For simplicity, I like the light-dimmer idea. It's true that, to a
light dimmer, a heating element looks like a group of lamp bulbs.
Therefore, it should work just fine.

At Home Depot, the largest, readily-available dimmer will handle about
a 600-Watt load. Although you didn't state what the wattage of the
device is, if the nameplate say 600 Watts or less, thad HD dimmer will
do the job!

I suggest that you buy a dimmer with a rotary control—not a slider.
The rotary control is easier to manage and remember (for example, it's
easy to change from two o'clock to four or five on the rotary
control—a little difficult on the slide control.

The HD clerk can tell you what you need once you explain your problem.
If you're confused, come back here and we'll help you.










On Thu, 26 Jun 2008 09:26:10 -0700 (PDT), maxine in ri
> wrote:

>OK all you home-handypersons, mechanical geniuses and electrical
>wiring experts, have i got a question for you!
>
>I got a new yogurt maker at a yard sale (lady had a failed
>kitchen store business, it was brand new in the box sealed
>etc.) First batch came out grainy (probably my fault)
>so I made the second batch under closer observation.
>
>Finished product was just over 130 degrees, which is
>the high end for yogurt cultures.
>
>Is there some way i can build a temperature control into
>the electric wire to reduce the temperature, or do I need
>to count this up to the usual yard sale failure?
>
>maxine in ri, soldering iron at the ready