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CAOS Forums => Lounge => Topic started by: Bryan on 2006-03-26T10:42:01-06:00 (Sunday)

Title: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: Bryan on 2006-03-26T10:42:01-06:00 (Sunday)
For those that don't know, I recently moved to St. Louis.  I got an apartment not far from Westport off Page Ave.  While preparing for the move my boss offered me a refrigerator.  Knowing I already had one, I went ahead and took it anyway.   I present to you, the kegerator:

 (http://www.hciunderground.com/kegerator/kegerator%20001.jpg)
The suppplies.  I was  little worried if someone stopped by I was goign to be flagged for terrorism.  There's a lot of bomb making supplies involved in the process ironically enough.
<(http://www.hciunderground.com/kegerator/kegerator%20002.jpg)
Poor empty refrigerator.  I decided to go with a 1/6 barrel of Killians Irish Red.  They're taller and thinner than a standard 1/2 or 1/4 barrel so I can fit two in there if need be.  Room for expansion is always a plus.
 (http://www.hciunderground.com/kegerator/kegerator%20003.jpg)
The tapper and shank.  Different than a standard tapper as it needs to be able to stretch through a refrigerator door.
(http://www.hciunderground.com/kegerator/kegerator%20004.jpg)
Fire it up.  Get the coupler hooked to the keg with the Co2 tank at about 8-10psi
(http://www.hciunderground.com/kegerator/kegerator%20005.jpg)
Another view

(http://www.hciunderground.com/kegerator/kegerator%20006.jpg)
A close up of the Co2 tank, it's a large tank weighing in at 10lbs.  I got larger so it can handle two kegs at once.
(http://www.hciunderground.com/kegerator/kegerator%20007.jpg)
The keg
(http://www.hciunderground.com/kegerator/kegerator%20008.jpg)
A fine irish beer we have here.  God what I would have killed ot have had this in on St. Pat's day.
 (http://www.hciunderground.com/kegerator/kegerator%20009.jpg)
Full frontal.  Complete with drip tray and tap handle and juuuuuust enough clearance to open the freezer (slight design flaw on my part)
(http://www.hciunderground.com/kegerator/kegerator%20010.jpg)
Up close and personal
(http://www.hciunderground.com/kegerator/kegerator%20011.jpg)

Dispensing with the amber goodness


 That gentleman and ladies, is my kegerator.  I will be adding a 2nd tap and getting another beer line installed when I have the time (and money)
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: Geoff Schreiber on 2006-03-26T17:22:23-06:00 (Sunday)
Looks awesome - now you just need to buy some mugs/steins!:lol:
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: Bryan on 2006-03-26T17:59:26-06:00 (Sunday)
oy I couldn't agree more.  Let's just say there exists a good reason I don't own a set yet, and it's not just because I havent' gone out to buy them.  :roll:
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: Jerry on 2006-03-26T18:34:39-06:00 (Sunday)
:blink:


Wow!  


And you're still single!   :lol:
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: Bryan on 2006-03-26T20:22:06-06:00 (Sunday)
Yes, Dr. Weinberg..I'm still single.  Thank you OOOOOOOOOOOOH so much for pointing that out to me.

To quote Kaitlyn "Wow, he BURNED you"
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: raptor on 2006-03-26T23:01:15-06:00 (Sunday)
I must give dibs.  Not a drinker but still very nice.  Now if you could get and LCD display on the thing....

:beer: Scott :beer:
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: Ross Mead on 2006-03-26T23:20:28-06:00 (Sunday)
Wow Bryan!  They must not be workin' you hard enough at Perficient! :-P  Like raptor, I too am a non-drinker; however, I definitely will give you mad props to a job well done.

Cheers!

 :pint:  (w00t beer)
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: Shaun Martin on 2006-03-27T00:30:35-06:00 (Monday)
 :pint:
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: Bryan on 2006-03-27T07:04:36-06:00 (Monday)
Raptor, the plan is to eventually install a bar monkey into the freezer.  You walk up and press some buttons on an LCD dispaly built into the freezer, then it automatically dispenses it from another tap in the front of the fridge.  Howver due to the complexities, this project is a very VERY long term goal and a collaboration between myself, a couple of EE friends, and some mechanical enginers.
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: DaleDoe on 2006-03-27T09:48:51-06:00 (Monday)
Eh, my dad did that years ago and he is no engineer.  He's just a heavy drinker :pint:.  He used the full-size kegs.

Unfortunately, he sold it when I was probably 9 years old.  Wish he'd have kept it around for a decade longer :drunk:.
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: Bryan on 2006-03-27T12:01:30-06:00 (Monday)
He made a kegerator or a bar monkey?  The kegerator was pretty simple, the bar monkey is a little bit (read: crap load) more complex.  Getting it so it sucks liqour out of a bottle, dispenses it in the right proportions, mixes it properly, etc, etc.  Then interfacing it with a touch screen LCD..whole other bag of tricks.

If he did htat 9 years ago, then I'm thoroughly impressed.
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: DaleDoe on 2006-03-28T10:22:18-06:00 (Tuesday)
He just made a "kegerator" probably over 20 years ago (some of my earliest memories of him involve that thing).  I can date it back to at least 1989.

Dad only drinks beer, so a bar monkey would not have interested him at all.  He just wanted cheap, cold beer :pint:.  The fact that it was draft beer was just a bonus :-D.  As far as the mixed drinks, a bar monkey doesn't make them any cheaper, colder, better, does it?  It's a neat toy, but I'll stick to mixing my own for now 8-).
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: Bryan on 2006-03-28T10:25:12-06:00 (Tuesday)
too true, and sometimes having a toy to play with is worth it!
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: brickboy on 2006-03-29T08:51:29-06:00 (Wednesday)
I dont know if anyone here is aware of it, but one of the groups in my ECE senior design class is making a bar monkey for their project.  I thought they had an original idea, but I guess its been done quite a few times before.  Anyway, Im not sure when presentations are but I'm guessing they are the week before finals so I encourage everyone interested in this topic to attend and see what the finished product looks like.
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: brickboy on 2006-03-29T08:51:59-06:00 (Wednesday)
I dont know if anyone here is aware of it, but one of the groups in my ECE senior design class is making a bar monkey for their project.  I thought they had an original idea, but I guess its been done quite a few times before.  Anyway, Im not sure when presentations are but I'm guessing they are the week before finals so I encourage everyone interested in this topic to attend and see what the finished product looks like.
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: Peter Motyka on 2006-03-29T08:54:26-06:00 (Wednesday)
Awesome job!  Now to fill it up with some "real" beer ;)

http://www.stella-artois.com

Better yet, http://www.greatdivide.com/thebeers/dpa.htm
Title: Re: Who says those engineering classes didn't pay off
Post by: Bryan on 2006-03-29T10:01:07-06:00 (Wednesday)
if I were going to get anything I'd import a microbrew called Kilt Lifter.  It's a nice sweet scottish ale.

Though the next one I'm going to order is going to be blue moon.