Editorial Technical Reference

Temperature control module (hot- and chilled-water module that heats, holds and cools the jacket of a yoghurt or dairy fermentation vat)

Q: How is this different from a panel temperature controller?

This page covers the hot- and chilled-water module that heats and cools a vat jacket; electronic controllers alone are on the Temperature controller page.

Q: What temperature profile does yoghurt need?

Teagasc gives incubation at 38-42 °C for four to six hours, then cooling to 35 °C in about 30 minutes and to 15 °C over a further 45 minutes for set yoghurt.

Q: Why not cool yoghurt as fast as possible?

Teagasc warns that cooling too rapidly can leave a layer of whey on the surface.

Q: How fast can the jacket water be heated?

GEA's direct-steam jacket heater heats 120 litres from 20 °C to 90 °C in eight minutes at 3 bar steam.

Jacket temperature control modules for dairy fermentation vats · hot water and chilled water to the vat jacket, heat-up, hold at incubation temperature, staged cooling of yoghurt, steam-heated water heaters and thermoregulated valves

A temperature control module here is the skid beside a dairy vat that sends hot water, then chilled water, through the vat jacket: it heats the milk, holds it at incubation temperature while the culture works, and cools it in stages when the yoghurt or curd is ready. Ask three things first: what temperature profile the product needs (heat, hold, cool) and how fast each step must go, how the hot water is made (steam, electric) and how the cold side is supplied, and how the controller switches between them without overshoot.

Hot- and chilled-water jacket temperature control modules for dairy fermentation and processing vats (yoghurt, cultured products, cheese milk), including steam-heated water heaters, circulation pumps, plate heat exchangers and thermoregulated valves. Circulating thermal-fluid units for reactors and other process vessels are covered on the Jacket temperature control system page; the yoghurt fermentation tank itself, with its agitation, pH control and process sizing, on the Industrial-scale yogurt fermentation tank page; panel and DIN-rail temperature controllers on the Temperature controller page; reactor temperature control units on the Temperature control unit (TCU) for jacketed and flow reactors page; mould temperature controllers on their own page; brewery fermenter temperature control on the Automated fermentation control system page.

CNFX editorial research · Sources checked October 12, 2026 · 3 sources

The temperature profile Making hot and cold water

Stainless steel skid with a plate heat exchanger, two blue centrifugal pumps, insulated pipework and temperature transmitters, piped to an open jacketed vat holding white milk product with a stirrer — Jacket heating and cooling skid beside a dairy vat

Start with your task

The temperature profileHeat, hold, staged cool. Making hot and cold waterSteam heaters, chilled water.

The yoghurt profile the module has to follow

Teagasc's guide to yoghurt production lists the steps: milk heated to 90 °C for five minutes, then "cooled to 38-42˚C, the optimum temperature range for the growth of bacteria", inoculated and held uniformly for four to six hours; once pH 4.5 is reached the coagulum is cooled to below 30 °C to stop excess acid. For set yoghurt it warns that cooling "too rapidly" can leave whey on the surface and recommends cooling "rapidly to 35˚C in approximately 30 minutes, and then to cool to 15˚C over a further 45-minute period". For stirred yoghurt, "chilled water is circulated through the mixing vat jacket for 30 minutes prior to slow agitation (<20rpm), until the temperature reaches 25˚C", and farmhouse producers are advised to incubate slightly lower, at 38-40 °C. [1]

Editorial calculation from the set-yoghurt profile: from an assumed 42 °C, the first step to 35 °C in 30 minutes is about 0.23 K/min, and the second step from 35 °C to 15 °C in 45 minutes is about 0.44 K/min, so the second stage calls for the faster cooling rate of the two. [1]

Tessa describes a batch vat cycle of heating to a pasteurisation temperature, "typically 145°F (63°C) for milk", holding it "usually 30 minutes", then cooling, and lists yoghurt among the products made in such vats. [3]

Give the module supplier the vat volume and jacket design, product and recipe temperatures (heat-up, incubation, cooling steps and times), utilities (steam pressure, electric power, chilled or ice water temperature and flow), control interface and recording, hygienic requirements, and the number of vats served.

Making the hot water and switching to chilled water

GEA offers a direct-steam water heater for jackets "which can heat 120 liters of water from 20°C to 90°C in eight minutes, operating at 3 bar steam pressure", with water temperature regulated by a thermoregulator and an electronically controlled on-off steam inlet valve, and the water circulated by a centrifugal pump. Its indirect steam water heaters heat 2,000 litres of water an hour to 90 °C through a stainless double-pipe coil, with level control and a thermoregulator feeding a modulating steam valve. [2]

Editorial calculation: heating 120 kg of water by 70 K takes about 120 × 4.19 × 70 ≈ 35,200 kJ; delivered in eight minutes (480 s) that is about 73 kW of heat, a figure to check against the steam supply. [2]

Heater, pumps, exchanger, valves and sensors on the module

Part	Role	Source
Steam water heater	Makes hot water for the jacket.	Direct or indirect steam. [2]
Thermoregulator and steam valve	Hold water temperature.	On-off or modulating. [2]
Circulation pump	Moves water through the jacket.	Centrifugal pump. [2]
Chilled water supply	Cools through the jacket.	30-minute jacket cooling for stirred yoghurt. [1]
Temperature control	Follows heat, hold and cool steps.	38-42 °C hold; staged cooling. [1] [3]

Vat temperature module order details

Paste it into your enquiry below or into an email to a maker, then replace every bracket.

Vat: [volume; jacket type; number of vats]
Profile: [heat-up; incubation; cooling steps and times]
Hot side: [steam pressure; electric]
Cold side: [chilled or ice water; temperature; flow]
Control: [recipes; recording]
Hygiene: [materials; cleaning]
Quantity: [modules]

See manufacturer records Send an enquiry through CNFX

Buyer questions

How is this different from a panel temperature controller?

This page covers the hot- and chilled-water module that heats and cools a vat jacket; electronic controllers alone are on the Temperature controller page. [1] [2]

What temperature profile does yoghurt need?

Teagasc gives incubation at 38-42 °C for four to six hours, then cooling to 35 °C in about 30 minutes and to 15 °C over a further 45 minutes for set yoghurt. [1]

Why not cool yoghurt as fast as possible?

Teagasc warns that cooling too rapidly can leave a layer of whey on the surface. [1]

How fast can the jacket water be heated?

GEA's direct-steam jacket heater heats 120 litres from 20 °C to 90 °C in eight minutes at 3 bar steam. [2]

Sources and what still needs a direct check

Sources checked 2026-10-12. Teagasc publishes a guide to yoghurt production; GEA describes its hot water heaters for dairy; Tessa describes batch pasteuriser vats.

Teagasc — Production of yoghurt (food diversification guide) ↗ Agency guide Return to text ↑
GEA — Hot water heaters for pasta filata cheese processing ↗ Maker product page Return to text ↑
Tessa Dairy Machinery — Batch pasteurizer: the complete buyer's guide ↗ Maker article Return to text ↑

Still to check yourself

Write the heat, hold and cool profile.
Size hot and cold utilities.
Check cooling rate against whey risk.
Confirm control and recording.
Verify the legal supplier and factory.

Buyer enquiry

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