Jersh's Keezer build... Keezer thread #1,493,829

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Jersh

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 26, 2008
Messages
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Location
Tampa, FL
My wife and I recently relocated from DC to Florida. As soon as I realized that we were going to be living in a house with plenty of room I immediately began making plans for a keezer… That was about four months ago and I finally found time to get this beast started. On Thursday I picked up a used 8 cf deep freezer off Craigslist for $40. It’s about 8 years old and I’m praying that the beer Gods will keep this thing running for another 8 or more years. It will eventually be a 4 tap keezer once all is said and done. SWMBO left town after work yesterday to go see her mom for the weekend, so I figured yesterday and today would be an ideal time to get this going.

Here is a photo after I attached the collar. I’m cautiously optimistic that I might be able to squeeze 5 cornies onto the floor of this thing, but incase I can’t I wanted to have room on the hump to have a backup ready. I also plan on adding a 5th tap eventually, perhaps a stout faucet. As you can see I extended the base and collar an extra ~12 inches past the freezer, I did that so I could store the CO2 tank outside but still have it hidden.

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Here is a photo of the paneling as it is being attached… This stuff ended up being more of a PITA than I was expecting it to be, but I guess the main reason it was a PITA is simply because I’d never worked with it and really didn’t know what I was doing with it, so I had to remove it and reinstall a couple times before I got it right.

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Here is a photo of the main cabinet with all the paneling installed, as well as the base trim installed. The upper trim really wasn’t necessary because it’s going to be hidden as you’ll see in a few more photos, but it does make it look better when the lid is opened.

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Here is the main cabinet essentially complete and ready for the lid

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Here is the trim that I wrapped the bar with, it’s just a basic 1x4. The box is a box of books being used for weight while the liquid nails dried. I stained these pieces first just so I wouldn’t have to worry about getting stain on the bar top. Which by the way is really the only thing I’m disappointed in with this project… I wanted to use the Krylon ‘Make it Stone’ paint that Guntr used for his keezer build
but I couldn't find it locally at any of the Home Depots nearby. I ended up some textured spray paint that I thought was going to be closer to a black, but it was more of a silvirish gray, so I ended up painting over that with the Krylon 'Hammered' black paint... It's fine as it is, but I think the stone stuff that Guntr used looks great and I think it would have looked nice on mine as well.

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And finally, here it is as it stands now... The coffin box isn't attached yet, I still have to add the corner trim and I'm also going to build a removable 'lid' that will allow me to access the beer line. I fully intended on building that today as well, however the only piece of lumber that I had left was 11" and I needed 11 1/4", ain't that a beyotch! I didn't feel like making another run to HD, so I just cleaned up everything and will tackle it again sometime soon!

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I'll continue to add photos as I get closer to completion, but all-in-all I'm very pleased with the progress I made yesterday and today! This is my first attempt at something like this so overall I'm very pleased with the way it's turning out. I will say that it's a lot bigger than I was prepared for.... SWMBO hasn't seen it yet and I think she's going to soil her panties when she does lol, but oh well. You know what they say, 'tis easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission, however I did have permission, she just didn't realize what she was signing up for when she agreed to this!
 
Excellent work! Makes my keezer collar look pretty low rent. How are you cooling the tower that far above the original freezer?
 
Nice looking rig... I like it. :mug:

I'm disappointed that I hadn't thought to enlarge mine like you did. I'd have done similar, except on mine, I might have insulated the extension, accommodated airflow from the main freezer body, put shelves in it, and put a door on the front of it. That'd give me room to store frosty mugs and some bottles of other brews...
 
Excellent work! Makes my keezer collar look pretty low rent. How are you cooling the tower that far above the original freezer?

I'm not sure yet actually, I'm certainly open to suggestions!

Right now my plan is to cut a fairly large hole in the lid for the lines to run through... I might even make it basically the size of the coffin... which was originally 10.5"x17.5" before I added the outer paneling and trim... So I'll probably cut the whole to about 9" x 16" or so... I'm also going to install a couple fans to help keep the temperatures even, and I'll be fully insulating the inside of the coffin, as well as insulating the inner surface of the collar. I'm not sure if that will be enough to keep the lines cool or not... If not, I'll attach a hose to a fan in the main part of the freezer and run it up to the coffin to supply cold air that way.
 
your external CO2 tank idea is freaking genius!

Im starting to plan on keezer build for this winter (have to get a house first, *sigh*) and I thought a 7 or 8 would be great (hard to find 14+ on CL), but the damn tank!

Now this, maybe a little side door to adjust the pressures, awesome. Will you be running one line into the cooler and regulate from there, or 5 lines into the cooler?
 
Will you be running one line into the cooler and regulate from there, or 5 lines into the cooler?

I haven't decided yet... I'm still debating on how I want to do it, I haven't ordered any of the regulators, tubing, quick disconnects, etc... All I have right now are my Perlick faucets and shanks, the rest will be ordered soon.
 
I have my CO2 tank sitting outside next to the keezer, with dual regulators leading to dual lines that go through the collar. I have manifolds inside to allow splitting for the different Cornies. The wheats are on higher pressure than the porter and Scotch ale. You could certainly use one or two secondary regulators inside to accomplish the same thing.
 
Jersh,
I got mine up and running Saturday with nothing cooling the inside of the coffin. About 12" of beer line is all that's not in the feezer. 1/4 of the first pour of the day is a bit foamy, but it’s fine after that.
 
Jersh,
I got mine up and running Saturday with nothing cooling the inside of the coffin. About 12" of beer line is all that's not in the feezer. 1/4 of the first pour of the day is a bit foamy, but it’s fine after that.

Glad to hear you got it up and running! How big is the 'hole' that you cut for your beer lines to run through?

On a side note, SWMBO got home from her weekend away yesterday afternoon, and much to my pleasure she loves the keezer! I hadn't told her what it was going to look like, I kept telling her I was building a kegerator, so she had no idea what to expect.
 
Jersh,
I got mine up and running Saturday with nothing cooling the inside of the coffin. About 12" of beer line is all that's not in the feezer. 1/4 of the first pour of the day is a bit foamy, but it’s fine after that.

I was thinking of having the tubing inside the coffin running inside some flexible copper tubing that extends into the freezer. Have you tried this with yours? If that does not work on mine I just may cool the coffin. Just looking for peoples input.
 
It's 2 1/8". I have that size hole saw and didn't want to spend $$$ on a smaller one. Seems fine, I just stuffed a piece of foam in the hole to close it up a bit. If you want to use it, let me know, I'll meet you for a beer.

BTW, looks great! That Strawberry Blonde will be a good first pour.
 
It's 2 1/8". I have that size hole saw and didn't want to spend $$$ on a smaller one. Seems fine, I just stuffed a piece of foam in the hole to close it up a bit. If you want to use it, let me know, I'll meet you for a beer.

BTW, looks great! That Strawberry Blonde will be a good first pour.

hmmmm... I just cut a big ass hole in my lid haha, it's 12"x5"... I hope the big hole doesn't cause any problems.... I figured the big hole might help keep the coffin box cool and prevent foamy first pours. I guess time will tell!
 
Well I finished up the construction of my keezer tonight, I had to put together a lid for my coffin box and I drilled the holes for the shanks. I left a spot in the middle for future expansion to a 5th faucet, which will most likely be a stout faucet.... I went ahead and sanded it all down tonight as well, so I might put on the first coat of stain tomorrow evening.... Here it is in it's current state:

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and here's a better view of the coffin box. I do not plan on permanently securing the lid, I want to keep it removable so I can have easy access to the beer lines. I think I'm doing to get some magnet strips that I will use to hold it in place so it doesn't fall off when I open the lid to change tanks.

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I was thinking of having the tubing inside the coffin running inside some flexible copper tubing that extends into the freezer. Have you tried this with yours? If that does not work on mine I just may cool the coffin. Just looking for peoples input.

That's not a bad idea. I wonder how far outside the freezer the copper would get and stay cold?

I've also considered a computer fan on a box inside the freezer with an exhaust tube up into the coffin box. Pull in cold air, blow it into the coffin.

hmmmm... I just cut a big ass hole in my lid haha, it's 12"x5"...
Jersh, you may want to insulate the inside of your coffin to cut down on heat. They have some 5/8" pink insulation board at HD or Lowe's that I want to put inside mine. Maybe two thicknesses. I know cold air sinks, but your freezer may run a lot with that size hole in the top.
 
I've spent the last few days and evenings working on getting this beast stained... She's finally done (at least the exterior construction is done, I haven't started plumbing her yet) and we roller her into the house tonight. I went with red mohagony stain... I had to put 3 coats on to get it to the correct depth of color to match our dining room table and wine rack that the keezer is sharing a room with... It matches pretty dang good... I probably should have went with semi-gloss poly instead of gloss, but oh well, too late now.

The other incredible surprise that I got was that I'll be able to fit 8 kegs in this thing if I want! The person I bought it from said that it's only 8 cubic feet, but I think it must be a little bigger than that. Or maybe not, who knows... Anyways, I can fit 6 kegs on the floor, and 2 more on the hump.... More than likely I'll never have that many in there, I'll probably end up using the hump for lagering.

The swamp-cooler on the right contains the strawberry blonde that will be the first beer that we have on tap... It would normally be in the fermentation fridge that is to the left of the keezer but I had to put it in a bucket instead of Better-bottle because of all the strawberries, and the thermostate adjustment in the fridge is in the way and the bucket won't fit... the beauty of this fridge is that I can set it on '2' and it will hold steady between 60 and 62F.


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wow its beautiful. did you do tyhe engravings on the coffin box yourself? they are awesome. hope it poors good.

Thanks!

Na the trim I bought was already engraved... The trim along the bottom of the keezer and bottom of the coffin box are the same, just basic engraved base-board... The trim along the top of the coffin box has the same engraving but it's chair rail so it's a different shape... All came from Home Depot...
 
Any issues with the freezer overheating due to the paneling? If there is an airspace between the wood and the freezer, then it is not going to cool itself off properly. If the wood is glued directly to the freezer outer walls, then the heat can escape through the wood via conduction.
 
Any issues with the freezer overheating due to the paneling? If there is an airspace between the wood and the freezer, then it is not going to cool itself off properly. If the wood is glued directly to the freezer outer walls, then the heat can escape through the wood via conduction.


To be honest, I don't know... I haven't plugged in the freezer yet, I'm waiting until my temp controller gets here.

The wood isn't glued directly to the freezer, but it is mounted flush to the freezer on the 2 sides that are enclosed... The side that the compressor vent is on is 'open', meaning that there is 1 foot between the freezer wall and wood paneling. I'll have a fan in that chamber that will cycle on and off with the compressor.
 
I was commenting because my frigidair's sides get VERY HOT. I had it right next to my wine fridge, but moved it a few feet over cause it was warming it up!
 
thats a beaut, ever consider making an adjoining bar counter, you could have a nice "L" shape

nice work on the keez
 
Any issues with the freezer overheating due to the paneling? If there is an airspace between the wood and the freezer, then it is not going to cool itself off properly. If the wood is glued directly to the freezer outer walls, then the heat can escape through the wood via conduction.


ACtually from what ive seen on here, you need that airspace, but also you need a fan or soemthing to clear the hot air from that space. Wood is a pretty good insulator, so i dont know if youll see much heat escape through "conduction"
 
ACtually from what ive seen on here, you need that airspace, but also you need a fan or soemthing to clear the hot air from that space. Wood is a pretty good insulator, so i dont know if youll see much heat escape through "conduction"

Depends entirely on thickness, use, species, and assembly, because in most cases, contrary to your statement, wood is not a very good insulator at all.... in fact, in the walls of your home, the vast majority of the heat escaping through the walls (with the exception of the windows or the gaps around them) is through the studs themselves...

On average, softwoods have an R-value of around 1.4 per inch, while most hardwoods are a scant 0.7 per inch. If you're talking 1/8"-1/4" paneling as most of us have used when directly facing freezers, you're talking about an R-value of about 0.087 to 0.35.... or in the simplest terms... next to nothing. The key is to keep it very tight to the siding of the freezer.

If it's not tight, then yes, you need a fan, because contrary to wood, an air space is a very good insulator. If you allow heat to build between the walls of a freezer and the wood paneling, you're in for trouble... but if you allow it to pass directly through the paneling, you're in pretty good shape.
 
That is a beautiful keezer. I wish I would have thought about extending mine to store a co2 tank and regs. Be sure to keep us updated as you start using this beast...I may make some changes to mine based on this design. Thanks Jersh!
 
That is a beautiful keezer. I wish I would have thought about extending mine to store a co2 tank and regs. Be sure to keep us updated as you start using this beast...I may make some changes to mine based on this design. Thanks Jersh!

Thanks Russ! Also thanks for the quick shipping on those regulators, they'll be put to use soon!
 
If it's not tight, then yes, you need a fan, because contrary to wood, an air space is a very good insulator. If you allow heat to build between the walls of a freezer and the wood paneling, you're in for trouble... but if you allow it to pass directly through the paneling, you're in pretty good shape.

precisely.
 
Nice Picture. Now see, if I went through all that hard labor to make it match the dining room furniture, the first thing my wife would say when she walked in the room is "How come you didn't make a pretty box for that cooler with the paint bucket?"
 
Nice Picture. Now see, if I went through all that hard labor to make it match the dining room furniture, the first thing my wife would say when she walked in the room is "How come you didn't make a pretty box for that cooler with the paint bucket?"

Thanks!

yeah she wasn't real fond of that, but that's long gone... I only had to use the swamp cooler because it was a strawberry ale and had 5 lbs of strawberries in it, so I didn't think it would all fit in one of my better bottles, so I put it in bucket and the bucket doesn't fit in my fermentation fridge.
 
Well this thing has been a long time coming... I've finally commandeered a temperature controller, the company I work for sells them and it took me a while to figure out how to get one for free :mug:

Here's a photo of the controller... My only complaint is that it only has a variance of 2 degrees. I currently have it set at 39, so it will kick the compressor on when it warms to 41, then kick off when it hits 39.

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The other thing that I'm quite concerned about is that the compressor is running A LOT, or so it seems... I'm sure it will get better when I get a few more kegs in there, but right now it will only kick off for about 15-20 minutes before it cycles back on. I'm not sure what else I can do to help it hold temp. I have a small fan running 24/7 inside to circulate air, and I also have what I think to be pretty decent insulation in the lid.... I removed the factory insulation and replaced it with two 3/4" sheets of R5 foam insulation, and then used the spray foam that expands to fill in the gaps around the edge. I also have about 3/4 of the inside of the collar covered with the same thing. I do not have the probe in water or anything, perhaps I should give that a try?
 
Looks AWESOME !!!!!!

Is it a big pain to open the lid? Could you please post a photo with the lid open? Just wondering how it was attached.
 
Wow. I didn't realise how HUGE it was before I saw the pic of you standing next to it. Haha. Looks awesome!

Definitely put the probe in some water (if it's waterproof) and see if that helps the cycling issues.
 
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