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**tippetsnapper** · 01-04-2011, 12:31 AM

2 x 8 would clear just fine, be careful how heavy you get for those hinges. Before I got my collar built, I had the kegs in there connected with picnic taps and I could shut the lid. I think most of the builds on this thread used 1 x 10, not that its the only way.

Egbert · 01-04-2011, 04:00 AM

I see a bunch of the guys adding the collars to the lid. I would think it would be better to add the collars to the body so the hinge doesn't have the extra weight.

Anybody do it this way?

specialized · 01-04-2011, 11:01 AM

I wouldn't worry too much about the hinges. Check out some of the beefier builds, where people tile and build coffin boxes on top of their lids. They usually don't mod the hinges at all and they're just fine.

anycrew · 01-04-2011, 12:18 PM

I'm in the process of building my keezer using 1x10 lumber. I just wanted to let everyone know who might be doing this build that my measurement for the side panels was 18 3/4" vs the 19".
The distance between the plastic tabs was 20.25" - .75"x 2(thickness of the wood)=18.75"
Otherwise great and informative thread. thanks to the OP

RobVT3 · 01-04-2011, 04:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Egbert

I see a bunch of the guys adding the collars to the lid. I would think it would be better to add the collars to the body so the hinge doesn't have the extra weight.

Anybody do it this way?

If you go back through this thread you will see this question came up several times. The OP stated that having the collar attached to the base allowed all the fittings, fan, hoses to be lifted out of the way when you need to get inside to change kegs, maintenance, etc. He was concerned about damaging some of those parts when trying to place full corney's as well.

RobVT3 · 01-04-2011, 04:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tippetsnapper

2 x 8 would clear just fine, be careful how heavy you get for those hinges. Before I got my collar built, I had the kegs in there connected with picnic taps and I could shut the lid. I think most of the builds on this thread used 1 x 10, not that its the only way.

I actually meant to say 1 x 8. My question had more to do with the keg on the shelf having clearance. Any thoughts? How high is the shelf from the bottom?

**TomSD** · 01-04-2011, 06:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RobVT3

I actually meant to say 1 x 8. My question had more to do with the keg on the shelf having clearance. Any thoughts? How high is the shelf from the bottom?

A keg on the shelf with an 8" collar would be VERY close. So close I decided it wasn't worth it and went with a 10" collar. Even remeasuring it now I'm not comfortable saying that one would fit on the hump.

You could easily do it however if you wanted to take the time to strip and reinsulate the lid. There is a significant bulge in the lid that will get you the space you need if you take the time to carve it all out and resurface it with something.

Quote:

Originally Posted by RobVT3

If you go back through this thread you will see this question came up several times. The OP stated that having the collar attached to the base allowed all the fittings, fan, hoses to be lifted out of the way when you need to get inside to change kegs, maintenance, etc. He was concerned about damaging some of those parts when trying to place full corney's as well.

This is correct. To me it is more important to get all the hardware and hoses out of the way than anything else. The way everything is mounted inside my collar I doubt I could get cornies in if I didn't lift the collar out of the way, lol.

As for the hinges they are incredibly over engineered. I am more worried about snapping the wood off than the hinges failing. If it was 2" wood I don't think it would be a problem but 1" wood, minus shrinkage, is pretty darn thin. Not slinging the top open though goes a long way to preserving the integrity.

Quote:

Originally Posted by anycrew

I'm in the process of building my keezer using 1x10 lumber. I just wanted to let everyone know who might be doing this build that my measurement for the side panels was 18 3/4" vs the 19".
The distance between the plastic tabs was 20.25" - .75"x 2(thickness of the wood)=18.75"
Otherwise great and informative thread. thanks to the OP

Yeah I just snipped those tabs off. I like the front and back being even with the lid, but that is just me. A second with a sharp utility knife and they come off clean if you go that route.

Thanks for the updated measurements though for those that don't want to deal with the tabs!

RobVT3 · 01-05-2011, 01:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Egbert

I see a bunch of the guys adding the collars to the lid. I would think it would be better to add the collars to the body so the hinge doesn't have the extra weight.

Anybody do it this way?

Or you could do it this way...

He purchased extra hinges from the freezer manufacturer. What would be really cool is if he made the lock on the front functional...

Edited to add second image...

lotbfan · 01-08-2011, 02:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TomSD

Here is the blower I used...
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000O8AZ8K/ref=oss_product
and the hose...
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00280CXAA/ref=oss_product
and the transformer...
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000QFLWAG/ref=oss_product

If you have an old cell phone charger or similar that would work but I wanted to play with the speed so got the variable output one. I ended up settling on 3.5v which is trivial power wise and does a great job.

Just finished my TomSD style keezer (it really is shamefull, it is almost an exact copy) and as I go to order the bilge blower, hose, and transformer, I just wanted to check and make sure that you still like the performance you are getting out of it now, or if you would have gone another direction.

Thanks again for a great thread!

**TomSD** · 01-08-2011, 03:24 AM

The fan puts out a mean hum at the higher settings. Being a bilge blower I doubt it was ever designed to be silent though. Running at the lowest setting of 3v it is pretty quiet but can still be heard. Any higher and it is easy to identify anywhere in the house. My house is awful quiet though so take that for what it is worth.

The only time I run it at higher than 3v though is when I put in a fresh keg that needs to be cooled down. That much thermal mass can take some work to cool down so I figure the more circulation during that process the better.

The sound is mostly vibration so I am thinking of getting some rubber spacers and mounting them on the bolts I used to see if they deaden it some. It isn't enough to make me turn off the fan or replace it but it is an annoyance you should know about. You know learn from the experience of others and all, lol.

And as for a TomSD style keezer... I stole all my ideas from many other threads so mine is nothing original, lol. I did want to put as much of it in one place as I could though so I appreciate the positive feedback!