PSA: A $5 aquarium heater fixed my kimchi fermentation issues

I spent months fighting with cold kitchen countertops in winter. My kimchi would take forever to get bubbly and sometimes it would just sit there for weeks without doing anything. I tried wrapping jars in towels, putting them near the stove, even leaving them in my car on sunny days. Nothing worked consistently. Then I saw a post on some gardening forum where a guy used a cheap aquarium heater in a bucket of water for seed starting. I figured why not try it for my ferment jars. I grabbed a 50 watt heater from Petsmart for $5 and stuck it in a plastic tub filled with water with my sealed jars floating in bags. It keeps the temp right at 72 degrees and my last batch of kimchi was done in 4 days flat. Has anyone else rigged up weird heating setups for winter ferments?

3 comments

3 Comments

morgan89819d ago

Started doing something similar but with a cheap seedling heat mat under my crock. It works perfect for keeping things steady and my sauerkraut is finally ready in one week instead of three. Have you tried wrapping the whole tub in a blanket to cut down on heat loss?

scott.drew19d agoProlific Poster

Bet that blanket trick trap enough heat to bump it another few degrees?

brianl5319d ago

Man, I feel you on this one. I went through the same frustration last year with my kimchi just sitting there like a rock in winter. Its maddening when you put all that work into prepping and then nothing happens for weeks. I actually ended up doing something similar but I just wrapped my whole crock in an old electric blanket on low and set it on a timer. It worked okay but I worried about it getting too hot overnight. Your aquarium heater idea is genius because its actually made to keep things stable underwater. I might have to borrow that setup for my next batch because the blanket method is a pain to keep adjusted. What do you do about the jars floating around in the water does that cause any issues with the seal?

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