Mini fridge conversion to corny kegerator?

Can you convert a mini fridge that has a freezer compartment? I found a really good deal on a Magic Chef 4.4 cf fridge but it has a freezer compartment. I would like to have a tower to have the ability to add more taps. But for the price I feel like I could bite the bullet and just put one through the door. Does anyone have an opinion as to whether it is worth it just to buy this one and just put a tap on the door. Or are you able to put a tower on a fridge that has a freezer compartment? Thanks in advance

Yep.

I bent the freezer element back against the back wall on this GE. Go slow and don't kink the line and you should be ok. Also had to move the thermostat control back a little to fit the second corny in.

There's no tower yet, but with the freezer out of the way, there's no reason there couldn't be.

Right on. I will see what i can make happen. I was wondering if anyone had converted a mini fridge with a freezer compartment. The deals i have found are for fridges with freezer compartments. Thats for the reply

On certain mini-fridges, the cooling element is the freezer compartment. I don't have any pictures handy, but if your fridge is like that, you likely know it already. If that's the case, many of those can just be flipped upside down to make more room.

I'm doing the same exact thing, I, too, was thinking of the Magic Chef 4.4 and going through the door.

Have you picked yours up yet?

Not yet. Just emailled th person on cl back a little while back.

while some on here have successfully moved the freezer tray with inserted coolant line...I was not so lucky

I picked up a GE 4.3 cf one from Craigslist for $30 and in the process of bending it against the wall (going slowly) I cracked the line.

Just wanted to throw out that while it's possible to bend the tray as others here have done...you do run the risk of cracking the line. I thought the risk was worth the reward for $30...but definitely not for a new one.

My $0.02

Cheers....and now i'm still on the hunt for a fridge only unit.

I am currently on the hunt for a dedicate little fridge to turn into a kegerator and just found a magic chef 4.4 that I would be interested in modifying. If not through the door, what about going through the side of the fridge? I am interested because I just want to have my beer on tap and cold, while not taking up any more space than needed.

I just picked up the Magic Chef 4.4 and the freezer compartment needs to be moved out of the way. I can't seem to get it out of the compartment and am afraid of breaking the coolant line. Since it is the only thing cooling the fridge, it would render it useless.

Here is the freezer shot from the front


Here is the coolant where it comes in from the back of the fridge.


It looks to me that I could slide the freezer out if it weren't for the coolant line coming in from the back. It keeps me from being able to come out on the left side, while the right slides out. I feel like I am going to break it if I force it too much.

Anyone ever do a magic Chef conversion with this model?

Matt Up North said:

I am currently on the hunt for a dedicate little fridge to turn into a kegerator and just found a magic chef 4.4 that I would be interested in modifying. If not through the door, what about going through the side of the fridge? I am interested because I just want to have my beer on tap and cold, while not taking up any more space than needed.

Click to expand...

The side is probably bad news because they contain coolant lines.


How much extra room do you need to fit the keg? If you only need 1" or so unscrew the freezer from the sides, push it up to the top, and then just use a good all weather tape to tape it up to the top of the fridge. Example:

I measured out 1 1/2" that I need. I am thinking that I will just bend the front up so that I can fit my corny in, but I really really don't want it to break the coolant line.

My coolant tray bent down fine. Having cold tubes would be a bad idea. Let the fridge warm up for a day or two and then bend them down. I did it with an older fridge.

Matt, did you do this?

I also let the fridge warm up for a few days before bending the lines and everything worked out A OK. Take your time and you should be fine.

Guys dont forget that coolant lines are not the only ones in a fridge. There are also hot lines around the outside of the fridge to release the heat (sometimes they are on the back, usually with mini fridges they are inside the shell). Make sure to use the cornstarch and vodka test to see where they are before you drill into your fridge!!!!

I did accomplish my bend and it works fine, although it does kinda freeze up. Keeps a nice 40 degrees though and that is where I wanted it. I am about to think about starting to be able to put the C02 lines through the side since I have a 20lb C02 tanks. I can only really fit one keg at a time. Which works, but I would love to be able to get two or three in there, so I might search a free fridge on craigslist to try and jimmy.

I ahve the same fridge/freezer and folded the freezer tray down without any problems. It had been sitting unplugged for a long time, so I wouldn't recommend bending it while cold.

I'm planning on drilling the top today, has anyone run into any coils? I plugged it in and the sides felt warm, but nowhere on the top felt warm. Corn starch test was a big fail, but maybe thats' cause there's no coils on the top?

This write up is very good at detailing where to drill holes and how to make sure you don't damage lines

http://www.instructables.com/id/Kegerator-GE-WMR04GAVBB-45-cu-ft-compact-fridg/

I just bent my freezer compartment down last night. The fridge was off for a few weeks though, and I also used the shaft of a screwdriver to support the lines while bending to keep from kinking.

As far as drilling through the fridge, I think I will build a collar similar to what TeufelBrew did, and drill through the wood instead of the actual fridge.

Hey guys...I know this thread is kind of old...but I have a very similar situation. I bent the evaporator (freezer compartment) down in my Danby fridge as well, but I'm getting temperatures that are waaay too low for keeping beer.

What kind of temperatures are you getting in your units? Didn't it just turn your fridge into a freezer? And lastly, are you using any sort of external temperature controller to increase the temp in your fridges?

Thanks for helping a noob!

jon.

I did a Sanyo with freezer without bending the freezer section back by using a pin-lock keg with low-profile connectors. These things don't usually have that good of temperature control, so I use a separate controller. You just crank the fridge all the way up and then set the controller at, say 42 degrees.

I'm giving serious consideration to taking the kegerator plunge. I've done mountains of searching on the forum and it seems clear that the Sanyo 4912M was the preferred fridge of choice for conversion.

Unfortunately, as we are all too well aware, that most perfect of fridges has been discontinued by the good folks at Sanyo.

What model fridge is the go to choice these days for tower taps? I'm trying to avoid the keezer route. Space/aesthetics are an issue.

Thanks for the insight!

ThirdCity said:

I'm giving serious consideration to taking the kegerator plunge. I've done mountains of searching on the forum and it seems clear that the Sanyo 4912M was the preferred fridge of choice for conversion.

Unfortunately, as we are all too well aware, that most perfect of fridges has been discontinued by the good folks at Sanyo.

What model fridge is the go to choice these days for tower taps? I'm trying to avoid the keezer route. Space/aesthetics are an issue.

Thanks for the insight!

Click to expand...

If I had it to do over again, I'd buy a chest freezer and add a collar. The towers need modification to cool them so your beer doesn't warm up in the line and foam when you pour. I don't know of any mini-fridge without freezer right now, but I haven't recently looked.

just did this conversion on a hair 3.3 cu ft fridge. removed the inside of the door with the soda holder and im going to shave down the foam on the inside of it to get an extra inch of space or so.

I am thinking I will use the Danby/Whirlpool WAR488BSL. It appears as thought is, at the very least, available north of the 49th:

http://www.canadiantire.ca/AST/brow...ergy%2BStar%25AE%2BRefrigerator.jsp?locale=en

I too would go the keezer route if I had to do it all over again. Roughly the same cost but lots nite room for expansion... instead Im stuck with just 2 taps.

Same here...about the keezer! More room for extra cornies...and trust me...as soon as you put a draft tower in for only one beer, you'll instantly want more!!!

In most cases, at least when you bend the freezer compartment back like I did, you'll need an external temp controller anyway....use it for a keezer!

The only downside of a keezer is the size. I like my kegerator because it fits very nicely under my bar top.

Just my opinion though.

When I started kegging, I also started making a batch of soda occasionally to make SWMBO happy (she's not a big beer drinker, but is intrigued by the science / process of it all). With a mini-fridge, that limits me to 1 tap for a beer. I currently have 2 beers on tap, and would love to make the cream soda I just got extract for, but no dice. I also have a Raspberry Red Ale about to go to 2ndary, that will sit around for a few weeks before it makes its way to the fridge. That's fine and all, but I'd rather have more assortment on tap, and/or have it condition at serving temp.

And hey, if you don't fill the keezer with brews in corny, it also makes a great place to lager.

Whats the thought of just cutting the freezer compartment (cutting around the line) out of the fridge.

Typically on the little fridges the freezer compartment acts like a radiator if you will to cool the fridge. That is why they ice up so much when the doors are opened and closed. So I think this is why people have problems with things freezing up or nonuniform cooling when they are modified by bending down the freezer. They no longer have the air moving across them as well as there isn't a fan or anything circulating the air like in a larger kitchen style refrigerator. I would think if a small fan were installed in these fridges that it would help with uniform cooling and the operation of the fridge. As for cutting out the freezer, I don't think that would work so well. It would be a lot of work and you would most likely break the circuit of the "radiator" that is the freezer. This would allow the refrigerant to escape and you would have little more than an igloo cooler.

check out youtube under "Converting a Magic Chef 4.4