Innovation and homebrewing goes together like no other hobby. If you can dream it, someone has certainly built it, tried it, or patented it. A case in point here is what to do when you want a three tap tower but don’t want to shell out hundreds of dollars for the privilege. We ran across this beauty at the Kindred Tea and Tonic cafe in nearby Davis Square.
It’ll be interesting to see how it holds up. The tower is air cooled, so it may collect condensation. I’d hate to see the rust develop if it isn’t kept up. I also notice that there is no teflon tape on any of the threads. That may make it a bit harder to take apart.
So, price savings. Let’s assume for a minute that all of the cast iron piping is just collecting in a box in your basement. Each of the short shanks runs $17-$20 (depends if it is threaded and needs a beer nut & tailpiece or if it’s barbed). Each of the faucets are $20 (well, regular ones anyway. These are specialty soda/seltzer faucets). There’s $120 already. Add in the tubing, connections, and handles and you’re already $150 in. Insights like this help me to appreciate why those fancy towers cost so much. Setting up a draft system is expensive!