This is long.... Sorry
Sold my 1st keezer several years ago when things got too busy to keep it stocked (5 Taps). Decided to get back into home brewing on a smaller scale and started to plan out a new keezer and keep it at 3 taps with one dedicated to a commercial beer for those that prefer quantity over quality.
A 7.2 CU will allow me to use a 1/4 barrel of domestic and 2 home brews with room for a 3rd in condition mode if available as well as having the gas inside
I decided on a collar version using barn wood I had scrounged up many years ago and tin roofing.
Freezer off Craigslist was a haier 7.2
Built a frame to cover the front and sides of the freezer, leaving the back open since it will be against the wall. There is about 2.5-3 inches of space between the tin and the freezer
Procured the tin and galvanized was all I could find. Started to weather it using muratic acid then applying hydrogen peroxide and salt to the exposed portions.
New tin
Weathered tin
Installed the tin onto the frame which was more of a challenge that it should have been due to cutting it with tin snips and not being very straight.
(Finally discovered that a cutoff wheel on a grinder cuts this stuff like butter but that was the last cuts)
Now to frame this out using warped, twisted and bowed boards, this was a nightmare since I wanted to try to keep the natural wood edges wherever possible and still line things up in a somewhat clean fashion.
Used 2 large floor vents for air flow.
prepping the lid by sanding down the paint in order to glue plywood onto and then the top onto that. I needed the extra height of the plywood. This whole build was like a puzzle and I had it taken apart and put back together countless times
The underside of the lid had many protrusions and a light so I decided to remove the cover, foam insulation and make a flat lid.
Insulation came from cutting and placing the garage floor mats into the top with wood strips for rigidity and strength. Time will tell how will it insulates . they are 3 deep and total about 1.5 inches in depth. All seems caulked and sealed nicely.
Covered this with stained and poly light plywood. Not caulked in this photo
I struggled with the outside top material and settled on tongue and groove beetle killed pine which is a local resource here unfortunately.
Glued then sanded and adding matte poly eventually getting 4 coats
Casing is about done and entire thing was spayed with clear poly to protect it and stop splinters and what not from migrating into the beer.
One of the challenges when making a enclosed case is the overall width needed for shanks and how to best lock everything down and make as one unit. In this case, I used 2" pvc cut in 2" widths and used foam pipe insulation over the shank. Those 8 inch stainless shanks are not cheap!
Added a oak trim piece for the faucets to get them extended out a bit more and allowed for the top to come forward more to make a lip that I wanted.
Added a tray to place the drip tray on using steep pipe and screwed to the trim. the caps screw tight to the wood locking it down (accidental discovery and one of the few things that went right)
Still some tweaking to do but the exterior is about done
The Gas distribution stuff, and beer lines arrive Monday and I'll install them to the collar, Insulate the collar with the same rubber mat material and keg my first batch of homebrew in many years on Thursday.
I'll keep an eye on things to see if a fan and or dehumidifier will be needed.
Flow control perlick is for the domestic crowd and to allow for better pours when the keg is installed and if it sits a bit between use.
Brett
Sold my 1st keezer several years ago when things got too busy to keep it stocked (5 Taps). Decided to get back into home brewing on a smaller scale and started to plan out a new keezer and keep it at 3 taps with one dedicated to a commercial beer for those that prefer quantity over quality.
A 7.2 CU will allow me to use a 1/4 barrel of domestic and 2 home brews with room for a 3rd in condition mode if available as well as having the gas inside
I decided on a collar version using barn wood I had scrounged up many years ago and tin roofing.
Freezer off Craigslist was a haier 7.2
Built a frame to cover the front and sides of the freezer, leaving the back open since it will be against the wall. There is about 2.5-3 inches of space between the tin and the freezer
Procured the tin and galvanized was all I could find. Started to weather it using muratic acid then applying hydrogen peroxide and salt to the exposed portions.
New tin
Weathered tin
Installed the tin onto the frame which was more of a challenge that it should have been due to cutting it with tin snips and not being very straight.
(Finally discovered that a cutoff wheel on a grinder cuts this stuff like butter but that was the last cuts)
Now to frame this out using warped, twisted and bowed boards, this was a nightmare since I wanted to try to keep the natural wood edges wherever possible and still line things up in a somewhat clean fashion.
Used 2 large floor vents for air flow.
prepping the lid by sanding down the paint in order to glue plywood onto and then the top onto that. I needed the extra height of the plywood. This whole build was like a puzzle and I had it taken apart and put back together countless times
The underside of the lid had many protrusions and a light so I decided to remove the cover, foam insulation and make a flat lid.
Insulation came from cutting and placing the garage floor mats into the top with wood strips for rigidity and strength. Time will tell how will it insulates . they are 3 deep and total about 1.5 inches in depth. All seems caulked and sealed nicely.
Covered this with stained and poly light plywood. Not caulked in this photo
I struggled with the outside top material and settled on tongue and groove beetle killed pine which is a local resource here unfortunately.
Glued then sanded and adding matte poly eventually getting 4 coats
Casing is about done and entire thing was spayed with clear poly to protect it and stop splinters and what not from migrating into the beer.
One of the challenges when making a enclosed case is the overall width needed for shanks and how to best lock everything down and make as one unit. In this case, I used 2" pvc cut in 2" widths and used foam pipe insulation over the shank. Those 8 inch stainless shanks are not cheap!
Added a oak trim piece for the faucets to get them extended out a bit more and allowed for the top to come forward more to make a lip that I wanted.
Added a tray to place the drip tray on using steep pipe and screwed to the trim. the caps screw tight to the wood locking it down (accidental discovery and one of the few things that went right)
Still some tweaking to do but the exterior is about done
The Gas distribution stuff, and beer lines arrive Monday and I'll install them to the collar, Insulate the collar with the same rubber mat material and keg my first batch of homebrew in many years on Thursday.
I'll keep an eye on things to see if a fan and or dehumidifier will be needed.
Flow control perlick is for the domestic crowd and to allow for better pours when the keg is installed and if it sits a bit between use.
Brett
