DIY circulator

Simply put, I'd like a circulator for home and work. I've seen that there are now home models, anova, nomiku etc. However they've been met with mixed reliability results.

I've been contemplating building a circulator for a while now based http://seattlefoodgeek.com/2010/02/diy-sous-vide-heating-immersion-circulator-for-about-75/ . I'd prefer to be hands on with building it because, lets face it, that's half the fun. I'd like to know if any of y'all have built one, what problems you may have faced and how you solved them. Also mention where in the world you're located and where you sourced your parts from.

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Comments

Johan_Edstrom_5586

Several (6 or 8 or so). Buy an Anova or Nomiku or Sansaire. Scott (SeattleFoodGeek) created the Sansaire. For the fun of building it - sure. For stability, reliability - fuggedaboutit.

You'll face problems with calibration, moisture and electronics, ventilation, amperage, heat, water circulation, heat elements, safety, ease of use, reliability, machining, long term operation

- Just to name a few.

If you want to avoid mixed reliability - avoid DIY, for the same reason that you'd buy a BMW, Audi, Chevy instead of building it yourself.

Brendan_Lee_56950

I agree. I've built a handful myself and I wouldn't think twice about an anova or sansaire over diy. Don't underestimate the worth of a warranty. You get none of that with diy.

tshewman

I'm going to swim uphill a little here and suggest/recommend a Polyscience (creative series). Not becuaese the acronym matches this website :-) (though that's kind of an abstract bonus), however, I have one of the smaller versions and a PS and for time to heat, dependability, solid (have made a few trips with it), functions etfc. It's hard to beat (IMHO). Especially if work is food industry.....

Johan_Edstrom_5586

I don't think that is swimming uphill at all, I tend to forget about PS as I have, use and love them

Johan_Edstrom_5586

I wonder where you'd legally be able to use a non certified product anywho in a commercial setting (in the states). I wouldn't want to risk burning down my establishment if I had a say so.

bkeene12

I tried for about three weeks and finally had to give up as I could never get the temp controller to work right. You can look around on eBay for the controllers. After it was all said and done, my attempt cost me twice as much as what I would of paid for one online (and they come with a one year warranty and also circulate the water)- BUT, I had fun trying and learned a lot. I ended up with one Anova and a Sansaire.

mendel_115066

I'e made tonnes. Very easy and cheap. However, I don't recommend other do it cos of the high voltages and water nearby. just save yourself the safety concern, buy an anova/sansaire etc and build something like a smoking chamber...

however, if you're still interested all you need is a PID (with SSR output), a thermocouple, a SSR and some wiring. Then you have a universal controller that you can utilise with a heating element and a fishtank pump to get the result you posted above, or plug it into a slow-cooker to get a quick, uncirculated bath. My next project is taking apart an induction hotplate to get the same result as the "Meld".

Brandon_Byrd_40557

Just buy one. Whatever you build is going to be uglier, less reliable, and less safe than what's currently available for $179+. With the new round of inexpensive circulators, the cost savings from DIY really aren't that much and the difference in build quality makes purchasing one wroth the premium.

Brandon_Byrd_40557

And it'd be totally insane to use a DIY circulator in a commercial setting.

borgech

Definitely buy one (I tried the DIY route, and it was worth it for the experience, but it ended up not being practical and I never use is any more.) If you want to build it for the experience, go for it. If you are trying to save some $, it isn't worth it as in my experience I ended up spending more . At under $200, the question for me now is, "how many?"

stenehjemj

I'll just add one more of the same. I built a few and while I learned a lot I don't use any of them for cooking. I can't see how any of the low cost models could be any less reliable than a DIY model. I used to do a lot of trouble shooting. I have a PS Creative now that has never let me down.

If you still want to try, I'd avoid the "coffee heaters" and find a more robust solution for the heating element. Dave Arnold complained about voltage leaking from these and shocking him every time he used his DIYs. I made one version I use to control an outlet and use it with an aquarium heater for fermenting beer in a water bath or sometimes an electric hotplate in a DIY smoker.

Ebay and Amazon will have everything you need.