kegerator buying advice

[vasco]

Hi everyone,
I am putting the finishing touches to a living room bar, and I want to add a kegerator.

I've been reading how some are noisier than others, and some require a good deal of tweaking before they pour properly.

So, with an approx. $1,000 budget, which under-counter, dual dispensing kegerator will give me the best bang for my buck?

[OlDirtyJohn]

buy all the parts and make one yourself. if i had to do it all over again, thats the route i would take. you can always find chest freezers on craigslist for cheap, then get all the plumbing and fittings from here.

[panthermark]

Agreed,
From everything I have read, you are better off building your own. But $1,000 is enough to get you past the "out of the box foam machines".

[cubby_swans]

I wouldn't go with a chest freezer in my living room unless I were still in college.

On THIS LINK there are a few under counter kegerators that are at or under $1000. They only thing they would need would be a tower cooler, which can be made or bought for under $50.

[vasco]

I'm leaning towards the Cubby Swans' suggestion. The Summit with the dual tower seems like the most probable addition to my bar. Is the tower cooler difficult to add to the kegerator? Will I need to get the low profile couplings? Anything else you would recommend to make the kegerator all it can be?

[cubby_swans]

The dual tap unit I linked to is NOT an under counter unit. If you choose to put it under a counter, make sure there is plenty of ventilation on all sides and the back, and probably put a fan behind it to circulate air.

Putting a kegerator in a cabinet

A tower cooler is pretty simple. You can search on-line and buy one from people who stole their idea from users in this forum, or you can search the forum and learn how to make one (super easy). There are plenty of examples with pictures here.

What kind of beer do you think you'll be serving? Corneys, Sixtels, and 1/2 barrels will not require low profile couplers. I'm not sure if there's enough room to stack two pony kegs in there with low profile couplers...

Keg Sizes

[vasco]

I'll follow up on the tower coolers as you suggest for how to put one together.

As for the counter, I have an opening with plenty of width (34"), however, I'll probably need a fan in the back as you recommend (25" depth to the wall).

From what I've seen, two "slim" 1/4 kegs will fit in some of the units I've been pricing out, otherwise, I'll have to go with 2 sixtels. I'm planning on serving different combinations of amber/IPA along with either a light beer (Bud) or a lager.

The Summit kegerator is in the 700-800 range, and the Bev Air and/or True for somewhere in the 1500 range. Is there that much difference in their quality? I've seen a decent amount of Bev Air owners that appear pleased with their purchases. Should I hold out 'til I can afford it, or is it not worth it?

[vasco]

By the way, thanks for taking the time to answer my questions. You're being very helpful.

[tfvdw2at]

@vasco - I have this one and am happy with it with after just a few small mods. I put in a draught tower cooler and I have installed an external temp controller and now it is brilliant. I have to say that I would make the size of the hole at the top of the box bigger to move air more easily with the tower cooler. Also, it is critical that you seal the whole system, and this means that if you are installing it under a counter that you use a piece of PVC pipe to seal the cold box to the draught tower. If the system is not totally sealed, the cold plate will ice over and you will not be able to keep the beer cold.

I think that installing the tower cooler is critical and I have been so much happier since I did it. You can see the specifics of my project here.

Good luck with your project!

[pvs6]

@vasco - I have this one and am happy with it with after just a few small mods. I put in a draught tower cooler and I have installed an external temp controller and now it is brilliant. I have to say that I would make the size of the hole at the top of the box bigger to move air more easily with the tower cooler. Also, it is critical that you seal the whole system, and this means that if you are installing it under a counter that you use a piece of PVC pipe to seal the cold box to the draught tower. If the system is not totally sealed, the cold plate will ice over and you will not be able to keep the beer cold.

I think that installing the tower cooler is critical and I have been so much happier since I did it. You can see the specifics of my project here.

Good luck with your project!

What he said! INSULATION and AIR FLOW

[pvs6]

I wouldn't go with a chest freezer in my living room unless I were still in college.

On THIS LINK there are a few under counter kegerators that are at or under $1000. They only thing they would need would be a tower cooler, which can be made or bought for under $50.

You had a freezer in collage? please expand on the reasoning? Why not, they have more insulation and thus lower compressor run time ie: less electric dollars. So where's the flaw? what am I missing? please enlighten.

I wouldn't go with a chest freezer in my living room unless I were still in college.

On THIS LINK there are a few under counter kegerators that are at or under $1000. They only thing they would need would be a tower cooler, which can be made or bought for under $50.

REALLY
He's got a $1000.00 throw around money, with a freeze you have to add an external temp controller $100. max but get a 1/3 more insulator saving opt. cost. thus paying for the controller in a year or 2 max. I bought a freezer at sears for 450.00, with your quoted $50.00 max fan cooling doesn't that get him in for half his budget? I don't now his space restriction around the unit and bar but in most cases a fan will wick away the heat back there. I am I missing something?

[psychodad]

So where's the flaw? what am I missing? please enlighten.

Hoisting a half barrel into it without dorm mates or extra drunken frat boys comes to mind.

[cubby_swans]

You had a freezer in collage? please expand on the reasoning? Why not, they have more insulation and thus lower compressor run time ie: less electric dollars. So where's the flaw? what am I missing? please enlighten.

I did not have a freezer in college. I didn't have anything. I simply said I wouldn't have a freezer in my LIVING ROOM unless I were in college. It's the same reason I don't have a pool table in my kitchen. I'm an adult with a wife. I have no problems with a chest freezer. It's not something that goes in the living room. It would go in the basement or the garage, IMO.

Not to mention the OP wants an under counter unit in a bar he's "putting finishing touches on". Kind of rules out chest freezer without major modifications to the already built bar.

[TomK]

The dual tap unit I linked to is NOT an under counter unit. If you choose to put it under a counter, make sure there is plenty of ventilation on all sides and the back, and probably put a fan behind it to circulate air.

Why don't I see any front ventilation in the pics for the Summit's that are identified as under counter units? I would expect to see a grill under the door.

[cubby_swans]

Why don't I see any front ventilation in the pics for the Summit's that are identified as under counter units? I would expect to see a grill under the door.

I'm sure it's there. I've never seen one, but there's got to be some reason the under counter unit costs a few hundred dollars more than the non under counter units.

Maybe if Scott, or someone who has one, sees this, they can elaborate.

[vasco]

Thanks for the advice, I've been following your thread as well, just to learn from your experience.

I saw the bar and I like it-nice marble work. Looks like the kids like it too, magnets make it look like our kitchen fridge.

My bartop is red oak hardwood flooring. When I finally finish, I'll post a couple of pix with many thanks to people like yourself, and all the other forumites that make it easier to pour myself a beer.

Cheers!

[muchgooder.com]

I am the current owner of a heavily-modified nostalgia unit. I realized that the cabinet in my hot tub room is doing absolutely nothing so I thought I would drop a keg fridge in there.

I've done some searching in here and I see that people have warned about ventilation The room his planked and there are spaces between the planks and a windows in the basement below so I think I'm ok as the cabinet also has these planks.

Do I have any other options other than dropping in a keg unit? The cabinet is about 40" high and 40" wide so I think it should fit any commercial kegerator. I'm thinking of getting a new fridge because the Nostalgia kegerator has a very non-standard tower (read: narrow) and I really want a triple tap in there.

If anyone has any other thoughts on what I could do, I'd appreciate it. I thought it might be safe to throw this out there since the OP had his questions answered :-).

[tfvdw2at]

@TomK - I think that this is the difference:

"The compressor for this unit is fan cooled and is necessary to leave a 1/4-inch gap around the sides of the unit to allow the unit to breath and to make it easier to install."

The product page is here.

I think that the "non-under counter" units, the compressor is just open to the elements. My under counter unit does indeed have a pretty good sized fan blowing across the coils. Not having seen an "non-under counter" I am just guessing though.