Keezer question?

So I'm wrestling with the idea of whether to build a keezer or a kegarator and have the following question. The kegarator build seems much easier to me either with a small fridge or large fridge. Seems like all you need to do is hook the keg system up.

The keezer builds always seem more complicated as there is wiring involved and I've been seeing most guys putting a digital readout on their keezers and having to wire that, wire fans, etc. Why can't you just put a digital johnson control on there and just plug the keezer into that with the temperature probe placed inside the keezer? Seems like that's the easiest thing to do so you can have a keezer right? Just build the collar, set the kegging equipment up, and hook the keezer up.

BIGREDIOWAN said:

Why can't you just put a digital johnson control on there and just plug the keezer into that with the temperature probe placed inside the keezer? Seems like that's the easiest thing to do so you can have a keezer right? Just build the collar, set the kegging equipment up, and hook the keezer up.

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tons of people do this. its easy. its what i did. if you want to use picnic taps you dont even need to build a collar.

Cool, I really like the look of a black freezer with a dark wood collar so I was looking at that option. I still don't know exactly what I'm going to do, but whatever I do I wanna incorporate it into the bar I build. Thanks for the info, I thought I was trying to make it more complicated than it really is.

Yeah, right now I've got two kegs in an upright fridge with two faucets drilled through the door. Its nice and I'd definitely keep it over bottling, but when I move I'm gonna get rid of it and go for a keezer. So long as you build a collar for the faucets rather than a coffin, the fan isn't necessary. It would help to move the air around a little, but if you figure you're pulling beer from the bottom of the keg and put your sensor in the middle/bottom, you'll be fine. Slap a collar on the bad boy, drill a hole for the temp sensor and plug your temp controller in and you're good to go. Plus, you can fit a lot more than 2 kegs in a keezer, which is really the most important point, isn't it?

I think it has to do with the fact that many of us like making things more complicated in order to work better, or look better, and then share our results. Many people will go, "oh yeah, all I did was get an old beat up freezer, plug in a temperature control and that's it". While great and useful, it's not quite as spectacular and interesting where people are:
Using fans to circulate airflow to keep temperature even throughout the entire cooling system, adding collars to increase height and more kegs as well as being able to attach faucets, resufacing and repainting, or adding pid controllers, remotes, siding, armor plating, flame decals, steam whistles, neon lights, chrome hubs, hydraulics, sound systems, using antifreeze as a liquid coolant.. oh wait, that's cars and computers. Well, it's just one of those things where people like to do everything and anything and show it off. It's just more fun.

I found the keezer to be a very easy build, I'm not using any fans, or electric readouts. Just a simple collar with a honeywell analog controller, I find it more reliable than those fancy digital ones. I just keep a thermometer in the keezer and look at it from time to time. I'm a firm believer in the old saying, "sometimes they make fancy fishing lures to catch fishermen, not just fish".





EDIT: Thats chalkboard paint on the top of the keezer and side of fermentation chamber, no need for labels. Plus I can involve my 8yo's artistic talents! lol She enjoys feeling like shes part of the project.

Good to hear! I understand guys wanting to make things work better or challenging themselves with more difficult builds. I'm looking at my ability and the price tag to help me make the decision. I'll be buying a new freezer and a controller of some sort and go from there. Just talked to the wife about this last night so I'm trying to decide which way to go. I told her that we could go get her new camera, our other one sucks, and then I can get the parts to build what I wanna build. Her purchase will be about 3 times what mine will be, that's called negotiation. lol

Just piss and moan every time you bottle. Curse, throw stuff, make a huge mess in her kitchen. If she is anything like my wife, she'll buy you everything you need for a keg system.

Give it a shot.