Home of the BrewNosers

I'm planning on installing my beer tower this weekend and wondering what you guys do to chill your towers? I'm looking for something easy...not looking to engineer some crazy electrical unit..

I believe you can get a cooling fan for a cheap price on eBay. Just point it upwards toward the tower. Should do the trick. Other than that I don't have any super "cool"ing ideas.

I've seen that, but wondered about it constantly running. I'm guessing the power consumption wouldn't be very significant?

Those fans will use essentially no power compared to the compressor power that will be used to cool the tower.

This might be going a bit too far, but you could wire it into the power for the compressor. Then it'll only turn on when the compression turns on.

I have the True TDD-1 with a built in fan and hose to cool the tower - it certainly does the trick but it runs 24/7 and there is a noise factor that I (and family) had to get used to - it's not that bad!

if your line from the chamber isn't too long, then you don't need to cool you tower...

however I had an idea to fill a line with glycol (the blue stuff in cooler packs), and wrap it and the beer line in some of the grey pipe insulators. Then I would let them both go down into the cooling chamber... not sure if the heat/cold would transfer on its own, otherwise you would need a way to recirculate the glycol and I'm not sure how aquarium pumps rate on noise and power consumption.

Commercial towers use glycol chilled copper lines. You could probably do this with a tiny aq pump, but I don't think it's a good idea to run it 24/7. Only when you are drinking. Same as fan cooling. I don't see the point to run it 24/7, unless you need that first beer of the day perfect and ready to pour.

Copper tubing is the cheapest way (and the way I use). Run it from the back of the shank into the fridge and bend a length of it where it enters the fridge to attach on the ceiling.

OntarioBeerkegs wrote:Copper tubing is the cheapest way (and the way I use). Run it from the back of the shank into the fridge and bend a length of it where it enters the fridge to attach on the ceiling.

I've seen that online, but it says to use spray foam insulation in the tower. Did you do that with yours?

No. I am not a big fan of insulation in towers. This is likely open to debate but I find insulation locks in the warmth and makes it harder to keep cool then if just let cold air in from the bottom. Makes my first pour knock the co2 out of solution until the line gets cold from the heat transfer. Right now with open air and a copper tube the back of my shank is 48F and room temp in the basement is 70F. I have not poured a drink for 8 hours. If someone with insulation only could post what they have would be appreciated.

so all you're doing is allowing the cold air from the fridge to cool down the copper tube? sounds good to me

bluenose wrote:so all you're doing is allowing the cold air from the fridge to cool down the copper tube? sounds good to me

Here's an write up on it

http://brokenglassbrewing.blogspot.ca/2 ... -past.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;