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Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 11:05 pm
by Cobalt
So I saw something like this when I was in my younger 20's down in the states, trying to reproduce it now. It basically looked like a giant, stretched, jello shooter, but as a beer tower. Looking for thoughts, suggestions, or reasons why its not done?

So to put my comments and questions onto this post,

Is 1" hose too big for tower, step it down a size? if so what size?
Can I set the top tower shanks horizontal? I dont see why not but im no pro lol

Biggest hurdle I see is how to go from the 1/4" tower shank to the larger hose to the 1" display hose. If there is a solution, then it can be used on the bottom as well to go back to the normal size.

My guess is that what I saw was indeed a custom enclosure, doubled walled to keep cold, custom fittings, ect...

So yea, Thoughts, Ideas, leads for fittings, ect... leave a comment if you like the idea as well :)

Oh and as for the top cover and base, I Know a guy who knows a guy who could turn these on a wood lathe easily, I think Cherry would look nice :)

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 11:11 pm
by mr x
Is the beer supposed to travel through that 1"hose?

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Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2012 11:16 pm
by Cobalt
I think it did, so from the 1/4" line from keg, up to this tower, where it switches to the 1", swirls up to the top, then back to the 1/4" to be poured.

Think of a long party balloon, but only inflated in the middle and not inflated 2" on each end.

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 7:52 am
by mr x
That sounds pretty tricky. I don't think the bend radius would work out, and the beer would foam like crazy.

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Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 8:56 am
by Cobalt
I got some thoughts on it, I'll do a test with it and see how it works and report back, probably shortly after the holidays :)

My idea to make the jump from the 1/4 to 1" tubing is to use a plug. Drill out an undersized hole and use a 1/4 to 1/4 barb for hose extension.

But I'm now curious to the fluid dynamics, and don't think it should foam inside the tubing. Hoping not, but won't know till I try :)

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 10:43 am
by mr x
I'm thinking temperature causing foam. Unless you are pouring non-stop, you'll have a lot of beer warming up in that 1" tube.

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 10:48 am
by chalmers
Would 1/4" beer line coiled in the same fashion be too long in the tower?
Maybe put an inanimate carbon rod (or similar) in the centre of the coil to act as a heatsink?

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 12:09 pm
by mr x
You may also need a higher end pressure adjusting faucet if you use 1" line.

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 7:37 pm
by Cobalt
HUZZAH! Found this on YouTube, similar to what I seen I think, but this has flashy lights.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8d2o9ki ... ata_player" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 8:23 pm
by Graham.C
Why don't you get a little PC coolant pump and run that with LEDs instead of the beer. Keep the beer cool and away from light. Not to mention all the lost beer in the line that would be saved.

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 8:57 pm
by mr x
Yeah. I noticed the guy pulls away that glass so you can't see how well it poured. Could have been 75% foam.

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Tue Dec 18, 2012 9:13 pm
by Jimmy
mr x wrote:Yeah. I noticed the guy pulls away that glass so you can't see how well it poured. Could have been 75% foam.
It looked like it was all foam.

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2012 9:44 am
by LiverDance
World's greatest Kegerator - No perlicks? FAIL :pow:

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2012 10:42 am
by derek
Cobalt wrote:HUZZAH! Found this on YouTube, similar to what I seen I think, but this has flashy lights.
Gotta like flashy lights! :barf2:

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2012 10:51 am
by know1
you could consider running a 1/4" line through a 1"+ line. You could then even fill the 1" line with plain or colored water by using something like rubber bungs & silicone on each end to seal it of. You could probably even get away with running a pair of 1/4" lines through a 1". Might look cool if they were a twisted pair but adds even more length of course.

Re: Custom Beer Tower

Posted: Wed Dec 19, 2012 11:12 am
by mr x
Better yet, use coolant in the 1" line.