DIY 4 tap tower

[weizen]

My on going project of turnin my old kegerator into a kegerator for 4 corny kegs with a tower. My kegerator is old kenmore model that will hold 4 cornies and 5# CO2 tank. I worked on this a little this winter trying pvc pipe but can't find a glue that works good enough for my approval. Next Phase... bought a length of 4" tail pipe and a length of 3" tail pipe. The 3" will be used for the riser and the 4" for the cross at top to hold the taps. Fortunately I have access to a wire welder (the same one used for my three tier stand) I know this will hold to my standards and metal is much more fun to work with than plastic.

First phase: was cutting the hole in the top to take the stand pipe and cut them to length. So far I'm happy with the look but still need to find a way to cap the ends that nice and neat.

Idea for ends:I'm thinking of refinishing the entire kegerator. Right now its dark brown. I'm thinking of painting entire thing black and putting a maple top on it with a black tower. Maple end caps may look nice. Use something like this:

1860A21 Push-to-Open Magnetic Catch 2.5 lb Pull, Black/Black, 1-3/32" X 1-19/32" X 5/8"
$3.09 Each McMaster-Carr (I love this place)to attach the ends put a small metal plate on the inside of the cap and epoxy 2 of these inside the tower on each end. You just push the end cap and it will release enough to grab it.

Second phase: drilled holes for the shanks and tested 3 of 4 faucets (the other is in use right now). So far I like the way its shaping up. No I wasn't drinking, still not welded so it may appear a little unbalanced

 

[camiller]

 

[weizen]

pics showing up fine on my machine...... http://jrhb.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=125&d=1246930129
http://jrhb.org/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=120&d=1246838313

 

[MBasile]

links require logging in, and I'm sure not being registered/logged in is responsible for us not being able to see the pictures.

 

[weizen]

grrr guess I had to do it eventually... created photobucket account

 

[camiller]

Hey, I see em now. Nice looking work. Looking forward to seeing it finished.

 

[Ender]

This is a damn good idea. What did you use for the bottom of the 3" tail to screw it onto the kegerator?

 

[IrregularPulse]

You couldn't find a glue good enough for your approval on PVC? Did you try PVC Cement The stuff made for joining PVC?

 

[weizen]

You couldn't find a glue good enough for your approval on PVC? Did you try PVC Cement The stuff made for joining PVC?

I actually work with the stuff every day....hrrr PVC glue is made to glue actual pvc joints together with various couplings not too itself with out a coupling for the nice clean finish that I will accomplish with the metal.

 

[weizen]

This is a damn good idea. What did you use for the bottom of the 3" tail to screw it onto the kegerator?

It fits very tightly over a 3" PVC toilet flange that will be hidden under the top. I have a broken one holding it in the picture just not slid all the way down.

 

[IrregularPulse]

I actually work with the stuff every day....hrrr PVC glue is made to glue actual pvc joints together with various couplings not too itself with out a coupling for the nice clean finish that I will accomplish with the metal.

Ah, Gotchya, makes sense now. I just wanted to make sure the obvious wasn't overlooked.

 

[yellowcolumbia]

I actually work with the stuff every day....hrrr PVC glue is made to glue actual pvc joints together with various couplings not too itself with out a coupling for the nice clean finish that I will accomplish with the metal.

I won't dispute that a joint with a coupling is stronger, but in building my tower, I have found that pvc primer and cement has performed extremly well in bonding two pieces of pvc together at a 90 degree mitered corner without a coupling. A little sanding to remove any excess cement, and a nice clean finish is easily attainable.

Full write-up with photos:
Wort-O-Matic: Custom Draft Tower and Kegerator

 

[weizen]

the way that is with 2 down legs I'm sure it works fine (probably a little more structurely sound) but with a "T" tower it didn't take much pressure from one side or the other and you could see the flexing and I'm sure after a few beers and some big drunk leans on it for whatever reason it was sure to break.

 

[weizen]

So I worked on the end caps for a bit yesterday and this is what I came up with. Still need to weld it up, paint metal and stain the end caps. Then we move on to mounting it to the kegerator.
Side view:

Front view (I painted a little just to see what its going to look like):

Inside view of magnetic holders:

Push to open for access:

Inside of cap:

 

[weizen]

Found this fan to use as a tower cooler:
25CFM air flow
57 dB noise level
12 volt dc power

 

[IrregularPulse]

Nice on the design and function of the end caps

 

[weizen]

Finally welded it and put a thin layer of high gloss black paint on it to see any flaws. Some more sanding needed and maybe a little filler here and there but otherwise I'm really happy with the out come so far.

 

[FailureDrill]

Looks solid, good job.

 

[Kauai_Kahuna]

I like it and it looks great, just a note. Are you going to cut the tops of those handles. Personally I think I would always be opening the cabinets above and spilling a lot of beer.

 

[JSherwood]

57 dB for fan noise might be pretty loud. Rock concerts see 90-95 dB, and you're pushing better than half that with a fan to cool the tower? That just seems a bit too much noise for this guy. I'd rather not have a semi-jet engine cooling a tap tower. haha

 

[camiller]

I like it and it looks great, just a note. Are you going to cut the tops of those handles. Personally I think I would always be opening the cabinets above and spilling a lot of beer.

I think that little glamor shot was the tower posing on top of a kitchen counter rather than in its final home....

 

[camiller]

57 dB for fan noise might be pretty loud. Rock concerts see 90-95 dB, and you're pushing better than half that with a fan to cool the tower? That just seems a bit too much noise for this guy. I'd rather not have a semi-jet engine cooling a tap tower. haha

Well, it is going to be inside a insulated box which will mitigate the sound a bit. He could always run it at 9 volts too.

 

[ajwillys]

57 dB for fan noise might be pretty loud. Rock concerts see 90-95 dB, and you're pushing better than half that with a fan to cool the tower? That just seems a bit too much noise for this guy. I'd rather not have a semi-jet engine cooling a tap tower. haha

The dB scale is logarithmic, not linear. This means that half the number is not half as loud. Here's a good comparison chart. 57 dB is still loud for a fan, but nowhere near half a rock concert.

Decibel (Loudness) Comparison Chart

 

[weizen]

I think that little glamor shot was the tower posing on top of a kitchen counter rather than in its final home....

That was indeed a glamour shot.

I doubt I run the fan at full 12 volts don't think i need that much air movement.

 

[weizen]

57 dB for fan noise might be pretty loud. Rock concerts see 90-95 dB, and you're pushing better than half that with a fan to cool the tower? That just seems a bit too much noise for this guy. I'd rather not have a semi-jet engine cooling a tap tower. haha

Normal conversation (3-5') 60-70dB So it's not as loud as someone talking....

 

[bull8042]

The dB scale is logarithmic, not linear. This means that half the number is not half as loud. Here's a good comparison chart. 57 dB is still loud for a fan, but nowhere near half a rock concert.

Decibel (Loudness) Comparison Chart

Dang, you beat me to the answer. I have got to get a faster computer...

 

[Kauai_Kahuna]

That was indeed a glamour shot.
I doubt I run the fan at full 12 volts don't think i need that much air movement.

Sorry, just double checking.
Sometimes it is easy to miss the tree in the forest, but may I again say it looks really good.

 

[ajwillys]

Dang, you beat me to the answer. I have got to get a faster computer...

Yeah, much faster!! I beat you about 9 hours!!

 

[bull8042]

Yeah, much faster!! I beat you about 9 hours!!

Yeah, ummm, I am running Windows 3.1 on the neighbors dial-up. Yeah, that's it. That has to be what it is......

 

[rbarr110]

I have that fan, it is ridiculously loud. It may be okay if it tucked away in an insulated area, but out in the open air..... I hate it.