Danby 10.2 (DCFM289WDD) Keezer Build Thread

[jcaudill]

Wow! Nice work....the radius corners on the collar along with the stainless steel paint looks fantastic! Where would one find the paint that you used. I apologize if you already answered that question earlier in your thread.

Thank you very much! I love the look - very retro cooler-esque the more I stare at it! Now I should actually make the darn thing work!

The paint is from http://www.liquidstainlesssteel.com. My best advice if anyone decides to use it is be very patient with it and apply many thin coats. Don't try to put too much on at once or you'll end up with a royal mess on your hands. This is 5 coats BTW.

 

[jcaudill]

What kind of sander did you use for the radius corners?

The radiuses were done with a table belt sander and then finish work with a palm sander. Basically:

1) Butt join the boards - drill and temporarily screw together.
2) Draw the radiuses on top for each corner.
3) Unscrew and with the belt sander work each board separately until you have the radius.
4) Sand any high spots with a palm sander.
5) Screw back together.
6) Fill holes - I used DAP Plastic Wood. Layer it on above the holes - let it harden then sand down smooth. Also fill the cracks at the butt joints the same way and sand.

Then you can finish it however you like!

 

[Fett327]

Your work looks amazing so far! I dont think many people on the forum have though about using the SS paint before.

2 quick questions about the keezer though.

I saw your picture with the 8 kegs fitting on the floor. Is it a snug fit? How much play is there between them? Was wondering if it would be possibly to fit in a commercial 5gal get in there if needbe, which is slightly thicker than a corney.

Also, are you going to use a temp controller, or is the built in thermostat enough to keep the beer above freezing? Do you know what the max temp is that you can set the freezer to?

Thanks, again, great work!

Martin

 

[jcaudill]

Thank you! That is what I'm all about - trying out some new things.

8 corny kegs on the floor is a fairly snug fit. I have a commercial 5 gallon keg in the garage I will try out for you and let you know.

I am going to use a Johnson A419 to control the freezer. I don't really have a particular reason for this - it's just the way I originally planned it out. I am not sure what the max temp is but I'll see if it's in the manual and let you know.

 

[Fett327]

Hahaha, well way to go above and beyond!! I was asking out of curiosity. You dont have to trouble yourself with experiments on my part, but if its no trouble it would certainly be useful for others wanting to follow in your footsteps.

Brewing folk are the best kind of folk I always say.

Martin

 

[berkeleyjack]

The radiuses were done with a table belt sander and then finish work with a palm sander. Basically:

1) Butt join the boards - drill and temporarily screw together.
2) Draw the radiuses on top for each corner.
3) Unscrew and with the belt sander work each board separately until you have the radius.
4) Sand any high spots with a palm sander.
5) Screw back together.
6) Fill holes - I used DAP Plastic Wood. Layer it on above the holes - let it harden then sand down smooth. Also fill the cracks at the butt joints the same way and sand.

Then you can finish it however you like!

Wow, thanks for the info!
I haven't had a chance to work on my keezer yet, but this will be really helpful for when I go to do the collar.

I'm still debating if I want to sand the corners to match the round edges of the wood the way you did, or if I want to leave it squared off so I can use apple or cherry plywood with the corners angled to 45 degrees or something.

The size of the Danby 10.2 is perfect, but the rounded corners are a challenge.


EDIT: I got a Johnson temp controller from NB and it works great with the Danby. Definitely a good choice, and much more accurate than the cheaper analog temp controllers.

 

[D_Nyholm]

I'm not a woodworker by any means, but do they make quarter round that size? or even ripping down a dowel to the correct size? though it looks like youd need a 2" dowel!

 

[jcaudill]

I'm not a woodworker by any means, but do they make quarter round that size? or even ripping down a dowel to the correct size? though it looks like youd need a 2" dowel!

Crap sorry never saw the question here - did you figure it out? The quarter round would all depend on the thickness of the wood you use. But this is making an assumption the Danby has a perfectly radiused corner and I am not too sure it does.

 

[jcaudill]

So I'm finally getting ready to finish this stupid project up - I had to take some time and focus on life priorities for a bit.

All I have left is to drill the hole for the probe, the CO2 tubing (keeping the bottle outside the freezer) and probably the DC fan power cable. Anyone have any suggestions or recommendations on placement or just do it?!

 

[jcaudill]

Wow - talk about the longest dragged-out Keezer build project ever! But, I have finally gotten this thing working!


Photo by brewerJP, on Flickr


Photo by brewerJP, on Flickr

I obviously still have to hookup a few hoses and maybe actually put some beer in the kegs but at least the Keezer is working! I have an A419 hooked up to it and it seems to be doing pretty well. I'll probably need to make some adjustments but the initial tests seem to be pretty good. Oddly - the air at the upper part of the freezer seems to be colder than the air at the bottom! I guess the fan is working.

 

[jcaudill]

Finishing touches - always the small stuff that brings something together:


photo 2 by brewerJP


photo 1 by brewerJP

Giddy!

 

[Valk0001]

Very nice and impressive work. Makes me wanna get started on one.

 

[justinsbrew]

Very nice write up. I just ordered the Danby 10.2 based largely on your input. I already have a 6 faucet t-tower that I will be using, so I really don't need a collar. I measured my ball lock + qd and the highest point of the beer line is at 26 1/8." From your photos it appears that the lid insulation protrudes in to the base a bit.

Would it be possible to not use a collar if I stripped the lid insulation?

Thanks for any insight.

 

[jcaudill]

Very nice write up. I just ordered the Danby 10.2 based largely on your input. I already have a 6 faucet t-tower that I will be using, so I really don't need a collar. I measured my ball lock + qd and the highest point of the beer line is at 26 1/8." From your photos it appears that the lid insulation protrudes in to the base a bit.

Would it be possible to not use a collar if I stripped the lid insulation?

Thanks for any insight.

I'm going to give it a *maybe*. To the top without the collar is 25" almost exactly so you're talking another 1 1/8". You may get that if you remove the insulation - but I can't be sure without actually doing it. You should give it a shot and post back up the results for sure!

I am very happy with the freezer otherwise. It has been beautiful and now that I don't need to occupy it with a water bath for chilling I will have 4 taps and 8 kegs!

 

[wasp]

Subscribed!

I've outgrown my 3 tap mini-frigerator.

People mostly want $150-250 for used freezers on Kijiji, so I've been scouting out new freezers. My local Costco (Canada) has Danby 10.2cu ft freezers for $290.

I was wondering how many kegs it would hold. I lucked-out by finding this thread when I googled "Danby 10.2cu. ft. freezer".

That question (and many more) is addressed in this excellent thread. Thanks everyone.

Time to start spending.

 

[jcaudill]

Great! I'm glad this could help.

I'm loving it - it's been working fantastic!

 

[maconlysource]

Can you please email me your wiring to the freezer?
I have a slightly smaller Danby (same looking thermostat)?

Pete

 

[jcaudill]

Do you have the A419 single stage?

 

[maconlysource]

My mistake i thought you had the STC 1000

 

[jcaudill]

This thread shows you how to wire the STC-1000: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/how-hard-wire-stc-1000-a-385792/

I buy a 15 foot black extension cord and cut it in half so that the cord to the fridge is female and I save the male side in case I need it elsewhere. Should be pretty straight forward.

 

[maconlysource]

This thread shows you how to wire the STC-1000: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/how-hard-wire-stc-1000-a-385792/

I buy a 15 foot black extension cord and cut it in half so that the cord to the fridge is frame and I save the male side in case I need it elsewhere. Should be pretty straight forward.

Thank you

 

[pmcint01]

Looks sweet!

 

[ResumeMan]

Question for the OP on the plywood platform:

How well has that worked for you? I'm going to be getting a somewhat larger freezer (not hugely so, 15 CF), and want to put it on wheels. Is the 3/4 inch plywood clearly sturdy enough? Or are you wishing you had built a frame? Just want to make sure I don't get myself into trouble! Thanks

 

[jcaudill]

I have absolutely no regrets going with the plywood base. It has worked perfectly fine. Really the most important part is to get some quality casters if you plan to move it much. It's only about 400 pounds loaded anyway - that isn't that much for plywood nor most light duty casters.

HTH!

 

[tdbc2011]

I have a 14 cf freezer and I used 3/4 in plywood without a frame. I put my casters directly under the corners so that it could not sag. The plywood is about 8 inches longer than the freezer on both sides for air flow. No problems so far.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/new-jester-clone-keezer-291292/

 

[B-Dub]

Just picked up this unit from Walmart for $329.

Looking at some of the first photos it looks like you added weather stripping to the collar side of your build. Is that just an illusion/dilution?

My plan is to go with the 2x6 with a rounded corner. Mine lives in the garage so if it isn't the prettiest; that okay with me.

Any redos for the tap placement and co2 lines? Seems like that will be important for loading and unloading.

Thanks and great work!

BW

 

[jcaudill]

I did indeed add stripping to the top of the collar. The main reason I did this is because the lid tends to not sit completely flat on the collar - it is a little higher on the back than then front due to the design of the hinges. So I added the stripping to make sure I got a good seal all the way around and would definitely recommend it.

I have changed the CO2 plumbing pretty significantly - I have 4 shanks now that are in the collar so I can run 4 different pressures. Once inside I split each of the 4 so I have 8 total gas connectors. This I definitely do not regret. I also used Colder disconnects on these so it's easy to break down if need be, and they can swivel when necessary.

What I'm on the fence about is if I did it again if I would do a tower instead of a side mount. There are pros and cons to each. When side mounted, the shanks do make it a little difficult to get kegs in and out. But I don't do this often enough where it is a huge burden.

I think you will enjoy it - I know I have! Definitely be prepared for a lot of water build up in the pan. You'll need to use Damp Rid or a dehumidifier to aid this.

 

[B-Dub]

Definitely be prepared for a lot of water build up in the pan. You'll need to use Damp Rid or a dehumidifier to aid this.

How much water are you talking about? Is it something that you can use the drain plug for? Mop out with a towel once a week? I am kind of a lazy brewer in the fact that I like to have certain things set up and forget about them. This would be one of those things.

Thanks again.

BW

 

[jcaudill]

No it's not enough that you're going to be able to drain it. It'll likely pool on one side of the freezer - probably towards the compressor. Wiping it out is possible but remember you will have kegs directly over it. I have used a wet vac before to pull the water out though.

 

[B-Dub]

Last question, I swear! What adhesive do you use? Looks like liquid nails might be a good choice.

Thanks again!

BW