Choice of Submersible Heater for Honey Re-liquification System?
Beekeeper2016
Posts: 1
Hi folks,
Wondering whether anyone has any suggestions as to an affordable submersible heater that I might use as part of a microcontroller project for the reliquification of crystallized honey. I'm a small-time beekeeper who has about 5 gallons of partially crystallized honey, stored in a number of pint-sized mason jars, and I'm about to give the honey to a friend so he can make some mead. In order to re-liquifiy honey without destroying its flavor and essence, it should be warmed for several hours at approximately 100 degrees F. I plan to use either an old 20-gallon aquarium, a Coleman cooler, or a styrofoam tropical fish transportation crate to hold the jars almost up to their necks in shallow water, with said water being maintained at the 100-degree mark.
Which brings me to the choice of an appropriate heating option. I would like for the heater not to exceed 10A at 125 VAC, as I plan to use the 27115 Single Relay Board offered by Parallax to switch on/off the power to the heater. Aquarium heaters probably won't work: they contain built-in thermostats which prevent the temperature from exceeding 88 degrees, and I have no desire to hack one to remove the thermostat. There are "bucket heaters" for immersion into 5-gallon buckets in order to keep livestock water liquid during the winter months, but they typically do not activate if the temperature is 40 degrees or more. There are also an immersion heater, the NorPro 559, which is meant to quickly bring the liquid in a coffee mug to a near-boil; I'm intrigued by this one, especially given its low price ($10) and relatively low power draw (300W). However, I wonder whether a unit designed for short-term heating of 1 cup of water to 212 degrees F will have the stamina to operate continuously to bring several gallons of water to 100 degrees F (I guess I could heat the water on the stove before I poured it into the tank, so the little heater would only have to maintain the temp).
Any suggestions as to a heater I might use for this project? Or perhaps pointers to similar projects? Thank you.
Wondering whether anyone has any suggestions as to an affordable submersible heater that I might use as part of a microcontroller project for the reliquification of crystallized honey. I'm a small-time beekeeper who has about 5 gallons of partially crystallized honey, stored in a number of pint-sized mason jars, and I'm about to give the honey to a friend so he can make some mead. In order to re-liquifiy honey without destroying its flavor and essence, it should be warmed for several hours at approximately 100 degrees F. I plan to use either an old 20-gallon aquarium, a Coleman cooler, or a styrofoam tropical fish transportation crate to hold the jars almost up to their necks in shallow water, with said water being maintained at the 100-degree mark.
Which brings me to the choice of an appropriate heating option. I would like for the heater not to exceed 10A at 125 VAC, as I plan to use the 27115 Single Relay Board offered by Parallax to switch on/off the power to the heater. Aquarium heaters probably won't work: they contain built-in thermostats which prevent the temperature from exceeding 88 degrees, and I have no desire to hack one to remove the thermostat. There are "bucket heaters" for immersion into 5-gallon buckets in order to keep livestock water liquid during the winter months, but they typically do not activate if the temperature is 40 degrees or more. There are also an immersion heater, the NorPro 559, which is meant to quickly bring the liquid in a coffee mug to a near-boil; I'm intrigued by this one, especially given its low price ($10) and relatively low power draw (300W). However, I wonder whether a unit designed for short-term heating of 1 cup of water to 212 degrees F will have the stamina to operate continuously to bring several gallons of water to 100 degrees F (I guess I could heat the water on the stove before I poured it into the tank, so the little heater would only have to maintain the temp).
Any suggestions as to a heater I might use for this project? Or perhaps pointers to similar projects? Thank you.
Comments
Anyway, what about starting with the aquarium heaters to get it softened and flowing a little? 88 degrees is pretty close to your target and the heaters are made for submersion. With the 300 watt heater I would be worried about exceeding the 100 degrees you are shooting for locally, right around the heater, while not melting the rest. So get it warmed up and then kick on the bigger heater? Or, make a lower temp. thermostat for it.
What about a couple of electric space heaters with fans pointed at a metal container? That's what I do when I am trying to get comb to drain, just keep it a little warm to let the honey flow and drain better.
In any case, I think your are going to need to stir it somehow to get even temp. throughout.
Let us know what you work out and how well it works! I may well need to do this myself one day.
Jonathan
https://google.com/search?num=50&newwindow=1&q=sous+vide+immersion+heater+circulator+&oq=sous+vide+immersion+heater+circulator+&gs_l=serp.3..0i22i30l9.63338.82822.0.105549.14.14.0.0.0.0.396.1459.11j2j0j1.14.0....0...1c.1.64.serp..0.2.497...0i30.AdY2q9QA5hM
You could even use domestic hot water and a solenoid valve from a washing machine if the container (or laundry tub) had an overflow tube to keep the water level below the top of the jars. Just add hot water as needed.