Will the Sanyo 4912M fit full keg?

[JNEW]

Hey guys, I'm new and looking to buy a fridge to make my first kegerator. I found a pretty great deal on the Sanyo SR4912M (for $169). My question is, will this fit all my needs (whole keg, 1/2 keg) or only 1/2? Any input is appreciated. Thanks.

Jim

Specs:
Fingerprint-resistant coated, platinum metallic door
Black cabinet, with Eclipse™ black interior
4.9 cubic foot capacity
All-refrigerator design never needs defrosting
Adjustable thermostat dial control
Reversible door hinges
Two glass shelves and glass crisper lid
Gallon door storage (lower door shelf holds one,
1-gallon milk jug and a six-pack of cans)
Vegetable crisper
Smooth-back design
Vertical can dispenser
Two leveling legs
ENERGY STAR® qualified
Energy Use (approximate): 316 kWh/year
Dimensions: 21 3/8" W x 33 3/4" H x 22 3/4" D
Weight: 68 lbs.

[indianaroller]

I would say the width of the keg would fit (17 inches) but I'm not sure lenght wise it would fit (29 inches with coupler). Those dimensions are taken from the outside. The bottom of the outside of the fridge to the bottom of the inside of the fridge is going to be the thickest part. The walls of the fridge are going to be about 1.5 inches. So I would say as long as the outside bottom to the inside bottom isn't thicker than 3 inches then I would say you are good. You may want to call sanyo and ask what the inside specs are or you could go to Lowes or Home Depot and look at other mini fridges and measure their wall thickness to get an estimate. Also find out how deep the shelves are on the door but you can always easily cut that off.

[indianaroller]

I just remembered something. You will need to leave room for a blower, assuming you are going to use a tower. The only place you will be able to put the blower is in the door, depending on if you have to cut the shelves out. You may just want to find a place the sell used refrigerators or freezers (a temp controller would be needed then) which is what I did. Then you could put the faucet through the door and no blower is needed.

[JNEW]

Thanks. I'm actually in Indy. Quick question, you're saying I'd need a blower if I have a tower? What's the blower do? I also have an option of a deep freezer (I'd have to convert, obviously) that is about 3 ft. by 3ft by 2ft. I'd still have to use a tower probably though. Any suggestions??

[indianaroller]

The blower forces cold air from the bottom of the kegerator up into your tower to keep it cool. I have heard that the tower will have a hard time getting below 50f without a blower. The small one will work well http://www.micromatic.com/draft-keg-...d-cid-151.html

You will need to build a collar to make the frezzer bigger which should be no problem if you have access to a saw. Search for freezer and you should find some links. The only problem is getting that 160lb 1/2 bbl into the freezer by yourself.

[beermonkey]

I am pretty sure that a buddy of mine used a Sanyo 4912 for his kegerator. It was a tight fit, but it a full (1/2 bbl) keg worked. He had to remove the door shelves (it can be removed by removing the screws that hold the rubber door gasket in place), which he replaced with a flat piece of plastic (I'm not sure whether that's necessary or not). He also used a low profile ("Lo-boy") keg coupler, which was essential for it to fit. It will be tight for a blower, too, but since it's a round peg in a square hole, there is some corner space to work with.The standard sankey coupler definitely would not have worked. I think he also had a 5lb CO2 bottle wedged under the keg (in front of the bump-out for the compressor motor behind the crisper drawer area). Not sure if that was the best idea or not.

I'm planning to use one of these fridges, too, so I'd be very interested to know if you decide to go this route and if it works (just to make sure there haven't been any changes to the fridge design since my friend got his a few years ago). I plan to put the CO2 bottle outside the fridge and go the tower+blower route, I'm just trying to figure out how to squeeze it all in.

Good luck!

[indianaroller]

Did your friend have a tap through door or did he have a tower?

[beermonkey]

He had the fridge under a bar that he built with a tower. The line wasn't properly cooled, though. He ran it out through a gap he cut in the door gasket and up into the tower. I remember him having lots of foam problems.