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temperature variance with 10" collar

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Judochop

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Oct 1, 2008
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Location
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I built a 10” collar for my freezer to allow myself a couple more kegs on the compressor hump. But I’m observing a major temp variance within the freezer now, from 35F at the bottom to 47 nearer the top.

For those of you who have kegs at significantly different heights like I do, what measures (if any) have you taken to even out the temp variance in your freezer?

ie. Did super-duper insulation and generous globs of silicone sealant and/or caulk do the trick? Did you have to get a mini-fan in there to blow things around?

I'm considering both options, but would like to hear about the experiences of others first. What works ‘good enough’ and what works well?

Thanks!

JC
 
i experience a similar variance, Only noticed it because i think i froze a lager. but haven't investigated a solution for it yet. I'm thinking of having a fan turn on at the same time as the freezer to help blow things around.
 
For those of you who are using a fan, do you have it running at all times? Or is cutting the fan power along with the freezer power a solution, as Grimm has suggested?

(Which way are you going, TomSD?)
 
my only fear with the fan idea is that it will just confuse the temp controller and the freezer will cycle more often and not really cool much more. having the inverse, the fan going when the freezer is off i think would be closer to ideal solution, but I don't think my love controller can do that.
 
The fan needs to be running all the time to make any sense to me. The point is to keep the hot air from forming up top so running it all the time should keep things pretty stable. I can't see it confusing the controller too much though as all it is doing is equalizing the temperature. At most you would have to position your sensor so the fan wasn't right on it.

I ran mine all the time while my keezer was being built and it seemed to help. It was sitting at the bottom pointing up only because it wasn't mounted or wired in. I'm mounting it in the collar pointing down now but won't know how much it helps until I've let it run for a bit.

My big reason for a fan is condensation. Without the fan I was always collecting water in the bottom of my keeezer. With it it stayed pretty dry.
 
fan runs all the time on mine, two computer fans mounted to inside the lid. IMHO, turning it on only when the compressor is on doesn't cut it.
 
My fan is mounted now...

FinalPlumbing.JPG


The only problem I still have with airflow is the kegs are so tight together the pockets between them don't circulate and get much colder than the rest of the cooler. Easy to solve though as I have plenty of head room. I'll put down something under them to raise them up and allow the cold air to circulate between them. With the fan it keeps a pretty steady temperature besides that though.
 
Yeah that is what that bilge blower is. I run it on a switching adapter though so I can change the speed. At 12volts and sounds and blows like a freaking leaf blower, lol. I think right now it is at like 6v.

Thats good to know, thanks
 
OK, I am subscribed to this one. Just finished a keezer with 2x10 collar and a coffin box and a friend has me a bit concerned about temp variances.

I have about 10 degrees of temp variance from the very floor of the freezer to the very top of my coffin box. Before adding the 1/2" green polystyrene boards to insulate collar and coffin (held with furnace tape) I had a 15 degree temp variance, top to bottom.

From floor of keezer to top of collar with insulation is about 3-4 degrees now insulated. I also used some $5 rubber welcome mats on bottom of freezer to keep bottom of kegs from touching frozen floor, this seems to have helped. So far, the temp just above the mats is 35, tops of kegs are around 40, and coffin is around 43-45. This all seems to work, but my beer is not fully carbed yet to see if I have foaming.

I used a old 12 v PC fan (only hooked up to 9v power source-operating at 3/4 capacity) to blow air into the tower. Will be upgrading to 12v when I find a proper power supply for cheap. IMHO, fans should be running full time to keep the air moving.

If anyone wants to look at it (the collar is buried in there, trust me)
http://picasaweb.google.com/michaeljdonofrio/Keezer?feat=email#5519374069522406274
 
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