Need advice on modifying mini-fridge with "freezer" top for kegerator

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Hophead04

Active Member
Joined
Mar 30, 2012
Messages
32
Reaction score
0
Location
Santiago
So I am getting a mini-fridge for free (awesome) from a co-worker. The only problem that I see so far is that it evidently has a minifreezer at the top of the fridge. I have not seen this mini-fridge yet, but I will pick it up tomorrow. My question is: 1) Should I even bother using this as a kegerator? 2) Any tips on how to modify the fridge to be a kegerator (removing freezer, working with top cooling element etc) Thanks!!

Cheers :mug:
 
Hophead04 said:
So I am getting a mini-fridge for free (awesome) from a co-worker. The only problem that I see so far is that it evidently has a minifreezer at the top of the fridge. I have not seen this mini-fridge yet, but I will pick it up tomorrow. My question is: 1) Should I even bother using this as a kegerator? 2) Any tips on how to modify the fridge to be a kegerator (removing freezer, working with top cooling element etc) Thanks!!

Cheers :mug:

The office-type fridges that I've seen use the freezer compartment as the cooling element for the fridge, so I'm skeptical about the odds of removing it.
 
Do you think it would be relatively easy to bend or move the cooling element to the back of the fridge?
 
Hophead04 said:
Do you think it would be relatively easy to bend or move the cooling element to the back of the fridge?

This is just based on the ones I've looked at, but I think not. The freezer compartment walls form an 'L' to box in the colder area from the rest of the fridge. So there are two plates with the coolant flowing through both. Those plates -are- the element. It seems that bending them would release the coolant.

But have a look at the one you are considering, it could be totally different.

-Noah
 
I did the exact same thing on my kegerator. The freezer box is in an L shape and can be bent back to accommodate a pin or ball lock keg. My advice to you is to first VERY VERY VERY slowly bend the metal coolant line. If you kink it, it's toast. Secondly, to help you bend it find several round household items that you can bend it around. So I stared to bend mine around a can of beans and then moved smaller to small rolling pin. This was enough to put the old freezer compartment into the back of the mini fridge.

Good luck and just FYI you might have to mess with the thermostat setting. I had to because once I bent the cooling element back, the kegerator was freezing everything.
 
i heated the line with a lighter before i bent it and tried to keep it hot the entire time. don't sweat it too much its not as hard as everyone makes it out to be, just take your time.
 
i heated the line with a lighter before i bent it and tried to keep it hot the entire time. don't sweat it too much its not as hard as everyone makes it out to be, just take your time.

Righhhhttt.... believe the stripper..... :tank:
 
Hophead, I just convert my old college fridge into a kegerator over the weekend. It was a Danby (forget model number) but had a freezer compartment. I ended up taking my time bending the cooling element down. I would bend it a little bit at a time and let it sit then repeat. I tried to bend it more at the middle of the pipe instead of where the pipe connects to the cooling element. Its been maintaining temperature since friday when I did the conversion.
 
Hophead, I just convert my old college fridge into a kegerator over the weekend. It was a Danby (forget model number) but had a freezer compartment. I ended up taking my time bending the cooling element down. I would bend it a little bit at a time and let it sit then repeat. I tried to bend it more at the middle of the pipe instead of where the pipe connects to the cooling element. Its been maintaining temperature since friday when I did the conversion.

Wonderful! Thank you! I will take it slow and steady. Thanks for the tip about bending towards the middle of the pipe, I probably would have gone for where it connects to the cooling element. Thanks!!
 
I did not want to take the chance on mine and built a wooden collar of about 8 inches to make it deeper, just like the keezer guys do, the reattached the door. Used the wood collar to add a coffin box for the taps on top of the fridge.
 
kegerator.jpg


There it is. Note that the coffin box sits on top of the collar,not the actual fridge.
 
I am modifying my old mini fridge and same issue, freezer at the top. Its a U shape, Kenmore fridge. I was able to get the freeze detatched easy but getting it manuevered has been a chore. Its a 13 year old fridge so afraid the hoses may be brittle but so far holding up.

My main issue is the freezer plate is large and I don't want to bend it back any farther to tape to the back wall. Right now the freezer plate is hanging in the back, it seemed to work when I plugged it and the keg fit. So I may leave well enough alone. Unfortunately I don't think I'm going to be able to fit the co2 tank in this fridge. Its small 3.3 cubic feet but I didn't want to drop $350 on the Nostalgia model which has cheap parts I've heard nor did I want to drop $200+ for a new fridge to F it up.
 
Back
Top