CO2 Tank inside or outside 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.

smashed4

Well-Known Member
Joined
Dec 27, 2004
Messages
129
Reaction score
5
Location
Montréal, QC
I searched but could not find an answer to this..

I am planning my kegerator conversion and was wondering what are the pros and cons of placing the CO2 tank inside or outside?

I have seen many examples of people placing it inside and outside, so I guess both are acceptable?

I've heard that by keeping the tank inside, the gas will be more compressed and that will result in wasting CO2.. I doubt this is true, so I am wondering if anyone can confirm?

Thanks
 
I don't think there are real pros and cons that I've heard, only preferences. It's out of the way if you can fit it inside, but more room in the keggerator if it's outside. I've got mine inside since it fits, but I'll gladly move it outside if I decide to add the two additional taps that would fit.

There may be something true about gauges being correct outside, but not inside, but I'm not sure.
 
Not True.
Let me tell you why I wish mine were outside....it rusts a little on the bottom from the condensation in the keezer.

That's it.
NO change in how many kegs you'll carb or push.
 
Not True.
Let me tell you why I wish mine were outside....it rusts a little on the bottom from the condensation in the keezer.

That's it.
NO change in how many kegs you'll carb or push.

Note: Aluminum tanks will not rust. A lot of the "new" systems you buy come with Aluminum tanks, as it's cheaper to make and cheaper to ship.
 
Note: Aluminum tanks will not rust. A lot of the "new" systems you buy come with Aluminum tanks, as it's cheaper to make and cheaper to ship.

However, if you only have access to a refill place that swaps tanks instead of fills them, your pretty Aluminum tank gets taken and you get a nice crusty steel tank full of CO2.

I vote outside for more room in the kegerator for kegs and bottles. Makes it easier on my OCD for checking the the pressure gauges as well. :eek:

2693197010_3391afcdbe_m.jpg
 
I don't think it matters much. I have mine on the inside because it fits and space is at a premium in my apt. If I would have it on the outside I might have gotten a bigger tank or something, but again, it doesn't really make a difference.
 
You'll get less gas out of a colder tank then a warmer one. How much less, that I don't know.
 
You'll get less gas out of a colder tank then a warmer one. How much less, that I don't know.

Same amount of gas in the tank, be it warm or cold. Colder gas just displays less "pressure" on the Hi pressure gauge. What's in the tank doesn't change based on temperature.
 
My only problem with inside is that it shows false reading on your pressure guage so you dont know when its getting close to empty
 
My only problem with inside is that it shows false reading on your pressure guage so you dont know when its getting close to empty

You would get the same problem with having the CO2 tank on the outside as well. It's the nature of CO2 tanks, since they don't rely on pressure for the first 90% of it's capacity. They're originally filled with liquid CO2 which evaporates as you use it, hence you won't see a pressure change until all of the liquid is evaporated and you're just using the final head of pressure.

The only way to accurately measure CO2 left in the tank is to weigh the tank, however you need to know the original weight of the tank empty to know how much CO2 is left. There might be a mechanism for noting the height of liquid CO2 left in the tank by pouring hot water on the side and seeing where the water stays on the tank or something like that (same trick for LPG in their BBQ grill tanks) but I don't really know if it'll work the same considering that CO2 tanks are probably a bit thicker than LPG tanks.
 
+1 reefwreak; CO2 is a liquid gas that's pressurized, so until there is enough room in your tank for it to turn to liquid (soon before it's empty) it doesn't matter if it's in or out of the fridge. You probably have a little more heads up when it's outside, but not much. Go for convenience of being able to change PSI easier and have more room in your fridge by going outside. I've played with both and there's not much of a difference other then that (Just be careful with rust on tank and foggy gauges if you go inside).
 
+1 reefwreak; CO2 is a liquid gas that's pressurized, so until there is enough room in your tank for it to turn to liquid (soon before it's empty) it doesn't matter if it's in or out of the fridge. You probably have a little more heads up when it's outside, but not much. Go for convenience of being able to change PSI easier and have more room in your fridge by going outside. I've played with both and there's not much of a difference other then that (Just be careful with rust on tank and foggy gauges if you go inside).

Thats was what I was trying to get at. At least outside of the tank I know when im getting low and I can get more co2 in time. Nothings worse then running out of C02 when friends are over.
 
I've got a little mini fridge, and my 10# tank barely fits in there with my 2 cornies. It's also hard to see and adjust the gauges, since the kegs are in front. I have to move the kegs if I want to adjust or check the pressure. Not that big of a deal, but I'm planning to move it outside. This should give me a bit more space...maybe even enough for a small 2.5 gallon keg.
 
Back
Top