I just added a fan to my keezer in hopes the temp would distribute more and cut down on condensation but I have it only turn on with the controller. If you have a fan in your keezer are you running all the time?
Run fan in keezer full time?
- Thread starter pretzelb
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I utilize a fan that only comes on with the compressor in my lager ferm chamber & a fan that runs continuously in my ale ferm chamber (larger). I still have some condensation issues, particularly in hot weather.
I use moisture absorbers in the Summer.
I use moisture absorbers in the Summer.
Firewalker11
Brewer
Run it 24/7, moving air is better then still air IMHO.
EcuPirate07
Beer is a food group
24/7/365
My keezer fans are always on...
Cheers!
Cheers!
running it all the time. circulates air and keeps temperature more uniform overall. simple USB fan. why not?
Keeping it running all the time allows the fridge to work less and keeps temps controlled better. No downside.
zachattack
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Always on for me as well.
kombat
Well-Known Member
I don't actually have fans in any of my freezers. I do use the rechargeable dehumidifiers though.
ryanryates
Well-Known Member
Mine runs 24/7. Happy with the results.
Mine runs 24/7. It's been running for almost 5 years without a problem.
agrazela
Well-Known Member
USB fan on full speed 24/7, keezer on a Johnson A419, all out on the back patio
Kill-a-watt tells me my 7.1cuft keezer and USB fan together are costing me about 5 cents/day in electricity. Totally worth it.
Kill-a-watt tells me my 7.1cuft keezer and USB fan together are costing me about 5 cents/day in electricity. Totally worth it.
I have a cheap desk top fan I got at Target for $10. Been working like a charm not stop 
I use a USB Thermaltake fan in my keezer. It runs 24/7 and does a great job keeping consistent temperatures.
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Spare computer fan wired with an old cell phone recharger. Runs 24/7.
Don't need much of a fan to circulate air in there.
Don't need much of a fan to circulate air in there.
yes...
Firewalker11
Brewer
Also, 5V fans like USB fans usually have oilite bushings and really don't like starting in the cold but being in the cold and running will extend their life significantly.
24/7
2 fans in my keezer (opposite corners - 1 pointed up, the other down) and they both run 24/7.
Very little temperature stratification and zero moisture issues.
Couldn't be happier.
Do it
Very little temperature stratification and zero moisture issues.
Couldn't be happier.
Do it
ryanryates
Well-Known Member
I did the math on electricity costs - based on my local northern VA rates the fan would burn about 4-5 bucks worth of power a year.
Don't understand how a fan will help with condensation, I always thought that depends on your local humidity and how much air leakage one has to the keezer.
Maybe if I lived in a dry climate I would be a fan of freezer keezers, but IME in the northeast a fridge is better...my keezers always turned to swamp in the humid summer months...
Maybe if I lived in a dry climate I would be a fan of freezer keezers, but IME in the northeast a fridge is better...my keezers always turned to swamp in the humid summer months...
I live in KS, I just run a fan. Never a problem like that in mine.
I run the fan 24x7 and use an EvaDry-500 to keep things dry. I did test running the fan 24x7 -vs- cycling with keezer power. The latter produced bigger swings in ambient temp so I opted for a tighter range instead. The keezer did cycle less often though than it does with the fan always on.
Firewalker11
Brewer
No it isn't really, it takes a lot more power to start a fan, especially if it's cold and the bearings and or bushings are cold and tight. They will create more drag and consume much more power in starting than it was running. Overall, it is cheaper to run a fan 24/7 then it is to start it and stop it. This is especially true for motors that use capacitors for start.
(My daughter is currently enrolled in engineering classes quote she used motors, the one in our HVAC system in particular, to do a time and kilowatt study. We found that it actually saves about 1000 kilowatts over the course of a year to run it 24/7 rather than starting it when needed. We have kept the fan on for the last 16 months constantly and we have better temperature control and air quality because of it.)
EcuPirate07
Beer is a food group
Interesting. So are you saying I should put my thermostat in fan mode instead of auto?
Ever since I started using this I have zero condensation issues.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000H0XFD2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000H0XFD2/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20
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The compressor on the fridge uses exponentially more energy than your fan. Running the fan constant evens out the temps in your Keezer, so the compressor will probably not come on as often. Also, I have had uneven temps = frozen 1/4 full kegs.
pretzelb
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I've had one of those for years and I still had condensation issues.
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zachattack
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Tons of us in the Northeast use keezers! Mine has been fine in a humid basement, funky garage, etc. The fan helps with humidity because it keeps the air circulating so the desiccant can more effectively grab the moisture.
If your keezer turns to a swamp in the summer, you have an air leak. At the peak of summer I'm regenerating my Eva Dry only once a month or so.
pretzelb
Well-Known Member
I've heard that condensation is caused by an air leak but I've never been able find where mine is leaking. I know my kegs are colder near the bottom without any fans and that is where the condensation starts. Hopefully the fan will help.
Yeah, condensation is caused by air getting into your keezer somehow. Might be the seal between your lid and your collar, might be the seal between the collar and your keezer, could be your collar is not tight, or maybe you just open the darn thing up too much.
Using a fan helps with the condensation as it keeps the air moving along which makes any sort of dehumidifier more effective. I also use the large Eva-Dry in mine. I think I need to recharge it once a month or so.
If you're having severe condensation issues you could also look at putting a fan directly on the Eva-Dry using velcro or rubber bands. That would make it even more effective.
Using a fan helps with the condensation as it keeps the air moving along which makes any sort of dehumidifier more effective. I also use the large Eva-Dry in mine. I think I need to recharge it once a month or so.
If you're having severe condensation issues you could also look at putting a fan directly on the Eva-Dry using velcro or rubber bands. That would make it even more effective.
I have yet to put finish my keezer, I have the collar of course, but right now I have wires hanging out under the lid. I know bad seal.... How do you run wires out of the collar, did you just drill a big hole and then seal it up? What is the best method?
For my gas line I drilled a pretty snug hole in the collar, worked the tubing through that, and then I sealed inside and out with a bead of silicone caulking (the same stuff I used to seal my collar to the freezer).
For the wires (I've got two fan cables and a temp probe), I simply cut out a very small bit of the weatherstripping (maybe 1/2" wide) from the top of my keezer and ran all three wires though there. It's a pretty small opening, and there's still the seal of the freezer lid holding things tight.
I know that's not a perfectly airtight solution, but it is a very tiny ingress point, and in 8 months of use I've not had any condensation problems.
For the wires (I've got two fan cables and a temp probe), I simply cut out a very small bit of the weatherstripping (maybe 1/2" wide) from the top of my keezer and ran all three wires though there. It's a pretty small opening, and there's still the seal of the freezer lid holding things tight.
I know that's not a perfectly airtight solution, but it is a very tiny ingress point, and in 8 months of use I've not had any condensation problems.
pretzelb
Well-Known Member
I keep my gas inside so up until I added the fan my only hole was for the temp probe which I then filled with caulk. It has been so long since I added the collar I don't recall but I think I have weather striping between the collar and the freezer. I left the freezer lid alone on top of the collar because it fit well and should be just as good as if the collar wasn't there.
The fan has me stumped. For now I cut a small trench in the collar for the cord. If I was to drill another hole it would need to be excessively big to fit the plug. If the trench works I can add caulk to tighten it up.
I should probably take it all apart but with 2x10s it is fairly big and I'm being lazy.
The fan has me stumped. For now I cut a small trench in the collar for the cord. If I was to drill another hole it would need to be excessively big to fit the plug. If the trench works I can add caulk to tighten it up.
I should probably take it all apart but with 2x10s it is fairly big and I'm being lazy.
I was thinking of going with the trench idea too and then filling it up with wood putty on the back side. So how many of you keep your gas in the keezer?
On mine I put weatherstripping on the top of the freezer/bottom of the collar connection as well as on the top of the collar/bottom lid connection. Even though the freezer lid has its own seal, I found that it wasn't sealing tightly on mine as boards generally aren't straight enough to provide a good seal. Give it a try around yours with the dollar bill trick. Essentially put a dollar bill on top of the collar and close the lid. If you can pull it out without much effort then you don't have a tight seal. Try this all the way around your collar.
I wouldn't overthink the cord management too much. Just notch out a bit of the weatherstripping a bit, and run your cords through there. The lid seal should help keep out all but the smallest amount of air there.
Although at this point I think we've veered far
, which was should you keep your keezer fan running 24/7, and to that I say yes.
I wouldn't overthink the cord management too much. Just notch out a bit of the weatherstripping a bit, and run your cords through there. The lid seal should help keep out all but the smallest amount of air there.
Although at this point I think we've veered far
, which was should you keep your keezer fan running 24/7, and to that I say yes.pretzelb
Well-Known Member
On mine I put weatherstripping on the top of the freezer/bottom of the collar connection as well as on the top of the collar/bottom lid connection. Even though the freezer lid has its own seal, I found that it wasn't sealing tightly on mine as boards generally aren't straight enough to provide a good seal. Give it a try around yours with the dollar bill trick. Essentially put a dollar bill on top of the collar and close the lid. If you can pull it out without much effort then you don't have a tight seal. Try this all the way around your collar.
I wouldn't overthink the cord management too much. Just notch out a bit of the weatherstripping a bit, and run your cords through there. The lid seal should help keep out all but the smallest amount of air there.
Although at this point I think we've veered far
Yea, I was thinking I should start another topic of condensation but we have nearly covered it all here. I might give the weather striping a try between the lid and the collar.
Thorsbrew
Well-Known Member
Just joined and started homebrewing recently but I thought I'd chime in and offer my experience.
Yeah I use a fan 24/7. Though I wanted to note that I was also going to get the eva-dry dehumidifier as others here mentioned until I found out it's nothing more than a box with a little bit of silica gel beads and a heating element to dehumidify them. Well i can dehumidify them in the oven so i instead opted to buy a 5lb bag of silica gel beads for $22. Not sure exactly how much is in the eva dry units but based on what i saw on amazon it must be at least 20-30 times the quantity for roughly the same price.
Yeah I use a fan 24/7. Though I wanted to note that I was also going to get the eva-dry dehumidifier as others here mentioned until I found out it's nothing more than a box with a little bit of silica gel beads and a heating element to dehumidify them. Well i can dehumidify them in the oven so i instead opted to buy a 5lb bag of silica gel beads for $22. Not sure exactly how much is in the eva dry units but based on what i saw on amazon it must be at least 20-30 times the quantity for roughly the same price.
