Wanted - Build a Draft Box for the club

[Mr T]

I know this has come up several times at the group level as well as the cabinet meetings and we have had several volunteers say they would be interest in building a club draft box. At the recent BBQ it was evident more than ever that with 9 kegs and only a three tap system (Thanks Tom) that it was a bit tricky to pour and keep track of things. Now with that said, I think all the guys did a great job but it would of made pouring and figuring out what everything was easier if we had a better setup. Plus it just looks cool.

With our list building of events we participate in, and it seeming like we have at least 5-10 kegs per event I would like to push for someone to build at least a six tap draft system that once approved would be funded by the club. I realize it won’t likely get done before our next two events, but could be a great winter project for someone(s).

With that said, I know Jim P and Brian had offered their time in the past, and recently Kurt has mentioned interest in this. If any of you have a change in heart or someone else thinks they have the tools, time and experience to put together a functional and cool looking tap box, let me know.

Also, as I do many of you might have spare parts laying around from an old tap system you upgraded or inherited. Tap boxes are very expensive so if you don’t have the time or skill, any parts you can contribute would be greatly appreciate!

I will be bringing this back up at the next meeting, but wanted to get some folks thinking about if they are interested in contributing and any ideas on how big or what the draft box should look like.

A few things to consider in production of the top of my head are:
-how many taps
-do we cool the kegs or the lines
-How big do we have the box (consider number of taps and people serving as well as transportation and storage
-Outside material used (durability and water repellent)
-Club logo or graphics (painted, made of metal, vinyl etc.)
-do the tap handles have places for beer names or just simply handles

[tompb]

I can easily add more taps to mine. I made it 3 because thats what I had before. The coldplate I have with it can do 7. I think I can do 5 without building a new top box, even if I have to it wouldn't take much. They could even swap out depending on the need.
I didn't use the coldplate at Benz or Brewbque, though at the Brewbque we poured slow enough it would have helped with foam. Insulated lines might solve that problem too. It would be cheap and might be worth a try.
If anyone else would like to build something don't let me hold you back though. I still like Brian's bar idea. It could be made tall enough to put the kegs under which would be nice.

[TappedOut]

I picked up a 2-circuit draft box for pretty cheap - only problem is it has soda faucets, not beer faucets. It looked like hell when I got it, but cleaned up nicely. Thank you, oxyclean. I took everything apart, and cleaned it up - need to hook back up with new beer line, and disconnects at the end, and it should be good to go. I have no idea how well the faucets work with beer though, and they certainly don't look as cool (damned diet coke sticker). Should I at some point get it put back together, a simple experiment with real beer should determine how well it works. Or we could just start serving soda. The shafts have a wider diameter than standard beer faucets, so the holes in the cooler are too big to just swap out w/ beer faucets, so it would require either a new cooler or ingenious use of duct tape.

The point of this discussion is that the club is free to use said disassembled soda draft box if folks want to.

-Tom T

[tompb]

My tap box was a soda setup when I got it. The soda taps don't work very good for beer. I put regular shanks and taps on it. You can use the large shank collars on the outside (I have some of the cheap black ones) and large washers on the inside.
Does your's have a tap plate or coils in it? Either way it will work.

[TappedOut]

Good info -- thanks. I was kind of afraid it would pour foam. I saw one website that was selling them that said they work OK if you take out the plug-thing inside that is used for flow control. Would still look shitty. Probably worth replacing w/ real beer faucet. Don't need the fancy Perlicks for this, although these http://www.northernbrewer.com/brewing/m ... ozzle.html look slicker than pig snot, or at least a good excuse to waste a crapload of cash. It's got a plate. I think I paid like $40 for the whole thing, which the SS hardware itself is worth, not even counting the plate. I think I'll look into the setup w/ the big collars and washers. Thanks for the idea. As I said before, more than happy to have the club use it -- just need to get it functional first.

[Mr T]

If your interested in building or overseeing the build of the club draft box please let me know. I think the draft box could be a great asset to the club and just plain cool. But need a few folks to figure out specs and other logistics with the tap box itself.