So I'm committed. What do you think? any changes?

Alright so I've already committed to building a keezer at least similar to the one designed although i was slightly limited by what i could do with google sketchup. I want to use cherry for the siding and frames, and for the top i want to mortar and ground small river rocks like are used for landscaping, and then grouting to give it a rugged tile type look. I then wanted to apply a coat of thin resin over the top to make it smooth and easy to clean. As for the tower i wanted to try to hollow a log, most likely hickory that's about 6" in diameter and attach my shanks to that. What do you all think? Any problems you for see? I'm new and more than open to advice. Thanks in advance!

Make sure you line the inside of the tower (Wood) with some sort of water resistant application. Other than that, awesome idea!!!!

That sounds like it will be beautiful once it's finished. Be sure to post pics when it's all done, I'm very interested in seeing the finished product!

It would be neat if the log could be from the bottom of a tree, right where it spreads out for the roots. It would give it the feeling of a tree growing right along the bank of a creek.

thats actually not a bad idea at all, i like it. I'm gonna have to go foraging for something in my woods, i could probably at least get a large limb that would spread out, i think you've got me sold on the idea.

I like the large limb idea. It'd be like a tree of taps.

If you can get your hands on it, try to find a the trunk of a red cedar tree and mill it right where it splays out to the burl (roots). Cedar is naturally moisture resistant, but I would still try to seal the inside. Gread Idea!!! I incorporated red cedar logs, T&G knotty pine boards, and tumbled travertine stone into my build to give it a more rustic look to match my basement decor. It may be why I'm a little partial to red cedar logs. I would have never though of running beer lines directly through a hollowed out log though.....what a cool idea! I'm not sure what the R-Value would be for insulating the beer lines to keep them cool, but I'm sure you can figure something out. Check out my thread if you want a peek at a rustic build. I can't wait to follow your thread!

I have no idea how you are going to do this, but since you have the idea I'm guessing you have plans on how to do it. It sounds like it is going to be awesome when you are done! Looking forward to seeing pics.

you could also put a large piece of PVC inside the hollowed out log. This will keep the moisture mostly separated from the log itself.

Atl300zx said:

you could also put a large piece of PVC inside the hollowed out log. This will keep the moisture mostly separated from the log itself.

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The PVC would also give you a more stable mounting point for the taps. If you can find some self leveling epoxy you could just pour it over the rocks instead of having to grout the whole thing. What are you thinking of doing for the top of the log tower?

I was actually already planning on doing the epoxy, i actually used a similar method to encase my 6 pack carrier collection in a beer pong table... (classy i know.) i really like the pvc idea and will likely do that. What i was thinking for the top was actually cutting off about an inch on the top of the tower and then hollowing, and then using that as a cap, may use velcro and stryofoam insulation? That way it would look at least semi-natural and i could still have access to the interior of the tower if need be.

instead of attaching with velcro, i would drill small holes and "countersink" some of the small rare earth magnets. That way, the two pieces of wood would sit flush and it would be sturdy.

Yea I'm definetely leaning away from that velcro the more i think about it. I'll either do something like the magnets, or maybe get small dowel pins and drill a hole that they could fit in to. I have begun construction!!!

Ive built a base, attached castors and attached the base to the freezer.



i've always drilled the hole in the lid and found the stump/log i want to use for the tower and I'll be adding the siding on thursday.

Super awesome! Subscribed so I can see the whole process.

EDIT: Also, I'm in agreement that you need to some kind of waterproof treatment. But on the good-news side of the things, that thing will probably hold a temperature pretty dang well, especially at the center where the beer line will go.

Alright so I finally got some more work done today and I've learned a few things. First go with liquid nails always, theres no substiture. Second is that I am not the talented carpenter i once believed myself to believe. And lastly kegconnection.com is absolutely the website ever!!:rockin: Today i was able to get some of the trim done as well at the tiling. I waited to do the top trim so i could fit it around the tile. I did a little bit on the tower but it was giving me some problems so i moved it back until this weekend. Even with that I'm very happy with how it's coming along, hopefully I'll have it done by the end of the weekend!!

Sorry forgot the picture.....

Nice!!! This thing is going to be awesome. Nice work so far!

i really like the log you chose

Can't wait to see how you hollow that log out, but kickass idea. This looks like it'll be REALLY unique!!!

I like the original design. can't wait to see the final product

Cool idea!

What does cladding the exterior do to the efficiency or effectiveness of the Condensing unit?

Seems like it would force the freezer to work much harder?

Hmmm.... This could give a whole new meaning to "taproot"!

I like your idea!!

Are you planning on just hollowing out the top 6 inches or so of the log to fit the shanks? You could then drill holes just big enough for the beer line to fit through and use the insulating property of the wood.

Looking forward to the finished product.

Alright I've gotten some more work some, i tiled the top just need to grout and finish the trim on top. But as for the whole hollowing out of the log that was interesting to say the least. I used a 1" forstner bit and an electric drill. fortunately my father had already had an extension for this bit so he could drill holes into rifle stocks. Spent about 45 minutes drilling and boy was it fun! Not really. I then used a wood chisel and pocket knife to finish the hole up a bit. the problem was the our shanks that came with my kit from kegconnection were 5 1/8" which is waaaay too long. I intend to get some shorter shanks and make a sort of collar for them in all eventuality but for now this is what I'll be dealing with. It's a bit of a tight fit but i like the way it's turning out so far. I had to stagger the tap heights but it end up giving it the look i was going for so i dont even mind. I used styrofoam to insulate the beer lines and waterproof the log. As for the efficiency of the freezer, i did leave a vent hole clear by jigsawing a hole. I'm not sure what you mean, the freezer seems to keep up fine. It runs the pump only about 15 minutes every hour. I haven't experienced any problems but I've only had it running a few days so who knows.And sorry about the pictures, my camera keeps flipping them...

That's looking really good! But yeah, shorter shanks. The first photo looks like the tower is trying to give you a hug

Reno_eNVy_446 said:

That's looking really good! But yeah, shorter shanks. The first photo looks like the tower is trying to give you a hug

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Well, if you dont want to buy shorter shanks, I guess you could hollow out another piece for the "arms"

Solid project!

Good looking!

I would give it a good 2.5-2" of clear epoxy on top of the stones so that it looks like a river bank with water running over the stones.

I like it a lot though! Keep up the good work!

PaulHilgeman said:

What does cladding the exterior do to the efficiency or effectiveness of the Condensing unit?

Seems like it would force the freezer to work much harder?

Click to expand...

I just used liquid nails to apply the cladding to mine, it dosen't seem to effect things much. I keep it set to 38 with my ranco and it kicks on once an hour for just a few minutes. From what I understand the R value of wood isn't that great. So I doubt it's retaining much heat. Plus the back side of mine is open and I cut away where the compressor is.

JoshuaWhite5522 said:

I just used liquid nails to apply the cladding to mine, it dosen't seem to effect things much. I keep it set to 38 with my ranco and it kicks on once an hour for just a few minutes. From what I understand the R value of wood isn't that great. So I doubt it's retaining much heat. Plus the back side of mine is open and I cut away where the compressor is.

Click to expand...

Yea same exact thing for me. Mine is running a little harder because it's connected via extension cord and I've been constantly disconnecting it to plug in saw/sander/grinder so it hasnt really had a chance to do its thing. I applied mine with lock tight construction adhesive (so essentially liquid nails) and i don't forsee any problems. As for the shanks i think I've decided on a compromise of shorter shanks and a hollowed branch to cover the shank. When the problem first arose i thought of a mini keg that St. Bernards wear in the cartoons to put on top of the tower, but that seemed like a little much so i went with this fix. it'll last for a few weeks until i take care of the rest. But since a hug was mentioned, i wouldn't mind a hug everytime i pulled a draft. Thats like 6 hugs a night. I could handle that!

That river rock resin tabletop will look fantastic I think, one tip though, make sure you clean the rocks very thoroughly before you pour the resin(I would go so far as to soak them in some pretty heavy auto degreaser for a few hours. before rinsing them with water for at least a half hour.) We have something similar on our floor, it is in relatively thin layers but it always flakes off and we have to reapply because the guy who installed the floor didn't know what he was doing.

Remember that wood moves no matter what you try to do to prevent it. If you pour resin around the trunk, you may have problems with cracking as the trunk swells and shrinks. Same with your panels that you show in the Sketchup picture. Are you going to make them floating panels?
If you secure the trim firmly to the panels, you might find that it will split over the years.
Awesome idea and unique! I really like this build!

for all intensive purposes the keezer is finished! I was able to grout and stain last night. I think i will epoxy the stone eventually but for now I'll just see how stone sealant works. Probably need to apply a few more coats on the top trim boards also but I'm very happy. It'll take some time to get acquainted with my CO2 pressures and as to what is ideal for serving but I've pulled my first homebrew!

next up a drip tray!

Congrats. I kind of like the look of the long shanks. Great job.