robbyg

Recipes 

After much planning and three part-time weekends worth of work, my keezer/kegerator is complete!



The base of the kegerator is a white 7.2 Cu. Ft. E-Wave chest freezer (an E-Wave is a rebranded Magic Chef, which can hold 6 corny kegs) that I got used off Craigslist for $100. I'd originally planned to go with a new, black freezer, but I figured any money I could save on the freezer would allow me to buy upgrades elsewhere. And two cans of black enamel spray paint later, and the $100 freezer was the right color.

The collar is made of 1x10 pine, with pine molding around the top -- it hides the white seal and just plain looks cool. I have 4 Perlick PERL faucets installed now, but they're arranged such that I could add two more (one on either side) over the 19" drip tray below.

I installed a Love digital temperature controller in the collar, which is providing power to an outlet on the back of the collar. Then I just plugged the kegerator directly into that -- no muss, no fuss.

Inside (I'll hopefully post pics later) I have a 6-way CO2 manifold; I figure with four taps, I can afford to spend a week carbing kegs at serving pressure.

I didn't really remember to take any process shots, so I can't do much of a how-to here. But let me just say that there are TONS of write-ups here which served both as inspiration and instruction. Here's a list of some of the posts I referred to regularly during the planning process:

My Keezer Build for Dummies
Converting the Frigidaire 7.2 cu ft Chest Freezer
Found the 'Magic' in 'Magic Chef' - keezer progress, questions
Love Temp Controller Series TS wiring diagram (2008+)

And I would of course be willing to answer any questions that anyone has about tackling this sort of project. And let me just say: you can build a kegerator. I am not a woodworker. I am not an electrician. I am a web developer. I've never completed a 'real' woodworking project in my life. But I could do this, and so can you.

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Planning: Cream Ale, Oktoberfest
Fermenting: Apfelwein, IPA, Pale Ale
Conditioning: Special Bitter, California Common
Enjoying: Stout, Apfelwein, American Amber, Cream Ale, Blonde Ale, Sweet Mead

See My Kegerator Build

BendBrewer

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Looks sharp. I might have to break out some black spray paint.

Where did you get the drip tray?

Indyking

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Looks great! I'm planning to start mine this week, but I'm a bit scared... this is going to be my very first DIY project ever...

dedhedjed

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I have the same drip tray... http://www.barproducts.com/ it's by far the cheapest SS tray i could find...

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robbyg

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Yup, that's the drip tray I'm using. Then I just picked up three 4-inch angle brackets, some 5-minute clear epoxy, and some velcro strips from a hardware store. Attached the brackets to the freezer with the epoxy, put velcro on the top bit, and attached the tray using the velcro. That way I can easily remove the tray for cleaning.

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Planning: Cream Ale, Oktoberfest
Fermenting: Apfelwein, IPA, Pale Ale
Conditioning: Special Bitter, California Common
Enjoying: Stout, Apfelwein, American Amber, Cream Ale, Blonde Ale, Sweet Mead

See My Kegerator Build

robbyg

Recipes 

It went together easier than I expected. I bet you'll do fine.

I will admit that this wasn't my first-ever DIY project, but it was definitely the biggest and most complex. The woodworking took the longest and was the most difficult for me. I had to borrow a miter saw to cut my boards. That's when I discovered that a 10" miter saw cannot cross-cut a 1x10 board (at least, in one go). Which meant that I couldn't miter my 1x10's. The sideboards fit inside the front/back boards so you can't tell from the front, and I don't think it looks bad.

Then I discovered that my drill wasn't powerful enough to drive a 7/8" bit, so I had to borrow a neighbor's drill to make the holes for my faucet shanks.

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Planning: Cream Ale, Oktoberfest
Fermenting: Apfelwein, IPA, Pale Ale
Conditioning: Special Bitter, California Common
Enjoying: Stout, Apfelwein, American Amber, Cream Ale, Blonde Ale, Sweet Mead

See My Kegerator Build

wildwest450

Recipes 

Very sweet.

Mischief_Brewing

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Did you put it on a dolly with casters?

What stain is that?

I'm starting mine once the finances recover from the trashcan-o-rator build.

MetallHed

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am i the only one who can't see a pic?

there's nothing in your gallery either...?

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