Numerous tasks we see round listed below are constructed not simply because they are often constructed, however as a result of there’s no different possibility accessible. Necessity is the mom of invention, as they are saying. And for [Jeff] who has many 1000’s of {dollars} of meals stowed in a chest freezer, his want for one thing to maintain observe of his freezer’s standing was better than any industrial providing accessible. Not solely are freezers onerous on batteries, they’re onerous on WiFi alerts as nicely, so [Jeff] constructed his personal temperature monitor to resolve each of those points.
The plain resolution right here is to have a temperature probe that may be fished via the freezer in a roundabout way, permitting the microcontroller, battery, and wi-fi module to function exterior of the tough setting. [Jeff] is utilizing Ok-type thermocouples right here, wired via the again of the freezer. This one is also constructed right into a block of fabric which permits him to get extra diffuse temperature readings than a regular probe would supply. He’s additionally fixing another issues with commercially accessible probes right here as nicely, as lots of them require an Web connection or retailer knowledge in a cloud. To ensure every part stays native, he’s tying this in to a House Assistant setup which additionally permits him to simply make temperature calibrations in addition to notify him if something occurs to the freezer.
Though the construct may be very sturdy (or, as [Jeff] himself argues, overengineered) he does notice that since he constructed it there have been some further merchandise provided on the market that match this area of interest software. Besides, we all the time admire the custom-made DIY resolution that avoids issues like proprietary software program, subscriptions, or cloud providers. We additionally admire freezers themselves; one in every of our favorites was this restoration of a freezer with a $700,000 price ticket.
