my 1-to-3 tap conversion

CornyKegs 728
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williec30

williec30

Well-Known Member
Joined
Nov 24, 2008
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Location
Michigan
far from a masterpiece, but very functional.

supplies:
- 1x6 poplar
- godzilla glue
- (2) small hinges
- corner molding
- foam (house barrier)

NEW VERSION:

i wouldn't actually mind making a few more of these, if you are interested, ping me.

3214541554_8593c68b55.jpg


3214541206_2baccbd1fb.jpg
 
Otis The Drunk said:
Looks good so far, are you going to insulate the box????
Click to expand...

great question and something i have been pondering. there is a foam insert for the metal tube, i am thinking about insulating the opening of the tube and leaving the box alone. should i be concerned about the 1 foot (or so) of tubing that won't be insulated?
 
You may get foamy beer! The box probably does not need to be insulated as wood is a fairly good insulator. you may want to install a small blower to move air from inside the fridge/keezer to the tower. some people use a computer fan and a project box.
 
Very nice. I'd drop a bit of insulation in there and hook up a blower as well.
 
sjlammer said:
You may get foamy beer! The box probably does not need to be insulated as wood is a fairly good insulator. you may want to install a small blower to move air from inside the fridge/keezer to the tower. some people use a computer fan and a project box.
Click to expand...

+2(?) I was thinking it, definitely worthwhile.
 
Wow! This is a great idea. I have been looking for ideas on how to expand my single draft tower. I am looking foward to seeing the final project!
 
McKBrew said:
Very nice. I'd drop a bit of insulation in there and hook up a blower as well.
Click to expand...

anyone have a picture of the fan setup? i actually use something very similar in my cigar coolerdor. does the fan need to blow air straight up the tube or will a fan in any direction give me what i need?

thanks for the suggestions and ideas!
 
You'd want to point it up from the fridge into tube running up the tap tower into the box. If you don't think you'll need to change lines often, you just get that expandable spray stuff, get everything set, and fill the box with the foam :). A little permanent but quick, easy and the stuff cuts easy enough with a knife if you need to get it out.
 
Great idea, and looking good so far! One suggestion: paint the interior of the box with some marine grade paint...or at least some exterior paint that will resist water. With the temperature difference between the fridge and room, you're going to have some condensation. Keep us posted! :mug:
 
IrregularPulse said:
You'd want to point it up from the fridge into tube running up the tap tower into the box. If you don't think you'll need to change lines often, you just get that expandable spray stuff, get everything set, and fill the box with the foam :). A little permanent but quick, easy and the stuff cuts easy enough with a knife if you need to get it out.
Click to expand...

TwoHeadsBrewing said:
Great idea, and looking good so far! One suggestion: paint the interior of the box with some marine grade paint...or at least some exterior paint that will resist water. With the temperature difference between the fridge and room, you're going to have some condensation. Keep us posted! :mug:
Click to expand...

THIS is why our forum is ... well, priceless :rockin:

i appreciate the feedback.
 
williec30 said:
anyone have a picture of the fan setup? i actually use something very similar in my cigar coolerdor. does the fan need to blow air straight up the tube or will a fan in any direction give me what i need?

thanks for the suggestions and ideas!
Click to expand...

I got some pictures of my blower in my kegerator thread.
I used a 4" 120VAC radio shack fan, a project box and some vacuum hose to feed the air into the tower.
 
Very nice! Your wood working skills far exceede mine sir :D

+1 I agree with IrregularPulse on the spray foam stuff, if you do it right you shouldn't have to worry about moisture since all your wood and tubes will be covered in foam!
 
williec30 said:
3071482007_1e0e8ff064_o.jpg
Click to expand...

Looks good. 1 suggestion I would extend the "face plate" and put the sides on the inside of the box, this would give it a more finished look IMO. I do love the idea! this is what im doing to mine when I get it. $250+ is too much for a triple tower IMO.
 
You know williec30, it looks like there is enough room for 2 taps on the sides (ends) as well. Maybe a soda tap or carbed water tap. Just a thought.

OOOH how about a chilled, filtered water tap for ice cold water on hot days. Water is good too :)

Might not look "normal" but would be an efficient use of space.

Great job. I can see an oak version sanded and stained a deep red oak or mahogany stain. The poly'd to protect the wood.
 
deathweed said:
Very nice! Your wood working skills far exceede mine sir :D

+1 I agree with IrregularPulse on the spray foam stuff, if you do it right you shouldn't have to worry about moisture since all your wood and tubes will be covered in foam!
Click to expand...

ok... so if i use the spray foam, it would limit my ability to take the taps and beer lines out obviously... how important is it to periodically clean both?

that question is probably subject to use and preference, wondering what you guys do.
 
RC0032 said:
Looks good. 1 suggestion I would extend the "face plate" and put the sides on the inside of the box, this would give it a more finished look IMO. I do love the idea! this is what im doing to mine when I get it. $250+ is too much for a triple tower IMO.
Click to expand...

Brew-Happy said:
You williec30, it looks like there is enough room for 2 taps on the sides (ends) as well. Maybe a soda tap or carbed water tap. Just a thought.

OOOH how about a chilled, filtered water tap for ice cold water on hot days.

Might not look "normal" but would be an efficient use of space.

Great job. I can see an oak version sanded and stained a deep red oak or mahogany stain. The poly'd to protect the wood.
Click to expand...

@RC - completely agree on the ends, i actually was planning to wrap the box in aluminum to give it a finished look... but have since changed my mind. i will have to see how the ends come out after sanding, i might throw some corner molding on it.

@Brew-Happy - was actually thinking about the soda water tap... the kegerator only holds three cornys, hence the 3 tap setup.
 
williec30 said:
ok... so if i use the spray foam, it would limit my ability to take the taps and beer lines out obviously... how important is it to periodically clean both?

that question is probably subject to use and preference, wondering what you guys do.
Click to expand...

you shouldn't ever have to clean the outsides of your lines. Cleaning the lines out is as simple as putting oxiclean on your keg, run through you taps (just like pouring a beer but the oxiclean solution is your beer, let sit, rinse out keg, leave some hot water in it, run that through your taps,, then sanitize the keg, and run that through the taps as well. Check out Chris Knights kegging series on youtube. This is what he doesn, what I started doing.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hC7MDb0IuLs]YouTube - Kegging 1 of 4[/ame]

If you look below this video after it's done, the links through 2-4 are there without having to go to youtube.

Wow, after seeing people ask how to embed youtube videos, I didn't imagine it would be that easy! I was just trying to post a link to it :rockin:
 
williec30 said:
@RC - completely agree on the ends, i actually was planning to wrap the box in aluminum to give it a finished look... but have since changed my mind. i will have to see how the ends come out after sanding, i might throw some corner molding on it.
Click to expand...

If you change your mind again, you could use diamond plate instead of aluminum.
 
I would just use flashing- cheaper, and it works great for for the back splash of my tiny kitchen!
 
IrregularPulse said:
you shouldn't ever have to clean the outsides of your lines. Cleaning the lines out is as simple as putting oxiclean on your keg, run through you taps (just like pouring a beer but the oxiclean solution is your beer, let sit, rinse out keg, leave some hot water in it, run that through your taps,, then sanitize the keg, and run that through the taps as well. Check out Chris Knights kegging series on youtube. This is what he doesn, what I started doing.
Click to expand...

awesome... yet again another invaluable part of the puzzle for me.
 
williec30 said:
where does one find this magical substance?
Click to expand...

Flashing? Just go exchange a hundred dollar bill at your local bank for a wad of ones (makes you look richer) and go to your local.... Errr wait... I mean...

On a serious note- It does work really well, easy cleaning and great for illumination in my kitchen. As far as the draft tower, I like shiny things (froogle?), what can I say?:)
 
With the flashing you'll still have edges that need trimmed to look finished. Even if you bend it around the corners, there will still be a few corners where teh edges are exposed. just buy a peice of trim. One long peice should be enough to trim the whole box. You could also, put the flashing on and trim, just paint the trim flat black.
 
Tabs- on the 'edges' you leave excess metal that you can bed over and flatten, giving it a smooth edge. Just an idea.

Other is bondo, sanding, finishing with wet car grade sand paper, and thin even coats of paint. Smooth as a babys' bottom!
 
well... after all that work, i may have fubar'd this whole thing. the tap shank that comes on the original faucet is much shorter than the pair i picked up at the store... i don't believe they make a shorter (aftermarket) shank, i am headed back to the store today to see what i can find out.

i will keep you guys updated... again, thank you for all your feedback!
 
williec30 said:
well... after all that work, i may have fubar'd this whole thing. the tap shank that comes on the original faucet is much shorter than the pair i picked up at the store... i don't believe they make a shorter (aftermarket) shank, i am headed back to the store today to see what i can find out.

i will keep you guys updated... again, thank you for all your feedback!
Click to expand...

You can always throw a spacer block in your box to fill the void or cut the shanks.
 
version 2...

still some finishing to do (never mind that black piece of tape on the lower right:) ), but i like this one much better. pay no attention to the temp either, i had the door open for a bit right before this pic.

i increased the depth of the box as the shank that came on the original tap was much smaller (OEM part).

what do you guys think?

3089560495_ac8a428dac_o.jpg
 
Very nice DIY....honestly i could never justify paying for a tower and this is cheap solution. Well done.
 
Looking good! If you want to make that shiny, they make some pretty wild spray paint that has some texture to it. I forget what they call it, but it looks like hammered metal.

The other thing you could do is deck it out with car trim, you know, that stuff you see around the door jams of purple altimas.

or put some fancy wood moulding around the top to dress it up.

Just some ideas.
 
ChshreCat said:
Liquid stainless steel?
https://www.asseenontv.com/offers_on_demand/liquid_ss_ood.html
Click to expand...

go to home depot...i mean if they have chalboard paint they have ANYTHING. Rustoleum makes a bunch of different enamel paints which look pretty damn good....the flashing was also an interesting idea but the thought of bending metal around the corners and having it look professional in the end will be hard. You could position the seams tword the back but i would go with cool paint.

Or you could cover it with stickers:D
 
sjlammer said:
You may get foamy beer! The box probably does not need to be insulated as wood is a fairly good insulator. you may want to install a small blower to move air from inside the fridge/keezer to the tower. some people use a computer fan and a project box.
Click to expand...

how does one tell if the taps (or box in this case) is cold enough to produce a good pour? now that i have the tower installed, the taps are cold... not sure how 'cold' they should be (condensation perhaps?).
 
williec30 said:
how does one tell if the taps (or box in this case) is cold enough to produce a good pour? now that i have the tower installed, the taps are cold... not sure how 'cold' they should be (condensation perhaps?).
Click to expand...

I'd try pouring lots of beer through them, drinking it, and repeating. All joking aside, you're probably going to have to try it out since it doesn't seem too many folks have tried this design out, yet.

Nice looking set up. I like the black just the way it is.
 
yeah, trial and error with any system. Let us know how it fairs. Maybe be adding a small keger to the garage in a couple years, this looks like a good option for two taps.
 

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