Another Keezer Build

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specialized

Well-Known Member
Joined
May 6, 2010
Messages
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Location
New Jersey
Just wanted to showcase my keezer build for everyone and share any info I can. These forums have have been such a great resource for all things brewing that I wanted to give back.

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This was the first purchase. 7.0 cu Holiday brand freezer from Lowes.

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This is my kegging setup. I've got 4 cornies (1 not pictured). They fit in there but are very snug. A 5lb tank sits on the hump without problem.

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I built a 3d model using google sketchup based on Jesters keezer build. I resized everything to work on my 7.0 cu ft holiday freezer.

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I was suprised with how well things are mimicking the plans. I am a rookie when it comes to carpentry but have learned that taking things slow yields impressive results.

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This is just an exploded view showing the framing and the paneling

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I've begun work on the lid. I decided to ditch the current lid and build an entirely new one. I didn't feel like drilling holes through the stock lid in case I ever decide to repurpose it as a normal freezer. I doubt that's going to happen though based on how much money I've pumped into this thing.

The bottom part of the lid is just your run of the mill 2x4, the top is MDF. Right now I have everything painted in a primer and plan on putting a coat of exterior paint on it. The paint won't be visible when the keezer is finished it's merely to seal the wood from any moisture in the freezer.

That's it for now. I'll keep this post up to date with my progress. Unfortunately I'm going away this weekend and will be out on business all next week so updates will be slow coming. As of right now I hope to finish it over Xmas break.
 
I noticed you have only 3 kegs, but 4 taps. I resolved the same issue by adding a 3 gal and put it up on the little shelf your using for the C02. You can fit the C02 down on the lower level. I like to use the 3 gal for extra storage or high gravity beers like barley wine. Hope this helps.

Good Luck
 
I noticed you have only 3 kegs, but 4 taps. I resolved the same issue by adding a 3 gal and put it up on the little shelf your using for the C02. You can fit the C02 down on the lower level. I like to use the 3 gal for extra storage or high gravity beers like barley wine. Hope this helps.

Good Luck

I actually have a fourth it's just not full at the moment. I might look into what you said after this is all done though, because getting that fourth corny in there is a struggle.
 
Well they don't really sell it in that form. I bought a 4X8 piece, had homedepot rip it in half. When I got home i sized it to my exact needs. I'll have to think of somehting to do with the other 4X4 piece I have sitting around.
 
Subscribed. Starting my keezer build myself. Just about to make my rolling base.
You going to vent around the sides to dissipate heat?
 
Subscribed. Starting my keezer build myself. Just about to make my rolling base.
You going to vent around the sides to dissipate heat?

As it stands now the walls of the freezer sit 3.5 inches away from the paneling. The back side will not be enclosed but will sit against a wall of the house. The user manual on the freezer says to keep 4 inches of spacing on all sides. Although I'm pushing it a little bit I don't think I will run into problems with over stressing my compressor. If I do notice things are running hot/too frequently I'll wire a fan to push air around the skin of the freezer when the compressor kicks on.
 
Subscribed because I have this exact freezer model and haven't done anything to it yet.

You can really get four cornies in there? I feel like it might take a little bit of creative hammering to do that (I have ball locks).
 
Subscribed because I have this exact freezer model and haven't done anything to it yet.

You can really get four cornies in there? I feel like it might take a little bit of creative hammering to do that (I have ball locks).

With an 8" collar I'm sure he could fit the CO2 tank and maybe a cornie on the hump?
 
Yea I managed to get 4 empties in there, when I first got everything. I’ll be filling a fourth up tonight and that will be going in the freezer. I’ll take pics.

I don’t think I’ll be able to get them out when they’re full though. Also I’m thinking about shaving some of the rubber off the kegs for more clearance.


a taller collar would easily fit more kegs. But since I'm going to have the faucets on the top of the freezer (coffin box style) I didn't want to add more height with a really tall collar.
 
How tall will the coffin be, or rather the height of the faucets from the top of the keezer without a collar? 12"? 20"?
With an 8" collar and 12" height above the top of keezer it would put the faucet handle at around 53" + height of the wheeled base.

I had planned on an 8" collar but now you have me thinking it would add too much height?
 
How tall will the coffin be, or rather the height of the faucets from the top of the keezer without a collar? 12"? 20"?
With an 8" collar and 12" height above the top of keezer it would put the faucet handle at around 53" + height of the wheeled base.

I had planned on an 8" collar but now you have me thinking it would add too much height?

I'll be doing the same thing. I'm looking into a way to put the wheels on so that the height increase from them is minimal (current thought is to attache them to a thin sheet of metal that will be attached to the top of the wheel frame). I'm also considering using pin-lock kegs (converted to ball lock) on the hump so the collar doesn't have to be as tall, I just need to take a bunch of measurements to make sure it'll all fit.

Now back to the subject at hand, great start on the keezer!
 
The wheels I got add 2.5 inches, the frame the freezer sits on adds 1.5 inches.

The lid I made is 4.25 inches total.

Planned coffin will be 14 inches tall, but faucets will probably be around 11in high.

So in total the faucets are going to sit about 19.25in higher than the opening of the freezer when it's on flat ground.
 
The wheels I got add 2.5 inches, the frame the freezer sits on adds 1.5 inches.

The lid I made is 4.25 inches total.

Planned coffin will be 14 inches tall, but faucets will probably be around 11in high.

So in total the faucets are going to sit about 19.25in higher than the opening of the freezer when it's on flat ground.

That makes it just around 53" off the ground = 4'5" Seems like a real bar to me.

I like the coffin style b/c the collar tap handle method to me always seemed too low but I have yet to actually use on in person so I could be, and probably am, WAAY off.
 
I actually have a fourth it's just not full at the moment. I might look into what you said after this is all done though, because getting that fourth corny in there is a struggle.
Specialized, I already tried. A fourth Korney won't work. That's why I put a 3 gal on the shelf to the right of the interior. It works great.
 
Hey if you haven't got rid of that 4th 5 gal you might want to check this

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It is a really tight fit. The last corny wouldn't go all the way down. So i propped it up with a scrap 2x4.

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How was that done? I tried that and it about kicked my butt. In fact, I pushed my whole body weight down on this and still couldn't get it down into the "hole." Unless it's easy, I don't really care about adding the fourth keg. Seriously, did someone take a hammer to the fridge to make that fourth Korney Keg to fit?
 
lol. No hammering needed, no excessive weight. But honestly it is a PERFECT fit. I think if anything was 1/16" larger it wouldn't fit. I actually had to shave a thin layer of ice that accumulated on the freezer wall off before it would fit.

For some reason, if the first keg put in is in the back left then the full four won't fit. If the first keg is in the front left then the four fit in. So maybe try that?

I believe you couldn't get them to fit. I'm pretty sure acceptable variation in the manufacturing of the freezer could prevent the 4 from fitting. I probably just got lucky with one that has a slightly larger interior dimensions.
 
I'm going to have to believe that it's the manufacturer. You must have that little bit of extra room. But, hell, good for you. I'm glad you got that to fit. But, that's not going to happen here in my fridge.

I love my setup though. I have two towers with 2 spouts each and drains. It's pretty cool. I dont' have the cool cover like yours, but mine is in the garage where my wife can't complain about it being out of sinc with her decorating.

Good Luck,
David
 
Jason, you have the same problem?

drinking wine tonight its our 4 year anniversary I better be able to get it in the hole tonight.

but no my Magic Chef Freezer fits 4 comfortably on the floor with the co2 on the hump and a 5th keg if I build a collar

-=jason=-
 
*subscribed*

Anyone else have problems with condensation building up in the floor of their keezer? I have to mop mine out about once a month (and its a seriously difficult reach because of the collar making the lip so high (45" from the floor).

This is a nice build because it does away with the collar plan (my freezer was too small so I wanted a keg up on the shelf to fit 3).

Also, I used about 1.5" x 1.5" wood strips up the sides of the freezer, surrounded on 3 sides with plywood and then decorative material. The compressor is still running strong after about 6 months and my house hasn't burnt down, so I don't think the ventilation around the outside of the freezer is THAT significant.

What type of material do you plan to use for the top surface? Tile?
 
I haven't fully decided what material I'm going to use on the surface. I'm between tile and copper sheet. But I'm leaning towards tile.
 
lol. No hammering needed, no excessive weight. But honestly it is a PERFECT fit.

For some reason, if the first keg put in is in the back left then the full four won't fit. If the first keg is in the front left then the four fit in. So maybe try that?

I will try this and report back. My first keg is in the back left right now and I have not tried it the other way. Honestly, it is so close that I bet a little re-shaping of the interior walls of would make it work.

I'll report back over the weekend.
 
I'm back. After you said that you fit 4 kegs into your 7 SF Kegorator I revisited mine to try it again and it worked. I fit 4 Korney kegs into my fridge. Thanks for the prompting. Here is the pic:

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Same thing for me. I went home and rearranged my kegs, paying really good attention that each one, when put in from left to right, was as far to the left as possible. The fourth keg just barely fit, would go down far enough to close the lid, but I could not get it all the way to the floor. I'm really glad I found this thread though and tried it. I'll certainly design my coffin for four taps now!
 
I've been thinking of the new 2.5 gal corny kegs.... just use a couple of those up on the shelf....maybe do something different like keg-carbonate one and use the CO2 tank for the other to compare? :) The point is---get some mileage out of the shelf.
 
...

I was suprised with how well things are mimicking the plans. I am a rookie when it comes to carpentry but have learned that taking things slow yields impressive results.

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...

Ah, you have discovered the secret to becoming a good (if not profitable) carpenter, grasshoppa.

Great job so far! Can't wait to see the final product... Isn't this the second go round for you? I seem to recall you had a tiki themed keezer, or am I way off?

Edit: Nope, not you. That's NewBrewB's awesome keezer I was thinking about.
 
Updating the thread to show the work I got done today. I've nearly completed the coffin box.

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These two pics are just dry assembled.

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Wanted to show of my routing skills. The plywood slides into the top and sides. I found it added a lot of integrity to the coffin doing it this way. Also I have two plywood "inserts". One I'm going to stain the same as the rest, and the other I'm going to paint in chalkboard. Which ever one I like the most will stay.

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My insulation.

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With the 525SS attached. Well I'm beat. My goal is to get it pulling pints tomorrow.
 
Ah, you have discovered the secret to becoming a good (if not profitable) carpenter, grasshoppa.

Great job so far! Can't wait to see the final product... Isn't this the second go round for you? I seem to recall you had a tiki themed keezer, or am I way off?

Edit: Nope, not you. That's NewBrewB's awesome keezer I was thinking about.

The secret has been working for me so far!

Just checked out brewb's keezer, its dang nice.
 
I'm back. After you said that you fit 4 kegs into your 7 SF Kegorator I revisited mine to try it again and it worked. I fit 4 Korney kegs into my fridge. Thanks for the prompting. Here is the pic:

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[/IMG]

How did you manage that. I couldn't get a 4th keg (all ball locks) into mine with my whole body weight on it...
 
Trying re-arranging the order. If you've got them started in the back left change it to front left. Scrape all the ice off the sides of the freezer if there is any. Make sure the kegs are butted against each other as far as possible. And if that all fails try shaving some of the rubber off.
 
Trying re-arranging the order. If you've got them started in the back left change it to front left. Scrape all the ice off the sides of the freezer if there is any. Make sure the kegs are butted against each other as far as possible. And if that all fails try shaving some of the rubber off.

Hmm... I did everything I could aside from shaving the rubber. Might be worth a shot.
 
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