Basement Poker Room & Home Theater (2 Viewers)

[boltonguy]

I live in MA and mine runs all the time - it is built in to the kegerator. I do get condensation but only during the summer; and there can be a bit but I just wipe with a bar towel once a day. This time of year condensation is zero as there is no humidity. Do you have experience with condensation that causes your concern?

 

[Irish]

I live in MA and mine runs all the time - it is built in to the kegerator. I do get condensation but only during the summer; and there can be a bit but I just wipe with a bar towel once a day. This time of year condensation is zero as there is no humidity. Do you have experience with condensation that causes your concern?

It's in the basement and in the summer it does get a little humid down there (I typically run a dehumidifier in the summer). The tower is sitting on a finished wood base, a little condensation would be OK, I just didn't want it running down and collecting on the wood in fears it would leave water marks, like a glass without a coaster.

 

[CraigT78]

There's a keg tower chiller on Amazon, I've been looking through the questions/reviews and it looks like some folks keep the fanning running 24/7, others turn in on before a party and chill it just before use. It also looks like they make a cover for the tower to help insulate it better and prevent the condensation issues.

https://www.amazon.com/Coldtower-Ke...c-f37cef9b2810&pd_rd_wg=oiPGo&ref_=pd_gw_simh

I drink a beer from the keg almost once a day - that's why I keep it running 24/7. It also keeps the temp in the fridge more stable, as air is moving across cold plate. I could see those who drink less often only turning on when needed - but for a party, beers flow and I wouldn't see a need to keep the shanks cold, if people are always pouring. The waste would be minimal.

 

[Old State]

I made one runnig the wire out the door. I unplug it when not in use.

 

[Old State]

@Irish
The set up looks great! The only thing that worries me is that you put the tap tower in off center of the kegerator you made. I understand why you did it (I assume so you can see the chips) but you are now married to making your own kegerator out of a fridge. If I saw that identical fridge somewhere real cheap I’d be tempted to buy and extra to keep incase. Hopefully it will run for a long time for you.
Based on the bad reviews of my kegerator (that I got new for free) I only expected a few years, but it’s still trucking ...knock on wood. Even though I built in a feature to allow ventilation I always worry about it since it wasn’t designed for in cabinet install.

 

[Irish]

@Irish
The set up looks great! The only thing that worries me is that you put the tap tower in off center of the kegerator you made. I understand why you did it (I assume so you can see the chips) but you are now married to making your own kegerator out of a fridge. If I saw that identical fridge somewhere real cheap I’d be tempted to buy and extra to keep incase. Hopefully it will run for a long time for you.
Based on the bad reviews of my kegerator (that I got new for free) I only expected a few years, but it’s still trucking ...knock on wood. Even though I built in a feature to allow ventilation I always worry about it since it wasn’t designed for in cabinet install.

Yeah, that's a risk you run in general when building a setup like this with the tower mounted to the counter top. I made the floor to underside clearance a little larger than typical to account for a slightly larger refrigerator in the future. These Danby units have been around for a while, my first kegerator 10+ years ago was a similar model. I have no illusions that these last 10-20 years, but I think I've sized everything big enough to accommodate a slightly different sized unit. The key to these converted mini-fridges is finding a unit with no cooling or electric lines in the top, so you can drill just about anywhere. Given how popular home brewing has become, I'm hoping there's always something available And if not, worse case is I have to insulate the beer lines instead of utilizing the PVC to bridge the gap.

Edit to add - the tap was located based on proximity to the sink, to make the drain line as short as possible, and I maximize the open counter space to the left of the sink & tap. And it worked out nearly perfectly with regards to lining up with the chip displays, that was by pure dumb luck

 

[Old State]

Yeah, that's a risk you run in general when building a setup like this with the tower mounted to the counter top. I made the floor to underside clearance a little larger than typical to account for a slightly larger refrigerator in the future. These Danby units have been around for a while, my first kegerator 10+ years ago was a similar model. I have no illusions that these last 10-20 years, but I think I've sized everything big enough to accommodate a slightly different sized unit. The key to these converted mini-fridges is finding a unit with no cooling or electric lines in the top, so you can drill just about anywhere. Given how popular home brewing has become, I'm hoping there's always something available And if not, worse case is I have to insulate the beer lines instead of utilizing the PVC to bridge the gap.

Edit to add - the tap was located based on proximity to the sink, to make the drain line as short as possible, and I maximize the open counter space to the left of the sink & tap. And it worked out nearly perfectly with regards to lining up with the chip displays, that was by pure dumb luck

Sounds like you should be future proofed.

BTW, I had too many turns to get running water to the front bar. I would LOVE to have a drip tray that drained. If I ever move and build a new bar I will have one. That and a glass washer to wash cocktail shakers

 

[Irish]

Tiled & grouted the counter top this weekend. I went with a rusted stone slate mix to complement the blues from the walls and reddish tint in the bar stain.

Glued down the oak trim around the sink, tap and drip tray, and laid out the tile pattern.
View attachment 255573

I've done a few tile projects (kitchen & bathroom renovations) - typically you lay tile on a backer board, which I completely forgot to account for. So instead I coated the plywood base with a waterproofing membrane coat to seal the plywood and provide a good substrate for the thin set to grab.

View attachment 255574

And then set all the tile:

View attachment 255586

And then grouted (went with a gray grout) and installed the edge trim pieces.

View attachment 255575

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I still have to caulk around the perimeter of the tiled area. I'm going to be pouring a thin epoxy bar topping over the tile. The trim pieces will act like dams to keep the epoxy pooled over the tiled counter top, so it needs to be sealed to prevent the epoxy from spilling out.

That will likely be the last update for a while, I have a bunch of things coming up in the next several weeks at work and will likely be taking a break from pretty much everything else....

Ok so it's been a while since I've updated this, I took a much needed social media break for a couple of months to focus on work and the family. But the room is now essentially done, everything but the humidor guts. I took a bunch of pics during these last phases so it'll take me a few days to finish up all the progress in the thread.

Next up was pouring an epoxy glaze over the tile counter top. I forget where I originally saw this (over at PMC I think), but I love this look - it essentially looks like someone melted a sheet of glass over the tile.

The 2 part epoxy resin coating requires an ambient temperature of at least 80 degrees for 3 days in order for it to cure properly, which posed a problem in a NJ basement in early March, where even with the insulated walls and heater going, the room typically sits around 70 degrees. So, I set up a makeshift heat tent with some emergency blankets and had a space heater running, kept the area at a nice and toasty 85 all weekend while it cured:

Prepping for the seal coat, which goes on with small pours and spread with a foam brush to ensure any potentially porous surfaces (wood, stone, grout) are sealed so you don't get bubbles in the flood coat.

Seal coat on:

Followed a few hours later by the flood coat and several passes with a heat gun to pop all the bubbles. IIRC the flood coat was a little under 1/4" thick so the non-flat tiled surface would be covered by a completely flat glass-like surface:

Mixing and having to pour the mixture into several containers was a bit of a pain, but the results were fantastic. The pics make the epoxy look on the yellowish side, but in person it looks crystal clear.

Finished up that weekend by installing the sink & tap drain. The drop for the sink drain was on the longer side and is a little noisy (the SS sink doesn't help that), but it meets code and works fine.

 

[CraigT78]

Ok so it's been a while since I've updated this, I took a much needed social media break for a couple of months to focus on work and the family. But the room is now essentially done, everything but the humidor guts. I took a bunch of pics during these last phases so it'll take me a few days to finish up all the progress in the thread.

Next up was pouring an epoxy glaze over the tile counter top. I forget where I originally saw this (over at PMC I think), but I love this look - it essentially looks like someone melted a sheet of glass over the tile.

The 2 part epoxy resin coating requires an ambient temperature of at least 80 degrees for 3 days in order for it to cure properly, which posed a problem in a NJ basement in early March, where even with the insulated walls and heater going, the room typically sits around 70 degrees. So, I set up a makeshift heat tent with some emergency blankets and had a space heater running, kept the area at a nice and toasty 85 all weekend while it cured:

View attachment 278915

Prepping for the seal coat, which goes on with small pours and spread with a foam brush to ensure any potentially porous surfaces (wood, stone, grout) are sealed so you don't get bubbles in the flood coat.

View attachment 278913

Seal coat on:

View attachment 278914

Followed a few hours later by the flood coat and several passes with a heat gun to pop all the bubbles. IIRC the flood coat was a little under 1/4" thick so the non-flat tiled surface would be covered by a completely flat glass-like surface:

View attachment 278916

Mixing and having to pour the mixture into several containers was a bit of a pain, but the results were fantastic. The pics make the epoxy look on the yellowish side, but in person it looks crystal clear.

Finished up that weekend by installing the sink & tap drain. The drop for the sink drain was on the longer side and is a little noisy (the SS sink doesn't help that), but it meets code and works fine.

View attachment 278917View attachment 278918

View attachment 278925

That counter top looks fantastic!

Did you do a drain line for the beer tray?

 

[Irish]

After the bar top, I cut all the acrylic panels for the chip displays. I needed 14 panels for the chip displays, plus 3 panels for the doors for the liquor cabinet and humidor, plus a couple of panels for the liquor shelf, so instead of paying big $$$ to get all those custom cut, I bought a big 4' x 8' x 1/4" sheet of acrylic and cut all the panels on my table saw myself. The cuts were pretty clean, but needed to be sanded, especially on the chip display panels, where the edges will be exposed. I sanded the edges with a quick hit from incremental sandpaper grits (220-320-400-600-800) and then polished them with a polishing wheel and buffing compound. I'm no expert at this so they're not 100% clear, but they're nice and smooth.

Rough cut:

Sanded/polished:

Ready to install:

 

[Irish]

That counter top looks fantastic!

Did you do a drain line for the beer tray?

Yep, drains to the same drain as the sink. Thank you again for the head's up on allowing for some additional room, I would have completely fucked that up, lol.

 

[Irish]

Keg fridge conversion time. I've used a very similar refrigerator model for a past kegerator, but checked the top for coolant lines just in case, using the cornstarch & rubbing alcohol trick. You mix a few scoops of cornstarch in some rubbing alcohol, then paint the area you're looking to cut through with the unit running. If there's a coolant line in the area, that area heats up and the alcohol evaporates faster, leaving a faint (dry) white line behind.

Wet solution applied:

Dried - there are coolant lines running side to side in the front portion by the door, it's really hard to see in the picture but pretty evident in person.

I lined up the refrigerator in it's "finished" spot and marked where the tap tower came down. Cutting through the top of this proved tougher than I thought, my hole saw didn't cut it, so I used a cutting wheel to get through the metal, then turned back to the hole saw for a nice smooth cut through the insulation and plastic. Finished off the rough cuts with a dremel tool and taped them up for a nice clean finish (none of this will be visible once installed). I also cut a smaller hole for the CO2 lines and temperature control sensor, which will be housed in the adjacent cabinet (sink cabinet)

While I had the unit out, I also needed to modify the door. This Danby unit has a few plastic shelves/racks attached to the door:

In order to close the door with 2 corny kegs, this stuff need to be removed. After removing the magnetic door seal, I used a dremel multi-max to cut the plastic piece off, all except a small portion that functions to turn off the internal light switch when the door closes:

For a finished look and to prevent future damage to the door insulation, I covered this area with some dry erase board material (this way I can also mark what's in each keg, ABVs, kegged dates, etc.)

With the unit in place, I installed a piece of PVC to serve as a bridge between the unit and keg tower, and ran the beer lines, CO2 lines, temperature sensor and power chord for the tower chilling fan (you guys all talked me into getting one ). I used some great stuff to seal the PVC pipe, and plumber's putty to seal the back hole for the other lines (in case I need to replace something, which I already have.... )

And here's that adjacent cabinet - CO2 lines hooked up to the C02 cylinder, and the temperature control unit mounted and running.

I split the outlet on the controller so that one is controlled by the temperature switch, the other is always on. This allowed me to plug in the tower chiller fan plug to the "always on" outlet, so I have easy access to the switch to turn it on/off. You can also see the drip tray drain line feeding down to the sink drain in these pics.

Refrigerators, tap/drain and chip display doors installed:

 

[CraigT78]

Keg fridge conversion time. I've used a very similar refrigerator model for a past kegerator, but checked the top for coolant lines just in case, using the cornstarch & rubbing alcohol trick. You mix a few scoops of cornstarch in some rubbing alcohol, then paint the area you're looking to cut through with the unit running. If there's a coolant line in the area, that area heats up and the alcohol evaporates faster, leaving a faint (dry) white line behind.

Wet solution applied:

View attachment 278944

Dried - there are coolant lines running side to side in the front portion by the door, it's really hard to see in the picture but pretty evident in person.

View attachment 278945

I lined up the refrigerator in it's "finished" spot and marked where the tap tower came down. Cutting through the top of this proved tougher than I thought, my hole saw didn't cut it, so I used a cutting wheel to get through the metal, then turned back to the hole saw for a nice smooth cut through the insulation and plastic. Finished off the rough cuts with a dremel tool and taped them up for a nice clean finish (none of this will be visible once installed). I also cut a smaller hole for the CO2 lines and temperature control sensor, which will be housed in the adjacent cabinet (sink cabinet)

View attachment 278953

View attachment 278954

View attachment 278955

While I had the unit out, I also needed to modify the door. This Danby unit has a few plastic shelves/racks attached to the door:
View attachment 278958

In order to close the door with 2 corny kegs, this stuff need to be removed. After removing the magnetic door seal, I used a dremel multi-max to cut the plastic piece off, all except a small portion that functions to turn off the internal light switch when the door closes:

View attachment 278956

View attachment 278957

For a finished look and to prevent future damage to the door insulation, I covered this area with some dry erase board material (this way I can also mark what's in each keg, ABVs, kegged dates, etc.)

View attachment 278960

With the unit in place, I installed a piece of PVC to serve as a bridge between the unit and keg tower, and ran the beer lines, CO2 lines, temperature sensor and power chord for the tower chilling fan (you guys all talked me into getting one ). I used some great stuff to seal the PVC pipe, and plumber's putty to seal the back hole for the other lines (in case I need to replace something, which I already have.... )

View attachment 278962

View attachment 278961

And here's that adjacent cabinet - CO2 lines hooked up to the C02 cylinder, and the temperature control unit mounted and running.

View attachment 278963

I split the outlet on the controller so that one is controlled by the temperature switch, the other is always on. This allowed me to plug in the tower chiller fan plug to the "always on" outlet, so I have easy access to the switch to turn it on/off. You can also see the drip tray drain line feeding down to the sink drain in these pics.

View attachment 278964

Refrigerators, tap/drain and chip display doors installed:

View attachment 278965

View attachment 278966

Very nice! But damn man - get some better tap handles!! What temp sensor is that? Mine is a cheap one, made in China, no name brand off Amazon. The one you have has some heft! And good job on the tower cooler - you'll appreciate it!

 

[pedrofisk]

Great quality, impressive work.

 

[Irish]

Very nice! But damn man - get some better tap handles!! What temp sensor is that? Mine is a cheap one, made in China, no name brand off Amazon. The one you have has some heft! And good job on the tower cooler - you'll appreciate it!

Lol, yeah I've had this tower for years, never got around to upgrading the tap handles. I always have my home brew on tap, so it felt weird buying brand name taps. Maybe one day I'll make some custom tap handles with my "brand" . The temperature control unit is custom built, it just uses a temperature control switch from eBay with a standard wall outlet, all housed in a radio shack project box. If it's not evident by now, I do like to tinker and build a little....

The tower cooler works pretty well to cut back on the foam, I'm glad I added it. I don't drink every day so I'm definitely glad that I made the switch easily accessible, I turn it on and in 15-20 minutes it's cooled down. There's a bit of condensation once cooled, so I won't be keeping it on all the time.

 

[Forty4]

Just copy @CraigT78 chip handle. Think you did that years ago.

BTW have been enjoying this thread. Very nice work.

 

[DoubleEagle]

Very impressive! I wish I had your skills.

 

[CraigT78]

I always have my home brew on tap, so it felt weird buying brand name taps.

Dry erase tap handles are perfect for this! My home brewing buddy brings his over when we have his brew on tap.

The temperature control unit is custom built

Sweet. That's my next project. I have a cheap one just hanging in the sink cabinet, would LOVE a switch.

I don't drink every day

 

[CraigT78]

Just copy @CraigT78 chip handle. Think you did that years ago.

Never got around to finishing it. Thanks for the reminder!

 

[Irish]

Dry erase tap handles are perfect for this! My home brewing buddy brings his over when we have his brew on tap.
Sweet. That's my next project. I have a cheap one just hanging in the sink cabinet, would LOVE a switch.

The controllers are really easy to build. I got my temperature controller & sensor (with a nice long sensor wire) here, the project box on amazon and the outlet and power cord at home depot. Took about an hour to cut out the holes for everything and assemble. I used Velcro to attach to the side of the cabinet so I could remove it if needed.

Was just looking up custom tap handles on Amazon, they have some pretty cool chalkboard ones that you can get custom engraved. Will send a link to the wifey for father's day and drop some hints....

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071FZ724...olid=1SWFR336SKRFG&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

 

[CraigT78]

The controllers are really easy to build. I got my temperature controller & sensor (with a nice long sensor wire) here, the project box on amazon and the outlet and power cord at home depot. Took about an hour to cut out the holes for everything and assemble. I used Velcro to attach to the side of the cabinet so I could remove it if needed.

Was just looking up custom tap handles on Amazon, they have some pretty cool chalkboard ones that you can get custom engraved. Will send a link to the wifey for father's day and drop some hints....

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B071FZ724...olid=1SWFR336SKRFG&psc=0&ref_=lv_ov_lig_dp_it

Yup - that's the same temp controller I have on both my kegarators - can't go wrong for the price. I just need a weekend free to pull out the unit and wire up a switch and enclose it. Yours looks so much more professional than mine

Those are some sweet handles. I have a Sam Adams chalkboard tap handle - but a custom one is the way to go. I might just have to order one!

 

[ChipEnvy]

Can't tell you how many times I said "Screw this guy" in my head while catching up on this thread. Great work all around Irish, very well done.

 

[markleteenie]

Can't tell you how many times I said "Screw this guy" in my head while catching up on this thread. Great work all around Irish, very well done.

Making the rest of us look like slackers....

JK - Love the project! Would love to see the chips in their display cubbies too!

 

[Irish]

So this next part will probably be boring for those not interested in woodworking - the last big piece of the bar build was construction of the doors and drawer. I went with standard raised panel doors, utilizing a stacked rail & stile router bit in my router table.

Depending on how high you set the bit in the table, this bit cuts both the stiles (vertical frame pieces) & slot for the door panel...

...as well as the mating end of the door rails (horizontal frame pieces). I used a quick homemade sled to cut the rail ends to avoid tear outs:

The combo of the two gives you this at the frame corners:

Got to put a newly purchased toy into action - drill press to cut out the holes for the hinges, handles and locks:

Then just add the wood/acrylic panels and glue together.

Around the same time, I also constructed a simple drawer to be installed over the humidor cabinet for my card & button collection:

Then stained & poly'd everything (in retrospect I should have stained prior to assembly, lesson learned for next time....):

And installed:

The top middle cabinets will house the liquor display (more on that later), hence the glass doors (and lock for the kids). The outer cabinets are for glassware and storage of the coffee maker & supplies. I added a few martini glass hangers to the glassware cabinet:

 

[Irish]

So for the liquor display cabinet, I wanted to build a two step shelving unit to make it easier to see & grab the bottles towards the back of the cabinet. To jazz up the display a bit, I used LEDs to under light the acrylic shelf panels. Here are some construction pics.

Rough cuts for the shelves:

I used one long LED strip, so I needed a hole between shelf steps to pass the LED strip through and then a hole in the bottom to run the power chord for the LED unit.

Front panels finished and assembled (everything else is hidden & didn't need to be finished):

LED strip in place - I just laid this in there, I didn't worry about tacking it down as once it's installed it won't move.

And installed in the cabinet. The acrylic panels just sit right on top.

These are the color changing LEDs that come with an infrared remote - I cut a small hole in the right side of the unit and pulled out the IR sensor so the colors can be changed. For the time being, I keep it on a very slow color fading effect that looks pretty cool

And added a few bottles to test out the look:

 

[Irish]

Final product - fully stocked with booze & chips I'm very happy with how it turned out, it's just like the picture I've had in my head for many, many years. And I'm now officially not moving for a long, long, long time.

w/under cabinet lights only:

and with the LED in the chip & liquor displays on:

Some closer up shots of the chip displays:

 

[allforcharity]

Bravo!

 

[Irish]

I got the bar finished, re-upholstered my poker table, and put up some wall hangings up just in time for the first tourney in the "officially" finished room.

Game day setup:

Christened the new hot dog roller as well, which was a big hit

And had a few special whiskeys on hand to commemorate the event

Starting 10k stacks

8 horses for the tourney, host took second place

And a few other shots around the room the day after. The movie poster frame is really nice, the frame easily snaps open (while still mounted to the wall) so you can easily change out the poster, I got a bunch of our favorites to rotate through during the year. The pic below is the kid's video game area setup with their beanbag chairs, and there's a screen that pulls down for the home theater projector.

 

[allforcharity]

By any chance are those decorative swords "Narsil" and "Anduril" from WETA?

 

[Venturalvn]

Damn all you basement havers! Killer setup from head to toe Irish.