bev air vs. true...any opinion?

[fanotunes]

tired of fighting my converted freezer and am working myself up to throwing down the long green for a new tdd-1 or bm23.

any opinions as to reliability, service, functions, and the like?

i'd, eventually, eventually like to go with a double tap tower so that i can run two quarter kegs.

i guess that means i'll need to purchase a manifold and a new tower? anything else?

finally, my kegerator sets in an unfinished garage in coastal north carolina...hot and humid...

will either of these units be able to stand up to these conditions?

[Kpt42]

I'd go with True but that's just personal preference. Not going to be much if any difference in quality between the two.

My father has a larger True in his garage in Havelock. Works just fine but you should crack the windows when it gets hot if there are any.

You can always just drill a hole in the tower for the second shank later.

[BrewGuru]

True, Beverage-Air, and Perlick have long been the three top most respected names in the draft beer industry, and because environmental differences, cleaning regimens, and a whole host of other factors affect the performance and longevity of the units they manufacture, it's basically a matter of opinion and speculation as to which one is 'better' or will last the longest.

Unfortunately a problem that a lot of these units have been facing lately, and I've seen more failures in more current units (regardless of manufacturer) than in ones made 5-10 years ago - it would seem that some of the cost cutting mechanisms that the companies have done is adversely affecting component and build quality, so if I were looking for a unit now, I would be searching for an early 2000's manufactured unit.

If it makes any difference to you, as far as I know, the True products sold in the US are still made in the US, whereas Carrier, the parent company of Bev-Air started manufacturing operations in Mexico several years ago, and has been closing a number of their US manufacturing plants.

Update on that: Just checked and True has removed the "All True Products are proudly made in the USA" so they might have also outsourced some of their manufacturing.

Bottom Line - Any of the units from the top manufacturers will likely perform equally well for you.

[fanotunes]

thank you gentlemen!

[doug ellis]

I own a True, and am thoroughly pleased with It's performance. One thing that I have herd lately is that the True is noisy, so if you are going to put in the house, I don't know.
My unit is in the den with me so it doesn't bother me. The noise from the tower fan is almost non existent. However when the compressor kicks in, to some people might be a different story. As I say it doesn't bother me, I just enjoy the fruits of my labor.

Good luck, happy shopping.

[THE ICEMAN]

As one that works on both brands I would say there is not a great deal of difference between them. If I had to give an edge to one of them it would be to the Bev Air. It is a little easier to work on but not much. And as BrewGuru said, they are all pretty much the same. They use the same compressors etc, to do the same thing. They just have a slightly different way of putting them together. Either will work well for you.


THE ICEMAN

[Dave McCone]

You might want to check the fine print on the warranty for the True unit, assuming that you are buying a new True unit. True will not warrant their equipment in a residential setting, while Beverage Air will warrant their equipment in a residence. I checked on this in early 2009, and talked to the folks at True; they basically don't want to have anything to do with a residential home user.

As a collary to that, I did a fairly wide search for repair parts for True online - it looks as if Beverage Air parts are readily available through several different suppliers, but for True parts you need to either go through a local refrigeration shop, or hope that True will sell direct to you (potentially not, given their reluctance to deal with home users)

Your local situation may be different if you have a ready local source for parts or repair services. The prevailing opinion on this board appears to be that True, Beverage Air, and Perlick all make rock-solid units that shouldn't require warranty service. However, all other things being equal, I would be hesitant to buy a True unit if it meant having to scramble for parts or service a few years down the line.

[THE ICEMAN]

You might want to check the fine print on the warranty for the True unit, assuming that you are buying a new True unit. True will not warrant their equipment in a residential setting, while Beverage Air will warrant their equipment in a residence. I checked on this in early 2009, and talked to the folks at True; they basically don't want to have anything to do with a residential home user.

As a collary to that, I did a fairly wide search for repair parts for True online - it looks as if Beverage Air parts are readily available through several different suppliers, but for True parts you need to either go through a local refrigeration shop, or hope that True will sell direct to you (potentially not, given their reluctance to deal with home users)

Your local situation may be different if you have a ready local source for parts or repair services. The prevailing opinion on this board appears to be that True, Beverage Air, and Perlick all make rock-solid units that shouldn't require warranty service. However, all other things being equal, I would be hesitant to buy a True unit if it meant having to scramble for parts or service a few years down the line.

That has not been my experience in working with True for the last 20 years. Along with the other brands, True has a 1 year parts & labor & 5 years on the compressor. This is pretty much the standard. Just make sure you have documentation when you purchased the unit. When the product leaves the f a c t o r y & when it is purchased after sitting in a distributor's warehouse can vary greatly.


THE ICEMAN

[PointPleasantNJBeerguy]

I would hands down go with a Beverage Air over a True when it comes to a Draft unit. The Beverage airs just has a little bit better setup as far as the looks of the unit. Plus the biggest drawback on a True unit is the come from the ******* with the stainless tube style tower that you hook the vinyl hose up to at the bottom of the tower. Those thinks always get kinked bent or messed up.Also I always thought of the True units of having a bigger compressor in them which means it short cycles on/off/on more. Dont quote me on that one though.True is a 1/6th size and bev air is 1/5 size compressor.

[smoke_jumper71]

I think that which ever you choose you will be happy. If you are not in a hurry I would keep a constant eye on craigslist. I live outside of Philadelphia in NJ and recently found a Bev Air for $150. About a week ago another showed up for $60. In both cases they were owned by college kids who moved home with their parents and were forced to sell them. They didn't know how much they were worth, since they were handed so many times. Both machines ran well and just needed a complete overhaul on the hoses and couplings. Needless to say you have to check every day since ones like this go fast.

[Scott Zuhse]

tired of fighting my converted freezer and am working myself up to throwing down the long green for a new tdd-1 or bm23.

any opinions as to reliability, service, functions, and the like?

i'd, eventually, eventually like to go with a double tap tower so that i can run two quarter kegs.

i guess that means i'll need to purchase a manifold and a new tower? anything else?

finally, my kegerator sets in an unfinished garage in coastal north carolina...hot and humid...

will either of these units be able to stand up to these conditions?

Other than the direction from other members' posts, you may want to scrap the gas distributor and go with a couple of secondary regulators supplied by the primary. This will allow you to set PSIG for products that are carbonated differently.