Cold storage box.. sweet!

Found this link to some great DIY stuff and haven't seen the link on here before.

lots of neat stuff here...

http://home.swbell.net/bufkin/index.htm

ws

hmm, wouldn't the wood, insulation and the window AC unit = the cost of a freezer/fridge and temp controller?

I hope that's a really cold garage because the heat coming off the window unit a/c is going to warm it up real quick.

z987k said:

hmm, wouldn't the wood, insulation and the window AC unit = the cost of a freezer/fridge and temp controller?

Click to expand...

Right, But the size of the box - impressive!

I built 2 boxes like that last year (without a front) just for storage in my garage...

z987k said:

hmm, wouldn't the wood, insulation and the window AC unit = the cost of a freezer/fridge and temp controller?

Click to expand...

yeah.. but that thing holds WAY more than any consumer sized fridge/freezer would..

ws

z987k said:

hmm, wouldn't the wood, insulation and the window AC unit = the cost of a freezer/fridge and temp controller?

Click to expand...

Looks like he can ferment 12 - 16 carboys (even more kegs) with 3 temperature differentials.

You'ld need 3 or 4 fridges to accomplish that.

The only thing he uses it for is to maintain ale ferment temps, aka 60-70F. I mean, does anyone here need that kind of space at that temp? It's just not practical in most cases.

Fridges and freezers are dime a dozen on craigs. The last time I needed a lagering fridge, I found one on the curb for pickup. I rang the doorbell... "is that fridge broken?"..."no, we just wanted a new one". Score! I suspect more fridges are tossed for asthetic purposes than you think. Buy two, they're already setup for lagering and no sawdust.

Bobby_M said:

I mean, does anyone here need that kind of space at that temp?

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Probably not. But consider also that the footprint is rather modest when compared to a full size upright fridge. It looks to be about 20% wider than a fridge. If you have garage fridge most of the space above it is under-utilized.

Also, he has complete control over the configuration. As a chest freezer owner, I'm sure you can appreciate how valuable an extra couple of inches could be if you were able to design the length and width. In most case an extra inch or two would enable an extra corny or carboy.

But then you'd really have to enjoy working with wood to make it worth it. That was actually one thing I really liked about this chest freezer I got. It holds exactly 5 cornies with like 1/2" to spare all around. I'd literally need another 9" in any direction to make a difference.

I would consider b uilding a similar rig over a fridgefreeze, but only because the wife has me on a "no more frigde" ban. Plus, the size is 100% configurable to your needs. I have a gap in my brewing are that I could build a cold box for, cooled by a dorm fridge, and have 0 impact on my usable space.

Bobby_M said:

The only thing he uses it for is to maintain ale ferment temps, aka 60-70F. I mean, does anyone here need that kind of space at that temp? It's just not practical in most cases.

Fridges and freezers are dime a dozen on craigs. The last time I needed a lagering fridge, I found one on the curb for pickup. I rang the doorbell... "is that fridge broken?"..."no, we just wanted a new one". Score! I suspect more fridges are tossed for asthetic purposes than you think. Buy two, they're already setup for lagering and no sawdust.

Click to expand...

That is a little smaller than wha I want to build. I want to get the brewery out of the house. This includes during fermentation. So I need space for approx 6 carboys/buckets, 4 or so cornies, ingredients, and equipment. I wouldn't be able to find a fridge/freezer that big and I dont want 3 or 4 old ones in the garage.
i'm a little suprised by all the bagging on the guy. Not everyone wants or needs the same setup. I think he did a nice job.

I'm going to be building a dual controlled brew closet in my garage pretty soon which will be very similar to this but based on my walk-in beer cooler (https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=11440). The beer cooler is set at 35 degrees... my expectation for the brew closet is half of it will be settable between 40~50 degrees and the other half between 55~70 degrees.

JnJ said:

That is a little smaller than wha I want to build. I want to get the brewery out of the house. This includes during fermentation. So I need space for approx 6 carboys/buckets, 4 or so cornies, ingredients, and equipment. I wouldn't be able to find a fridge/freezer that big and I dont want 3 or 4 old ones in the garage.
i'm a little suprised by all the bagging on the guy. Not everyone wants or needs the same setup. I think he did a nice job.

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Bagging on the guy? Hardly. I'm just posing a mild dissenter's view as it's a very personal necessity he was solving. I was simply suggesting that junk/cheap fridges and freezers are an alternative to spending the time and money for the custom solution especially if you're shooting for lagering temps. Some folks were talking about that thing like it was perfect for lagering. I'm not sure all window A/Cs will get down to 33F at all, and certainly not without a controller.

JnJ said:

That is a little smaller than wha I want to build. I want to get the brewery out of the house. This includes during fermentation. So I need space for approx 6 carboys/buckets, 4 or so cornies, ingredients, and equipment. I wouldn't be able to find a fridge/freezer that big and I dont want 3 or 4 old ones in the garage.
i'm a little suprised by all the bagging on the guy. Not everyone wants or needs the same setup. I think he did a nice job.

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I'm not bagging on the guy either, I just usually look for the cheapest and most efficient use of money/space/everything and I was thinking the money aspect wasn't there, just pointing that out/open to being proven wrong.

z987k said:

I'm not bagging on the guy either, I just usually look for the cheapest and most efficient use of money/space/everything and I was thinking the money aspect wasn't there, just pointing that out/open to being proven wrong.

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First, use of space, I dont think you can find a frig/freezer with better space use then this setup. Second, he'd need 2 or 3 frg/freezers with temp controls to match this setup. I for one dont want or have space for 2 or 3 junky frig/freezers in my garage (one is enough). Third, some people take pride in building things themselves much like a lot of home brewers do in breweing their own beer. It boils down to different strokes. He built something that matched his needs perfectly, that is hard to find with a frig/freezer.

JnJ said:

That is a little smaller than wha I want to build. I want to get the brewery out of the house. This includes during fermentation. So I need space for approx 6 carboys/buckets, 4 or so cornies, ingredients, and equipment. I wouldn't be able to find a fridge/freezer that big and I dont want 3 or 4 old ones in the garage.
i'm a little suprised by all the bagging on the guy. Not everyone wants or needs the same setup. I think he did a nice job.

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I completely agree, this is a DIY part of the site not a got it on craigslist forum. I can see where It might be more practical for some people to get another fridge but you could set that thing up to be a freezer up top for glasses, lagering temp in the middle and ale temp at the bottom with room for dry storage in, AND HERE'S THE KILLER PART, a small footprint. I'm not sure about you guys, but my little house is CRAMMED full of stuff. I have just 1/2 of a bedroom closet for my carboys and bottled beer and one fridge in the garage. I need more room. Maybe with my fridge goin out i'll look into insulating the hell outta a box like that and hooking up a air conditioner in the top, then cutting a few holes and setting up some ranco controllers to pump cold air into the other chambers...... Killer idea bro!