Rookie Keezer Build

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naptowndon

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Well after the great posts here and great ideas I have decided that I need to take the plunge and do my own Coffin Keezer build. Figure I can have it in the house as good looking functional furniture. I would like to thank all of those that have posted and inspired me to get rid of the money burning a hole in my pocket and then some to do my build. Now let me note... I am NO wood worker and haven't done a project aside from a simple work bench since 6th grade shop class. So this is a learn as I go project. I am starting with a chest freezer I found on craigslist cheap that will hold 3 corny kegs and my 5# CO2 tank. I also run a 20oz CO2 occasionally. I have an idea in my head of what I want which are ideas I have borrowed from those great minds here. My goal... finish my coffin keezer to be able to pour beer and keep all of my fingers through my rookie build.
 
good luck, everyone here is always willing to help answer questions and provide suggestions.
 
Lots of great info on this site, good luck on the build.

I'll be watching, as I'm also about to begin the great Keezer built soon as well
 
Good luck, it's a whole lot of fun to build these things, I'm in the middle of my 2nd keezer build now... The biggest piece of advice I would give you as you start is to make sure you START with good wood, and by good I mean straight. If you're buying your lumber from a big box store grab one of their big 6' levels and use that to make sure every piece you buy is good. Then just put the level back where you found it :) Also, patience is a virtue when building these things. I rushed through my first build and the results weren't that great. I'm working wayyyyy slower with my 2nd build and so far everything is coming together MUCH better and cleaner.
 
Thanks for the encouragement and advice. I picked Red Oak to work with and picked up 3" casters. I built the frame for the freezer using 2x8. For the outside I am using Red Oak ply and Red Oak for the top and trim. I picked up OSB for the lid. Stained the bottom pieces of ply before putting together someone suggested this but now I'm not sure why I did. I'll start to post some pics this week. 1st rookie mistake... a 2x4 or 2x8 is not really 2x8 so don't figure that into your calculations.

I have a feeling that my first build will make my second build so much better!
 
A few pics... the casters, freezer, stain. the inside is a mess just running a few kegs off picnic lines.

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A little progress I cut the rails and stiles as well as trim for the top and mitered corners

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Did you leave a gap between your plywood and freezer? It can cause the compressor to overheat if you don't. The coils use the outside skin of the freezer to take the heat away.
 
I did leave about a 2 1/2 in. gap all the way around the freezer and made sure the fan was not obstructed.

Any suggestions on how to attach the top to the lid? I was going to recess the bolts into the OSB and tighten from the inside. I figured this way if the freezer goes bad I can pull it off and put it on another one. There is plastic on the inside of the lid. I have seen some people add ply there as well for support but without having a collar I don't think I can get my CO2 on the "hump" with the wood. It's a tight fit now. I figured I could just cut away the plastic where the bolts will be and tighten to the lid?
 
I have a question on how to attach the lid? I tried to use 1/2" hex bolt to attach the lid from the top through the OSB. With the washers on it sticks up too high. My thought was I can just drill holes in the cement board for the hex bolt head and tile would go over the top. But now I think it's up too high and want to swap them out. I tried to counter sink on a test piece but the OSB lost integrity so I didn't do it. suggestions?
 
Depending on how heavy your top is you can do what I did. Check my thread for photos but I used metal plate under freezer door to distribute weight evenly.
 
nice build and thanks for the information. i was using a piece of wood in the same way the metal won't take up as much room. My concern is on the top and getting the tile flush with the trim. With that hex bolt it's going to create a problem. I may try a carriage bolt or something with a little less of a head.
 
Havent updated for a few. Finally picked up tile and cement board but think hex bolt I to high looking to way to fix. Ill attach progress pics. Been pouring beer for a while now been working well.
 
save yourself the trouble and rent a decent wet tile saw from HD. Breaking marble tiles isn't cheap! Good looking keezer though, I really dig the red oak and the dark stain combo, going to have to store that one in the back of my mid for later use.
 
Guess I never posted finished product or should I say always work in progress. Could use some touch up stain and grout work but works like a charm. 4 kegs inside just haven't added my 4th tap yet. And waiting on 2 more custom tap handles too.


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