4 hours ago, daveb said:In my experience the heat loss is noise.
I think you would concede, on reflection, that an uninsulated container with a film (or no) cover will cause the circulator's heating element to cycle and run more frequently than would an insulated, tight setup. If you and Weedy won't, you should consider the example of a larger-scale sous vide--a hot tub or jaccuzzi; these are almost always insulated, and wise owners also cover them when not cooking humans. This is not merely to save a few dollars of electricity, but also to save wear and tear on the equipment.
Similarly the "noise" and "efficiency" of starting with bath water that is already near the target temperature. Why wait (and pay twice) for that 'lil 800W coil to bring ambient water to temp?
