Brewer's Cache » Kegging

Constructing a kegerator: Latching the door shut.

brewbaron — Tue, 08 May 2007 01:04:31 +0000

After toiling with getting the kegerator door to seal well, I decided on adding an external latch to snug up the door. If I had underage kids in the house, this would solve the problem of teenage tampering.

From Solving the s…

Constructing a kegerator: Adding the shanks and faucets

brewbaron — Mon, 07 May 2007 01:21:59 +0000

Attaching the door panel was more of a pain that I had anticipated. It was very difficult to position the panel on the door precisly so that the rubber seals would properly seat. Free of the door, the panel was flexible; it was easy to adjust this and that to get a seal. On a ridge frame, making changes required redrilling new holes and rescrewing countless screws. In the end, I achieved a reasonable seal. I still might attach an exteral clasp to secure the door shut and sealed.

I used a one inch hold saw to cut the shank holes. Because the fridge door is 99.9% insulation, it cut through it like butta. You can see in the following pics the results. I still plan on staining the platform ( with its new hardwood tops ) to match the door panel.

From Attaching the…

The beer shanks pass through the fridge door; the faucets attach to the end on the exterier side.

From Attaching the…

On the outside, you can see the faucets attached to the shanks. These are shirron seal-forward faucets. I understand that they are worth their weight in gold. Fortunately, they don’t cost that much. You can pick these up at morebeer.com or any other good online homebrew shop.

From Attaching the…

Construction a kegerator: Attaching the door panel

brewbaron — Sun, 06 May 2007 20:50:21 +0000

It took a while to get the door panels cut right, but when right, it seals very well. You can see in the following picture, I have positioned my new door panel into the door opening. The rubber seals well enough that the panel holds itself in place on its own accord.

From Attaching the…

No strings or hidden wires!

From Attaching the…

Constructing a Kegerator: Building the level platform

brewbaron — Sat, 05 May 2007 01:42:16 +0000

When converting a fridge into a kegerator, you will need to construct a level platform to support and distribute the weight of the kegs. The full kegs weight about 30 lbs a piece–the platform is very important. In my frigerator, I had to work around the compresser hump along the back of the fridge. When your refrigerator’s defrost cycle runs, you will get some mosture along the back of the fridge. On my fridge, the freezer will drain right down the middle of the fridge along the back wall. You need to be careful to build your platform around this drainage path.

From Building the …

Here a closer look at the construction of the platform. Water will drain right down the middle; I avoid this area to allow for moisture to flow right down to the floor drain on the bottom of the refrigerator.

From Building the …

To complete this platform, I will add a solid top using some of the scrap birch wood left over from the construction of the door panel. All of the wood will be sealed with a deck water stain.

From Building the …

This kegerator will fit two rows of three kegs. I plan on putting the CO2 tank in the fridge; this will limit my volume to 4 kegs ( 20 gal ).

From Building the …

Constructing a kegerator

brewbaron — Fri, 04 May 2007 03:31:30 +0000

I began construction on a kegerator just this evening. My new frigerator was delivered yesterday and that gave me chance to get started. I have already purchased all of the kegging equipment, the kegs, the CO2 tank, the regulator, the beer and gas lines, two sets of pin lock connectors, two 6 inch shanks, and two shirron faucets.

Today, I got the old frig cleaned up, and it was down right filty. I removed the molded plastic shelving from the refrigerator door. I plan on replacing the shelving with a sold hardwood panel.

The steps that I see in my near future:
1) Finish water proofing the hardwood panel ( I choice birch –the price was right
2) Reattach the rubber seal around the panel.
3) Secure the panel and seal back on the frig door.
4) Drill two 1 inch holes through the door
5) Build a flat platform for the bottom. The whole bottom is tilted to facilitate drainage; that will make building a nice level platform a bit difficult ( especially without having a large set of tools available. )
6) Insert and secure the shanks.
7) Attach all the tubing Cool the frig back down and get some kegs chilling Drink it up.

So Far: This is the frig that I have to work with. It is an 18 cubic foot frig. I figure that I should be able to comfortably first 5 kegs and a CO2 tank. It will be a tight fit though.

From Constructing …

This is a look at the door without the shelving. The very dense insulating foam is visible on the back.

From Constructing …

These are the hardwood panels that will be afixed to the inside of the door. It was tough to find anything single panel that would fit the back of my door ( 30 x 38 inches ). I decided to cut two 2×4 foot panels to size. I hope that the seam will not be a problem.

From Constructing …

All that and a bag of grain!

brewbaron — Sat, 31 Mar 2007 03:57:05 +0000

Here’s to B3, beer, beer, and more beer, you local online homebrew shop. I just placed an order with B3 and was very pleased to discover that within two hours of placing the order, the order was shipped! A+ service! The goodies that I can expect from B3 include several key components for a new kegging system that I am putting together.

If you are pricing out new kegging system, I suggest that you visit the following sites. Before you purchase, make sure that you know the difference between pin-lock and ball-lock kegs.

Micromatic.com. They have good prices on regulators and CO2 tanks.
Beer, Beer, and more Beer. You can find about anything here.
Keg Connection. Its all about the kegs.
Ebay. I found a very, very good deal on a 4 pack of cornelious kegs.

I will post an extensive description on setting up your own kegging system when I get mine all up and running.

Where to get kegging C02 canisters refilled

brewbaron — Tue, 27 Mar 2007 18:53:34 +0000

If you keg your beer and need to locate a store that will refill or exchange your CO2 tank, check out the ‘BrewGas’ locator database. I am sure that they would all appreciate your contributions as well.

BrewGas Locator Database