Heavy tap towers

[Big_D]

Posting this here because it seems the keezer section doesn’t get much traffic.

I just finished re-working a keezer I picked up several months ago, changed the look and style a bit. Before I started working on it, I scoured the net looking for ideas and inspiration. I came across several builds that used towers made from iron pipe. I really liked the look, so that‘s the direction I went. Now that everything is built, I have to say I’m very worried about the hinges on the freezer door holding up when it comes time to swap a keg out. Just wondering if there’s anyone out there that’s running a similar setup and what you did to compensate for the added weight?


Here‘s a pic of the completed build

 

[Big_D]

Link to the re-build thread..


Link

 

[Big_D]

If I had a means of using some sort of overhead lifting system, I would pull the hinges off and just lift the whole top off with a strap wrapped around the tower. It would have no issues handling the load and it’s bolted through every layer with 3/4” lag bolts that are 3” long. Not sure how I could make that happen though with it being in the house. If it was in the garage, I’d get a cherry picker or mount an electric hoist nearby.

 

[AlexKay]

Freezer hinges I’ve dealt with have all been pretty heavy duty. The weak point is probably the screws attaching the hinges to the freezer — or did you remount those more securely on the wood?

In any case, I’d worry more that you won’t be able to swing the door open because the tap tower will bonk into the window behind it. Or you’ll be able to open it, but not enough for it to hold open. How does clearance actually work out?

 

[Big_D]

Freezer hinges I’ve dealt with have all been pretty heavy duty. The weak point is probably the screws attaching the hinges to the freezer — or did you remount those more securely on the wood?

In any case, I’d worry more that you won’t be able to swing the door open because the tap tower will bonk into the window behind it. Or you’ll be able to open it, but not enough for it to hold open. How does clearance actually work out?

It doesn’t have a collar of wood around the top like I’ve seen on some of the other builds, so unfortunately the hinges are still bolted to the sheet metal of the freezer.

For the swing angle, it’s on heavy duty casters so I planned on rolling it out when I need to get into it. Now that it’s loaded down, that’s a little easier said than done with the rug there, it’s still doable though. I’ve got 2 boards cut to length that support the top in an open position high enough to get a keg in/out. On the lid side they’re supporting it on 2 of the metal angle brackets I built in for structural support, and on the lower side they sit on 2x4’s for the frame around the chest. I know this transfers a lot of the load to the frame which is good, not sure what it does as far as stress on the hinges though.

 

[AlexKay]

Sounds like you’ve got a lot covered! I wouldn’t think the hinges would fail catastrophically. I would probably use it for a while and see how things play out.

 

[McMullan]

I was about to comment on your other thread. I'm a bit worried about the standard hinges on my small lager keezer, after cladding the top with oak veneered thick marine ply and oak trim. I can really feel the weight it's put on when I lift the lid. As @AlexKay says, weakest point is probably the screw attachment points. Although beefy inserts can be used in the collar, the attachments on the lid are what they are and not straightforward to strengthen. Another issue is I want the keezer pushed close to a wall, so it has to be pulled out before lifting the lid due to the tap tower on top. A PITA if just swapping one keg. I'm thinking about just ditching the hinges altogether and replace them with simple clips to hold the lid in position. Then just lift off the lid when necessary without moving the keezer. I'm thinking about having disconnects, connecting beer lines to the taps, on the underside of the lid. In some cases it might be a two person task. Anyway, if the hinges fail, it won't be the end of the keezer.

 

[Big_D]

I thought about going with quick disconnects on the lines and lifting it off to set it on some saw horses for keg swaps. Colder products makes some great QD connectors. I didn’t think about latches though, I like it.

 

[Deadalus]

I've got four taps on mine, which is a 2" similar to yours. I have a collar and I built the top out to serve as a bar top on 3 sides (not the back). The top as attached with a piano hinge. I used two gas struts, 150 pounds total which I will look it up because it may be each. I have a lower ceiling, barely 7', which makes it hard to load but I'm OK with it. The struts were 10 lbs or so too light. The lid lifts easy but won't stay up. The struts were the biggest PITA to install. I found it to be a very complicated calculation to arrive at the correct force. The angle is important too and I had to change it on the fly. I think it is 150 lbs each because I couldn't get the damn things closed in order to install. If I move I will get the bigger struts, but until then I will just put a prop stick inside.

 

[Deadalus]

It was actually 135s that I bought, and the 150s were probably needed. Without the pipe tower on, my lid will lift slightly on its own. I am pretty sure theyare 135 pounds each. If you used them, they would be based on the lid weight and attachment points.

 

[bracconiere]

i've been racking my brain for good half hour about this...

i just broke down and was thinking "if it ain't broke, don't fix it"...

i was thinking ratcheting gears, spring hoists...you know the ratcheting gear thing on just one side of the lid...so that it locks straight up and doesn't put any weight on the hinges tilted back ain't a bad idea....




edit:

quick cursorary glance at google for ratcheting hinges...

https://www.rockler.com/sugatsune-n...Bfo8CW6Bxy8AMJLgECctzPX7Z3AurVsRoCh6AQAvD_BwE

 

[Big_D]

I've got four taps on mine, which is a 2" similar to yours. I have a collar and I built the top out to serve as a bar top on 3 sides (not the back). The top as attached with a piano hinge. I used two gas struts, 150 pounds total which I will look it up because it may be each. I have a lower ceiling, barely 7', which makes it hard to load but I'm OK with it. The struts were 10 lbs or so too light. The lid lifts easy but won't stay up. The struts were the biggest PITA to install. I found it to be a very complicated calculation to arrive at the correct force. The angle is important too and I had to change it on the fly. I think it is 150 lbs each because I couldn't get the damn things closed in order to install. If I move I will get the bigger struts, but until then I will just put a prop stick inside.

It was actually 135s that I bought, and the 150s were probably needed. Without the pipe tower on, my lid will lift slightly on its own. I am pretty sure theyare 135 pounds each. If you used them, they would be based on the lid weight and attachment points.

Damn good info.. Appreciate it! On the piano hinge, did you attach it with sheet metal screws or rivets? I thought about using struts, but just like you mentioned, finding the right angle to mount them is tough. I’d love to see a couple pics of both the hinge and the mount points for the struts if possible.

 

[Big_D]

i've been racking my brain for good half hour about this...

i just broke down and was thinking "if it ain't broke, don't fix it"...

i was thinking ratcheting gears, spring hoists...you know the ratcheting gear thing on just one side of the lid...so that it locks straight up and doesn't put any weight on the hinges tilted back ain't a bad idea....




edit:

quick cursorary glance at google for ratcheting hinges...

https://www.rockler.com/sugatsune-n...Bfo8CW6Bxy8AMJLgECctzPX7Z3AurVsRoCh6AQAvD_BwE

Now those would be ideal! Going to see if there’s something heavy duty along those lines. I’m estimating the lid’s around 80 lbs or so.

 

[bwible]

I’ve seen builds where people have used pistons or lifts that hold a door open snd/or give it a soft close.

https://www.amazon.com/Support-Fold...cphy=9067609&hvtargid=pla-1028208752156&psc=1
May not be the exact thing but its the idea.

 

[bracconiere]

I’m estimating the lid’s around 80 lbs or so.

DAMN! for some reason i was thinking along the lines of 30lbs...

 

[Deadalus]

My lid was somewhere in the mid-80 lb range without the tower. (I had the lid off and used a people scale to weigh it.) I recall using 110 lbs as a conservative estimate. When I first put the lid on without the struts, the lid would lift up on its own so I put an eyehook in it. But when I put the tower on top, it lifts with one hand easily to about halfway and then I little strength to lift it one handed further as I have flexible pvc hose between the freezer lid and bar top. The bar top and the keezer lid are not directly attached because I left air gaps around the keezer so they two lids don't pivot on the same hinge. The bar top extends about 10-11" on three sides. The keezer is completely surrounded by wood however so the bar top is attached to the back panel with SS wood screws and it is flush. They were either 1/2" or 3/4".

So the overhand on the lid adds additional force. There are calculators on the web but if you can get the vendor to calculate it might be easier. I kept expanding my plan...it kept getting bigger. The base plus the wheels and then the top extension makes it so I couldn't use the angle I wanted as the lid would bump the ceiling. So I installed at the maximum possible but that left me a few pounds short on the lift. Since there was no way to get in there, I had to mount the bottom bracket and leave the strut extended. I would have been better served to have figured out a way to get them compressed. They are extremely hard to compress with just your hands at this poundage. I couldn't get them compressed using my weight (~180 lbs). If I could have compressed them some, I would have been able to alter the angle but then I would be hitting the ceiling. I was getting impatient too because my beer was inside and I couldn't lift it without the struts. I can lift it but I couldn't pour because I needed two hands.

Upper mount point.

Lower mount.

 

[Big_D]

I’ve seen builds where people have used pistons or lifts that hold a door open snd/or give it a soft close.

https://www.amazon.com/Support-Fold...cphy=9067609&hvtargid=pla-1028208752156&psc=1
May not be the exact thing but its the idea.

I saw those on Amazon after seeing @bracconiere ’s post. There’s some heavy duty versions that I’ve found, but finding a pair that‘ll hold around 100lbs is tough. I’ve found some good options as far as the gas struts though with some good examples of what they’re holding and it looks like that may be the route I’m going to go.

 

[Big_D]

DAMN! for some reason i was thinking along the lines of 30lbs...

Yeah.. it’s a beast! The damn tower weighs around 40 lbs by itself.

 

[Big_D]

My lid was somewhere in the mid-80 lb range without the tower. (I had the lid off and used a people scale to weigh it.) I recall using 110 lbs as a conservative estimate. When I first put the lid on without the struts, the lid would lift up on its own so I put an eyehook in it. But when I put the tower on top, it lifts with one hand easily to about halfway and then I little strength to lift it one handed further as I have flexible pvc hose between the freezer lid and bar top. The bar top and the keezer lid are not directly attached because I left air gaps around the keezer so they two lids don't pivot on the same hinge. The bar top extends about 10-11" on three sides. The keezer is completely surrounded by wood however so the bar top is attached to the back panel with SS wood screws and it is flush. They were either 1/2" or 3/4".

So the overhand on the lid adds additional force. There are calculators on the web but if you can get the vendor to calculate it might be easier. I kept expanding my plan...it kept getting bigger. The base plus the wheels and then the top extension makes it so I couldn't use the angle I wanted as the lid would bump the ceiling. So I installed at the maximum possible but that left me a few pounds short on the lift. Since there was no way to get in there, I had to mount the bottom bracket and leave the strut extended. I would have been better served to have figured out a way to get them compressed. They are extremely hard to compress with just your hands at this poundage. I couldn't get them compressed using my weight (~180 lbs). If I could have compressed them some, I would have been able to alter the angle but then I would be hitting the ceiling. I was getting impatient too because my beer was inside and I couldn't lift it without the struts. I can lift it but I couldn't pour because I needed two hands.

View attachment 765583
Upper mount point.
View attachment 765584
Lower mount.
View attachment 765585

Once again, appreciate the reply! Great pics, gives me a lot to go off of. I’m definitely going to look into doing something hinge wise, and then give the struts a shot.