Breaking Balls DIY Upright Cooler Incubator
Hey there ladies and gents!
Finally finished my DIY incubator project :) Here's the promised DIY thread with lots of pics. I'll be happy to help anyone that needs any questions answered. I think it turned out rather well. I have about a degree of variance from top to bottom. I might install a second fan up top but I am waiting for the temps to stabilize since I just added the water jugs.
And then there were two. One worked so I sold it and actually made some profit assembling my incubator!
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...1-03194511.jpg
Dropped the cover to expose the nasty wiring mess.
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23205117.jpg
Removing the condenser and fan unit (Recycle!)
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23205126.jpg
Pulling the drain tube/wire/coolant line channel cover
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23205141.jpg
Removing the compressor (make sure the refrigerant has been recovered)
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23205803.jpg
Retaining the stock junction box and spare outlet to power the inverter
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23212738.jpg
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23213308.jpg
Cleaning up the wiring so stock lighting functionality can be retained
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23215557.jpg
Removing the vinyl beverage wrap too forever! (Hint: Use a heat gun!)
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23224933.jpg
Soldering the 11" Flexwatt
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-29192347.jpg
Always use electric tape on the connections
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-29193018.jpg
A 3' piece of 11" Flexwatt on each side
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-29212403.jpg
Wires running through grommets from the junction box to the interior of the incubator
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-29212446.jpg
Silicon on all the interior edges
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-08131419.jpg
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-08132521.jpg
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-08131435.jpg
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-08132453.jpg
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-08132554.jpg
Hardware for the fan mounting
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-10014719.jpg
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-10014730.jpg
200mm Rifle Bearing computer fan (Large size, low noise, low rpm, high cfm)
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23193952.jpg
Rewired inverter to power the rheostat and fans
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23194028.jpg
Rheostat powered up
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23194059.jpg
Rheostat controls fan speed as well as allows on/off of each fan
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23194005.jpg
The rheostat and fans
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...2-23193939.jpg
Installing the lower fan
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-10014745.jpg
Fan mounted
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-10015354.jpg
Stealth mounted in the stock cooler grill to allow external adjustment
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-13143344.jpg
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-13143414.jpg
Top wiring cleaned up and mounted
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-13143445.jpg
Top fan and cleaned up wiring
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-13143454.jpg
Cleaned up wiring running into the channel
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-13143510.jpg
All finished except one thing
]http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...3-13143542.jpg
Vinyl is being cut for a new piece of plexiglass for the lighted sign on top. The black will block light and the blue will shine through the Breaking Balls logo. Coca-Cola font :)
http://i47.photobucket.com/albums/f1...or/Capture.png
Hope you enjoyed! Please feel free to message or ask questions on the thread if you need anything.
Regards,
B
Re: Breaking Balls DIY Upright Cooler Incubator
Quote:
Originally Posted by
jinx667
Awesome.
I need to find me one of those coolers. Still checking Craigslist every few days. Reminds me I need to go check now....
The original one I grabbed ended up working! So my $40 purchased turned into a $400 sale netting $360 in profit. I see them from time to time on there but sometimes people want ludicrous amounts for broken ones. A fellow ball python enthusiast hooked me up with the one I have now. It actually didn't work... lol. Good luck!
Regards,
B
Re: Breaking Balls DIY Upright Cooler Incubator
Quote:
Originally Posted by
cmack91
Looks good Brian:gj: how many man hours did you put into it?
Too many but scattered around quite a few weeks with a few hours here and there. We probably could have whipped it out in a weekend of non-stop work but my brother and I have conflicting schedules. This meant we worked on it a bit here and a bit there. The longest task was actually removing the vinyl wrap... lol. The small detail stuff added up though. I still have a can of spray paint to finish the lower grill and handle. They both could use it :)
Regards,
B
Re: Breaking Balls DIY Upright Cooler Incubator
Quote:
Originally Posted by
jinx667
Did you just measure and order the new vinyl/plexi from some place online or local?
The plexi can be had at a local Home Depot / Lowes. The vinyl is being cut by a friend. It is super easy to set up your own logo.
Regards,
B
Re: Breaking Balls DIY Upright Cooler Incubator
Good job on the DIY Incubator. Did you get the shelves with it ?
I need to find a cooler like that.:snake:
Re: Breaking Balls DIY Upright Cooler Incubator
Quote:
Originally Posted by
R&DP
Good job on the DIY Incubator. Did you get the shelves with it ?
I need to find a cooler like that.:snake:
Thanks! Shelves are resting against the wall :) I am just waiting for the water jugs to heat up and the temps to stabilize before I mess with it anymore.
Regards,
B
Re: Breaking Balls DIY Upright Cooler Incubator
Awesome job Brian!! Looks Professional and very well done! Now you got to get some eggs to fill that beast! :gj:
Re: Breaking Balls DIY Upright Cooler Incubator
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Ozz465
Awesome job. Where did u get the rheostat??
Thanks! I got all the parts for the fan, fan control, and rheostat at Newegg :)
Quote:
Originally Posted by
PghBall
Awesome job Brian!! Looks Professional and very well done! Now you got to get some eggs to fill that beast! :gj:
Thanks a lot Greg. I'm well on my way :) I should have eggs dropping within a month and from there it should be constant for several months. LOL.
Regards,
B
Re: Breaking Balls DIY Upright Cooler Incubator
Quote:
Originally Posted by
jsmorphs2
Now I see, you took the fans out. I just left ours in along with the condenser and copper pipe. I wasn't sure if it was still filled with freon :(.
It's a big EPA no-no to mess with the lines if they are still pressurized. We double checked mine at the schrader valve before we uninstalled. The refrigerant had either already leaked out or been recovered. My brother does HVAC so he was my trusty assistant during the entire project. We made a few weeks out of it working piece by piece. We're both sticklers for detail so I think it turned out nice :)
Regards,
B
Re: Breaking Balls DIY Upright Cooler Incubator
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Simple Man
It's a big EPA no-no to mess with the lines if they are still pressurized. We double checked mine at the schrader valve before we uninstalled. The refrigerant had either already leaked out or been recovered. My brother does HVAC so he was my trusty assistant during the entire project. We made a few weeks out of it working piece by piece. We're both sticklers for detail so I think it turned out nice :)
Regards,
B
Yeah, I didn't even mess with it. Maybe in the off season I'll have someone check it out and drain it if necessary and then pull all that stuff out. I'm sure that would make it a bit lighter to :P. And you guys did an awesome job, it's a super clean 'bator.
