Skip to main content

Build Your Own Temperature Controller for Yogurt in the Crock Pot

A temperature controller is a very handy device on the homestead. We use them to control our heating system, hot water heater, crock pot (for yogurt), greenhouse fan, and maybe other things that I have forgotten. They are easy to make and can be programmed for heating or cooling. I have used Honeywell brand thermostats for these, but my favorite is the Ranco ETC. You can buy these on ebay for around $50 - search for Ranco ETC.

NOTE: If you attempt this project, you assume all risks and rewards of both the electrical hazard and and control hazards that may occur. In other words - don't come running to us if you fry yourself or your aquarium fish building or using this controller! On the other hand if you solve one of the world's great problems with one of these - we aren't going to ask you for anything either!



You will need a few parts:

1. the controller - Ranco ETC 111000-000 (search ebay)
2. Short extension cord (you will use both ends - available at Lowes or Home Depot)
3. Strain relief cable connector (1/.2" knockout, available at Lowes or Home Depot)
4. Yellow wire nut (or any one that will fit - available at Lowes or Home Depot)



 1. First, cut the cord ends , leaving 10" to 18" ends.

 2. Strip the cord sheath about 4" and strip each wire end.  Cut a 4" piece of black wire from the left over cord and strip both ends of it.

3. Remove the 4 screws on the controller and pull it apart. Lift the cardboard wiring protectors out of the way.

4. Remove nut from strain relief. Push the strain relief through the bottom knockout hole on the controller. Run the nut from the strain relief over the end inside the box and secure it by screwing it tight.

5. Push the cords together into the controller. Leave some slack for working room.

Here's how to think about the wiring: The prong end is supplying power to the controller through the upper terminals. The plug end is receiving the same white and green wires through the terminal and wire nut. The black wire is "switched" on and off by the lower terminals.

3. Wire the controller as shown by twisting the neutrals together and putting them in the upper right terminal. Twist a short piece of extra black to the prong side and insert them both in the upper middle slot. Run the output (plug side) black to the middle bottom. Run the short piece from the middle upper to the right hand lower terminal. Finally twist the green (grounds) together with a wire nut. Tighten the screws on the strain relief. Tighten all terminal screws and tug them gently to make sure the wires won't slip out.


6. Screw the controller back together and you are ready to program it.

7. Plug the controller in. It should come on and display the current probe temperature. You scroll through the simple menus with the SET button. The arrows change the values and you press SET to make the changes.

8. The HI is for heating and LO for cooling.. Use the arrows to select and the SET to enter the selection.


9. I use F, you can also use C.


10. The temp differential is set depending on what you are using the controller for. I use 1 degree for yogurt.


11. I use 116F for yogurt (actually Michelle makes the yogurt - I did the controller so she could use the crock pot and not have to store 2 appliances - crock pot and yogurt maker- in our kitchen) 



 8. Here is the set up - plug the controller into the wall and then the crock pot into the plug on the controller. Turn the crock pot on. Drop the temperature probe into the water in the crock pot. The controller will turn the crock pot off and on to maintain whatever temperature you have the controller set for. We use 116F for yogurt.

Simple! and takes about 15 minutes.

Comments

  1. Run the nut from the strain relief over the end inside the box and secure it by screwing it tight. Furnace Repair Edmond

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

David Bradley Walk Behind Tractor and Engine Swap

"A scythe is great for your back but very hard on your patience" - Patrick at Far Better Farmstead      It all started when it rained 80 inches this summer. Yes, I said 80 inches! Needless to say, I didn't get to put up much hay with my scythe and rake. I did do one good cutting, but should have got 2 or 3 and even the one cutting didn't cover the whole field. As much as I like the scythe, I started wanting a quicker way to cut a small amount of hay.  My fantasy rig is my old 600 Ford tractor with a sickle bar, rake, and old square baler. I sold the 600 several years ago and have regretted it every since. My second fantasy was a BCS or Grillo walk behind tarctor. You can get a sickle for them and many other implements as well. Both options are out of reach of our budget right now, so that's why I call them fantasies rather than options! As I searched around the web, I found out that Sears used to sell a walk-behind tractor called the David Bradley. ...

Building a Whizbang Wheel Hoe

I am a fan of Herrick Kimball from  the Deliberate Agrarian . I have read every blog post at his web site, built a whizbang chicken plucker (see it  here ), and own most of his books. So imagine my joy on Christmas morning when I unwrapped a Whizbang Wheel Hoe kit from Herrick's  Planet Whizbang  web site.  The contents were just some metal pieces, bolts and washers:

Whizbang Wheel Hoe After a Full Garden Season

Is summer already gone? It is so hard to believe that September is half gone. Despite lots of hard rain, about 75 inches here, our gardens did very well. I have been planning a post on the gardens (and lots of other posts, too) but we have been very busy just enjoying life here on the homestead. Anyway, the one new tool we used this year that really stands out is the Whizbang Wheel Hoe. The picture above was taken after a full garden season of almost daily use. The handles darkened a little from our dirty hands and the blued finish on the blade wore off with use, but the hoe held up wonderfully. How did it perform? Superbly! If you "stir" the dirt with it every other day or so, there will be no weeds. There were times we didn't do that, even for a full week when we went on vacation, and our garden was the most weed free that we've ever had. We still had to use a regular hoe between the plants, but this thing is very quick and easy down the rows.  Herr...