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[MortgageBrewer]

Here are a few of my builds.

 

[GFHomebrew]

Here are a few of my builds. View attachment 1294 View attachment 1295 View attachment 1296 View attachment 1297 View attachment 1298 View attachment 1299 View attachment 1300 View attachment 1301

Cool labels mate! And I like the repurposed sporting trophies might as well put them to good use eh? Now one thing please can you explain what's happening in the garbage bin mate I see you have four kegs stored in there. Are you filling that with ice to chill them down or some how refrigerating it??

Nice brew rig mate cheers.

 

[sn00ky]

Here are a few of my builds. View attachment 1294 View attachment 1295 View attachment 1296 View attachment 1297 View attachment 1298 View attachment 1299 View attachment 1300 View attachment 1301

Well done with the taps, looks pretty neat and original!
I am too curious about the garbage bin, certainly a good way to keep things compact, and looks the right size!
Tight build on the brew rig, looks like it will tuck in the corner real nice!

 

[MortgageBrewer]

Cool labels mate! And I like the repurposed sporting trophies might as well put them to good use eh? Now one thing please can you explain what's happening in the garbage bin mate I see you have four kegs stored in there. Are you filling that with ice to chill them down or some how refrigerating it??

Nice brew rig mate cheers.

So the portable kegerator is a 96 gallon trash can I bought from Home Depot. It's got wheels on it so I can move it around like a dolly. I leveled out the bottom with some plywood and 2X4's as the legs. Then, I took some half inch foam board and metal duct tape and made a "cooler box" for the kegs to sit in. I lined this with plastic liner to keep the ice and water in the box. It does sweat so drips do go to the bottom of the trash can but does not leak out from there. The cooler box holds up to 4 kegs. I fill in ice around the kegs and I'm good to go for any party! The ice has lasted for several hours even in Texas August heat. Eventually I'm going to get an aluminum box custom made with some foam insulation between aluminum layers. This will be more like a real ice chest.
I added a 4 channel gas manifold and run the main CO2 line out the back to my gas tank. The nice thing is that I can use ball lock and pin lock kegs so I have picked up some pin lock for cheap to use just for the portable kegerator. Cheers!

 

[Head First]

Awesome! Thanks for sharing. Obviously a do it yourself kind of Brewer.

 

[RobertE]

Here are a couple pics of my new fermenting chamber.

 

[GFHomebrew]

That is definitely DIY style too industrious it all depends how far you wanna take this glorious hoppy hobbie.
Question how do you regulate temperature or does this just insulate fermentor from outside ambient temperature to reduce fermentation temperature swings?

 

[RobertE]

That is definitely DIY style too industrious it all depends how far you wanna take this glorious hoppy hobbie.
Question how do you regulate temperature or does this just insulate fermentor from outside ambient temperature to reduce fermentation temperature swings?

That is definitely DIY style too industrious it all depends how far you wanna take this glorious hoppy hobbie.
Question how do you regulate temperature or does this just insulate fermentor from outside ambient temperature to reduce fermentation temperature swings?

Actually, I wired up a thermostat to a fan and all I need to do is set the thermostat temp to whatever fermenting temp I want to dial in. I use frozen milk jugs for the cooling. It actually works pretty darn good during my testing sessions. I had it running a full day with one swap out. The fan sucks cold air from the cooling chamber into the main area where the carboy sits. Should work awesome for most ales. Fermenting lagers is another story. I may have to just get a temperature control unit for the refrigerator.

 

[RobertE]

So here is the LED being soldered up to the thermostat. In all, the electronics cost maybe 30-40 bucks. It was fairly easy to build. I bought the AC adapter, cooling fan, thermostat, LED, and resistor for pretty cheap. I will post a better pic of the actual electronics inside the foam chamber. I should be able to ferment my ales no problem in the mid 60s all year.

 

[MortgageBrewer]

I finally finished my HERMs build. I'll have a small pump attached to the drain valve on the HLT and connected to the top right valve on the HLT to circulate the hot water inside so there won't be any hotspots. I'm just waiting on my sparge float/tubing and a couple of quick disconnects to come in and I can get back to brewing. Maybe someday I'll polish the kegs but that can wait.

 

[MuttBrew]

Some pics of my RIMS system build (240v 60A). Was using a filter system in the BK, but kept getting clogged so I am trying out new whirlpool ideas to see what works best.

 

[BlaineHomebrew]

I built a keezer and wanted to share so I'm going to try and revive this thread rather than make a new one.

I bought a 7 cubic foot freezer from a local auction -- brand new for $60! It can fit 3 pin lock kegs and a 5# tank without a collar.


I used glue and clamps to put the box together and then stained it.


I cut a piece of plywood to fit into the bottom of the box and attached it to the top of the freezer. Then I cut the three inch holes for the fans and beer lines. This picture also shows the beginning of the trim work.


Here is a view with the box on top and the hardie backer down for the tile.


Fans attached.


Tile added to box.


Tile complete.


Taps added and electronics complete.


Overall I'm happy with how it turned out. I insulated the box and am able to keep it within about 8 degrees of the temperature at the bottom of the chest.

 

[Head First]

Very nice. Should be as much fun to use as it was to build.
Just wondering, could a guy attach a piece of flex tube to the intake fan that reaches to the bottom so it pulls the cooler air from the bottom of the keezer into the tower? That should make the temps perfectly even I would think, and keep the keezer an even temp throughout.

 

[BlaineHomebrew]

Very nice. Should be as much fun to use as it was to build.
Just wondering, could a guy attach a piece of flex tube to the intake fan that reaches to the bottom so it pulls the cooler air from the bottom of the keezer into the tower? That should make the temps perfectly even I would think, and keep the keezer an even temp throughout.

I think you could attach a piece of tube but it might eat up more space than its worth in a cramped keezer. I was thinking about adding another fan inside the chest to circulate the air. Do you think 8 degrees difference is going to matter?

 

[jeffpn]

I wouldn’t worry about an 8° difference. Heck, I probably have that too! I have my thermoprobe in a well inside a half gallon jug full of water at the bottom of my keezer. I just played with the temp controller until the beer was the temp I wanted. Kegs pour from the bottom anyway.

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

next project I'm revamping my keezer, I just threw mine together one day just to drink beer and left it set up that way, its not pretty at all, but good ideas here for mine, I have a free standing tap stand mounted against the wall and I need to make a tube or shoot to push cold air into the back of the tap structure, I think Im going to have 2 fans one in and one out to recirculate, that will cut down on the first pour foam

 

[Head First]

I think you could attach a piece of tube but it might eat up more space than its worth in a cramped keezer. I was thinking about adding another fan inside the chest to circulate the air. Do you think 8 degrees difference is going to matter?

Ya a extra draw tube wouldn't really be necessary if it causes trouble with space. It would be easy to check out with a cheap piece of dryer flex hose though. As @jeffpn says the beer comes from the bottom so that first pour would be the only chance for foam.

 

[jeffpn]

What I meant about the beer coming from the bottom is that that beer is the coldest beer in the keg. I think the foam is due to the warmer beer stored in the line.

 

[Head First]

What I meant about the beer coming from the bottom is that that beer is the coldest beer in the keg. I think the foam is due to the warmer beer stored in the line.

When the cold beer goes through the warmer tap it causes it to foam up. On the second pour the tap has been cooled and you don't get the foam. That's why towers need cooled with fans.

 

[Ozarks Mountain Brewery]

thinking about this 2" plastic conduit going up to my taps, maybe another one with a fan pushing cool air into the tap chamber, Ill start with 1, these new beer lines are tiny, all 4 together is just 1 inch