Tiredboy

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I've been using a 7cuft chest freezer with temperature controller as a fermentation chamber and beer/wine store (when not fermenting). I've just bought a kegging setup so will be building a collar soon. Living on a hot island, insulation isn't something I can lay my hands on easily. Do you need to insulate the collar and if so, has anyone got any novel insulation ideas that don't incvolve popping down to Lowes/Home Depot and picking up a big sheet of insulation (not an option).

I'm thinking about a 6-8inch high collar (might be able to get away with 4inch if it will make the difference regarding insulation). I plan on using 1 inch thick wood but could use double (or triple) thickness if it is worth it. I had wondered whether laying sheets of kitchen foil between 2 peices of wood would affect the insualtion qualities enough to make it worthwhile.

carlisle_bob

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Hi

Just about anything that's mostly air will work as insulation. It's a good idea on a collar. It keeps the compressor happy by not working it to hard.

Ideas:

1) Thin wall wood box filled with stuff (lint, shredded newspaper, chicken feathers, ...)

2) Multiple layers of very thin wood with air gaps between them. 1/8" wood with 1/8" gaps might work.

3) Styrofoam salvaged from anything anywhere. Packing peanuts, shipping inserts from appliance, fishing trap markers, dead coolers .. all styrofoam is equal for this application.

There are lots of other possibilities if none of those work.

Bob

Revvy

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You don't still have the packing material the freezer came in do you? There was so much styrofoam encasing my 7cu freezer, that had I wanted to go with that, I could have used that.

To bad I can't send some of the leftover HD pink foam board I have left over from doing mine this afternoon to you. I had the big sheet cut into thirds so I could get it home, and only ended up using 1/3 of a board. I wonder if I could just treat one piece like a giant pink post card and stick a couple stamps on it.

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CS223

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Remember, the best insulation is a vacuum. That said, dead air space is the next best thing. Insulation simply serves to prevent air flow & conduction. My suggestion is to use some thin plywood or veneer. Use a furring strip top & bottom and a veneer sheet on the inside to create the collar box. You can fill the "box" with fiberglass if you can get it, you could use rice hulls, packing peanuts, bubble wrap, canned foam or just seal it up air tight.

Veneer | air space |veneer

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brtisbuck

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Styrofoam coolers?

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Revvy

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yeah, Bob mentioned that in his excellent post.

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Like my snazzy new avatar? Get Sons of Zymurgy swag, here, and brew with the best.

Revvy's one of the cool reverends. He has a Harley and a t-shirt that says on the back "If you can read this, the bitch was Raptured. - Madman

I gotta tell ya, just between us girls, that Revvy is HOT. Very tall, gorgeous grey hair and a terrific smile. He's very good looking in person, with a charismatic personality... he drives like a ****ing maniac! - YooperBrew

spaceplucks

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sawdust

PondScum

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How's your supply of newspaper? It's a good insulator in a pinch but it's pretty much useless if it gets wet so you'd have to protect it with some type of vapor barrier.

I like the idea of:
Veneer - airspace with loosely wadded newspaper - veneer.

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carlisle_bob

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Hi

... as used by Admiral Bird at the south pole to insulate his hut - good idea.

Bob

Tiredboy

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Thanks for the suggestions. It looks like insulation is needed then? Oh well, I'd hoped to get away without. I'll have to trawl the DIY stores at the weekend and see what I can find. I had thought about ordering a big sheet of the pink board as it wouldn't be too heavy so shouldn't be charged too much to ship it down - the problem is they'd probably switch to a "estimated weight based on size" rather than actual weight and also screw me for an oversized item! I have also considered getting a roll of neoprene (like http://www.amazon.com/Sponge-Neoprene-Thick-54-Wide/dp/B001FVG3CM/ref=sr_1_2?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1341343765&sr=1-2&keywords=neoprene) shipped down and then cutting it into strips and sticking to the inside of the collar (I'll just need to work out what thickness I'd need). Will have to put my mind to work (and find a good source of insulation information so I can see the reletive insulation offered by different materials - if anyone has one, please point me in the right direction).

EDIT - I wonder if I can increase the insulation properties by putting a layer of silicon sealant between an inner and outer collar. Any thoughts?