Brew Hugger PRO - Fermentation Heating Belt for Kombucha Home Brew With Power Dial and Thermometer Strip

I am a new kombucha brewer and I am on my first batch. I have the brew hugger pro wrapped twice around my one gallon jug and it is working great! I don't have it turned up very high. I would suggest making a mark with a silver sharpie where the sweet spot is to keep your brew at 80 degrees F. It seems to be a very sensitive dial, as in you don't have to turn it far to get a big increase in heat output. If you have kids, keep it up out of their reach and make a mark so you know if its been moved, haha! This takes the worry out of brewing and keeps you from having to turn the heat up in your house! I have a drafty country kitchen, so I was wondering how to accomplish this. Also, I was reading in The Big Book of Kombucha that it is very important to heat from the sides of the jar instead of the bottom. That is why I chose this option. It keeps the bacteria growing at a better rate, as opposed to the yeast over-growing from having heat applied to the bottom of the jar. Yeast hangs out at the bottom, more bacteria at the top! And you want a balanced brew. I am pretty excited as it looks like everything is growing according to plan and should be able to test the pH on Tuesday or Wednesday! The temperature strip for the outside of the jar does not have as bright color differences as other strips, but it is still accurate. I put an extra one on my brewer just to make sure. I didn't want anything to happen to my lil scoby!!! I also wanted to mention that I bought my SCOBY from South Brindle Farms and they included a HUGE amount of starter liquid, which I am sure is contributing to my success. :-)

As mentioned by other reviewers, the temperature control knob is awful which is why I gave it 3 stars. The markings are way off and there is no temperature indicator, just white dots. It does take some experimenting to figure out how to manage the temperature. I am using it for primary fermentation of wine. I attached it before adding the must in order to stabilize the temperature beforehand. I used a handheld temperature monitor to determine the actual temperature of the pre-yeast batch to get an understanding of how to move the temperature dial. In addition, the temperature strip that is included needs to be viewed with either a flashlight or a bright light app. on your phone to see the general temperature of your product. Again, a very poor measure of temperature. A handheld temperature monitor will give you the best accuracy, which I sterilize before each use.

Pros:Heats up quickly, straps around two 1-gallon containers easily, and holds temperature consistently. The cord length is more advantageous than I considered, making it easy to reach an outlet and more ideally position my brew. It is also very easily wraps around a single 1-gallon container, the grippy rubber really clings to glass making a secure feeling connection.Cons:It took me a while to dial in the temperature for my first brew. There are no markings on the dial when adjusting the temp, so if you lose your spot, you just have to find that sweet spot again. The temperature strip provided is not very accurate or easy to read. The color change is faint, and ranges about 4 degrees. All problems that are easily remedied by spending $30 on a thermostat or (as in my case) by utilizing a thermometer.

Dial is too sensitive and doesn't regulate heat well. I used product 3 times with no problems, but now even on lowest setting, it is too hot to even touch. I have tried to turn on and off to reset but it is still way too hot to brew Kombucha.

I'm giving 2 stars just for the fact it gets warm, but I'm reviewing this product based mostly on the dial, because that's what I bought this particular one for. I plugged it into a watt meter it runs full power at 25.4 watts and, when I try to dial it to 15 watts it will turn completely off or all the way back up, I cannot get it to stay at any other temp but full power. Which I read off my 2 gallon vessel at 92f.

I brew kombucha at home and have been doing it for about a year now. Normally, in Southern California, the weather stays pretty consistent all year. This means, I can keep the kombucha fermenting at a decent temperature. The last several weeks, it has been colder than usual and to save energy, I have not been running the heater in the house. Consequently, my kombucha could not ferment at the correct temperature (75-85 degrees). It was actually fermenting below 65 degrees which resulted in mold forming at the top. I immediately threw away and started over again. This time, I knew I needed a heating mechanism to assist in fermenting temps.This belt did the trick. Keep in mind, I am fermenting in 1 gallon vessels and this heating belt says it is for 2 gallons and larger. Wins Imports, the seller, promptly advised me on how to correctly wrap the belt around smaller vessels like mine. The seller even sent me pictures of how to do it. It worked like a charm! Last night, I completed my first batch (7 days fermentation at 85 degrees) and it tasted great this morning. Not too sour not too sweet with just the right amount of carbonation.I highly recommend this product. The temperature adjustment knob helps with regulating the temperature. I recommend that you monitor the temperature (the thermometer decal comes with the belt) every hour while the belt warms up and the vessel gets adjusted to the temperature. Adjust the temperature higher or lower as needed to keep the temps at the proper range. It warms up the vessel like an oven so it will not react quickly to any adjustments so just be patient. Once you find the right setting, it's safe to assume you can leave it at that setting ongoing. Just keep in mind that other variables will have to be considered (room temperature, which room it's in, the outside temperature, etc). I keep mine in the laundry room so when we start doing laundry, the room tends to become a little warmer and it will effect the vessel temp slightly, so I dial it down a bit during those times and when we're done, I turn it back to the original temp setting. Since there are no marks on the temperature adjustment knob, I made a mark myself so that I know where the sweet spot is just in case I need to dial it up or down temporarily.I think it's a great solution to maintaining proper temps and the seller of this product is outstanding in answering questions and helping with any other brewing questions.