I'm looking into building a jockey box and was looking for advice on a few things: - Building one at a lower cost - coil vs cold plate - length of coil, diameter We have a brew fest coming up and although a few of my club members have them, I am looking to expand and add 2 taps because I know we will have more kegs than taps available. Any advice is greatly appreciated!
I don't have a whole lot of info for you in regards to a build, but I have used jokey boxes a decent amount. The ones with the coil always seem to do a lot better than a plate. I think a 50' coil will work and could be just fine, but a longer one will really get the job done and can be used all day in the heat without hassle.
this comes up every now and then. the best advice imo, rent a jockey box. you want coils. a cold plate is for long term use, usually for soda dispense at a bar that ices the plate at night. remember that a jockey box is a quick and dirty solution to a short term problem. not a lot of balancing or temp control is put into it because the keg is blown out in a day or less. any longer, you need a kegerator. you can source all of the parts from Micromatic and a few other places, but this is expensive stuff. and because s/s tubing is a commodity you are unlikely to find it at a great price. the smallest 2 faucet is $425! you cant really make one for much less. if you want to own, making the box yourself is only marginally cheaper than buying the parts and building yourself. 50' or 100' od s/s coil will do it. 5/16" OD or 3/8" OD. yes the coils are OD. resist the urge to place three coils in one cooler. get two separate boxes with 2 each instead. DO NOT use copper coil. not an option. forget it. you will need a regulator and a CO2 bottle along with couplers, which you may already have. coils come wrapped clockwise and counterclockwise, you need to plan accordingly for space in the cooler. if you want to drop a few hundred dollars on a piece of equipment you might use a few days a year, go ahead. or spend $40 for the rental. Cheers. also, search this topic in the home bar forum, as we have discussed recently.
