Vacuum Chamber Heating Options

[SkyHighLer]

Hey Sky,
Is that Dimmer the same thing or similar to a rheostat?
Sure looks like it would work well

Wall dimmer, cheapest you can find, I actually prefer the twist on/off,
http://www.amazon.com/Leviton-6602-...4459163&sr=8-125&keywords=leviton+wall+dimmer

or made up (note it's only good for up to 300 watts...)
http://www.amazon.com/Leviton-TBI03...414459335&sr=8-1&keywords=leviton+lamp+dimmer

You can get much better (smoother) control with an old fashioned VARIAC (check eBay.)

That said, a microprocessor controller with remote sensor way better.

 

[icmagaccount]

Hey sky,

I have an extra enail I made I plan to take apart to make a heating pad for.. seems all I need to do is switch out the coil with a temp prob with a thermocoupler and a heating pad, what temp probe are you using?

 

[SkyHighLer]

Hey sky,

I have an extra enail I made I plan to take apart to make a heating pad for.. seems all I need to do is switch out the coil with a temp prob with a thermocoupler and a heating pad, what temp probe are you using?

I use a PT100 thermocouple sensor with a PTFE (Teflon) jacket, which reads in 0.1F increments.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B008MU0VFY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The PID controller,
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002PIM3R8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

The solid state relay and heat sink,
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B002PIM3R8/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I've received excellent service and product dealing with Keenovo silicone heaters direct from China, they are at eBay and are quite willing to do custom orders.

 

[Dab Strudel]

Woooo diddly hoooo I have my best value vac heat mat under my 5 gal vac pot and my sous vide temp controller in a sand bath in a square skillet with a 3 gal vac pot... so far I dont like thst my heat mat is stuck to the bottom of my pot, but I might get over it. Just got the sous vide in so its time to have a purgeoff with these two. But wait I cant because I can't get my best value vacs black shatter pot seal to past -28.65~.. any advice? It seems like my wacko Just Better vac\psi gauge gets to -29.99999 on the extractor but thats not saying much.

 

[gholladay]

Woooo diddly hoooo I have my best value vac heat mat under my 5 gal vac pot and my sous vide temp controller in a sand bath in a square skillet with a 3 gal vac pot... so far I dont like thst my heat mat is stuck to the bottom of my pot, but I might get over it. Just got the sous vide in so its time to have a purgeoff with these two. But wait I cant because I can't get my best value vacs black shatter pot seal to past -28.65~.. any advice? It seems like my wacko Just Better vac\psi gauge gets to -29.99999 on the extractor but thats not saying much.

Mr. Strudel,

Have you had any results with you side by side test to report?

Thanks,

G

 

[gholladay]

GW uses Keenovo Silicon Heat mats on his MKV. From what I've gathered from this thread, one of the Dorkfood DVS controller should work with this mat. Can anyone confirm this?

Keenovo Mats: http://www.keenovo.com/products/silicone-heater.html

Dorkfood Controller: http://www.dorkfood.com/Dorkfood-Sous-Vide-Temperature-Controller-DSV/dp/B0088OTON4

Thank you

 

[SkyHighLer]

GW uses Keenovo Silicon Heat mats on his MKV. From what I've gathered from this thread, one of the Dorkfood DVS controller should work with this mat. Can anyone confirm this?

Keenovo Mats: http://www.keenovo.com/products/silicone-heater.html

Dorkfood Controller: http://www.dorkfood.com/Dorkfood-Sous-Vide-Temperature-Controller-DSV/dp/B0088OTON4

Thank you

News to me, last I heard GW was posting up an even more 'factory direct' Chinese source.

I've had good luck ordering custom silicone heaters from Keenovo via eBay, but if Omega has EXACTLY what you want IN STOCK, just order from them.
http://www.omega.com/pptst/SRFR_SRFG.html

The Dorkfood DSV is simple plug and play tech for the masses, my only complaint about recommending it is you should be able to get a full PID controller with solid state relay and heat sink, in a nice box with detachable cords for the same price. Check out the Aubers, which I find it hard to believe aren't experiencing direct completion from China,
http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=8

 

[gholladay]

News to me, last I heard GW was posting up an even more 'factory direct' Chinese source.

I've had good luck ordering custom silicone heaters from Keenovo via eBay, but if Omega has EXACTLY what you want IN STOCK, just order from them.
http://www.omega.com/pptst/SRFR_SRFG.html

The Dorkfood DSV is simple plug and play tech for the masses, my only complaint about recommending it is you should be able to get a full PID controller with solid state relay and heat sink, in a nice box with detachable cords for the same price. Check out the Aubers, which I find it hard to believe aren't experiencing direct completion from China,
http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=8

Oh!! I stand corrected. I think I got the Keenovo heat mats from your posts in fact. I went back and reread and you are correct. GW says they ordered their from china with a third grounding wire. Sorry about that.

 

[gholladay]

News to me, last I heard GW was posting up an even more 'factory direct' Chinese source.

I've had good luck ordering custom silicone heaters from Keenovo via eBay, but if Omega has EXACTLY what you want IN STOCK, just order from them.
http://www.omega.com/pptst/SRFR_SRFG.html

The Dorkfood DSV is simple plug and play tech for the masses, my only complaint about recommending it is you should be able to get a full PID controller with solid state relay and heat sink, in a nice box with detachable cords for the same price. Check out the Aubers, which I find it hard to believe aren't experiencing direct completion from China,
http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=8

Skyhighler

The Aubers controller looks very easy to use as well. So the difference between the Aubers controller and the dorkfood is that the aubers controller is a PID and the dorkfood is not? And this gives you better modulation and control?

And to connect one of the heat mats, regardless of brand, I would simply wire the mat to a cord with a standard plug and then plug it in? GW says they get heat mats with a grounding wire. Is that an additional safety feature?

Thanks for all the help as always! I'm starting to figure this out, I just didn't know anything about PID controllers until about a week ago, so there's been a little learning curve.

 

[Gray Wolf]

News to me, last I heard GW was posting up an even more 'factory direct' Chinese source.

I've had good luck ordering custom silicone heaters from Keenovo via eBay, but if Omega has EXACTLY what you want IN STOCK, just order from them.
http://www.omega.com/pptst/SRFR_SRFG.html

The Dorkfood DSV is simple plug and play tech for the masses, my only complaint about recommending it is you should be able to get a full PID controller with solid state relay and heat sink, in a nice box with detachable cords for the same price. Check out the Aubers, which I find it hard to believe aren't experiencing direct completion from China,
http://www.auberins.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=8

We order ours custom made in China, but do order in lots.

We get the exact size we want, with ground and even with the thermocouples molded in on our last order.

Unless Omega or Briskheat is in stock with a size, or their backlog is has improved, it is faster to get them from China as well.

 

[SkyHighLer]

Skyhighler

The Aubers controller looks very easy to use as well. So the difference between the Aubers controller and the dorkfood is that the aubers controller is a PID and the dorkfood is not? And this gives you better modulation and control?

And to connect one of the heat mats, regardless of brand, I would simply wire the mat to a cord with a standard plug and then plug it in? GW says they get heat mats with a grounding wire. Is that an additional safety feature?

Thanks for all the help as always! I'm starting to figure this out, I just didn't know anything about PID controllers until about a week ago, so there's been a little learning curve.

With a Dorkfood DSV and a silicone heater it's simple plug and play except as you mentioned, attaching a plug to the end of the wires exiting the mat.

The Dorkfood DSV uses a mechanical relay, you can hear it clicking on and off. To save the contacts from excessive wear the on/off cycles are long... using a PID controller with solid state relay the on/off intervals can be very tight. My PID controller instructions spell this out with suggested starting Interval settings for mechanical or solid state relay setups. Which brings up the major advantage of a DIY PID controller (probably even over an Auber plug and play model...) access to the sub menu, where you can do your own setup and make compensatory adjustments, i.e., C or F readout, select type of sensor, enter a differential factor to have the Set Point equal the actual oil temp etc.....

Pics and descriptions, follow the links,
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?p=6638465#post6638465

 

[gholladay]

With a Dorkfood DSV and a silicone heater it's simple plug and play except as you mentioned, attaching a plug to the end of the wires exiting the mat.

The Dorkfood DSV uses a mechanical relay, you can hear it clicking on and off. To save the contacts from excessive wear the on/off cycles are long... using a PID controller with solid state relay the on/off intervals can be very tight. My PID controller instructions spell this out with suggested starting Interval settings for mechanical or solid state relay setups. Which brings up the major advantage of a DIY PID controller (probably even over an Auber plug and play model...) access to the sub menu, where you can do your own setup and make compensatory adjustments, i.e., C or F readout, select type of sensor, enter a differential factor to have the Set Point equal the actual oil temp etc.....

Pics and descriptions, follow the links,
https://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?p=6638465#post6638465

Skyhighler,

Thank you very much for the help. I like you design a lot. I think the silicon mat is the most versatile choice, because I could also use it to heat up my water bath if I wanted that (as you mentioned), or I could simply have it directly in contact with my collection pot/vac chamber.

Thanks again for all your great tips and help!

 

[gholladay]

We order ours custom made in China, but do order in lots.

We get the exact size we want, with ground and even with the thermocouples molded in on our last order.

Unless Omega or Briskheat is in stock with a size, or their backlog is has improved, it is faster to get them from China as well.

GW, Did you added the ground wire as some sort of additional safety feature? Could you elaborate on why you had that added?

Also, would it be possible to purchase one of your Chinese silicon mat heaters from wolfwurx?

Thank you,

G

 

[Gray Wolf]

GW, Did you added the ground wire as some sort of additional safety feature? Could you elaborate on why you had that added?

Also, would it be possible to purchase one of your Chinese silicon mat heaters from wolfwurx?

Thank you,

G

I added the ground wire for added safety and because WolfWurx builds for commercial applications meeting OSHA.

Even though WolfWurx systems are fully grounded, Waywardwolf received an electrical shock, as did the new owner when they touched a unit, which was plugged into a wall outlet that was not grounded and had hot and neutral reversed.

We now automatically check the customers outlet, before plugging in. Besides electrical shock, it is hell on electronics...............

You can check with WW and see if he ordered any spares or can tag spares onto his next order. I supported him up with the specs and source, but I'm not involved in the business part.

 

[gholladay]

I added the ground wire for added safety and because WolfWurx builds for commercial applications meeting OSHA.

Even though WolfWurx systems are fully grounded, Waywardwolf received an electrical shock, as did the new owner when they touched a unit, which was plugged into a wall outlet that was not grounded and had hot and neutral reversed.

We now automatically check the customers outlet, before plugging in. Besides electrical shock, it is hell on electronics...............

You can check with WW and see if he ordered any spares or can tag spares onto his next order. I supported him up with the specs and source, but I'm not involved in the business part.

Very cool! and good thinking as usual. Who would think the outlet would be wired wrong..

Thanks again,

Graham

 

[Dab Strudel]

Ive seen my sous vide spike on me about five times since october 30th I would do a 60 day results but im on a break for the holidays. The BVV heat mat works awesome. Stays within a degree, a little over when you set a new temp, but pulls back well where as my sous vide went up 3-4° each of the times I refer to as "spike". I use 2 hair ties to tie my thermocouple to the side of a 1.5" thick block of wood, I set 2 blocks of wood in the pot with water, not sand (not sure why I dont use sand) and put my vacuum pot on them. I tried connecting it to a power strip and using a bucket of water to fill 2 deep gridfles, set the same temps on their controllers, and purging 2 pots and it worked ok for a couple times but rumor stated one time it messed up with both pots where one pots temp jumped too high but I think that was operator. However from hear on out I shal make my own. I will update on my take on a heat mat with pid once I make it, but really im either getting the cheap yet best in its class mypin PiD or the more expensive Watlow (Both prefered by Grey Wolf), splice it in with a custom sized flex heat mat made in china (unfortunately) but seems very easily customized and ordered via ebay from a seller named Keenovo (blessed to us by SkyHighler), and see what this solid state relay is about that Sky mentioned.. until next time

 

[Dab Strudel]

P.s sky, I think you brought me on some next level stuff with usb detachable heat mat. Good call.

 

[SkyHighLer]

^^ If the "sou vide" referred to is the Dorkfood DSV, you are correct in stating it doesn't hone in as quickly as other controllers. I believe the reason is that it's mechanical relay prevented the designer from tightening up the Interval function as this would wear out the contacts, also it doesn't have an 'auto-calibrate' function.

Glad to hear the Best Value Vacs silicone heater setups function well, you'll probably find a DIY PID setup with solid state relay to be only slightly better at holding temp, but knowledge of how to assemble your own controller for other projects like CLS column and collection pot heaters is likely to be worthwhile.

Thanks for the feedback!!!

 

[Dab Strudel]

^^ If the "sou vide" referred to is the Dorkfood DSV, you are correct in stating it doesn't hone in as quickly as other controllers. I believe the reason is that it's mechanical relay prevented the designer from tightening up the Interval function as this would wear out the contacts, also it doesn't have an 'auto-calibrate' function.

Glad to hear the Best Value Vacs silicone heater setups function well, you'll probably find a DIY PID setup with solid state relay to be only slightly better at holding temp, but knowledge of how to assemble your own controller for other projects like CLS column and collection pot heaters is likely to be worthwhile.

Thanks for the feedback!!!

It is indeed the dorkfood. I am dropping it soon for some ai 3.5's but I am now looking to wire some pids for those very reasons. Do you say the watlow easy zone st is one to get?
http://catalog.watlow.com/product/e...z-zone-st-integrated-solid-state-controller-2
I see bells, I see whistles, but I dont see the words "self learning" or whatever that jazz is. Is their one better suited for me or is this an overkill? I dont even have a price on one and ive seen a coupke Amazonian pids with ss relay for cheap but can you tell me why this is better? Im understanding the lingo better now that I hear it in context then see it on the web.

 

[SkyHighLer]

It is indeed the dorkfood. I am dropping it soon for some ai 3.5's but I am now looking to wire some pids for those very reasons. Do you say the watlow easy zone st is one to get?
http://catalog.watlow.com/product/e...z-zone-st-integrated-solid-state-controller-2
I see bells, I see whistles, but I dont see the words "self learning" or whatever that jazz is. Is their one better suited for me or is this an overkill? I dont even have a price on one and ive seen a coupke Amazonian pids with ss relay for cheap but can you tell me why this is better? Im understanding the lingo better now that I hear it in context then see it on the web.

All I can say from experience is the Amazon/eBay PID I use works fine, it's this one,
http://www.amazon.com/Digital-Displ...ie=UTF8&qid=1419185947&sr=8-1&keywords=jdl612

I think you'd be wasting money on a name brand like Watlow... Omega has plenty of expensive offerings also, http://www.omega.com/subsection/pid-on-off-controllers.html