keezer - mounting the collar and dressing up the face

[kegtoe]

I don't know if my kegerator in the garage is going ot make it through the winter. I think i need to get something in the house.

There are a lot of good pics of keezers but i have seen 2 ways of mounting the collar: one is mounting the collar to the top of the fridge base then mounting the hinges to the collar and the top swings up from the collar. the other is that people attach the collar to the lid.

My thought is that the collar would be better on the base of the fridge rather than the top as the taps would be stationary. IS that correct? What's your experience?

Also, how can I dress up the freezer so it doesn't look "unsightly" in the living kitchen for the wife? I was thinking of just addin some left over floor paneling to the front. Any issue with that?

Last how long of beer line would be recomended?

 

[david_42]

There is no best/correct way. Both ways work, both have pluses and minuses.

If the freezer you select uses the front as a heat-sink, you shouldn't cover it. Do a nice job on the collar and trays, it should be fine. You could always show her pictures of various keezers and ask her which she prefers.

 

[HOP-HEAD]

This is what I did as one example for you:

Build Thread:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/another-keezer-build-w-pics-142726

Others will undoubtedly chime in with there's for comparison.

Or, scroll through the sticky thread called "show us your kegerator". It's long, and it'll take awhile, but there's alot of pics.

As for covering it, a lot of people have covered there's with just about everything with mixed results. Personally, I feel you have two options, the first being my choice due to simplicity, and I believe better efficiency.

1. Cover it with something thin, that has a very low R-value, and keep it tight to the existing panels. That way, it'll continue to allow the heat from the cooling coils to radiate through the front and sides.

2. Use some shims or spacers to encase it with a space between your covering and the walls. Then add some fans to exhaust the heat.

Also, To answer the other question, I prefer the collar mounted on the lid. That way, when you open it, the taps, lines, etc. are out of your way. It also keeps the height lower for lifting in new kegs. And, as an added benefit, if you mount the regulators to the back of the collar as I did, they're on a nice convenient angle to read when it's open.

 

[Jester369]

Or you could skip the collar altogether and go thru the lid

 

[HOP-HEAD]

Or you could skip the collar altogether and go thru the lid

I've always love this one..... was just a bit bigger than I had room to go, and I wasn't satisfied with the style on a smaller freezer.

Damn nice set-up though.

 

[IrregularPulse]

Mine is much smaller than jesters but the same design. Not the same skill level but if your skill is the same you could build just as nice as his. Mine is currently torna part in my basement for a revamp for a New Years party. I'd recommend against the collar opening with the lid. Combine that with a tap box and the lid is too heavy. I was never comfortable letting the hinges bear all that weight.
Regardless swmbo should be able to find something she likes in this thread.

 

[josiahcox]

Double hing that beast! I got the idea from other people here on the board and I honestly don't know why you would not. You get the best of both worlds and YES, the higes hold the wieght just fine.

I put a piece of finish 1 by on the front of my collar to dress it up a bit. You can always make it nicer but do consider double hinging it. I doubt that you will be sorry you did.

 

[BHowe]

Can you shed some light as to where and what type of "second" hinges you used. I like this!

 

[Scut_Monkey]

Can you shed some light as to where and what type of "second" hinges you used. I like this!

I "second" your request to see the "second" set of hinges. I think its a good idea and would like to see them.

 

[Rick500]

I mounted my collar on the base, and just the lid lifts up.

Actually, "mount" isn't really accurate; only gravity is holding the collar in place. It's worked perfectly well so far.

One good reason to do it the other way and hinge the collar at the base, is if you anticipate any issues lifting kegs in and out of the freezer. I haven't had any issues there, so hinging the collar at the lid has been fine.

The double hinge method seems like a great idea to me, though.

 

[Scut_Monkey]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/holy-lord-7-0-ge-chest-freezers-hd-170-a-143827/index8.html

Found the thread for the dual hinge type setup discussed above. Looks like ordinary door hinges. I think I have seen setups before using the dual hinge where a second set of chest freezer hinges were used. Whatever works but I imagine I will be using dual hinges.

 

[kmat123]

I have the same 7.0 cu ft. chest freezer and did the dual hinge thing with a couple of 3" door hinges. Cost me about $10 total for those and the weatherstripping and makes it much easier to move kegs in and out of the keezer without hoisting over the 10" collar.

 

[BHowe]

Everything still seals up fine with the factory seal and the door hinges. I was a touch concerned as the lids don't have much mass to smash the factory seal.

I'm also not seeing anything in the hardware stores that looks like a decent seal to go from the collar to the chest.

 

[kmat123]

I used D-grade weatherstripping for the seal on mine between the freezer and collar. Makes a great airtight seal!

 

[Bobby_M]

If you go with a big 2x6 or larger collar, I wouldn't hinge it to the freezer body. When I built mine, I was looking to make the collar look like it was a factory design and it was just tall enough to accept the shanks. It made it weigh a lot less and it just made sense to have the collar move out of my way. I don't ever bang the shank when I'm hauling kegs in and out.

1x3 or 1x4 poplar works great.

 

[kmat123]

The hinges on the 7.0 cu ft. GE chest freezer have very strong springs in them and have no problem holding open my 10" collar. I left it open for approx. 12 hours to test it out and they were holding strong when I came to check back on them. Considering they will only be open for a couple minutes at a time when moving kegs in and out of the keezer in not too worried.

 

[josiahcox]

The second hinges I used are just normal 3 inch door hinges. They work great and fit the lid perfect. They are not spring loaded but when I open the lid I just rest it against the wall behind it. The stock hinges on my keezer are plenty strong to hold the extra weight.

 

[HOP-HEAD]

Personally, I see no benefit from adding a second joint to seal. With the collar attached to the lid, you gain all of the advantages of having the collar, taps, and lid out of your way... while having the ability to open just the lid grants you what? The hinges on mine lift far more than they were ever designed and are doing great.

 

[kmat123]

To each their own

 

[IrregularPulse]

The second hinges I used are just normal 3 inch door hinges. They work great and fit the lid perfect. They are not spring loaded but when I open the lid I just rest it against the wall behind it. The stock hinges on my keezer are plenty strong to hold the extra weight.

Looks like we have the same fridge. I was always afraid to let mt collar and tap box be supported by the hinges. I removed the collar and am in the process of building a new smaller tap box.

 

[josiahcox]

Yup we have the same one.
I was a bit afraid too but honestly how long are you going to have that lid open for? I can switch out kegs in less than a minute. I also wanted to leave mine as intact as possible.

HOP-HEAD - The benefit for me was not having to lift my heavy ass collar when all I want to do is adjust pressure or add or remove some bottled beer or supplies. I know, it's not that great of an advantage but why not? Also if I ever reconvert it to a freezer (not likely) all I will have to do is remove some screws.

Like Kmat said - to each there own.

 

[Bobby_M]

See, my collar isn't heavy at all.

 

[Scut_Monkey]

See, my collar isn't heavy at all.

Bobby M, what is your collar made out of? It dosen't look like wood but a synthetic.