J_Thadeus_Toad

Recipes 

So I cleared the idea with the lady, and a Kegerator is a go! So now I'm trying to find a good fridge to convert. My local brewing equipment store has a good deal on the kegging equipment ( kegs Co2 regulator and tower) so i was looking at the Danby DAR440W or would be better to just get one of the already made ones like the EdgeStar Full Size Dual Tap Kegerator

but I'm open to suggestions. Any help will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks

scinerd3000

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I would say you are always better making it yourself because you can fully customize it and usually for less than half the price of a prefab. Both would be fine but in the end, I got into this hobby for the fun of DIY and brewing, so in this case it depends on you. If it was me, DIY all the way.

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On Hiatus: Brewing at work....

kal

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I would say it depends on how handy you are, how much work you want to do (to save $$$), and how you want the final product to look. Most commercial versions are pretty polished in terms of the fittings/taps/etc. The home made versions range from gawd-awful ugly to better than commercial.

If you're not handy, you may end up butchering a fridge that no longer works and have to go to a commercial version anyway, causing you to spend more money.

You can certainly build something as nice or better than the pre-made ones if you have the time, patience, and tools.

Kal

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TheElectricBrewery.com: A step by step guide to building your own electric brewery
My basement/bar/brewery build 2.0

iijakii

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DIY collared Keezer is very easy and looks good. I don't really have many pictures online for some reason, but here's mine: http://goodluckmakingrent.com/images/keezerxux.jpg

ALL I had to do was make the collar, glue the lid to the collar, and reattach the lid to the body. Boom. I'm not handy enough to do a coffin keezer though, most likely.

Not anywhere near the nicest ones shown here on HBT, but keep in mind I have no talent and I managed to make a good looking piece IMHO. Do it!

VaBrewer

Recipes 

I agree you should DIY a collared keezer.
In fact Lowes has a 12 CF Freezer on sale right now and I think HD has a 7 CF one on sale. So if you can't find what you want on Craigslist then just buy one.

I've made two based on Coastarines build and I think they turned out great. Plus you'll be able to fit more than in a keggerator. Expansion, it's a disease!

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Kegged: Feast of Fools (Braggot), Drunken Punkin Dunkel, Raspberry Wheat, Chocolate Cherry Porter, Oktoberfestive ale, Apfelwien, Rochefort 8 Clone, Centennial Blonde, La Fin Du Pistoles, Surly Furious, Ryed On Saison, Celebrationizator Dopplebock, Ryebock, Lemon-Lime Hefe, Chamomile Honey Wheat, Blue Ridge Moon Wit, Patersbier,

Primary: Bourbon Vanilla Imperial Porter, Cherry Brett Saison, Imperial Irish Red

Secondary: Gulden Draak, Peaches & Cream Belgian Tripel

runningweird

Recipes 

build it yourself, use two seperate floors and buy perlicks.

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My 6 Tap Long Draw Tower Build:
http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/long-draw-salt-water-chilled-beer-tower-271578/

Snake10

Recipes 

Use craigslist. If your a diy'er you can find a chest freezer for cheap. Temp controller from drillspot.com . Or, you may find a deal on a used kegerator. I found a stainless perlick, 4 keg, 4 tap 120inch monster for 250 bucks. No need to buy any of this stuff new. The wife usually tells the guy to get rid of his beer stuff shortly after the first keg is gone. People get bored quickly these days. try your luck on craigs. My 2 cents. Oh,Perlick 575 creamer taps!
Snake10

Hoppopotomus

Recipes 

Is space a concern?
How handy are you?
Do you have the necessary tools to build your own?
What kind of capacity are you looking for (# of kegs/# of taps)?
Where is it going to sit?
Do you want it to match your trim or furniture?
What's your budget?

Lot's of questions to think about. I'm a die hard DIY'er, so a coffin keezer with lots of woodwork was a no brainer for me to match the rustic, log cabin decor of my basement. The sky's the limit with these things. Whatever you decide good luck and let me know if I can help.....I'm just up the road from you.

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Cedar Hollow Brewing

Hoppo's Rustic Basement Bar Build:

Hoppo's Knotty Pine/Cedar Log Keezer Build:

Hoppo's Rustic Dual Fermentation Chamber Builds:

Hoppo's Motorized Grain Mill:

Hoppo's Rustic E-Brewery Build:

Jota21

Recipes 

space and $ are your two biggest factor.

If you have a lot of space, but not a lot of money, get an old fridge off of craigslist/family and drill a hole in the door.

If you have a lot of money, and not a lot of space, buy a pre-fabbed mini-fridge with a tower on top.

If you have a lot of money and a lot of space, check out the coffin keezer list http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/coffin-keezer-list-256871/

Notts

Recipes 

DIY for sure! You'll get way more satisfaction out of something you've built yourself. Even if you aren't super handy there are simple ways to do it and tons of threads and people willing to help on this website to help you figure it out.