Hello From New Member

[Constrictor]

Hello everyone! I have been reading this forum for a week or so, and decided to finally register. First of all, my name is Mike, and I'm from the far south suburbs of Chicago. I am 28 and have dreamt for many years of one day owning a kegerator. The time has finally come where I am going to attempt to build my own.

My story goes that my grandparents had their original General Electric refrigerator in their basement that they purchased in 1953. It was a spare fridge and just kept extra food and drinks cold at parties. Then last September their basement flooded. 4 feet of water destroyed almost everything, their washer, their dryer, a lot of furniture, etc.

Once everything had dried out they surveyed the damage. The fridge turned on and you could hear the compressor go, but it didnt get cold. As old as it was, they didnt want to spend money to get it fixed, so they were going to throw it away, so I offered to take it off their hands. It sat in my garage since last Oct through just recently when I looked into getting it fixed. Someone suggested just giving it a good cleaning and seeing if it needed to be recharged. I cleaned the back out and just plugged it in and whaddya know, it works! I've had it running 4 days straight now to make sure it stays cold and so far so good.

So anyway, heres how it looks now. Its a bit dirty, but overall in good shape. The pictures actually make it look worse than does in person, but here ya go:





My plan is to get one of the Micromatic door kits and get it setup for a single keg. I will be the only one mainly using it (I live alone), so a 5 lb CO2 bottle should suffice.

I want to do some body work to it and clean up the chrome, and sand and repaint it red. Im not sure how good I can get the chrome to be, but I think it will look pretty sweet red. I might also put some casters on the bottom of it so I can move it around. This puppy is HEAVY!! Its all metal, unlike modern refrigerators that are almost entirely plastic. I might even go as far as doing some lighting mods to it. Not sure yet.

Anyway, if anyone has any advice for a first timer, and someone jumping into such an old unit, let me have it! I hope to have the thing done by my birthday which is in September. I will keep everyone updated!

[Constrictor]

I've already made progress.

Day One:

I removed the bottom panel under the fridge which covers the compressor and plumbing. Theres a lot of old nasty insulation that I will need to throw away. I also got the trim around both handles and both handles off. The handles are in great shape and just need some buffing to shine up. The trim around the handles isnt in as great of shape though. I am going to take them to a local auto body shop to see what the price is to rechrome them. I tried to get the large GE logo off the freezer, but I couldnt figure it out. They might be held on from within the freezer door. I tried to figure out how to remove the doors, but couldnt figure it out.

I also ordered the parts for the kegerator and CO2 canister. Total price was $181 shipped. I will be going to Harbor Freight this weekend to pick up a spray gun and a circular sander so I can strip off all the paint. I'll have updated pix this Sunday.

[topgun3208]

keep up the good work and keep on posting, good luck

mark

[Constrictor]

Day 5:

All my Micromatic parts came in and I went to Harbor Freight and Menards yesterday to stock up on some parts. One thing I bought was a movers dolly that I wanted to put under the fridge so it was easier to move around. Unfortunately, while I was lifting it on the dolly, I managed to snag the power cord and yank it out from under the fridge.

I was pretty upset, but upon further investigation, it seems the electronics back in 1952 were pretty simple. This small setback will end up helping me in the long run. As I was looking under the fridge, the stock wiring was in terrible shape. The insulation on the wires was totally worn away in parts. On other parts, the wiring was so brittle, it would crack and flake away at the slightest bend.

I got some 14 gauge solid core wire and redid all the wiring from the light and regulator to the relay. I am guessing the compressor has been replaced once after all because that wiring looked newer, so I didnt replace that, but other than the 2 wires going from the compressor to the relay, all the other wires are all brand new.

In addition to that today, I began sandblasting the old enamel and rust of the fridge. The sandblaster I have is very small, and would take days to complete a whole fridge, so I am just using it for the bad parts where there is a lot of rust or paint bubbling. For the rest, I am using emery paper and some good old fashioned elbow grease!

I sanded the outside of the fridge for about 3 hours today, and got many parts down the bare metal. For the rest of the enamel that is there, I have it clean enough and with enough texture for a new coat of primer to bite into it. Hopefully I dont regret going completely down to bare metal, but I think I will stop here. Regrettably, I took my digital camera to my parents yesterday and forgot the camera there, so I have no pictures to take today. I will definitely post some when I get it back though.

Which leads me to the last part of what I did. This fridge is only 14" deep, which is deep enough for a 1/6 barrel or home brew keg, but not a 1/4 or 1/2 and since I want to be able to use any size, I have to modify the door to allow more clearance. The foor on this fridge is very thick, so I should be able to cut into it to make room. The inside of the door is made out of some type of MDF type fiberboard. I found this really interesting that this material was used inside a fridge from 1952. I thought for sure it would be metal, or at least some type of molded plastic.

I started cutting away a notch, but then the board started falling apart, so I just took the whole thing out. This left me with a whole door full of 55 year old fiberblass insulation.

My neighbor happens to do roofing and insulation so I called him up for some ideas, and he has an idea for some super strong roofing foam that I could pour into the door and cut a mold out for a keg. He is going to look up the prices for what I need and get back to me. He then can finish off the foam with a spray plastic which is used to coat roofing foam. He says this stuff is as strong as plastic, and would be more than adequate for the interior of a fridge.

So thats my update for the day. Hopefully all of this may one day help someone, or at the least, provide a good read for the rest of you! Once again, I will have some pictures soon!

[psychodad]

A guy from work the other day was telling me about the Kelvinator that he built a kegerator out of in college. He says he still has it in storage somwhere in Oregon. This is going to be a cool project. Keep it coming with the updates.

[Constrictor]

Day 8:

Today, I did more sanding. I have around a total of 4 hours of pure hand sanding into this thing. I am down to bare metal in some of the bad spots, but there is still alot of enamel on this thing. I went to Menards and picked up some Bondo Spot and Glazing Putty. I've used this stuff before to full in nicks and fine scratches and it works pretty well.

One tip if you ever use this stuff is to not bother with a plastic spreader. Just use your fingers. Put a small dab on your finger and press it into the scratch and lightly rub it in. It takes about 10-15 minutes to dry, then sand it, and it should fill in the scratch nicely. If you need to do it a second time, go for it. This will not fix dents or large gashes though.

Anyway, I finished the spot putty and sanding and I started working on the inner door. I removed the rest of the insulation...boy was that nasty! Be sure to wear some face protection cause this stuff gets in the air.

As mentioned in my previous update, I needed to remove everything inside the door, so I will need to build a support for the door to hold its shape and to support the tap once its mounted. My neighbor ordered a gallon of pour in foam. He says he should have it this weekend, so maybe Sunday I can get started on that. I'll need to build the inner door support first before I pour the foam, for obvious reasons.

Thats about it for today, but the exciting news is I got my camera back. So, as promised, heres up to date pictures of the machine. The third picture is the bottom of the inside of the door. You can see how nasty it was and how damp it still is from the last time I had it running. This picture also gives an idea of how thick the door is. The last picture is of the electrical relay that I had to rewire. Theres 3 wires going to the relay, two go to the compressor, and the white wire is the 120vAC hot wire which is brand new. You cannot see the new AC cord I installed. The white flakes is just dust from sanding.

[Constrictor]

Day 12:

Not much exciting news to report other than I got the door off. The hinges were covered by small metal brackets on the inside of the door. It wasn't obvious how they came off, but I pryed off the covers and unbolted the door.

I also cut my 2x4s to the correct length and notched out a piece of the wood so that the latch mechanism doesnt intefere with the board. I wanted to do more today, but a fight with my girlfriend ended things shortly. Boy, could I have used a working kegerator today!

[christos]

Hey, I'm new here too.

Just wanted to say that is an awesome looking fridge. I hope it all works out great, because it totally does already visually.

[Constrictor]

I want to first say thanks for all the kind words from everyone! I am excited about this project!!

Day 14:

I went to the hardware store and came back $23 poorer. That got me several combinations of threated bolts, nuts, washers, some wood screws, a 1" hole saw, and a piece of 6" wide plywood that will be used as the backing board for the tap.

I hand cut the board I bought to the length I needed it to be, and got my drill out and predeilled all my holes in the 2x4s I cut on Sunday. I test fit everything and mounted everything. It was a very tight fit, but it all fit like a glove. This door is going to be stronger than any normal fridge door. The tap should be very strudy. Once I pour in the foam and let it set, it will be even more rigid.

Once I got it all buttoned up, I got out my measuring tape and marked center marks so I knew where to drill the 1" hole for the tap, and I got drilling. The hole saw I got cut right through the metal with ease and even easier through the wood. I mounted the backing board behind the 2x4s to put it closer to the outer skin of the door. This will leave me with plenty of threads left when I screw everything together.

I then test fit some of the Micromatic parts and took some pictures! That was all for today, but that is a lot of work off my shoulders. All of the fabricating, electrical, and sanding are done. I just need to get the foam (which should have been here today...maybe tomorrow) and then paint! Its getting closer I can almost taste it!!!

As always, heres some pictures!

This first one shows my finished fabrication work with the wood. I had to do this because as I mentioned in an earlier post, I needed to modify the door to allow clearance for the keg and when I started cutting into the stock door liner, it fell apart. The wood is there as a brace for the door and the faucet.



These next three show how I mounted the wood to the stock inner door panel mounting location. I just bought some longer bolts and put a nut and a washer on the other end and tightened it down. The second picture shows a notch I had to cut into the right board to allow clearance for the latch.

[Constrictor]

Owned by the forum software! Cant post more than 4 pictures in a thread. Heres the last two:

Finally, these last two show the Micromatic parts installed. As you can see, there is plenty of room left over. This thing is going to be very securely mounted!

[Constrictor]

Day 21:

Not much was done last week as I was out of town for 4 days and had to wait for my pour foam to come in. Well I got it today and started working. I taped all holes shut so foam wouldnt come out where I didnt want it, and I also covered the door latch with some foil, so the foam wouldnt go inside the spring and latch.

The stuff I got is called Mondur MR Light, and its made by a company called Bayer Material Sciences. I was told to just mix it in an approximately 50/50 mixture and pour. It should begin to expand within a minute. I did a little bit in a test area and it did as advertised, so I got mixing and pouring, and holy cow does this stuff expand.

Within minutes I had what looked like a cross between the Stay Puft Marshmallow man and a pancake batter experiment gone wrong! As you can see in the next two pictures I made a mess. I knew I was going to have to do some shaping and cutting with a razor, but I am going to need to do a lot!

For those of you who have experience with pour foam, you're probably laughing at me, but thats okay. Its events like this that make projects like mine all the more interesting when its done.

So heres the two pictures today. I'll give it all a couple days to completely harden before I begin the cutting, and once thats done, I can start painting!!

[aceuass]

Looks good
nice to experiment and know there is a purpose
Paul

[psychodad]

I saw a "This Old House" episode once where they used that to insulate between studs on a bare wall. The guy sprayed on a thin layer that expanded out and before sheetrocking, they trimmed it flush with the studs with a regular old hand saw. Cool stuff.

[Constrictor]

Day 23:

No pictures for today, but let me just put it to you this way. If I was making a book on how NOT to make a kegerator, using pour foam to insulate a door, especially when you have no experience with the stuff would definitely be in there.

Cutting away the excess foam was a pain. This stuff is hard as a rock and cutting through it was a hassle. Believe it or not, I found the claw end of a framing hammer to be the best at removing chunks of it. I'd remove a chunk, then file it down. It looks pretty rough, so I have no idea how I am going to cover it up on the inside of the door to make it presentable.

Also, another setback is that this stuff got all over the rubber gasket and in my attempts at separating it off the gasket, it tore, so I just removed the entire gasket from the door. I will have to replace it later.

All is not bad though, I was able to successfully dig out the latch and the foil I wrapped it in did its job keeping the foam out of the latch. Had that happened, it would have ruined the latch and rendered the door latch inoperable. The foam is basically done, I just need to come up with something to make the inside of the door presentable, get a new gasket, then start painting!

[psychodad]

Originally Posted by Constrictor

It looks pretty rough, so I have no idea how I am going to cover it up on the inside of the door to make it presentable.

Try this link

[Constrictor]

Day 26:

More progress was made today. After satisfactorily carving out the pour foam to a level I could work with, I took psychodad's advice (thanks psychodad) and went to the local Menards (our version of Lowes) and looked for some plastic/fiberglass sheet panels. I found something similar to what is in his link, but it wasn't textured and was thinner. This stuff is .06" thick, but still pretty strong but thin enough to cut with scissors.

I got out my measuring tape and pencil and marked a shape I could cut and got cutting. I went large and trimmed it to size, but I got it to fit pretty good. For the notch for the keg, I decided to go 25" high (kegs are 23 3/8" high) and 9" wide. 9" is probably overkill as I only need a little under an inch of clearance in the door, but I'd rather have too much rather than too little.

Anyway, then I got some of that spray foam because apparently I haven't learned my lesson with foam yet! I figure the spray foam should be a little easier to control. I used it to fill in the gaps where I chiseled away too much of the spray foam, and fill in the crevices. This stuff also works like glue to keep the new inner door panel still.

I took care to make sure not to get foam in bad spots and sprayed it. That was about 5 hours ago. I just went out there to check it and take these pictures and it looks pretty nice. It feels pretty sturdy. Its a little uneven, but at this point, I dont care. Once I get the spray liner on there, it should be even less noticeable.

Last thing I did tonight was I started taping off the fridge for primering. I am going to go with rattle-can primer and then top it off with an automotive grade base coat. I know thats probably not the most ideal setup, but thats okay, I am not a professional!

So, heres what I got so far. It looks a lot nicer in person. Its nice to see it starting to come together and look like a finished unit.

[Constrictor]

Day 27:

Welcome to my first "second day in a row" update!

I continued taping and primering the fridge. I've primered the whole unit except the door (which I will do after I finish the inner coating) twice. After each coat, I dry sanded with 500 grit emery paper. There are a few blemishes from scratches that are coming through the primer, so I'm trying to build up the primer in the hopes it will cover up. As I've mentioned before, I am no professional, so I'll be more than satisfied with a few minor blemishes.

So far things look great. I hope to get one more coat of primer on and get the inner door finished this week so I can start my base coat painting this weekend. The end is getting near.

Check out these pix and the makeshift paint booth I put up in my garage using plastic drop cloths! Also, the primer hadn't finished drying when I took these pictures, so in a couple spots it looks uneven, but thats just because it wasn't totally dry.

[psychodad]

Don't sweat over a few blemishes. I think you will find that if you take your time on the sanding and priming, the finish coats will turn out fine. Looks good so far man.

[Constrictor]

Day 29:

Thanks for all the kind comments psychodad! This is by far the most painting I will have ever done and it's really exciting for me! Even if it doesnt turn out perfect, I'll be proud to know that I did it all myself.

I dont have a whole lot of interesting things to post other than the primering is DONE! I got some spray-in truck bed liner and sprayed the inner door. I just bought one can from a nearby auto parts store. Its not the best, but I don't care, it will serve it's purpose. I had to enlargen the hole in the inner foam for the tapper shaft as the door was now too thick to put the nut on to hold it into place. I drilled out the plastic and foam down to the supporting piece of wood I built inside the door and test fitted it and it fit great!

I remounted the door yesterday and got primering. I've gone through 6 cans so far and I am completely done. The pictures dont really show how nice it looks so I'll only post one. You can see in the bottom left corner of the picture the kick panel laying on the ground primered.

I am going to take a break for a couple days and let the primer completely cure before I go and start the base coating! I am so excited to see the first coat of red on this thing!!

[psychodad]

What color are you ultimately going to paint it? Will you leave it retro white or kick it up a notch to something wild?

[Constrictor]

Originally Posted by psychodad

What color are you ultimately going to paint it? Will you leave it retro white or kick it up a notch to something wild?

Its going to be some shade of red. I have a red Trans Am that I want it painted a similar color, although Im not going to spend the money for color matching paint. Any bright red color will do. I haven't decided which paint I will buy though. I'm really looking forward to it!