Brew Shed Plans

[JBruchwalski]

The SWMBO and myself are buying our first house and she has given me the go ahead for a brew shed. At first I thought just a normal portable shed would be good but then I got to looking on here and saw different idea's for bars and all sorts of DIY projects so I have been brainstorming on different setups. The one I like so far isn't necessarily for brewing in but more to hangout, have some homebrew, and a place to store all my equipment.

We currently have a kegerator and a mini-fridge that I can end up using to lager in if needed. I want to put a temperature controller in eventually as well. I have some big plans for this brew shed but most of the bigger upgrades will come with time.

Some of the bigger things I want to do with it right off the bat is build it, build the bar, and outfit the shed with a keezer and some draft faucets. I don't need any running water or anything crazy nor do I want to worry about that financially.

I have created this thread for a few reasons ranging from keeping track of my progress, asking questions, getting recommendations, and getting insight from people who have done this already. First being has anyone built their own custom brew shed? How hard was it to do? What are some of the things you ran into unexpectedly? Is there anything you wish you would've done differently?

Second, what are you recommendations for my plans I have pictured? Do you think I should do the bar differently? Should I add more windows?

Third, is this this practical to store and keep nice? By practical I mean is it big enough to have a few buddies over to relax and throw some back? I do not want to be too cramped.

Any considerations/thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

 

[BadNewsBrewery]

So here are my questions.
1 - You say you don't need running water. Have you figured out a magical way to brew without water? Or do you plan to run a hose out to the brewery every time? Brewing is a water-intensive process... brew water, cooling water, cleaning water - you're not doing yourself any favors by skipping out on water to the shed. Same would go for a drain.

2 - What do you plan to do in the 4x6 room - just store the keezer? It seems too big for just a keezer, and too small for a brew room.

3 - The bar layout is odd. Do you plan to have this just be a walk-up whenever you want a beer type bar, or the kind that you can stand behind and bartend, serving beers for your friends?

4 - Do you brew with gas? Electric? Something else? This will play into how you build the shed - ventilation, power, etc.

5 - I'd add more windows, unless you only plan to be in there at night - 2 windows is not a lot of natural light for that size area.

6 - Have you ever built something like this before? Do you know your local codes? Do you have the skills and authority to build something like this? Not trying to insult your skills or intellect - just asking questions, and some of your questions in the earlier post make me think you may be getting into a project bigger than you expect.

Good luck! There are some great posts on the DIY page where people have built incredible things like this.

-Kevin

 

[nhwrecker]

As an FYI, your scale is way off for your bar - if the room's 8' wide, and your bar is about 1/2 the width, then you're trying to fit in 3 seats in less than 4' - That'd even be tight in prison. Here's some basic bar design text from http://www.barinacraft.com/bar-stools-selection.html


Home Bar Stool Spacing, Height & Selection Guide:

Determining Bar Stools Layout Space Requirements

The industry standard guidelines on furniture layout for bar stool spacing generally lie in the 26-30 inch range between the centers of
individual stools. We recommend a minimum distance of 28 inches center to center to truly allow comfortable eating, drinking and
socializing, particularly when factoring in men's sizes. This measurement may need to increase when the bar stool's design is larger than
the person seated in them, such as those with swivel backs and arm rests. Measure the length of each continuous straight or curved
outside perimeter section individually to find how many stools are needed per segment, unless you plan on having corner seating
arrangements, which is usually not desired.

 

[Jsslack]

If it were me i would go a little larger and nix the room off to the side. You could instead build a wall the width of the room. Keeping the structure rectangular will also help to cut back on costs.

 

[JBruchwalski]

The stools were something just to show some sort of stool. I was thinking that it wouldn't be able to hold 3 stools but your math and suggestions were great! I appreciate it!
As far as the rectangle, after I posted this I was look at that and I'm thinking about doing that and having my keeper hidden under the bar with the countertop able to lift in order to change out kegs and such with a tower somewhere on top. Any suggestions?

 

[Jsslack]

Maybe something like this https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=438516

HoustontheWolf's Home Bar/Keezer Build! There are tons of keezer builds on the forums, take a look and see what you like.

 

[JBruchwalski]

Slack, that is a really set up. I wonder if I could something like that but completely enclose it and have it in an L shape bar. Also, for the Keezer I had some issues about how I would keep the beer cool. In that case where the tower it, the hose will obviously be out of the Keezer and into the tower so how will that beer stay at the correct temperature within the lines without the tower actually on the Keezer?

 

[Jsslack]

Some people use pc fans,insulation, or a combination of the two. There is a plethora of information on the forums, just take a look around and see what you like.

 

[Eugenio]

I think they layout is unrealistic and wouldn't be too comfortable. Plus depending on where you live, you could have issues with weather and codes, id really recommend contacting someone who knows design.

If the room is unconditioned it will feel very claustrophobic without windows and good air flow, it will also feel dark. I think you will find the bar layout will grow exponentially, and if you dont account for this, your layout will become awkward, Also caused by the door location. Finally id recommend reconsidering plumbing, otherwise you will have to exit the shed every time anyone needs to use the bathroom, cleaning will be more difficult, etc.

If you need some help with this send me a message.

 

[d3track]

As someone who has basically a one car garage for a brew house, I'll chime in (the previous owner had built this workshop, so nice to have!)

Think about the water, I have to run a hose out each brew day, if I started from scratch, I would have it plumed.

Make sure you have plenty of power, and I'd suggest a sub-panel, thankfully this was all there, plus 220!

I would think of planning the space around brewing instead of the bar, brewing requires more movement, and you can build a bar on wheels to move around.

My two cents

 

[acidrain]

Is it a bar or a brewery?
At 16 x 8, it would be a tight fit to be both.

 

[JBruchwalski]

It's basically a bar. I enjoy brewing outside. I wanted to store all my equipment within the shed though.

 

[CarolynSowell]

The SWMBO and myself are buying our first house and she has given me the go ahead for a brew shed. At first I thought just a normal portable shed would be good but then I got to looking on here and saw different idea's for bars and all sorts of DIY projects so I have been brainstorming on different setups. The one I like so far isn't necessarily for brewing in but more to hangout, have some homebrew, and a place to store all my equipment.

We currently have a kegerator and a mini-fridge that I can end up using to lager in if needed. I want to put a temperature controller in eventually as well. I have some big plans for this brew shed but most of the bigger upgrades will come with time.

Some of the bigger things I want to do with it right off the bat is build it, build the bar, and outfit the shed with a keezer and some draft faucets. I don't need any running water or anything crazy nor do I want to worry about that financially.

I have created this thread for a few reasons ranging from keeping track of my progress, asking questions, getting recommendations, and getting insight from people who have done this already. First being has anyone built their own custom brew shed? How hard was it to do? What are some of the things you ran into unexpectedly? Is there anything you wish you would've done differently?

Second, what are you recommendations for my plans I have pictured? Do you think I should do the bar differently? Should I add more windows?

Third, is this this practical to store and keep nice? By practical I mean is it big enough to have a few buddies over to relax and throw some back? I do not want to be too cramped.

Any considerations/thoughts would be greatly appreciated!

You are right, storage space is a big problem. My dad has been making a new garage for our home and storage space was the main reason behind it. He looked for some fresh ideas on http://www.waterloostructures.net/garages/2-story.php and he's doing pretty well. I hope it helps you too.

 

[JBruchwalski]

I'm definitely going oy take a look. I have switched recently to a a 14'x26' so I'm hoping I can make that work nicely.