Winterizing Keezer

[mtbiker278]

Hi All,

I have a coffin top keezer that I'm planning to keep outside in a large screened in porch. I'm looking for ways to winterize it so it can still be used during the cold months. I read about people using their temp controller with a 100 watt light bulb or heat-pad to warm the freezer. With the coffin top and 7 taps I'm a little worried that the taps are going to freeze even though the beer inside would be ok (similar to house faucets freezing outside). I do have a fan that blows air from inside the freezer through the coffin, but it's not the best set-up as most of the air space is filled in with beer lines. I guess I could run another liquid line through the coffin, but that sounds like it's getting complicated with a pump and everything.

Any and all suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!

 

[Hello]

I suppose the two stage temp control would be necessary in MD, but how many sub freezing days/nights do you get? I read a thread here where someone's taps froze in the garage. It wasn't awesome...no beer for him. I'm unsure how to keep those on the warmer side but perhaps that fan pushing the temp controlled air up would work?

 

[DrunkleJon]

Definitely go 2-stage, though you could switch a single stage over to heating as well.

If the fan blowing air into the tower keeps your taps cool to the touch and keeps foaming/stratification at bay, with a heat source inside the keezer keeping it at the proper temps it should be sufficient to keep you from freezing. Basically if it keeps the taps cool enough during our 100+ degree summer days, keeping the internals of the kegerator at the proper temperature will probably be enough to keep the taps warm enough to prevent solid freezing. This is only my opinion though. You may get some potential beer slushie though if you are going to pull a pint first thing in the morning.

Give it a go, and just keep an eye on how cold the taps themselves get. I think you will be fine.

 

[mtbiker278]

Yeah I might get a heating pad just so there a little more power and surface area vs the light bulb. My concern is mainly since the taps are metal and the coffin is just beer line that it won't conduct the heat well enough to prevent the taps having an ice plug in the end. Just might have to do trial and error.

In general we don't get too many below freezing days, but lately at night it's been dipping into the low 30s. I might also bump the internal temps up to say 40-45F. Normally I kept them at 38 to help cold crash, but if it keep the taps from freezing I won't mind. Plus should help boost initial flavor/aroma.

 

[DrunkleJon]

Well, if you wait most of the day to pour a beer it really shouldnt much matter. Even if it freezes, there should be enough time before you pour for it to thaw.

 

[ChuckO]

You might think about building an insulated box to set over the tower on those nights when the forecast calls for a heavy freeze. An inch of rigid foam insulation inside a even inside a cardboard carton will help.

 

[mtbiker278]

Well I bought a 125w radiant heating lamp (like you would use in the bathroom), and will test it out with a keg or two of water and see how it performs. I think I'll pick up a cheap IR thermometer to read the tap temperature and see how it goes. I was looking on Newegg and there's a cheap 80mm case fan that'll push ~85cfm which should be enough flow to move air through the coffin even with the restrictions.

Thanks for the input!

 

[d3track]

I think you should be ok with that. My kegerator is in a separate workshop and I'm in MN, I use an STC with a hair dryer (keeps air moving really well) and have not had any issues with freezing yet.

 

[mtbiker278]

Hair dryer huh, I actually really like that idea. Fan and heat source in one. I'll still use the heat lamp in the garage when brewing in the winter. Have you had any issues with the GFI tripping? I might give that a try and well. Still need a better fan in the coffin, but I could get rid of one fan inside the chest.

 

[b-boy]

I used to keep my keezer in the garage. I live in buffalo, so it gets pretty cold. It really doesn't take much heat to keep things from freezing. A small reptile heater is more than sufficient to keep the inside of a keezer warm. If you have a fan blowing on the lines I think you'd be fine.

 

[DrunkleJon]

I would keep a fan going in it always instead of only while the heat is on. That way there will be less stratification. Though thinking about it again, just having heat in the keezer will probably keep you thawed. Heat rises and you shouldn't really have the problem with getting it in the coffin/tower

 

[d3track]

Hair dryer huh, I actually really like that idea. Fan and heat source in one. I'll still use the heat lamp in the garage when brewing in the winter. Have you had any issues with the GFI tripping? I might give that a try and well. Still need a better fan in the coffin, but I could get rid of one fan inside the chest.

No problems yet, but it seems to only run for a few minutes at a time to hold temp.

 

[grainbill]

IIWM, I might rig up a small aquarium tank. Connect a length of tubing coming from the recirc pump. Coil the tubing around the taps then back to the tank. Set the temp on the aquarium to say 50 (if that is possible) and run when the air temp is below freezing...I suppose you could hook up a controller with the probe placed in the tankto turn the whole unit on once the water temp in the tank?

 

[Artifishal]

IIWM, I might rig up a small aquarium tank. Connect a length of tubing coming from the recirc pump. Coil the tubing around the taps then back to the tank. Set the temp on the aquarium to say 50 (if that is possible) and run when the air temp is below freezing...I suppose you could hook up a controller with the probe placed in the tankto turn the whole unit on once the water temp in the tank?

Sounds like a lot of unnecessary over engineering. I just use a heating pad. Will eventually hook it up to a Johnson A419, but just plug it in when ambient temps below freezing. It is working. I'll repost if it fails.

 

[arcflash08]

I use a 40 watt light bulb. Multiple nights below zero hasn't caused any frozen beer in the garage. Just because you are a homebrewer doesn't mean you need to over think anything. Remember a freezer keeps the heat out and the cold in. Works the other way around too.

 

[Rockn_M]

I just hook up a reptile heating pad to an STC-1000. Works great.