Post your kegerator/bar

Jmac00 · Post by **Jmac00** » Mon Dec 13, 2010 2:31 pm

Made up a drip tray...kind of temporary to get me past the holidays...i'll make a better one once i get all seven taps installed and up and running. For now it'll do.

and with my disclaimer mat....

ratchet · Post by **ratchet** » Mon Dec 13, 2010 3:09 pm

is that a ventilation grille I see?

Jmac00 · Post by **Jmac00** » Mon Dec 13, 2010 3:17 pm

it sure is....LOL. bottom part is a bamboo drawer organizer...couple of 2.5" magnets from PA to attach it to the freezer. Gonna hit the dollarama for a plastic freezer container to line the inside of the box to make for easy cleaning.

LiverDance · Post by **LiverDance** » Mon Dec 13, 2010 3:37 pm

Where can I get one of those mat's?

Jmac00 · Post by **Jmac00** » Mon Dec 13, 2010 4:15 pm

LiverDance wrote:Where can I get one of those mat's?

no idea...buddy of mine got it for me when he was down in the states...I'll ask him next time he's here what store it was.

Post by **mr x** » Mon Dec 13, 2010 6:31 pm

The PA magnets are solid? Cool.

Jmac00 · Post by **Jmac00** » Mon Dec 13, 2010 6:40 pm

solid enough to hold that.....but it won't hold a glass on it...would of had to use an ' L ' bracket along with a few more magnets in order to hold a glass...which i'll probably go that route once i make the final one(bigger) for the 7 taps.

Post by **mr x** » Mon Dec 13, 2010 7:05 pm

Check out some of these crazy magnets.

http://stores.ebay.ca/Hamilton-Core-Dri ... 34.c0.m322

Jmac00 · Post by **Jmac00** » Mon Dec 13, 2010 9:27 pm

mr x wrote:Check out some of these crazy magnets.

http://stores.ebay.ca/Hamilton-Core-Dri ... 34.c0.m322

they would not go well with my 'cheap theme'

ratchet · Post by **ratchet** » Wed Dec 15, 2010 3:30 pm

the rare earth magnets at lee valley are pretty strong... we use some for jigs in the shop.

Oh... and they're relatively cheap

JEH · Post by **JEH** » Mon Jan 17, 2011 10:44 am

Ive got a question for JMac, or anyone else who has built a kegerator from a chest freezer before. What type of wood did you use? I have the freezer ready and need to start building a collar soon. Will any type do, or will some be better than others? Woodworking is something I dont do alot of so I really have no idea
thanks

Jmac00 · Post by **Jmac00** » Mon Jan 17, 2011 11:34 am

I wanted to keep cost down, so i went with the cheapest 2x10 wood i could get. If you want it to look nicer and fancier, i would go with an oak or something like that. With mine, i also didn't have many tools so i had to borrow my neighbors circular saw for it all...knowing that it wouldn't do a great job i didn't want to put the $$ into expensive wood and it not cut properly. If i had a good table saw or mitre, i might have went the nicer more pricey stuff. Another thing to keep in mind is alot of ppl insulate the inside of the wood....thicker wood would act as a better insulator as apposed to thinner boards...something to keep in mind.

Jmac00 · Post by **Jmac00** » Mon Jan 17, 2011 1:19 pm

finally got some pics of the inside. its not pretty...

the shanks...and the temporary CO2 setup. amonst the shanks i have a temp. sensor to monitor some temps (grey plastic thing).

here's the temp reading screen...usually reads 5degrees celcius but i had just opened the lid for a minute or so to take pics...

temp probe comes in....can see the styrofoam....black line coming in is to power a couple computer fans that i put in to blow the air around more...seems to cut down on kicking the compressor on.....trying to be efficient..

JEH · Post by **JEH** » Mon Jan 17, 2011 4:19 pm

Excellent, thanks JMac!
One last question, is there a reason for having the Co2 tank outside of a fridge or kegerator? i notice more people leave it out, but am assuming its just to fit another keg in.

Jmac00 · Post by **Jmac00** » Mon Jan 17, 2011 4:46 pm

when CO2 gets cold, it condenses more and you end up with less gas in the end.

derek · Post by **derek** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 10:33 am

Jmac00 wrote:when CO2 gets cold, it condenses more and you end up with less gas in the end.

That sounds suspect. You can't chill the CO2 far enough with a kegerator to make a noticeable difference, given that the freezing point is -78.5C. I would think the real reason is just that it takes up space in the fridge - and it doesn't matter if it's stored at room temp, because when you take CO2 at something over 100psi, and put it into a keg at ~10psi, it gets _very_ cold - much colder than your fridge.

Jmac00 · Post by **Jmac00** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 11:53 am

sorry, you're right..i was replying quickly and should of explained it better...basically if you have a dual gauge regulator and you store your co2 inside the fridge, the high pressure side gives innacurate readings showing the tank has less CO2 inside than what's actually there. Its more of a false reading.

derek · Post by **derek** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 12:41 pm

Jmac00 wrote:basically if you have a dual gauge regulator and you store your co2 inside the fridge, the high pressure side gives innacurate readings showing the tank has less CO2 inside than what's actually there. Its more of a false reading.

Ah. Do you even look at the high-pressure side? I care when it gets to "red"

That's why I wrote "something over 100 psi" - because I'm pretty sure it's much greater, but don't pay attention. Still, if your room temp is 20C, and your fridge is 5C, the pressure difference should be (15/273) = ~5.5%. If you keep you rooms very warm, and your fridge very cold, it still shouldn't be more than 7.5%.

If you had your tank inside the fridge, and you couldn't get any pressure out of it, if you brought it out and let it warm up, you'd probably get one more shot - but at that point you're talking about the difference between, say, 10 psi and 10.5psi.

Jmac00 · Post by **Jmac00** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 12:47 pm

No, i never look at the high side ever

cause i got a few spare tanks, but some ppl do....with someone that only has a 5lber, they'd be cuttin it close when it gets to the red. I got a couple regulators that the high side gauge broke cause i knocked the tank over.....too many

...but they don't leak so all is good...hahhahaa.

JEH · Post by **JEH** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 4:42 pm

All very good stuff to know. One last question and then i keep leave this thread back to kegerators (and hopefully pics of mine if my parts ever come in), where do you guys get your tanks filled?

Post by **Jimmy** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 5:25 pm

JEH wrote:All very good stuff to know. One last question and then i keep leave this thread back to kegerators (and hopefully pics of mine if my parts ever come in), where do you guys get your tanks filled?

I get mine filled at Noble Grape, I think it's like $22 or something like that for a 5lb tank. They do a tank exchange though, so if you have a tank you got elsewhere, I am guessing you would have to go to Praxair.

The good thing about the Noble Grape exchange is that it's the same price, and no waiting involved. Praxair will most likely ask you to drop the tank off and come back another time.

ratchet · Post by **ratchet** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 5:50 pm

For tank re-fills (not the exchange program w/noble grape), go to Don Brenton's (the fire extinguisher people); that's who NG deals with too.

They've just filled them on the spot whenever I've gone there.

Post by **Jimmy** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 6:06 pm

ratchet wrote:For tank re-fills (not the exchange program w/noble grape), go to Don Brenton's (the fire extinguisher people); that's who NG deals with too.

They've just filled them on the spot whenever I've gone there.

Never thought about them, even though I worked next door to them for a couple years and dealt with them on a daily basis! What do they charge for a 5lb fill?

ratchet · Post by **ratchet** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 6:35 pm

IIRC... it was ~ the same price as NG's exchange.

The only bonus is that if you have a nice shiny Aluminum tank, you get to keep it

Post by **chalmers** » Tue Jan 18, 2011 7:00 pm

Sheesh dudes, you've forgotten my fact-finding trip report already?

In the Group Buy forum: Don Brenton's is the shit

5lb is $22 to refill
20lb is $25 to refill.
Much cheaper than NG (as soon as you are higher than 5lb), and you get to keep your own bottle.
The 5-year hydro test is $25, also a great deal.
And they are lenient on "ownership" of bottles.

Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Re: Post your kegerator/bar

Who is online