Tower Cooling

[TheSlavik]

Hey guys,

I'm just in the middle of building my tower cooling fan/box/hose combo. Ive got the box, with fan mounted inside, as well as the hose connected that will run up the tower. I am using a 32 CFM, 120 Volt, 80mm fan, mounted inside of a plastic electrical outlet box (used to mount electrical outlets outside in the weather).

With the fan running at full speed, I get a breeze coming out of the hose, but its nothing more than a breeze. Its maybe strong enough to blow a tissue off of a table top. I noticed that there was a lot of turbulent air coming from the front of the fan (where it pulls air in). I still have a few modifications to make to it; such as sealing the fan to the cover (witha gasket maker) so air cant escape around the edges, and using a dremel to carve down the threads of the nipple I used to mount the hose (the threads of ths nipple extend into the box by about an inch. I figure I would get more air-flow if I carve this down to be flush with the inside of the box).

Anyways, my question is: Will this breeze be all I need to keep my tower cool?

[joepizi]

Originally Posted by TheSlavik

Anyways, my question is: Will this breeze be all I need to keep my tower cool?

If you can feel return air flow with your hand back into the kegerator, then it is enough to cool the tower.

The blower that MM sells is designed for cooling a tower like yours and is 12CFM, so 32CFM is way more than you need. You will have plenty of airflow to cool the tower provided you give the air a path to come and go.

[bonefish]

but I've always felt that you only need to "move" the air, from the bottom to the top. With mine, you have to put your cheek next to the exhaust end to feel it. Let us know how it goes.
SEAN

[TheSlavik]

Originally Posted by bonefish

you have to put your cheek next to the exhaust end to feel it.

Mine is almost the same, you can feel it with the back of your hand or against the face. Regardless, it will be moving this cooelr air up into the tower. And who knows, maybe the turbulant air coming from the box will still up air down below. The turbulant air is 10 times the breeze of the puny, stock Danby fan!

[cubby_swans]

Originally Posted by joepizi

If you can feel return air flow with your hand back into the kegerator, then it is enough to cool the tower.

The blower that MM sells is designed for cooling a tower like yours and is 12CFM, so 32CFM is way more than you need. You will have plenty of airflow to cool the tower provided you give the air a path to come and go.

That 32CFM 120V fan is also generating a lot of heat. Like having a lightbulb in your kegerator always on.

[TheSlavik]

Originally Posted by cubby_swans

That 32CFM 120V fan is also generating a lot of heat. Like having a lightbulb in your kegerator always on.

I already thought about that. So, I bench tested it; ran it for 8 hours strait, in a room at room temperature. Took a reading with my infared thermometer and it was only 2 degrees warmer than the room.

[cubby_swans]

Originally Posted by TheSlavik

I already thought about that. So, I bench tested it; ran it for 8 hours strait, in a room at room temperature. Took a reading with my infared thermometer and it was only 2 degrees warmer than the room.

Well, it's probably blowing most of that heat away. A better bench test would be to stick it in an insulated 6 cubic foot box for 8 hours and check the temp before and after.

[TheSlavik]

Well looks like I didnt even think about that! Thanks, I will give it a shot tonight.

[cubby_swans]

Originally Posted by TheSlavik

Well looks like I didnt even think about that! Thanks, I will give it a shot tonight.

When I say check the temp, I mean the temp of the air temp of the box, and not the heate... I mean blower. I'd take a glass of room temp water, stick it in the box too. Check the temp of the air and water after 8 hours, see if they've gone up.

Your Danby may be cooling the beer fine, and if so, the blower isn't warming your beer, but it will be making the Danby run harder. The result is you'll be paying more on your electric bill to run the high juice blower plus the extra juice your kegerater needs to keep cool. So as long as you can afford it, and you hate Al Gore too, it's probably no big deal.

[ThirstyTexan]

After I put in the 20w Grainger blower for my tower, it seemed to take forever to cool down a fresh keg. I'm thinking of adding a switch to shut it off until the keg is cooled before turning it back on. Does that make sense?

[jackstraw]

How long did it take to cool the keg? Maybe this fresh keg was warmer than the last fresh keg you put in there.

Unless the blower is generating a lot of heat from the motor, it should only help with air circulation.

[ThirstyTexan]

Seems like it took 3 days. The keg was in the cold keg room at the store, and I think had been there for about a day, and it's only a 10-minute drive from the store to my house.

By the way, this is a Danby. I just don't think it took nearly that long with the previous 10 kegs or so prior to the tower cooler.

If that blower really is putting out 20w of heat, if you thought of it as being a 20w light bulb in there, burning all the time, then it would seem to be a serious heat load. That's why I was thinking, let the keg cool down without the 20w heater going, then cool the tower down (which probably only takes 10 minutes).

I guess I should just do it instead of talking about it! All I'm thinking of is one of those little in-line switches like you see on cheap table lamps.