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Kegerator build

Oddball

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Hey guys,

Build a kegerator out of an old chest freezer and some scrap wood in my garage the other day, i've got my first keg in there right now and i've transfered all my beer into it from our main fridge. The question I have for you guys is: has anyone had any experience with putting something on the chest freezer door to hold it open? I was thinking of using a screen door closer and using the latch to hold it?

I attached a picture of it, i'm getting the 3 tap tower in this week which will go on top (i'm just using picnic taps right now).

Thanks
 

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Most people use a stick to hold it up so that they can change kegs etc.  What you've built is actually a keezer. 

I hope this doesn't put too much of a damper on your joy, but I'm a little worried that your compressor won't last long.  The wood you put around it will keep it from dissipating heat very efficiently, which will cause it to overwork.

What temperature controller did you use?

I'm currently building a keezer too and I spent months researching them to make sure it isn't a short lived build, since it costs so much to build one. 

I currently have three kegs on tap in mine and I'm still using picnic taps.  I've got the STC-1000 temperature controller hooked up to mine.  I had it put into a 2-plug outlet box.  I'm currently making a small platform out of construction lumber for mine to sit on.  I'm putting wheels on it, so that I can move it around to the back patio or to the neighbors for parties.  I'm also going to put a collar between the chest freezer and lid, so that I can raise it up and get two extra kegs into it.  Then I'll box it in and finish it out as a piece of furniture, with a 5-tap coffin box on top.  I'm also going to tile the top and build a drip tray into the tiled top. 

I have four muffin fans on order (two for the coffin box...one in and one out.... to keep it at the same temperature as the lower section) and two for the sides (to circulate air around between the freezer side and front walls).  Chest freezers dissipate heat out through the walls of the freezer, so if you don't keep air flowing over them and take the heat away, you'll overwork the compressor and burn it up.

The photo attached is "NOT" my keezer, but one similar to what I'm making.

 

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Thanks for the input Scott. I will probably just end up with the piece of wood, at least for now. I really like the style you're going for, is it going to have a drain as well?

I'm using the Anycontrol temperature control from ontario beer kegs

I don't think heat dissipation will be much of an issue, it doesn't run very often and when it does it doesn't get very warm. There is a 1" gap around the whole freezer and the back is completely open (i.e. no wood), with the compressor box having no cover over it at the back so it gets full air flow through there.

BTW i just put the three tap tower on today and it is quite a bit more enjoyable to pour from then the picnic tap  :)
 
Wow fancy keezers!  I built a collar on mine and put the taps thru it.  Remove the top, add a 2X4 or 2X6 "collar all the way around, add the top back on.
 
  In my opinion, Keezers, and re-purposing a freezer to a fridge; are a temporary fix for your kegerator dreams and heres why:
I had built a keezer and used it for about 3 years. Digital temperature control, chrome draft tower with a little  fan to cool it. It worked fine. Kept corny kegs, bottles and lagering carboys in there nice and cold. I even painted it with fancy graphics.

Then I started to notice the condensation build up in the bottom inside the chest, no problem ; I mopped it up regularly. The condensation water became quite rusty( see pics- if yours is showing rust then it's giving you it's notice) until eventually the coils rotted completely out and it no longer worked and can't be repaired.

I have come to the conclusion that chest freezer coils design have no consideration for condensation as they are designed to be kept frozen.

The coils are sealed in the foam insulation inside the cabinet of the chest. They are not made corrosion resistant and there is no drainage consideration during constant usage.  Excessive condensation due to fridge temperatures and not freezer temperatures, condensation builds up and it starts to rot out the coils, which are really just steel tubing .

I now have a danby 5.8 cu.ft. kegerator, works fine, and the old keezer just used as a brew bench until I get up enough energy to take the lid off, carry it up the stairs and out to the scrapyard.
 

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To avoid this condensation build up, I'm putting a 2-12" gap between the outside decorative cabinetry and the walls of the freezer.  I'll have two muffin fans blowing air through this gap, which will carry the heat away.  A chest freezer dissipates heat through the outside walls.  If you don't remove this heat, the freezer will fluctuate up and down in temperature too much, overworking the condensor, which is what creates the condensation.  My keezer only comes on about once a day, whereas a buddy of mine has one that comes on about once every hour.  He has problems with condensation.  I haven't had any problems at all with it.
 
I built a collar on mine and put the taps thru it.  Remove the top, add a 2X4 or 2X6 "collar all the way around, add the top back on.

That's what I did.

I also had condensation issues. Then last spring the freezer died without warning. Just stopped working.  I used a Johnson Controller to regulate the temperature.

Still haven't replaced the freezer (priorities suck), so brewing has been on hold since then  :'(. Being that the last freezer was new and only lasted for seven years, I'm still trying to figure out what to do next. I'm reluctant to drop two hundred bucks on a new freezer that I will have to replace again in under ten years, and my carpentry skills are limited.

A coworker of mine uses a fridge with holes in the door for the taps, but I don't want to go that route since I don't think it will get cool enough to lager lagers in a keg. That and it takes up a lot of space while only holding a couple kegs.

I hope others chime in on this thread. The more ideas the better.
 
http://fermware.com/refrigerator-conversion-to-kegerator-lagerator-fermentation-cabinet/
This is what I'm currently considering.
I think with this set up there are a lot of options for taps and lagering.
 
Buy a dehumidifier from amazon or Ebay to reduce the humidity in freezer. They're quite cheap and come in all shape and sizes.
 
I read through this entire 500+ page thread on homebrew talk, while planning my build.

A fountain of information and ideas here.

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/show-us-your-kegerator-29053/
 
I bought some huge freezers 26 cu ft on sale a while back to save the many thousands I would have spent on a ferment room.  Tried an oversized-for-the-job Eva-Dry, then added another Eva Dry the same size, then added a gallon bucket of damp-rid, then added 2 computer fans.  Still lots of condensation.  Resigned to keeping the shop vac in the same room and sucking out the water as needed.  Maine, I think you said you have a barn, I would just buy a fridge off craiglist for serving without temp control (mine's going on 10 years) and a brand new freezer using your controller for lagering, and disconnect the controller when not lagering.  I haven't seen a fridge yet that will get you into the low 30's.
 
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