Trap Door Keezer

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phil131

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My first thread, apologies if formats or pics get messed up.

Here is my version of a trap door or split door keezer.

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Background: I went through a couple design iterations starting with the standard coffin keezer and keezer collar designs, but they didnt fit what I wanted/needed. I dont want to have to move the freezer at all, didnt like the typical tilting concept of a coffin top, but needed the taps higher than the collar design allows for to stay out of reach of the little one, who plays in the garage often.

Anyway, finally settled on a modified design based off of the BYO trap door keezer. Poured the first beers today, pretty happy with the outcome. I went pretty cheap/rough as far as wood quality/craftmanship mostly for this to be proof of concept because I would like to upgrade to a fully enclosed bar situation when I move in a few years. So some aspects of the project could definitely be cleaned up, which I will probably tinker with a little over time. Some pictures to show the concept and build.

Dry fitting all the pieces. I used a thick weather seal with a good amount of squishiness/compression to allow forgiveness in my not-so-perfectly-level frame
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Had to build this little pieces because the foam weather seal would collapse more in the middle of the short sides of the freezer than along the length, causing a bowing in at the split. These keep the whole top level even once the foam has compressed from the weight.
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Some reference shots of final assembly and sealing. Sealed with a mixture of reflectix tape and silicone caulk. You can see the insulation foam sticking out from the back lid, this was done so that when the front lid is installed, it will still seal and air will not escape from the small seam between wood frame/tabletop that I i knew I would not get to mesh together perfect enough to be airtight.
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The back: not pictured, I also installed a LED touch on/off switch along the edge of the tower for ease of flipping lights on. I also installed two permanent blocks where the freezer hinges were attaching to the wood top to secure it in place.
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Doing final wiring, plumbing assembly and sealing it all up.
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More pics here:

Hope that gives the run-down. Pretty happy with this, even being a little roughly thrown together.
 
That looks great! I'm planning on redoing my keezer in a similar way, but will build a facade around to create a false chamber on one side to house CO2 and electronics. Thanks for posting.
 
Looks great! Thanks for posting! I'm looking at doing the exact same thing this weekend - did you use any hinges on the lid or did you just set the two pieces of the top together with an insulation piece below? What type of wood did you use for the top? Any issues with the compressor running all the time? Thanks!
 
Looks great! Thanks for posting! I'm looking at doing the exact same thing this weekend - did you use any hinges on the lid or did you just set the two pieces of the top together with an insulation piece below? What type of wood did you use for the top? Any issues with the compressor running all the time? Thanks!

Thanks! I made a solid wood “hinge” in place of the freezers hinges to secure the back piece to the freezer and prevent it from getting knocked around, but that’s probably unnecessary due to the weight and trim helping hold it in place

I used 2x6 pine for the top, wasn’t investing heavily as I plan to rebuild/improve in a few years when we move.
No major issues with compressor running too much but there was an initial problem with a LOT of condensation (small pool within a week in freezer), even in winter garage temps. I revamped my seals for every crevice with silicone, weather seal and foam, which killed 90% of that problem. I also had the towers fans plugged directly in, which ran continuously and definitely added to the compressor running more often and causing condensation. I unplugged them for the time being, which solved the condensation/condenser problem but planning to hook the fans up to a temp control to balance keeping the tower cool with the loss of heat and compressor cycling.
 
Thanks Phil that's really helpful - I haven't run across this problem yet - thank you!
 
I made a solid wood “hinge” in place of the freezers hinges to secure the back piece to the freezer and prevent it from getting knocked around, but that’s probably unnecessary due to the weight and trim helping hold it in place

Also, I just realized you can see the wooden hinges in a picture above, the one of the underside of the back/tower piece. Just for reference.
 
Nice yes I saw that - I was initially asking about a hinge in the middle of the new top (vs just sliding off). I do like that support on the back though - I'm going to certainly add it. Thanks again!
 
Ah. I did not do a hinge in the middle. My advice would be to probably avoid that, but do what you will with yours. My reasoning is that the clearance I built to get kegs in/out is already fairly snug, and if the door is hinged I dont believe I would have enough room to maneuver kegs in/out, plus the added pain of propping the door, ensuring the lid can rotate down into place without the front edge catching on the lip, the possibility of unsightly hinges on the top of the bar or trying to hide those hinges, etc

For me, I dont take the lid off enough to justify trying to go down that road and its not super heavy to just pick up.
 
One more question - what kind of foam tape did you use for the seal? I'm debating getting something at the local big box store vs ordering a higher density tape. Thanks!
 
One more question - what kind of foam tape did you use for the seal? I'm debating getting something at the local big box store vs ordering a higher density tape. Thanks!

I used the local box store, they both have a pretty wide array of foam and weatherseals. For the seal around the edge of the freezer I used medium-light density weatherseal, about 1" wide. It was fairly squishy, almost like gel foam. For the seal between the doors, where they meet in the middle I used a very light density foam, about 1" wide by 3/4-1" thick. The kind that when you press lightly with fingers you can compress it totally flat. This was to help fill in all the air gaps when the doors are pressed together. Then I used another medium-light density weatherseal that was 1/4" thick for some of the smaller gaps with tower and doors.
 

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