Beer Can Cooling - 3 Degrees C in 3 Minutes

Cooling beer can be as easy as placing a can in a fridge. But cooling beer on a multi-day camping trip is harder to do as ice melts over time. To maximize its cold time why not focus on keeping the ice frozen in a block and then cool beer as required by rolling a can on it.

This beer cooling project will cool a can of beer to 3 degrees in 3 minutes by ice rolling. It's hands free using a toy car to spin a can of beer on the ice. As the ice melts the support automatically adjusts to the keep the beer in contact. How to make this support is described here.

Supplies

Can of beer

Block of Ice

'Flippity' toy car

3 wooden paint stirrers

Aluminum angling

6 - 5mm by 10mm nuts and bolts

Heat gun sticks

Super glue

Step 1: It Works

On its first trail the support kept the spinning wheels of the car in contact with the beer can on top of the ice, enabling three, 375 mil cans to be cooled on a liter block.

Step 2: Car Bracket

Make 4 brackets. I happened to have a piece of 25 millimeters by 3 millimeters thick aluminum angle metal on hand and so made the backets by cutting 4 pieces 18.5 millimeters long. Round the edges and then drill a hole to attach the support.

Step 3: Glue 2 Brackets to the Car

Using a heated glue gun, glue on 2 of the aluminum brackets to the front and rear of the car.

Step 4: Wooden Supports

The supports were made from some 3-millimeter-thick wooden paint stirrers I had on hand, after making a boomerang. Cut 4 supporting arms, each 12 cm long and drill a hole in each end 10.5 cm apart. Cut a base support 17 cm long and super glue on 2 of the aluminum brackets.

Step 5: Fit Wooden Supports to Brackets

When fitting the wooden supports to the aluminum brackets, use 2 nuts on each bolt so they won't come loose.

Step 6: Disassemble and Assemble

The beer cooling support can easily be disassembled to save on space and reassembled when required.

Step 7: How to Use

To cool a can of beer:

Freeze a liter of water, I did this using an empty milk carton and then cutting one of its sides off to expose the ice.
Make a groove in the ice using a pocketknife. Rest a can of beer in the groove.
You may like to pour on a little salt water on top of the ice to turbo charge the cooling but it will still cool the beer without it.
Place the block of ice in the support - the weight of the ice keeps the support vertical.
Turn on the cars motor and spin it's wheels against the can. This will cause the beer can to spin on the block of ice.

Step 8: More Beer Spinning Hints

A block of ice can also be made by freezing water in a plastic tray with an empty beer can resting on top to create a round grove.
To give more stability to the support, a couple of wooden paint stirrers can be placed under the block of ice between the support.