Drinking Beer is Hard Work...

[letter]

1st off... Thanks to everyone who's posting about danby mods... HUGE help to me. And thanks again to everyone who's posted about improving the pour of home kegerators... I've learned a lot.

I'm almost to the perfect pour of beer... but not quite. Need your help to get the rest of the way. Here's my setup:

• Danby 1/2 (or 1/4) barrel kegerator (the black one with silver front).
• I did the 33k OHM resistor mod for the 5-8 degree drop. It worked! I'm getting Coors Light (I know, I know... sorry) at about 34 degrees right out of the tap (after I empty the warm tower into a pitcher)
• I bought a 10' 3/16 hose and replaced the Danby's stock 5' hose
• My pressure is at 15 psi for the coors light at 34 degrees at 5,280 feet above sea level (Denver).
• I picked up a line cleaning kit and a manual brush + beer clean so my pint glasses and line/faucet/coupler are really clean.

So after the tower is "emptied" I tilt my glass, snap the handle forward and get a _nearly_ perfect pour... with about 2" of foam at the top... Am I being to picky that I'd rather have a 1" head of foam? Cold, Carbonated... just a little too much foam.

I've gone from warm foamy beer to near perfection but I don't know what else to tweak.... and which way to tweak it. Pressure up, down? Temp? Faucet? (I've got the danby original... seems ok) Less hose, more?

I've come down to 15 psi from about 18 psi. From what I've read here I don't want to go lower than 15 psi.

Also... I've been reading about installing a blower, but I haven't read much here about the blower motor raising the temp in the fridge. Isn't that a big concern? What specific fans don't run hot enough to be a concern? Will a tower mod get me the final stretch to the perfect beer? Right now I really don't mind pouring the first beer into a pitcher that then goes in the fridge... to drink after one or two from the tap.


Thanks for the help... I owe you a beer.

[bonefish]

Just a fan.
Blower Set Up

[cubby_swans]

Originally Posted by bonefish

Just a fan.
Blower Set Up

yep. I just yanked a power supply out of an old PC, and used the fan from that along with the empty power supply box to make a fan for my Danby. Cost me $15 to make, but after I finished, but I could have done it for nothing more than the cost of the hose ($5). My beer pours at 37 degrees. I get about 1" of foam (2" if I use a warm glass) on my first pour, and about a half inch every glass after that.

Here's what I did -it starts about halfway down this post (post #10). Similair to Bonefish's post. Actually built mine after I read this same post and figured out what I had around the house to use. I realized I could have duck taped the power supply rather than purchasing caulk to seal it, you don't need a PERFECT seal, and I bought the wrong hose to begin with. I needed something with some rigidity/internal support so that it would not kink when a keg was installed.


can I use this blower to cool my tower?

[Scott Zuhse]

At 38F with Coors Lt. carbonated to 2.75, you would require 18 PSIG at your elevation. Since you adjust one pound for every two degree change, you would apply 16 PSIG. The 10' of 3/16" line will be more than enough as you probably have a slow flow now.

Preferably, to maintain carbonation at the keg and as you dispense, you would strive for the same temperature from the keg to the faucet. With out cold air circulating in the tower, you will always have an issue with the first pour. If you can live with this, fine. To reduce the amount of foam, dump the initial amount that pours out of the faucet and then start with clear beer. If you try to pour clear beer over the foam it is over and you will end up with a mess.

Conduct a search for cooling tower. There are a few great set ups that are successful for the users.

[letter]

Picked up a fan/blower today at comp usa. They are going out of biz and I got it for about $12. Here's the model: Antec.com - Specialty

Dug out an old DC power supply from my box of dead/outdated technology and hooked it up... it seems to be pushing air pretty good.

I think I'll try and use some flexible conduit I've got laying around.

Thanks for the feedback... I'll let you know how it goes.

[bonefish]

I see your fan is adjustable. keep it set on slow or low. You don't want all of the precious cold air cooling your keg escaping out the tower.
Sean

[mturner]

I"ve tried cooling my tower with that exact same fan. I haven't had loads of luck, but I'm not sure that I've got it setup in the most efficient way. Once you get your setup, I'd be interested to see the pictures if you can get some.

[lunkhead]

That antec appears to be a squirrel cage blower, should work good, but I don't like the grill cover on it. Seems that would knock the air flow down too much. If it's removable I would take it off or try opening up those grates somehow.

[letter]

Ok... took the antec and put it in the danby. Here's what I did and some pics:

Blower: Antec... link to fan in previous post


Tube: 3/4 flexable nonmetalic conduit. I had some left over from my basement remodel. It's about 1" outside diameter which seemed a little big for my unmodified "tower hole" on top of my danby. I'm a little worried about return air flow... but we'll see how it goes.



Mounting: Seemingly half-assed... with zipties... but I drilled a hole in the conduit at top and looped a ziptie through a hose clamp to hold 2" from the top of the tower:



And then more zipties inside... couduit is very ridgid and stays in place well:



So the bad news is I blew my keg yesterday and wanted to do this mod between kegs... so no beer to "test" with.

But the thing has been running since I started this post and I just checked temperatures. Danby says 36... but I've done the resistor mod and inside is measuring at (with a little infrared thermometer which can only measure the sidewalls of the fridge) around 29 degrees... again with no keg in it... I'm sure the liquid temp would be higher.

I'm getting about 49 degrees when I point the thermometer inside the tower. Which is a huge drop... I was getting 68-72 degrees in the tower before I put the blower in. But that stills seems warm.

I'll have to play with the temperature setting once I get a keg in and I'll let you know how it goes.

Open to any feedback.

[bonefish]

I found better results by keeping the hose lower in the tower. Your infared thermometer will lead the way. Can you tell how much beer is in your keg with it?
Sean

[lunkhead]

With the top off the tower can you feel air blowing out the tube? Pie times the radius squared of the opening and two tubes should tell you if there's enough opening left for return flow. One other thing about corrugated flex tubing, it will restrict air flow a little.

[bonefish]

Anyone, I'd like to know, can you tell the level of beer, in your keg, by temping the outside wall, with an infared thermometer?
Sean

[letter]

Bonefish - I wouldn't recommend the radio shack IR thermometer to measure keg temperature.

From what I can tell the thermometer doesn't work well when you point it at shiny objects. (Like a keg).

Gives really sketchy numbers... and high unless it's pointed at a matte surface.