges without direct temp control it will be a case of adjustment on the fly really. Keep an eye on it as you go and adjust accordingly. Doing a test with water would be my starting point to learn the fridge.
Hi David great video as usual. Do you know if it is an open system, in the sense that I can pick up the data from a RaspberryPi or some home automation system?
You do such good videos but please change your mic! I struggle to listen because I can so clearly hear the saliva slapping around your tongue it feels like I have my ear inside your mouth 😫
@@DavidHeathHomebrew just on my PC, maybe it's just something I'm overly sensitive to but I rarely find it with other channels and it's consistent with your videos I've seen 😥
Hmm, I think you could try using a different sound setting on the computer. I tested my audio settings on Tv, tablet, mobile and computer and I cannot hear this.
It must just be something I'm overly sensitive to. Just had a quick listen on my phone and picked it up straight away. I can obviously still hear what you're saying, it's not like it drowns out the audio. It's just one of those things that "once you notice it" it's like its amplified because you know it's there.
The timing of your review was spot on and confirmed I was right as I just ordered this version yesterday. The plumbers putty hack was an added bonus.
Great to hear Mark :) Thank you :)
dude word up
Great, thank you :)
I never would have thought of using plumbers putty, great tip! 🍻
It works so very well :)
@@DavidHeathHomebrew I do not have plumbers putty, but I am thinking of using blu tack instead. Any reason you could think of for putty to be a better option?
Im not sure how well that will work. Test it and see but if not the plumbers putty is very cheap, even here in overpriced Norway :)
Nice review David. I have been using the non-WiFi version for several years. Very accurate and reliable. If & when it ever quits I’ll upgrade! Thanks again.
Thanks Jeff, much appreciated :)
very clear and concise information thank you
Great to hear :) 🍻🍻🍻
I have had a failure of the NTC thermo couple on my first InkBird and have since purchased the detachable type. I have two of these. One controls the temperature of my Sparge water heater and the other, after about September, controls Heat Mats ON/OFF overnight. They are not PID controllers and the termperature hysteresis is set at the narrowest and controls (the sparge water) to withing a couple of degrees. Up till now the probe has been dipping in the water (it is waterproof) but I like your idea of the Putty and will get some of that. I do not need another one as yet but Thank you.
Sorry to hear that James but it sounds like you found a good solution there :) The putty works very well.
No I am very happy with the InkBird. I still have the failed item and I will probably fit another NTC with it for a general task. NTC's are myriad and to get the correct one is almost impossible but the calibration ofsett adjustment will smooth it a bit. I have an engineering History in machines which required temperature control and for the temperature range of our hobby? a PT100 type is probably the best choice but they are expensive. the NTC is cheap and robust and perfectly adequete for our needs. In my situation I do not have any means or money to cool a fermenting or largered beer so it happens at room/house temperature but a couple of years ago I almost lost a brew when the temperature plunged overnight in my house which isnormally a steady 20-23 ish to the low teens. So in the winter - from September onwords I suppose I have trace heating type belts around the Fermenters under the control of the InkBird. Until now I have simply moniter air temperature but I will try the Plumber Putty suggestion. There is always an Offset but I can get by that.
Errm! I appear to have wittered on a bit, sorry.
Great review... just bought one... thanks 🙏 😎
Glad that you found it useful Michael :)
I like the non WIFI model, but now I feel compelled to acquire the WIFI model. Great vidya Sir. Cheers.
Much appreciated, thank you :)
Another very useful video thank you
Many thanks Paul :)
Awesome. I have the non wi-fi version, but wi-fi is kinda nice...
Thanks Larry :) Yes, handy stuff for sure. Things are gradually getting more high tech :)
Note there are two app versions, the “normal” one and the “pro” one (certainly this is the case for iOS anyway) - and the pro one is hopeless, it has significantly less functionality than the non-pro one so don’t make the mistake of downloading the pro one by mistake!
I just downloaded the one suggested in the instructions
Great video
Thank you, glad you enjoyed it :)
Informative video as usual. A quick silly question, I am looking to use a chest chiller as a temperature control for the whole fermentation vessel. However from the information provided by the manufacturer, the operating temperature of the chiller is only from 0 to +10 degree C. I am assuming by incorporating this Temp controller i would be able to set the chiller to operate at a higher temperature range which is suitable for yeast fermentation like15 to 21 degree C as the temperature control of them are simply the same(turning on and off the cooling system so the temperature of the control space hover around the desired set temperature?)
Thank you.
When using a temp controller with a chiller the best method is to have a heat belt or similar added to the set up. These are not expensive and offer direct heating for speed.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew I am living in a tropical climate country where the indoor temperature range is generally 22~28 degree C. What is the likely consequences if I only uses a temperature control with a thermowell on the fermenter without heating belt? I presume the temperature control would cut off the chiller when the sensor feed back reached the set temperature but I am wondering the reason behind you suggesting to use with a heat belt . Is it because there is a chance for the temperature to drop below the desired temperature even after the power for the chiller has been cut off and thus the need for a heating belt?
The problem will be off flavours. However…if you use pressure that will fix it. Though you will also lose yeast esters.
Hi David! Hope you are keeping safe and well. Thanks for the videos which are keeping me entertained whilst on lockdown! I wondered whether you had ever used the MyBrewBot system? It looks really interesting, and gives an estimate of gravity as well as being able to control temperatures remotely. I’d love to hear your thoughts if you have the inclination.
Hi Henry, all good here thank you, same to you :) I have not tried this at present, maybe in the future.
Would this work with a heat source only? I.e. controlling a mash tun and boiler?
I have only used it for fermentation control, please check with Inkbird on its limits as these are not shown on their site that I could see.
Nice review!
Many thanks Tor :)
Are you using this controller in your current "real world" fermentation? If so, can you share all the components with us? Vessel, cooling and heating equipment, etc.
I sure am. I have a variety of different plastic fermenters, none of which that are branded but they are in various shapes and sizes. For heating I use standard heat belts, again nothing branded but they do the job well. I use these in a cool room and only heating is needed.
Great video review. I would like to get the Europe version like yours. Where did you get it from? I can't find the europe version on amazon
Try your local homebrew store :) Many stock it in my country.
I am having issues using this in my greenhouse to control an exhaust fan. It's my first time with one of these units, so everyone take it easy on me. I'm quite frustrated. What I am trying to do is to adjust the hysteresis so that it comes on when the air temperature reaches 76 degrees F. Right now I have that as the maximum acceptable temperature. What happens is that the fan does turn on (it's plugged into the cooling outlet) but so does that annoying alarm ( I turned it to silent message and that is easier to ignore). I wish there was a way to have 76 degrees as the point where the fan turns on but around 85 degrees would have the alarm associated with it.
The second problem is the second it reaches 1 degree below the 76, it switches to cooling. I would like a 20 degree lag or hysteresis before it does so.
I'm sure there is a way to set this all up but despite a lot of experimentation, even with the app, I am having zero luck. It got so freaked out today that, even though the high temperature alarm was going off, it switched to the heating mode. I had to plug the fan into the heating side to get it to come on. UGGGGGGggghhhhh!
I would greatly appreciate any help or suggestions that you have as you seem to be a pro at this thermostat!
Probably best to talk to a source that is involved with exhaust fans and their use with this device. This for me would be a trial and error process.
Hi, I know you recommend to use putty to place the probe to the outside but can you confirm the probe is waterproof please so I can place in water, many thanks
Hi Keith, it is my understanding that it is but please do check with Inkbird for confirmation.
Nice video David, how long can the data be tracked?
It seems so far to be constant with data being show over 1 day, week or month.
Excellent video! Around 01:02 you mention that "it pairs very well with the Plaato and Tilt". Do you mean that either the Inkbird can receive commands/settings from the Plaato or Tilt?
Hi Dirk, No I mean that it pairs well as a complete solution :)
Thanks @@DavidHeathHomebrew ! Now we only need an Inkbird API to control and monitor the device :-)
Well there is an app at least :)
It's a nice device the the mobile app has a flaw. It is unable to connect to phone's wifi hotspot. It always insists on another wifi. 😢 There's a workaround with a second phone but that's impractical.
Yeah, annoying. The app is not the best still.
Good clear concise review.
Is this WiFi model Google Home compatible?
Thank you :) Actually yes, this is covered in this video:- ua-cam.com/video/9H4_5yLwxzs/v-deo.html
Great video as always David! I can't figure out if the ITC-308 + Wifi offers any data logging functions? I can see there's a temp over time graph in the App, but am curious to know if this can be exported somehow. I'd likely not watch the unit constantly, might/might not react to alarms, but would be more inclined to look at the graph as I finish my brew to see how stable things were (or weren't). Cheers, Sam
Thanks Samuel. Not that I have found, past the one in the app.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew I should have asked more specifically if there's a way to offload the temperature data from the App ... ??? Thanks in advance.
@@samuelsmith9999 did you manage to get an answer to your question somehow ? i'd like to know too !
Hey @@vreb87 ... I did not thus far :( but since setting the IB up, I took off for two weeks and came home to our new world order (quarantine!). I'll dig around and see if I can figure something out / hack something!
@@vreb87 ... Have a look at the comments in this Amazon(.ca) thread ... www.amazon.ca/ask/questions/asin/B07PW841PR/ref=ask_mdp_dpmw_ql_hza?isAnswered=true and do a search for "csv". The new App InkBird Pro apparently supports export to ... ummm ... CSV!
A quick question regarding plumbers putty. A quick search for 'plumbers putty' here in Australia only finds epoxy putty. I'm assuming this isn't what you are using. Is linseed based glazier putty suitable?
I found this reference that I think you will find useful:- en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plumber%27s_putty
Thanks David, great tip by the way.🍻👍
Thanks for the video. Will this control a contactor to run a couple of 2hp motors?
Hmm, not that I know of. Probably a good question for Inkbird I would say.
Very interesting but how do you connect the Tilt? I had a weak moment and actually bought one recently. It's a bit costly but it's great fun and very useful to see how your fermentation is going on. However, as far as I know it only does bluetooth not Wifi.
Being able to control the temperature controller with data from the Tilt would be awesome, then you could do the whole fermentation schedule in one go: warming up a little bit when gravity is getting close to FG as you say in the video. Then when the gravity has been stable for 24 hours it could automatically get up to room temp to do a diacetyl rest and then a couple of days later turn the temp down to crash the beer. Sounds great to me!
Also, the Tilt can provide the temperature to the controller, what's better than having the probe actually in the wort?!
The tilt can be connected via google sheets. There is a guide on the tilt website :) Having the probe in the wort is best avoided as for one it is never going to sit where you want it. Secondly it is not designed to be left in wort just like the cable. Thirdly how to keep it airtight?
You can install the probe in a thermowell mounted in the side of the fermenter. That's effectively as good as having the probe actually in the wort, but this way, it doesn't touch the wort at all and it's air tight. Regards
Very true Paul.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew I think he meant the tilt becomes your probe (in the wort) if it can send temp data to the inkbird!
I’m using mine to control a lacto fermentation crock which is pottery and rather thick walled. This has an insulation effect on the contents. I think measuring the outside surface temp with the probe is likely to mean the inside may well be warmer?? Does the probe measure air temp? Most recipes refer to air temp range for fermentation.
I would suggest attaching the probe with plumbers putty.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew yeah just used some blu tac works fine
Plumbers putty works better for temp readings
@@DavidHeathHomebrew ah I assume it’s more insulating. One thing has me confused though. If you want a temp setting of say 65 deg F. Say you want the heater to come on no lower than 60 deg. Then is it Cd you set to 5 deg or the Hd?
Yes, exactly.
Good informative video, thank you! I'm going to get one of these, but I'm confused about what my fridge thermostat setting should be? It goes from zero to 6, with zero meaning no refridgeration is going on and the fridge is essentially off. Presumably, if I'm trying to achieve a temp of 19°C as a constant, the fridge thermostat should be set quite low? Say, 2 or 3? Sorry if this is a dumb question, I'm just trying to get my head around it.
Thank you. With fridges without direct temp control it will be a case of adjustment on the fly really. Keep an eye on it as you go and adjust accordingly. Doing a test with water would be my starting point to learn the fridge.
@@DavidHeathHomebrew Thanks very much, will do...
Hi David great video as usual. Do you know if it is an open system, in the sense that I can pick up the data from a RaspberryPi or some home automation system?
That I am unsure of! I know that this is being looked into so that it can be included in other apps.
Have a look for tuyapi.
Is it WIFI or bloothooth ?
Does it work when you're not home ?
It is just wifi. Yes the app allows you to use the wifi control when you are not at home :)
David I think you are wearing your watch bracelet inside out..?
Well spotted Lars, ive been playing around with it!
Does this connect with Brewfather?
As I understand it the developer is interested to try.
You do such good videos but please change your mic! I struggle to listen because I can so clearly hear the saliva slapping around your tongue it feels like I have my ear inside your mouth 😫
Thanks. Hmm that is odd. I have actually changed my mic fairly recently. What are you listening on? Ive not heard this before!
@@DavidHeathHomebrew just on my PC, maybe it's just something I'm overly sensitive to but I rarely find it with other channels and it's consistent with your videos I've seen 😥
Hmm, I think you could try using a different sound setting on the computer. I tested my audio settings on Tv, tablet, mobile and computer and I cannot hear this.
It must just be something I'm overly sensitive to. Just had a quick listen on my phone and picked it up straight away. I can obviously still hear what you're saying, it's not like it drowns out the audio. It's just one of those things that "once you notice it" it's like its amplified because you know it's there.
Could be :)