That’s what I did. But I had the wood and everything else, I just had to buy a $100 AC. Here’s a picture of the inside of mine:
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Even though it’s around 100F in my garage right now, I’m fermenting a smoked roggenbier at 54F internal temp(notice the temp probe wire going into the thermowell). The AC probably runs less than 15 minutes per hour to keep the temp stable.](Photo Storage)
I want something I can get 2 buckets into. They’ll go in empty, so that solves at least the first part of the problem. Still gotta get the full ones out, though! If I could fit in a couple kegs for storage, not serving, it would be a plus.
15 cu ft chest freezer is what I use. Works great. Holds 4 buckets easily. You could maybe put the freezer up on a frame (in the south we just use cinder blocks :P) off the ground and siphon the beer out.
Thanks for the info. Off to price freezers!
If you’re not in a huge rush and want to price shop http://www.homebrewfinds.com usually finds a good deal on various models a couple times a month. The sale prices are usually a real good deal if you find a model on sale that fits your needs.
Thanks. There’s no big hurry, so I’ll check it out. I found one at Home depot for about $400, including delivery. Delivery is important. I have no way to haul one.
Never pay full price. Sale prices an freezers are sometimes 40% below “retail.”
Yeah, that’s what I’m finding as I look.
I’ve got the Ranco dual stage. Very happy with it.
Chest freezers sweat (a lot) at fermentation temps. Even though I clean mine fairly regularly, I wouldn’t trust it with open fermentors and sweet wort.
Plus you’ll have to eventually get the wort OUT, so unless you’re somehow elevating the freezer, you’ll have to lug full buckets up and over anyway.
I got my little ferm fridge free on the side of the road when a couple moved out down the street. It works great. Barely fits one bucket, but that’s all ya need.
As far as the controller: My ambient basement temperature (where the fridge is) is usually lower than my ale ferment or diacetyl rest temps, so I use a dual stage and a heat belt to keep the fermenter temp steady at the back end of fermentation.
The dual stage is worth it: It really nails ferm temps within a degree, allows you to ferment anywhere, and allows you to maintain relatively high temps (for saisons, high gravity brews, diacetyl rests, etc.)
I use a little dry z air (or whatever brand) desicant thingy I got at home depot. Works great. Lasts a couple months
That’s good point. Getting full kegs or carboys into a freezer is awkward. Getting them out is worse (down is easier than up). But kegs are usually empty when you pull them out. Plus, kegs don’t break.
Denny, I go Johnson controller with a chest freezer. Not sure of the square footage but I can fit 4 buckets in there. It was given to me by my bro-in-law, is a million years old and still works great for me after 3 years of fermentation use. Cycling is not a problem if you keep it full!
I found my upright freezer on Craigslist for $100. If you have time and can find a cheap way to haul it, it’s a great way to go.
Dave
I use a chest freezer as a fermentation chamber. Not sure exactly how big it is, but I can easily fit 2 six gallon better bottles in there and I know it’s one of the smaller models. I had a horrible problem with moisture, but got some Damp Rid from Home Depot, and put it in the freezer. That took care of the moisture (as long as I refill it when I should).
Bob
For the right balance of price and ergonomics I went with a small all-fridge refrigerator (a Danby, http://www.danby.com/en/US/our_products/refrigeration/dar044a2sldd ). It was at CostCo and I happened to have a CostCo rebate check that paid for most of it. I wanted to avoid lifting items in and out of a freezer and I had seen discussions about using this fridge.
As a 3-gallon brewer, it works great without further modification. The fridge doubles as a printer stand. 
However, you’d need to modify it to fit standard fermenters, and this newer model requires more work to do that (the previous model had a door panel that screwed off, this one is glued in). There are Youtube videos if you’re interested.
I use the Johnson controller and it works great. I put velcro on the back of it. But the two-stage controller was probably overkill… I doubt I will ever use it the “other” direction.
It’s limited to one batch at a time, but even without considering the advantage of controlled-temp brewing, the advantage of no longer lugging a fermenter up and down stairs cannot be underestimated.
Edit: Denny, two things you might consider in your planning are a) where is your brewing “pain point” and b) how long you plan to be brewing in the future. You’ve mentioned the lifting issue several times in the past–it seems to be the thing that takes away from the hobby for you. For me, I’m not a champeen homebrewer but I’d like to be brewing my little batches for a good long time to come, and that means ensuring my brewing workflow is designed around my gently aging self. My dream is to build a highly accessible, all-electric brewstand that could be used by someone with limited physical mobility and less-than-acute vision. I will never be the world’s best homebrewer, but with enough planning I could eventually be the oldest. 
Wise advice! Right now, lifting isn’t much of an issue. Although I dislike it, I can still do it without much problem. If I keep brewing another 10+ years (my intention) it might get to be more of an issue. I’ll have to modify my system as I fond things that I need it to do for me that don’t happen now.
I wonder if one of our mechanical members could design a stand with a fulcrum boom swivel that would lift a 5 gallon fermentor, swing it over a freezer, etc. Maybe with a locking pin to hold it up in the air for racking?
There isn’t any more lifting with an upright chest freezer vs a fridge.
I have two of them, and before I used conicals I put four carboys or buckets in them.
I wouldn’t use a horizontal chest freezer for fermenting. I deadlift 385 and I still have a heck of a time wrangling kegs in and out of my horizontal freezer, can’t imagine dealing with a bucket or carboy.
An interesting AHA research project would be a feasibility study on various approaches to improving accessibility for homebrewing. Less formally, a wiki page on easing the physical process would be easy enough to kick into gear. Hoists, wagons, lifts, small-batch brewing, etc. I personally am happy with my RAID setup (Random Array of Inexpensive Danbys) but there are many approaches and I still haven’t solved for other parts of my workflow. Even a scenario exercise would be useful for visualizing the physical challenges that crop up in a typical homebrewing workflow.
In terms of homebrewing and accessibility, the situations I observe the most are a) women who share with me that they find homebrewing too cumbersome, especially at the 5-gallon level; they find the hobby interesting but frustrating, and b) posts on discussion boards where someone who has been brewing a long time comments that he has scaled back because of a physical life event such as a strained back, illness, etc.
Paul, a gallon of water weighs about 8.5#. A 6 gallon carboy would then be about 51# plus the carboy. If you can deadlift 385, it should be like feathers to you!