Minimum Woodwork Experience Keezer Project

So My dad was really into woodworking and so I have a decent amount of tools but I don't have much experience using them. But after Reading Jester's Keezer build I just knew I had to give it a shot.

Here is the plan of the finished product. I am an engineer so luckily this part was easy and should give me a good road map. I made this in Autodesk Inventor, not Google Sketch up (In case people were going to ask for the sketchup file)


So here goes nothing.

START:

I bough the Keezer used off Craigslist for $125. It's a little rusty but I think it should be ok since I plan on covering up all of the outside anyways.


First, removed the inside of the lid and the insulation by popping off the little pins that held it on.


The pins


Then I removed the handle so it didnt stick up off the top. I'd seen some people leave it on and cut out a place for it, but I figured this would be easier.


Next I cut a piece of 1/4" plywood to cover the top and attached it using 5 Tee-nuts bolted from the bottom.


Unfortunately I work out of town most of the week so progress on this may be a little slow but I am going to try to have it done by the end of next month. (we'll see how THAT goes...) Wish me luck!

Good start. Good Luck!

Next step didn't really need to be done yet as I don't intend on working on the shell for the base yet but i figured it would me move it around the garage. I used some 2x6s and casters to make a simple frame. I left 1.5 in on the two sides and the front so I can attach 2x4s flush to build the frame from.

Lots of progress this weekend. First I built the frame for the top.


Then I added the skirt for the top so it will hide the rest of the lid


I even had time to get the majority of the coffin done. I haven't cut my holes in the lid yet for the tubing or insulated it, but the majority of wood is assembled. Turning out way better than I expected so far.

UPDATE!

Got a lot of the woodworking done this weekend. Also, I stopped at Bell's General store and picked up the remaining shanks and faucets I needed. If you notice the middle faucet is different than the rest, it is because that was the faucet I had on my old kegerator and didn't feel like shelling out the extra 200 dollars it would have been to match that with the newest 4.

Here are the taps installed


Then I cut the plywood and top of the freezer in 2 small holes for the lines.


Next I started work on the facade by screwing the red oak plywood to 2x3s that rested against the freezer and the base. It is not actually attached to the freezer or base but the weight of it keeps it in place well.


Finally, i added the 1x4 oak boards to accent the front and sides.



Mostly done!

Next step will be to stain and protect the wood, install the tiles to the top, and then set up the rest of the plumbing. So far this has turned out better than I would have imagined. I am excited to get the first drink from it in my new house in a few weeks

Well done! Very very nice.

Looks good.

Looks awesome!

Long delay, I've been waiting to move it to my new apartment before I finished it. I just moved it last weeked (getting that thing up to the second floor was a PAIN! but totally worth it. I also stained in before moving it and it looks AWESOME. Will post pics soon. I think I changed my mind on the top design and instead of tiles I am going to make a collage with 6-pack panels of different beers and put a piece of acrylic over it all. I figure this will give my A.D.D. mind the ability to switch it up in the future. Hoping to have it functional and finished by the end of the week.

DONE! The top was completed with a piece of acrylic over the side panels from 6 packs to make a custom patchwork of awesome beer. The light is provided by two LED strips from IKEA.

Wow fantastic work! Not having much woodworking experience myself, how were the 1x4 oak accent boards attached to the oak plywood?

I just did screws through the 2x4s on the inside that add the spacers for airflow through the plywood into the accent boards to keep them on. worked well

I see these threads like minimum woodwork or 'simple' keezer build and I'm just laughing.

Pretty soon I'll post up my build (in progress) and you will really see some minimum woodwork simple building.

it is beautiful...

I am considering rebuilding my keezer and keep seeing these awesome builds like this with the coffin on top. Looks great but is it practical.

How difficult is it ti open and change a keg or get inside when you need too? It seems like there would be a lot of disassembly every time you get inside. Am I missing something here?

tripkings said:

I see these threads like minimum woodwork or 'simple' keezer build and I'm just laughing.

Pretty soon I'll post up my build (in progress) and you will really see some minimum woodwork simple building.

Click to expand...

Haha ya, well I planned this one out pretty intricately. What I meant by minimum woodwork keezer is that I have minimum experience going into this. Not that it would be easy or reccomended for people with minimum experience, although if I can provide hope for other noobs to go big, then I'm glad I could help.

theonetrueruss said:

it is beautiful...

I am considering rebuilding my keezer and keep seeing these awesome builds like this with the coffin on top. Looks great but is it practical.

How difficult is it ti open and change a keg or get inside when you need too? It seems like there would be a lot of disassembly every time you get inside. Am I missing something here?

Click to expand...

It is very easy to open. The top part is attached to the lid but not the skirt so it lifts up on the hinges of the freezer as normal. At first the weight of the wood on the lid caused it to be too heavy to stay up but when I added the coffin, it actually held up the lid on its own so it just stays there!

Also... heartbreaking news. While I plugged in the freezer when I got it (off craigslist) and i heard the compressor kick on... upon completion I plugged it in with high hopes that I would have a keg in there by the end of the night... but no... 2 hours later the inside temp was still 81 degrees... my freezer is dead... I need to find a replacement that is about the same size and hopefully talk the guy who sold it to me into giving me back my money.

IT WORKS! I found a new freezer on craigslist that was only 1.5 inches narrower than my current one so I had the guy bring it over and it works perfectly. After a little cutting and maneuvering we got the old one out and the new one in. hooked up a bud light keg (bleh) for starters while we wait for our IIPA and Amber to get out of secondary fermentation. Those two should be hooked up by the weekend. I figure I can fit a full sized keg and 2 homebrews in there now with the 5# CO2 tank and once we kill the full keg we will easily be able to fit all 5 corny kegs for home brew goodness.