This article is about drilling into the wood collar of the keezer build, not drilling into the chest freezer.
Building a keezer (aka a kegerator) is fairly easy to do. A few cutes of wood, come clue to seal it to the chest freezer and that’s pretty much it.
The collar is basically the only construction part of this project, and thankfully wood is cheap in case you make mistake.
This article will help guide you to drilling holes for the faucet in your keezer.
Where should I drill the holes for my keezer?
You should drill your holes to the right side of the keezer, and in the center of the wood collar. Having your faucets on the side have many benefits, but mostly by being off to the side, you keep all the line out of the way.
Aesthetically, the taps look great right in the middle, but from my personal experience, they would work better off to the corner. And here is why.
With the faucet, shank, and the hose extending an extra 2-4 inches from the collar, we are now getting in the way of the kegs.
Because of that, it gets in the way of organization and moving kegs. Taking the kegs in and out is a little more difficult, when they are empty it’s not as big of a deal, but adding a new 50-pound keg, while holding and maneuvering beer lines is very complicated.
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How far apart should taps be?
You should space the drilled holes about 3 inches apart. That is measured from the center of the hole to the other centered hole.
There is room there to move them closer, but keep in mind you need to tighten them with a wrench and it gets tougher to do the closer they are to each other. And if you plan on having tap handles that are bigger than the ones they come with, you might want to make sure you have space ahead of time.
Generally, you want the faucets all next to each other, but you could break them up and put 1 or 2 on each end.
But for me, having all the faucets off to the right just works the best for a keezer.
What size drill bit to use for tap holes in a collar for keezer?
Use 7/8 ” spade drill bit for the shank hole, that is the perfect size for a good snug fit.
Ideally, you will want to drill the holes before the collar is all put together and glued to the chest freezer.
Put a board underneath the board you are drilling. With the spade bit, you’ll drill through until the tip of the bit makes its way through the other side. From there, flip it over and put the bit in the hole, and finish the cut. This way will give you a nice clean drill without any splintering of the wood.
Some possible issues if you drill when the collar is already glued on is, the vibration could become unglued in some spots. Another reason would be sawdust getting trapped in the keezer and over time could get moist and develop mold.
How much does a shank drill bit cost?
A shank drill bit costs anywhere from 2-5 dollars depending on a few things. Where you live and size for example.
For the sake of the keezer build, this is just a small expense, but absolutely necessary for drilling the right size hole for your faucet.
You can find these anywhere, Walmart, home depot, or you could borrow one.
What you need and how to do it?
You will need a ruler, preferably a yardstick, pencil, drill, and drill bit.
Find where you want to put the faucets and mark an x for reference.
Measure the height of the board and find the center. Here is a video to help find the center of a board without math! Remember to space every 3 inches to get even faucets.
