TS – Temperature Set Value – Your target temperature

HD – Heating Differential – Sometimes called offset by other manufacturers. This tells the controller how close you want to keep the temperature to the desired temperature set value. If you want it to stay very close, you would set it at 1 degree. That probably makes sense for fermentation. If you’re not as concerned you could let it wander a few degrees. That may make sense for your kegerators. Note: While some controllers have only a single offset or differential value that applies to heating and cooling, the ITC-308 breaks this out into both heating and cooling variables. The HD figure applies while heating, while while the CD figure applies when cooling. Here is an example from the manual – “For example, set TS=25°C, CD=2°C , and HD=3°C, then when measured temperature is higher or equal to 27°C（TS+CD）, system enters refrigeration status; when temperature decline to 25°C(TS), stop refrigeration; when measured temperature is lower or equal to 22°C（TS-HD, system enters heating status; when the temperature raised to 25°C(TS), stop heating.”

CD – Cooling Differential – See HD for a description of CD

AH – Alarm High Limit – When measured temperature is higher or equal to AH, high temperature alarm will be triggered.

AL – Alarm Low Limit – When measured temperature is lower or equal to AL, low temperature alarm will be triggered

PT – Compressor Delay – Sometimes called Anti-Short Cycle Delay by other manufacturers – This is an important feature that helps to protect your freezer or refrigerator’s compressor. This setting (usually expressed in minutes) tells the controller the minimum amount of time to let the compressor rest. This is regardless of other settings. Example: ASD set to 5 minutes. The cooling cycle has just kicked off on your chest freezer based kegerator and you open the lid. One minute later the probe has warmed up and is again calling for cooling… Nothing happens until the 5 minutes has passed. Overriding temp controllers are asking cooling devices to do something they may not have been engineered for. A typical chest freezer cycles on only rarely when used as a freezer. Setting these to a 1 degree offset for fermentation temp control isn’t exactly what the engineers had in mind. ASD helps mitigate that issue and extend the life of your device. From the manual: “Under refrigeration mode, after power on, if the measured temperature is higher than the value of setting temperature(TS) plus cooling differential(CD), the equipment won’t start refrigeration immediately, but waiting for a delay time.”

CA – Temperature Calibration – Use this setting to calibrate or correct the controller. From the manual: “When there is deviation between measured temperature and actual temperature, use temperature calibration function to align the measured temperature and actual temperature. The corrected temperature is equal to temperature before calibration plus corrected value( corrected value could be positive value, 0 or negative value)”

CF – Temperature Unit C or F – Change the display between Fahrenheit and Celsius

ITC-308 value ranges in Fahrenheit Mode. Consult Manual for Centigrade Ranges

A look at the power and temperature cables A look at the 5′ temperature cable The manufacturer says that the temperature probe is waterproof and submersible. I’ve found that to be true. Here is the probe submerged in a growler. I left it submerged for a couple weeks and it continued to work as expected. Here’s a look at the plug in cable. It has two outlets, one labeled cooling and one labeled heating. Plug your cooling device (typically a refrigerator or freezer) into the cooling device and your heating device into the heating outlet. You can also leave either unplugged if you’re only interested in heating or cooling. By using both a heating and cooling device you can really dial in fermentation temperature. Or, if you’re running a kegerator, you’re probably only interested in cooling. The Itc-308 and similar controllers are sometimes called overriding temperature controllers. The thermostat in this unit essentially takes over control from your heating or cooling device by cycling on and off the power as needed.

In this picture, I’m using a Lasko MyHeat 100 to keep my fermentation temp up. Note: Always read and follow manufacturer’s directions. If you’re looking for something for the heat side of the equation, check out something like a Homebrew Fermentation Heater

A look at the display in the dark

Back of the unit. Displays some specifications and additional information. The mounting hole in use. A screw is not included. I tested accuracy using an ice water bath. Here is the probe submerged in an ice water bath housed in a Spiegelau Stout Glass.

The ice water reads 32.5 deg F. That’s within .5 deg F and relatively impressive. For a point of reference, that beats the stated accuracy tolerance for both the CDN-DTQ450X (+ or – 2 deg F) and the Thermapen Mk4 (+ or – .7 deg F). The ITC-308 can also be calibrated if necessary.

One of the first things I used this for was maintaining temperature while carbonating with my Spunding Valve. See: Build a Spunding Valve Fermenting Great Fermentations’ “Piney the Welder“ Fermenting Great Fermentations’ Dark Side Robust Porter

Addendum – Hands on Review Inkbird ITC-308 WiFi

Inkbird introduced an updated version of the ITC-308 with WifFi functionality in the first quarter of 2019. This addendum is by Homebrew Finds Contributor Brad Probert. Brad is an engineer, expert homebrewer and experienced reviewer.

In Action Fermenting Using a Spike Brewing Flex Fermentor – Hands on Review

After using the Tilt Bluetooth Hydrometer on many fermentation batches, being able to have continuously updated gravity readings has opened up new possibilities for me during fermentation. While monitoring the trends in gravity over time, I can see when fermentation rate is starting to slow, and I can step in and bump up the temperature to keep things moving along. This is what I do on all my fermentations now. Start at a temperature on the low end of the yeast’s temperature range, and then just keep tabs on the gravity drop rate.

Tilt Data Plot (click to enlarge) – shows temp adjustment points – Hands on Review Tilt Bluetooth Hydrometer

However, I developed a new type of FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out). I’d now be sitting at work checking the progress of fermentation and then be thrown into a panic because I could see the gravity starting to slow down and I was helpless at work, not able to bump up the temperature. I’ve even called home when I was out of town and talked my 12-year old son through the process of how to increase the set point temperature. So when I saw Inkbird had a Wi-Fi controller, I was excited.

App Screenshot – heating active mode App screenshot – settings Heating and Cooling Outlets Temp Probe

The controller works exactly like the regular ITC-308 controller with easy temperature set point adjustment, a hardwired temperature probe included, and a receptacle that has both a Cooling and Heating plug. With the Wi-Fi feature, a one-time setup process done via a downloaded App on your phone gives you the ability to check the temperature reading and adjust the set point temperature up or down remotely via your smartphone. So now, whenever I check the gravity from my Tilt reporting, if I see I need to adjust the temperature, I just switch over to the Inkbird app and adjust it. Totally simple, and no more FOMO.

Conclusions

The ITC-308 by Inkbird is a great temperature controller. It is accurate, easy to use, has great features and is reliable. Because of it’s features and general price, I called this a game changer when it first came out. After using it for years, I will stand by that. As far as comparing general price and features to other controllers, as of this writing, I don’t know of anything that’s close to the Inkbird ITC-308.

After years of using the original ITC-308 temperature controller, I can heartily recommend it to you to aid with fermentation and kegerator temperature control. I think the ITC-308 is an outstanding choice.

Inkbird ITC-308 Max.1200W Heater, Cool Device Temperature Controller, Carboy, Homebrew, Fermenter





Inkbird WiFi ITC-308 Digital Temperature Controller Thermostat,Remote Monitoring Controlling,Home Brewing&Fermentation,Breeding&Incubation,Greenhouse,Support Amazon Alexa,Google Assistant,IFTTT





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Special Thanks to Inkbird for providing the WiFi unit used for evaluation in this review.

Make sure the components you use are compatible and rated for your intended application. Contact manufacturer with questions about suitability or a specific application. Always read and follow manufacturer directions. review:itc308 tag:tpr