# I built a keezer



## btrots87 (22/8/16)

So I've just about finished putting together my first keezer conversion and I thought I'd put together a bit of a build thread to show people what I've done. I got a lot of inspiration (aka stole a lot of ideas) from this forum and I think it's all come together surprisingly well considering my lack of DIY credentials.

First step: Picked up a 164L Fisher and Paykel chest freezer for $100 off gumtree.[SIZE=8pt][/SIZE]





The first thing I had to do was to remove the lid and give it a bit of a clean and sand it back a little for future painting. I then used some 30 x 190mm pine to make a simple wooden collar to sit on the top. The collar was just held together with screws and some 90 degree brackets in each corner.[SIZE=8pt][/SIZE]




With the collar put together, I used some more of the pine to make a matching stand, and added some caster wheels to the bottom so that I can move the finished keezer around.[SIZE=8pt][/SIZE]





The next step was painting and staining it. This was the part I enjoyed least, although it probably had the most positive effect on the finished product. I just don’t like painting. There were a few dents and scratches, and the holes where the hinges were attached, all of which I filled in with a bit of gap filler and sanded smooth. I used a satin black enamel paint that I applied with a roller in two coats to give a smooth finish on the freezer, and the collar and stand got a couple of coats of a merbau coloured exterior stain.[SIZE=8pt][/SIZE]






There were a few gaps between the collar and the freezer at this point so I picked up some neoprene strip from Clark rubber and stuck that around the top of the freezer.[SIZE=8pt][/SIZE]




I then ran some silicone adhesive/sealant around the top of the neoprene strip and mounted the collar on top. Once I had it lined up properly I put the lid on and used a couple of full FV’s and crates of homebrew to weigh it down for a few days. Before doing this I also drilled my holes for the shanks using a spade bit.[SIZE=8pt][/SIZE]




After a few days I took the weight off the lid and ran some of the sealant along the inner edge of the collar and freezer to make sure there were no gaps to let the cold air out. I then re-attached the lid using the original hinges and screwing directly into the collar.[SIZE=8pt][/SIZE]






The next thing that I did was to add a small computer fan to help circulate the air and keep an even temperature. I also wired it up with a pressure switch so that when I lift the lid up the fan turns off and doesn’t blow all the cold air out. In reality this probably isn’t necessary but it was fun to make so I don’t care. I screwed the fan straight in to the lid and used some spacers to let the air flow behind the fan.[SIZE=8pt][/SIZE]




I opted to keep the gas bottle on the outside so that I can fit four kegs inside, two on the floor and two on the compressor hump. I decided to only install three taps but have room for four kegs so I can always have one conditioning and ready to go as soon as there is an empty keg. This meant that I had to drill some 8mm holes through the rear of the collar to feed my 8mm OD gas lines. I also installed two separate 2-way manifolds. The reason for this is that in the future I hope to get another regulator so I can have two different serving pressures. At the moment though the two gas lines will just be joined with a T-piece and connected to a single regulator.[SIZE=8pt][/SIZE]




I’m using an STC1000 for temperature control, and just used some removable magnetic strips to attach it to the back so it’s hidden but still easily accessible.[SIZE=8pt][/SIZE]




The (almost) finished product:[SIZE=8pt][/SIZE]






I still have to install a drip tray which I haven’t yet decided how to do. I’m thinking of maybe using magnets but I’m worried if they’re not strong enough they’ll slide down and damage the paint. Maybe glue would be a better option, we’ll see. I also need to test for gas leaks, and most importantly I need to get some beer brewed so I can get this thing up and running.

[SIZE=8pt]Anyway, like I said I got a lot of helpful ideas from looking at other threads on this site so hopefully someone else might find this helpful.[/SIZE]


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## dannymars (22/8/16)

Really nice build btrots87!

love having a keezer


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## Mat B (22/8/16)

That is awesome! I just bought a new chest freezer to build my keezer next week. Will be referring to this a few times.


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## bevan (22/8/16)

That's awesome btrots87! Very inspiring. [emoji482]


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## Fraser's BRB (22/8/16)

Looks the business mate, I really like the stain against the black freezer. The one thing I regret not doing on mine was building a base, would have made it much easier to drain and move around.

Have you considered some insulation around the inside of your collar? I don't know how much difference it makes but I lined my collar with foam and then covered the foam with thermal tape. Probably overkill, but if you find the outside of your collar is cool to the touch, it may be worth considering. Mine has a coffin on top of the lid though, so probably a lot more cold air passing through this area on mine.


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## abyss (22/8/16)

Nice,if you want a drip tray you could use a couple of bits of stainless flat bar screwed to the collar running down and attach to that.
That's what I might do.


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## mstrelan (22/8/16)

My drip tray is screwed directly in to the front of the keezer, but I was pretty confident there were no coils there. My mate was not so lucky. If you glue it on, how will you remove it for cleaning?


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## spog (22/8/16)

Nice very nice !


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## btrots87 (22/8/16)

Fraser's BRB said:


> Looks the business mate, I really like the stain against the black freezer. The one thing I regret not doing on mine was building a base, would have made it much easier to drain and move around.
> 
> Have you considered some insulation around the inside of your collar? I don't know how much difference it makes but I lined my collar with foam and then covered the foam with thermal tape. Probably overkill, but if you find the outside of your collar is cool to the touch, it may be worth considering. Mine has a coffin on top of the lid though, so probably a lot more cold air passing through this area on mine.


Cheers mate, yeah the wheeled base has already come in handy many times. I did think about putting some insulation around the collar but in the end figured I would see how it goes without it. It's holding a steady 5 degrees C at the moment and it doesn't seem to be cycling on and off very often so fingers crossed it will be okay without it.


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## btrots87 (22/8/16)

abyss said:


> Nice,if you want a drip tray you could use a couple of bits of stainless flat bar screwed to the collar running down and attach to that.
> That's what I might do.


Could be a good option. I was hoping to not have anything hanging from the collar because I don't want it to cover up my nice paint job, but it definitely seems like the simplest and probably strongest option.



mstrelan said:


> My drip tray is screwed directly in to the front of the keezer, but I was pretty confident there were no coils there. My mate was not so lucky. If you glue it on, how will you remove it for cleaning?


Yeah I don't have the guts to risk drilling into a coil, I couldn't handle having to get a new freezer and paint it again. If I go the glue option (which I probably won't) I would probably glue on some brackets to make a separate shelf for the drip tray to sit on so it could be removed.


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## btrots87 (22/8/16)

Mat B said:


> That is awesome! I just bought a new chest freezer to build my keezer next week. Will be referring to this a few times.


Thanks mate, hope it can help. There's so many good ideas in various threads on this forum. I spent a lot of time going through the kegging setups thread getting inspiration, and there are a lot of smaller threads with good info as well. Every time I googled a question it just led me back to this site.


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## LAGERFRENZY (22/8/16)

Given me some courage and inspiration to emulate your great effort mate. I think my DIY skills still fall short of yours though. Cheers!


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## mikec (22/8/16)

Looks great!


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## SBOB (22/8/16)




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## Brewnicorn (1/9/16)

I've just spotted this and it looks sensational. Well played sir!


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## eldertaco (1/9/16)

I used the same freezer for my keezer, but it's nowhere near as nice as yours. Love the wheeled base, would certainly beat manhandling it onto a moving dolly.


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## spog (1/9/16)

btrots87 said:


> Could be a good option. I was hoping to not have anything hanging from the collar because I don't want it to cover up my nice paint job, but it definitely seems like the simplest and probably strongest option.
> 
> 
> 
> Yeah I don't have the guts to risk drilling into a coil, I couldn't handle having to get a new freezer and paint it again. If I go the glue option (which I probably won't) I would probably glue on some brackets to make a separate shelf for the drip tray to sit on so it could be removed.


To drill into the wall of your keezer use a spacer block of wood that allows you to only puncture the outer skin,then use short metal thread screws to mount the drip tray.
These screws only need to be about 5 mm long as the excess length will be taken up by the thickness of the metal of the drip tray where the mounting holes are located.
If you are worried about the tip of the screw possibly puncturing a cooling line,first drill the hole then using a hand held screwdriver tap the thread into the hole to get it started.
Then file the point off othe screws and then screw them in place,by filing the point off if the screw hits a coil/tube/pipe it will only dent it not puncture it.


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## JFergz (7/9/16)

Noiiiice!![emoji108][emoji119][emoji119] as far as drip tray goes could always glue some strip magnets to the back of it so no drilling into the the freezer face x


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## BKBrews (25/9/16)

Hey mate, I'm just about to undertake the same project - I bought a 210L chest freezer today. Hoping you could answer some questions:

1. How much sanding did you do prior to painting? I've started taking mine back to bare metal, but thinking that's probably not the best idea.
2. Did you take any of the plastic trims off or did you paint in place?
3. Did you prime?
4. Which paint did you use and how many ml? White Knight Epoxy Enamel?
5. Did you have a cord entering the lid panel and if so, did you cut it?

This build gets me excited to crack into mine.


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## Mr B (25/9/16)

BKBrews said:


> Hey mate, I'm just about to undertake the same project - I bought a 210L chest freezer today. Hoping you could answer some questions:
> 
> 1. How much sanding did you do prior to painting? I've started taking mine back to bare metal, but thinking that's probably not the best idea.
> 2. Did you take any of the plastic trims off or did you paint in place?
> ...


I painted a fridge about a year and a half ago, still looks great.

Just need to sand to 'key' the surface. Dont need to go to bare metal.

I think I used White Knight epoxy enamel - it is/was a primer as well. Did a couple of coats, looks smick.

Think it wa a litre of paint, was more than enough (used maybe half or three quarters of it, two or three coats cant remember). Used a spray gun.


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## BKBrews (25/9/16)

Mr B said:


> I painted a fridge about a year and a half ago, still looks great.
> 
> Just need to sand to 'key' the surface. Dont need to go to bare metal.
> 
> ...


Is it an issue if you go to bare metal in places? Just wondering whether the paint has trouble binding to the metal surface. 

I plan on doing a coat of primer using spray and then using a foam roller/brush to actually paint the rest.


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## Mr B (25/9/16)

Dont think so, the fridge I did had some surface rust and I took it to bare metal in places to get rid of this.

All looks smick,

If it goes bare metal, think you just need apaint that does priming as well.

I reckon you will get a better finish spraying rather then rolling. Cant remember for sure, but I think I thinned the top coat a little to get a better finish.

Edit: the paint was a primer as well, so metal or not was a non issue. Not 100% sure how much of an issue it would be even without this.


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## btrots87 (26/9/16)

BKBrews said:


> Hey mate, I'm just about to undertake the same project - I bought a 210L chest freezer today. Hoping you could answer some questions:
> 
> 1. How much sanding did you do prior to painting? I've started taking mine back to bare metal, but thinking that's probably not the best idea.
> 2. Did you take any of the plastic trims off or did you paint in place?
> ...


1. As mentioned above, you really only need to sand it lightly just enough to rough up the surface underneath to allow the paint to stick. No need to go back to bare metal unless trying to remove rust or something. Mine had a few dents in it which I filled with some gap filler before sanding it back.

2. I didn't remove any of the plastic trims, they just got painted in place. I used a roller for the most part which gave a pretty nice even finish. Some parts around the trims or at joins in the metal I used a small brush just to get into gaps. I went for the roller since I've never spray painted anything and it seemed a bit easier and potentially less messy.

3 and 4. I didn't prime it first, and yes the paint I used was called White Knight Rust Guard epoxy enamel. It's a one step paint so no need to prime. I used satin black and gave it two coats. Don't make the mistake I did and forget to paint the hinges too. It didn't take much, I think about a 500mL can and I still have some left over. Your freezer is bigger than mine though so not sure how much you need. Just calculate the surface area you need to paint and then read the directions on the can for the coverage amount (remember to double it for a second coat etc).

5. Mine doesn't have a cord in the lid but from what I've read there should be enough cord tucked inside the freezer to allow you to get enough slack to fit a collar on and not have to cut it.

Hope this helps, I'm currently in the process of putting together a few upgrades to mine. I'm making a shelf for a drip tray and I made a wooden blackboard so I can label the taps. Loving it so far.


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## JDW81 (26/9/16)

I presume you've just drilled holes in the collar to run your lines/fan power cord through?


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## mofox1 (26/9/16)

BKBrews said:


> 5. Did you have a cord entering the lid panel and if so, did you cut it?


Mine had a cord going to the lid - for a lamp and some sort of display board + "turbo" mode button. The freezer didn't require the lid panel smarts to run, so I disconnected the wiring at the bottom of the unit (inside the compressor recess). I then just pulled the cable thru and have coiled it up, hanging from the back.

I intend to fix/replace/bodge the lid at some point and put my stc-1000 where the existing display panel goes, so I didn't want to do anything too destructive. Took photos and notes to record how the existing stuff was wired up.


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## Mikeyr (26/9/16)

Nice job, well done!


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## btrots87 (26/9/16)

JDW81 said:


> I presume you've just drilled holes in the collar to run your lines/fan power cord through?


The gas lines and shanks I drilled holes through the collar for, but at the moment the power cord for the fan and also the STC temp probe are just threaded out the back between the collar and the lid seal. It was easier than drilling the hole and then trying to seal it up again, and you can't see it anyway.


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## BKBrews (26/9/16)

> 1. As mentioned above, you really only need to sand it lightly just enough to rough up the surface underneath to allow the paint to stick. No need to go back to bare metal unless trying to remove rust or something. Mine had a few dents in it which I filled with some gap filler before sanding it back.
> 
> 2. I didn't remove any of the plastic trims, they just got painted in place. I used a roller for the most part which gave a pretty nice even finish. Some parts around the trims or at joins in the metal I used a small brush just to get into gaps. I went for the roller since I've never spray painted anything and it seemed a bit easier and potentially less messy.
> 
> ...


Thanks for that.

Considering I don't have to prime (which saves me a few dollars already), I'll probably just buy a 1L tin for about $38. I might take it back to bare metal and fill in a few dings, but I'm not as concerned about doing that now that I know it's not necessary.

Now to find some time to get it done!

PS What size pine did you use? I'm thinking about making quite a big collar, so probably going to go for about 240x30.


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## btrots87 (26/9/16)

I used 30mm x 190mm pine for the collar. One thing to keep in mind though is that you will have to lift the full kegs over the collar and into the freezer so the higher the collar the harder this will be. As mine also has the added height of being on the wheeled base lifting the kegs in can be a much harder task than I would have liked. If I did it again I would probably make the collar a little bit thinner so the total height wasn't as much.

Alternatively I think I will start filling the kegs while they're already in the freezer so I'm only ever lifting empty kegs in and out.


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## BKBrews (26/9/16)

Yeah that's all true. I've been looking at the 190x30 pine as well, however I'm thinking I might go up to 250mm high, as I'm going to try something a little different.

I have a tonne of subway tiles left over from my renovations, so I'm considering using something like 240x19 pine, covered in 6mm villa board, then tiled with black grout. It's seeming pretty difficult at the moment, but I'd really like to have a crack at it.

I could even use 190x19 pine and then tile the top edge as well, which will make it over 200mm finished height anyway (190 + 6mm villa board + tile adhesive + 12mm tiles I think they are).


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## Blind Dog (26/9/16)

btrots87 said:


> I used 30mm x 190mm pine for the collar. One thing to keep in mind though is that you will have to lift the full kegs over the collar and into the freezer so the higher the collar the harder this will be. As mine also has the added height of being on the wheeled base lifting the kegs in can be a much harder task than I would have liked. If I did it again I would probably make the collar a little bit thinner so the total height wasn't as much.
> 
> Alternatively I think I will start filling the kegs while they're already in the freezer so I'm only ever lifting empty kegs in and out.


There's no real reason why you can't hinge both the lid and the collar (unless you've fixed the collar permanently to the keezer). It makes lifting kegs in and out much easier with the collar lifted (don't forget to make sure the collar is supported whilst lifted as its fairly heavy), but you can just lift the lid by itself for maintenance, swapping lines etc. and dont need to pull it away from the wall to make room to lift the collar.


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## BKBrews (4/10/16)

I'm getting nervous.... Nearly finished sanding and I plan on hitting it on the weekend with the first coat of paint. I ended up with Wattyl Epoxy Gloss Enamel in Matte Black, so hopefully it turns out alright. I've done a really thorough sanding job - pretty much taken it back to bare metal, with just a light cover of primer still in place. The paint I got says no primer required if new paint or no rust surface, so should be fine. I just want to start pouring beers!!


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## Digga (14/10/16)

I also built a keezer! This is the second keg holding thing I've had so put some form of thought into it!

The freezer it's self I got second hand for a pickup ! From a vet in Maitland when sizing it up it squeezed 8 kegs on the floor but upon commission it struggles to fit 8 easily 7 and whatever (bottles and yeast atm) on the 'hump'.


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## Digga (14/10/16)

The freezer as yiu can see was in a riot state, old and rusty. I cleaned it right up and used my old left over decking boards (90mm X 20mm blackbutt) for the panneling and 50mm X 135mm turpentine?? Which are recovered jetty boards (from the April storms) for the collar.
With the 8 kegs on the mindset I was going to run 8 taps as I had a 720mm drip tray and ended up with 7 taps 100mm apart.
I have a 4 way splitter out side for purging and force (Ross method) carbing, and also going to use the other 2 outlets that i haven't ran yet.. for different pressured beers to the standard 12psi that I'm running on the 6 way splitter for "normal beers".
Just hooked up 2 computer fans one blowing down and one blowing towards the taps for circulation of the cold air.
Noticed a notable difference to internal temp and also pour with these installed.


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## Digga (14/10/16)

First time I've tried "long balanced beer line" cut all to 2.5m to trial it. Before I was running an in line restrictor for each line which worked ok but thought it may have been knocking out carbonation on its way. So far so good but the holding carb for different styles is turning out to be a problem. Over carbed dark and under carbed blondes. Need to set up the second reg with lower or higher pressures. Or may just go back to the inline regs.
Pleased with the outcome / appearance but still some bugs.. Also got some killer handles to try and fit to the taps.
Need some form of step down threaded rod to fit to the handles and taps. Anyone got any ideas on that????
Hope you all enjoy!


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## osprey brewday (14/10/16)

Need some form of step down threaded rod to fit to the handles and taps. Anyone got any ideas on that????

Look up helicoil thread repair springs they might do what u need


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## Digga (14/10/16)

Yeah maybe but the handle thread is heaps larger than the tap it's slept o's hoping for some better / independent solution really. Good thought though osprey!


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## Lord Raja Goomba I (19/10/16)

Digga said:


> I also built a keezer! This is the second keg holding thing I've had so put some form of thought into it!
> 
> The freezer it's self I got second hand for a pickup ! From a vet in Maitland when sizing it up it squeezed 8 kegs on the floor but upon commission it struggles to fit 8 easily 7 and whatever (bottles and yeast atm) on the 'hump'.


Hey digga,

Where did you get the hanging blackboard keg tag things from?


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## Porkchop (19/10/16)

Nice work boys! Great to see these threads inspiring people to go ahead build there own.


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## btrots87 (16/11/16)

Time for an update, it's taken a few months to find the time (moved from Sydney to Canberra for work) but I've finally managed to sort out a drip tray for the keezer, and while I was at it I put together a frame for a blackboard sign for the front. No more forgetting which tap is which.




Here is the blackboard, just some pine moldings that I mitre jointed to make a frame around a thin piece of MDF. I used a blackboard sticker that we had lying around the house, and stained the frame the same colour as the rest of the wood. Added some small hard drive magnets to hold it in place.




As for the drip tray, I found it hard to find one the right size but I managed to find one from Amazon. I didn't want to use a wall mount one since I didn't think it would look very good so I decided to build a wooden shelf for it that would match the rest of the woodwork. I got the design off this website - http://www.homebrewfinds.com/2012/10/reader-how-to-making-magnetic-drip-tray.html, and used the same drip tray as he did. Stained it to match the other woodwork and it was finished.

I think it came out pretty well personally. I couldn't find any magnets strong enough to hold it so I ended up going with some strong double sided tape. Apparently it can hold 15kg and it seems pretty strong so I think it will be fine.


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## Brewno Marz (2/5/17)

Thank you btrots87 for the inspiration!

I recently bought a Fisher & Paykel H220X 216L freezer on Gumtree. It had a few dents and scratches.





I made a frame for the collar from 30x30 DAR pine. The collar fascia is 185x19 Tassie Oak. The freezer lid has a lip 50mm in, so the 30mm frame plus 19mm fascia gives a snug fit. I filled the open 30x30 frame with 30mm expanded polystyrene foam board to reduce the weight of the collar and finished the external Tassie Oak with cedar tint stain and two coats of clear gloss. Internals were sealed with bathroom silicone and primer/sealer and tap shanks fitted. 







Spray painted the freezer in Dulux satin black and made a base with castors.


Added drip tray (hung from 25x3 stainless steel strap bent to shape wih a sledge hammer and vice and sprayed black), 135mm colonial skirting to the base and handles. Taps are 1xPerlick 650, 3xIntertap SS/FC one with a stout spout.



Both lid and collar are hinged - makes it easier to load full kegs. Fitted with gas and liquid lines and beer! 2.6kg CO2 cylinder has its own marine ply box to raise it and the regs up for easy access.







Blonde Ale, APA, British brown ale, and oatmeal stout now on tap.


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## btrots87 (3/5/17)

Looks great Brewno, I really wish I had hinged the collar now. Lifting the full kegs in can be pretty hard with the extra height of the collar, and cleaning the bottom of the inside of the freezer requires a specialised reaching stick. 

I'm still waiting for funds to get a second reg like you have set up too. Glad I gave you some inspiration, having beer on tap is awesome.


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