Lawrence Brewers Guild

There was no way I was going to bay $150+ for a stir plate, so built one for less then 20$.

Parts:
RadioShack
Toggle Switch,PN 275-322
1 1/4" Hexagonal Control Knobs, PN 274-407
25-Ohm Rheostat, PN 271-0265
Size K Coaxial DC Power Jack, PN 274-1565
Small black project box

22 g wire, black and red (Home Depot)
Old computer Fan
Round Magnets (Hobby Lobby), pack of 4
Hot Glue
Old cell phone AC charger or Printer power supply, 5-12 V, 3-5 amp DC output





2 holes were drilled in the front for the on/off switch and the rheostat. One hole was driller in the back for the power plug-in. I cut the top out so I could get the magnetts as close as possible to the stir bar.



Computer fan was mounted on some bolts



Magnets were hot glued to the top of the computer fan.



Power plug was added and glued in place



Switch and rheostat were wired



Old printer power supply was plugged in and the system was tested.



Final Product





Jason

That is going to come in handy for growing your yeast with less wort.

Excellent.

If you need a project box, a cigar box works very well also. In Lawrence, there's Centro Cigars on 15th and Wakarusa. They usually have boxes.

Nice - looks awfully familiar. I used the same box. Glued the fan to the top of the box - some sort of goo stuff the wife gave me. Used old hard drive magnets. Just tied a knot in the wire on both sides of the box (no jack). And had a LED laying around - so why not. It's nice getting about half again the amount of yeast. I forgot to buy the knob though - never bothered with it...

What size stirbar are you using? I bought a couple from vwrlabshop.com. Two is nice because one ends up in the fermenter more often than not.......

I just wanted to mention that I really appreciate the knowledge and experience that has been shared recently on the site! (i.e stir plate, yeast, rig build, etc.)

It is one of the main reasons I joined the club and continue to stay in it.

Thanks!
Andrew C.

I use a 1/2 and 1/4 inch stir bar. the 1 inch just does not do as well a job on my system.

Jason

I purchased a used lab stir plate off of ebay between $15-$20.

JDL973,
Do you every wonder what is in a $150 stir plate other than margin?

Jason has done an excellent job with his many stir plates and will serve him well.

An industrial lab stir plate will have a heavier motor with ball bearings at least on the outboard side, a stronger magnet, real speed control versus dropping the voltage through a potentiometer thus wasting energy through heat, a heavier casting and a chemical resistant top. Some may even come with a heater.

For the home brewers, Jason's will last a long time and leave extra money for craft brew. You just may not be able to spin the big liquid stirrer or stir at low speeds.

For most, the home built stir plate will do a great job.

My home made stir plate works like a champ, going strong for over two years. I used the LM317 voltage regulator with heatsink to dissipate thermal energy at low speeds. I can easily spin a vortex in a gallon starter without issue.