Going to buy a kegerator! But I need help.

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Hello everyone!

So I'm new to the world of kegged beer, but I've been eyeing a kegerator for a while now. I'm looking to buy this (Does it look okay?):
kegerator keg beer tap dispenser draft system dispense - (eBay.ca item 190221811161 end time 17-May-08 06:16:51 EDT)

But here's the thing. I live in Quebec, and for some reason no one sells kegs up here. So getting the actual beer is the real problem. But! I found a micro that makes ridiculously good beer that says they'll sell me some. I can do one of two things. 1) They can sell me a half-barrel keg, with a 75$ deposit for the keg OR 2) They'll fill whatever keg I bring and charge me for the beer. I would prefer option 2, because I'd like to have 2 1/4 kegs of (20L), change my tower to dual tap, and have 2 kinds of beer going at one. The problem is. I don't have a keg, let alone two. And I can't find a place that sells them!

So I come to you in the search of answers. Does anyone know A) where I can buy empty kegs and B) what kind of costs I'm looking at for 2 1/4 kegs like that.

I'd be very grateful for any input on this, because this is the only barrier left standing between me and delicious delicious tapped beer (I even found someone that can filled my gas canister with beer gas!).

Thanks a bunch!

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[cubby_swans]

A few things...
That's a Danby kegerator. I suppose with free shipping that's not a terrible deal, I suppose. But I bought mine for $430 at a local retailer (Best Buy). You will probably find that you need to do some cheap ($25 - $35) and simple modifications to it, however, to get it operating properly. But for $650, I'd rather just make a kegerator out of a chest freezer.

A 1/4 barrel is NOT a 20L keg. A 1/4 barrel is a 30L keg. The Danby will not fit two 1/4 barrel kegs. It will fit two 5 gal (20L) 'corney' kegs. Again, if you want two taps this is where the chest freezer advantage comes in. You can just buy a freezer that fits whatever you want in it. You can buy the 5 gal corney kegs on e-bay as well, but you'll need to buy a different connecter than the one that comes with the kegerator. For the 1/2 or 1/4 barrels, you're better off paying the deposit on them if/when you want one. The deposit is cheaper than buying, and the brewery owns it, cleans it, and replaces it with a new one if something happens to it at their expense.

Also, if you buy the kegerator and want two taps, you'll end up spending another $250 in parts because you'll need a two tap tower, a different regulator that supplies gas to two kegs, as well as an additional coupler.

You'll end up spending over $900 on this kegerator. For that kind of money... I would just you could buy this from this website...

Two keg tower premium conversion kit: $310.00

http://www.micromatic.com/draft-keg-...-LC-SGT-2.html

add on

5lb co2 cylinder: $56.95
E26 temperature controller: $59.00

For a grand total of ~$420 + s&h.

Then all you would need to do is find a freezer that you wanted. You will save money that could be well spent on beer.

HOWEVER, if you're set on the look of the kegerator, again, for that kind of money, I would just buck up and get one of these...

http://www.micromatic.com/keg-refrig...id-BM23-2.html

Because this is a high quality commercial unit that works like a charm out of the box and will likely last you 20 years.

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Whoa that was a lot of info. Thanks for the reply.

You mention building my own, but honestly I am not good at building things, and plus I really don't have the time to dedicate to that. An already built solution is much more fitting.

I've looked around to try and find something equivalent to what I listed for cheaper, but no local store carries kegerators. So that eBay one is pretty much my cheapest option (mostly cause of the very free shipping). But you seem to not like the Danby brand. A reason in specific? You also mention modifications. Are they hard/long to do? 25-35$ I could see myself spending.

Anyways, this is a lot to think on. But the one thing you mentionned that made me question my strategy was

the brewery owns it, cleans it, and replaces it

How hard is it to clean a keg? I can't say I ever put any thought into this. I disassembly hard? One of the other reasons I wanted to buy the keg was I was thinking of maybe doing some home brewing down the line...

Anyways, thanks for the infos!

[TheSlavik]

Cubby:

When I was looking for a Kegerator in Canada, that is about as cheap as it comes for them here. Even though our exchange rate is on par with the Yankee buck, things still seem to be 20 - 30% more here in Canada.

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The only other place I found in Canada with reasonably priced Kegerators was Costco. Costco.ca has that same Danby Kegerator for $699... shipped for free. The reason why I went the Costco route instead of that Ebay route is just for peace of mind. Costco will take back almost anything, at any date, for any reason, as long as you have the receipt.

So if anything ever happens, something burns out, breaks, whatever, youd be able to return it to Costco. I highly doubt the ebay option would let you. As for finding Kegs, I believe you can find them on ebay, or just go to a local liquor store and start asking about them. They might hook you up with a distributors number, or bar that might sell you a few.

[TheSlavik]

PS: The kegerator is only available from Costcos website, they do not carry them in stores.

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TheSlavik : Thanks for the Costco tip! I'll look into that. Also, this means you bought this same kegerator? How is it working for you? Are you happy with the purchase?

[cubby_swans]

You mention building my own, but honestly I am not good at building things, and plus I really don't have the time to dedicate to that. An already built solution is much more fitting.

Micromatic includes very detailed instructions that tell you how to build. It's not hard at all. With you wanting to convert yours to a two tapper, you'll esentially be building it from scratch, anyways. If you buy the pre-made option, you're essentially paying good money for parts, and then replacing them. I think it makes more sense to purchase 1 tower and 1 regulator rather than two of each, and throwing one set in the garbage.

But you seem to not like the Danby brand. Any reason in specific? You also mention modifications. Are they hard/long to do? 25-35$ I could see myself spending.

I own the very Danby that you've listed from e-bay. I like it just fine, especially for the price I paid. I'm just making you aware that you will likely need to modify in order for it to function well (cool properly, etc.) It's on the lower end of the price scale for a reason. They don't all work so great out of the box. The mods are fairly simple. Took me less than an hour, and there are many detailed instructions in these forums on how to do them, as nearly everyone with a Danby on this site has done them as well.

How hard is it to clean a keg? I can't say I ever put any thought into this. I disassembly hard? One of the other reasons I wanted to buy the keg was I was thinking of maybe doing some home brewing down the line.

A corney keg is easy to remove the top and clean. This is what you'll be likely wanting to purchase and use for homebrewing. A 1/2 barrel or 1/4 barrel, I'm not even sure it's possible.


And yeah, Slavik, I understand the point about the price differential in Canada, likely due to import taxes, etc. But that's why I stick to my guns about building a freezer kegerator out of a conversion kit. This gives you limitless options at a much more attractive price.

[TheSlavik]

Originally Posted by cubby_swans

And yeah, Slavik, I understand the point about not being able to find a large selection of these in Canada, but that's why I stick to my guns about building a freezer kegerator out of a conversion kit. This gives you limitless options at a much more attractive price.

Yeah, I am totally for building them too, I was just referencing pre-builts for him, as it took me quite sometime to dig up that Costco lead.

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Building you own kit is about as hard as drilling a hole and tightening a few nuts.

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Micromatic includes very detailed instructions that tell you how to build. It's not hard at all. With you wanting to convert yours to a two tapper, you'll esentially be building it from scratch, anyways. If you buy the pre-made option, you're essentially paying good money for parts, and then replacing them. I think it makes more sense to purchase 1 tower and 1 regulator rather than two of each, and throwing one set in the garbage.

Well not exactly, because the auction gives the option to swtich to a dual tower with required accessories to dispense 2 kegs for 90$ extra. Not sure if this is a deal or highway robbery (or the actual price of things) though. But either way I sort of see your point. I guess I'll at least take a look at that option and compare things.

I have found these kegs :
5 Gal Cornelius Style Soda Keg - Great Homebrew Keg - eBay (item 150247276483 end time May-20-08 20:53:55 PDT)

20$ for a used corney, includes set of new O-rings. But the guy doesn't mention what kind of coupler is needed to tap this. Or is it standard?

[cubby_swans]

I missed that part about the dual tap $89 addition. Well worth it.

You need different couplers for the corneys. But they're not expensive. $20 per corney keg.

They are here. You need the gray one for the gas line into the keg, and the black one for the beer out of the keg.

http://www.micromatic.com/draft-keg-...rs-cid-51.html

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Oh yeah, that's not too expensive. Glad I looked at that before buying the things and not be able to hook them up to anything though! This is a lot to think about! Thanks for all the help and answers guys!

[BigBadJohn]

I couldve built 3 kegerators like mine for that much

[Woolly Bugger]

Chart, if it's any consolation, I'm a mechanical moron as well, but it was super easy to convert my fridge to a kegerator using the Micromatic directions. I was up and running with tap beer in less than an hour. To put that in perspective, it would take me at least an hour to figure out how to change the oil in my truck. LOL.

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Okay, so I'm pretty much set with everything now, but I've one more question. The micro will sell me the keg, and then I have to take it home. Should it be refrigerated during transport, or does it not matter until I tap it?