Kegerator Deal at Home Depot - $348 after rebate

TerryWendel said:

I did a little research on this, though I didn't confirm how many kegs it could hold.

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Hm?
Just read what I posted earlier... it holds 2 5gal cornies and 1 3gal cornie
I also don't have a temp problem, at least so far (hope it stays that way)

-Dan- said:

.. it holds 2 5gal cornies and 1 3gal cornie

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Pictures? Just how tight is it? With the price of 3 gals it makes me

I think DAN is correct. I suspect you could cram two fives and one three. I was throwing a party for what turned out to be De La Hoya's improptu retirement beating so I actually have a quarter barrel of Karl Strauss Red Trolly Ale in there at the moment.

However, just looking at it, I can't imagine three fives fitting in there. Two Fives and a three seem like they would work.

TerryWendel said:

Holjim, how many corny's fit in it?

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Here is the fridge in my dining room with my hockey tap handel, dual tower is ordered, and advents calendar


Thermometer (I know pic sucks), it has 35 degree without any mods, no probs whatsoever. Temperature setting is only on 4.75ish, far from its max of 6. Only have a 3 gal cornie in there right now but should not really affect it. Might have to install a fan later once I tap two kegs and lager a 3rd.


Inside of fridge. I know everyone sees now why it does not fit 3 5gal cornies. I currently have my co2 tank outside but will put it inside, too. If I tried it right the other week, I think I can put 2 5gal cornies, 1 3gal cornie and my co2 tank in there.

-Dan- said:

Here is the fridge in my dining room with my hockey tap handel, dual tower is ordered, and advents calendar


Thermometer (I know pic sucks), it has 35 degree without any mods, no probs whatsoever. Temperature setting is only on 4.75ish, far from its max of 6. Only have a 3 gal cornie in there right now but should not really affect it. Might have to install a fan later once I tap two kegs and lager a 3rd.


Inside of fridge. I know everyone sees now why it does not fit 3 5gal cornies. I currently have my co2 tank outside but will put it inside, too. If I tried it right the other week, I think I can put 2 5gal cornies, 1 3gal cornie and my co2 tank in there.

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My Haier is able to get 3 in there because the hump is in one corner instead of the entire back wall. A 3 or 2.5 gallon corny will fit up on the hump, but will hang over a bit. The other two cornies will keep it from falling over.

-Dan- said:

Here is the fridge in my dining room with my hockey tap handel, dual tower is ordered.

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Dual tower eh? Care to save my lazy butt some work and let me know where you ordered that? Might be easier than drilling a hole in the one that came with it.

You can get those at Kegworks, Micromatic, Beveragefactory, etc. I believe even at most homebrew stores such as Northernbrewer, ... You really should not have a problem finding a tower.

Coming from the kegerator side to the homebrewing side (got tired of not being able to find any decent brews in this beer desert I call home) I can offer the following advice. While this may not be true of all those that have used/are using the cheaper units, this is from my experience and a lot of reading.

The "cheaper" kegerators (anything around $500 and under) all pretty much come with the same common problems. Spend a little more (I think the Sanyo units, a few others I can't recall) and you get better results. Spend a lot more and you get pretty sweet results (think, True, Beverage Air, etc). Common problems with the el cheapos....

1) Temp control - some get plenty cold, TOO cold, and a bump of the control causes a ten degree temp swing; some don't get cold enough, even with added fans, and require more work. Most that I know with these cheaper units, at some point or another, end up going with an external control (Brewers Edge, JC, Ranco, etc).

2) Tower size - very small (in diameter) towers that are not "forced air" cooled. Assuming they have room for a homemade cooling system (pc fan, copper tubing) you can add one pretty easy, and fairly cheap. If you ever decide to change out the shank or want to add another tap, though, you're almost forced to look at a larger (3") tower.

3) Cheap components - not so much in the way of the regulator, but the faucets, shanks, and keg couplers (the latter you won't need anyway if using cornies). Most quickly find that as you upgrade one component (like say, the faucet) you end up replacing the shank too, which requires boogering up that tower that I mentioned was too small.

Again, much of this is from experience and forum reading on the kegerator side. I'm not trying to sway anyone from buying anything, or call anything that someone might be happy with "junk", but giving some advice on what you might expect to be ready for if you go the cheaper route. I started with an Avanti for just under $400 on sale at Best Buy. About $300 and a lot of time reading and tinkering later, I ended up with a pretty sweet rig. Of course now that I'm moving to home brew much of that (two top of the line Sanke D couplers and a bag full of gas and liquid tail pieces, for starters) is worthless. And with this unit I think I will be limited to two cornies flowing at a time. Not having to hear my beer store guy say "no, I can't get that either" will be worth every penny wasted though

If I had it to do over again, knowing what I know now (homebrewing or commercial kegs) I'd take a decent sized chest freezer, add a temp controller and a tower (or maybe do the collar trick) get the rest piece by piece, and be happy.

Happy Brewing (and happy drinking)!!

^^That's a quality first post.

OK guys, I am looking for some assistance here. My Dad has been talking for about 6 months on how awesome it would be to have Blue Moon on tap at home (I am working on getting him into better beer, but that is a ways down the line).

So for Christmas my mom has decided to get him a kegerator. It will live in a garage in KY, so summer temps can get up there a little bit and it will be used to serve a single keg of commercial beer for now.

Option 1 is this kegerator and order a Perlick faucet to swap out.

Option 2 is to do a small freezer conversion for the added insulation of a freezer. I have priced out a single tower kit from kegkits.com (I know people have had delivery problems from him, but he is local, so that is a non-issue for me). We would be doing this kit
with a Ranco digital thermometer and likely this freezer

Now I have explained the two big drawbacks to a freezer, one being the added cost of the digital temp controller and the other of having to lift the kegs up and over the side, but she is ok with that in exchange for the added insulation.

The only thing I am not sure on is if a 5.5 will be big enough for a 1/2 bbl is he is ever throwing a party and so desires.

So what would you guys do in a similar situation? Is the kit that will be put together and built ourselves going to be an extra $100 worth of quality or is it just adding work for an almost identical product?

Jonnio said:

The only thing I am not sure on is if a 5.5 will be big enough for a 1/2 bbl is he is ever throwing a party and so desires.

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5 gallon cornies are fine. Lifting a 1/2 bbl will bust a gut because it is over 160 lbs. and you will have to extend your back. Two people at a corner should be able to handle it, but it will be very unwieldy and not recommended in my book.

EdWort said:

5 gallon cornies are fine. Lifting a 1/2 bbl will bust a gut because it is over 160 lbs. and you will have to extend your back. Two people at a corner should be able to handle it, but it will be very unwieldy and not recommended in my book.

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Yeah, I was mulling that over some. I have done it before on a friends freezer conversion and it was manageable, but we are both in our 20s. The one upside is that if/when he decides he needs a 1/2 bbl for a party my brothers and I will almost surely be there, so it won't be a big deal. I would say over 95% of the beer to go through will be commercial 1/6 bbl. I just didn't want the party day to come and be like, oh crap, it doesn't fit.

I have been lugging 1/2 barrels down a flight of stairs for the about 5 years. It sucks. Like Ed mentioned, they weigh approx. 160 lbs. I'm 6'2/250 and in decent shape. I know I wouldn't want to try to lift and place a 1/2 barrel or even 1/4 barrel in a chest freezer. The difficulties with the chest freezer outweigh the insulation benefits. My humble $.02

OhioGuy said:

I have been lugging 1/2 barrels down a flight of stairs for the about 5 years. It sucks. Like Ed mentioned, they weigh approx. 160 lbs. I'm 6'2/250 and in decent shape. I know I wouldn't want to try to lift and place a 1/2 barrel or even 1/4 barrel in a chest freezer. The difficulties with the chest freezer outweigh the insulation benefits. My humble $.02

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If it were just insulation I would agree, my concern is also in the tower, shank, coupler, and regulator on the keg equipment side and the compressor on the fridge side.

Also, please don't think I am arguing the conversion is better. I am kind of leaning towards the Home Depot one, but I am more confident that if I help him build a freezer conversion it will be able to do the job and should stand up to years of use. I am not sure if that is the same case on the HD Magic Chef one.

Thanks for the input so far - the 1/2 bbl is the definite drawback so far.

I converted a upright ref/freezer unit. Just poked a hole through the door for the shank. I keep frosted pints in the freezer unit. I have room for 1/2 barrel and a corney (or two in the near future) in mine.

Either way, I'm sure he'll be happy.

good luck and best regards

Has anyone actually jammed two cornys in there to confirm...I have ONE in there and looking at it, man, it has got to be tiiiight if a second is going to make it side by side. Just wondering if anyone has actually done it as of yet?

Jim

-Dan- said:

Here is the fridge in my dining room with my hockey tap handel, dual tower is ordered, and advents calendar

Thermometer (I know pic sucks), it has 35 degree without any mods, no probs whatsoever. Temperature setting is only on 4.75ish, far from its max of 6. Only have a 3 gal cornie in there right now but should not really affect it. Might have to install a fan later once I tap two kegs and lager a 3rd.

Inside of fridge. I know everyone sees now why it does not fit 3 5gal cornies. I currently have my co2 tank outside but will put it inside, too. If I tried it right the other week, I think I can put 2 5gal cornies, 1 3gal cornie and my co2 tank in there.

Click to expand...

holjim said:

Has anyone actually jammed two cornys in there to confirm...I have ONE in there and looking at it, man, it has got to be tiiiight if a second is going to make it side by side. Just wondering if anyone has actually done it as of yet?

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It will hold two cornies and a 5 lb CO2 tank. The one I got wouldn't get colder than 48 degrees. I tried turning the screw on the thermostat and it still wouldn't get cold enough to be useful. I just got back from Home Depot where the piece of junk had a red defective sticker applied to it. I think I'll build a keezer instead.

Sorry to hear that Bender. So far I guess I've been lucky. I've had it down to about 38 degrees but yeah, just looking at it, I don't think it is of the finest quality. The price was too sweet for me to pass on and I'm just crossing my fingers that it treats me well.

I am glad to hear that the two cornys will definitely fit though. It looked like it may be a very tight fit.

Jim

holjim said:

Sorry to hear that Bender. So far I guess I've been lucky. I've had it down to about 38 degrees but yeah, just looking at it, I don't think it is of the finest quality. The price was too sweet for me to pass on and I'm just crossing my fingers that it treats me well.

I am glad to hear that the two cornys will definitely fit though. It looked like it may be a very tight fit.

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The folks at Home Depot were very nice about it. I had already tossed the packaging but they took it back anyway.

Like others, I just purchased the Home Depot Magic Chef MCKC490S kegerator. In taking everything out of the box, I have three questions. 1) It came with a clamp to use where the red hose attaches to the regulator. But there is not a clamp for the other end of the red hose where it attaches to the keg coupler. Do I need one here? 2) There was a black round gasket about 3" in diameter and no reference of where this goes. I thought maybe between the tower and the top of the kegerator. Any ideas? 3) There is a small round marble type item. Any ideas where this goes? THANKS!!

luvbigdogs said:

Like others, I just purchased the Home Depot Magic Chef MCKC490S kegerator. In taking everything out of the box, I have three questions. 1) It came with a clamp to use where the red hose attaches to the regulator. But there is not a clamp for the other end of the red hose where it attaches to the keg coupler. Do I need one here? 2) There was a black round gasket about 3" in diameter and no reference of where this goes. I thought maybe between the tower and the top of the kegerator. Any ideas? 3) There is a small round marble type item. Any ideas where this goes? THANKS!!

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1) The hose barb on the coupler is usually bigger than that of the regulator. Meaning that because there will be more tension on the hose you wont need the clamp. 2) Most draft towers are 3" in diameter so my guess is that it is supposed to go between the top of the keg and the base of the tower. 3) That small marble thing (I'm guessing it's white plastic) is the check valve part of the coupler. If it has fallen out them I think you are missing another piece as well. That ball goes into the top part of the coupler, where the beer flows out, but there should be a retaining device to keep it in there. That retaining device should not keep beer from flowing out of the top of the coupler though.


Draft Beer Dispensing System Cleaning

I'm linking you to the micromatic website, on the middle right hand side is a diagram of a typical keg coupler. If you look towards the top you will see the "marble" that I think you are describing and the retaining device above it. I'm not sure if this is the info you're looking for, but I hope it helps.

luvbigdogs said:

Like others, I just purchased the Home Depot Magic Chef MCKC490S kegerator. In taking everything out of the box, I have three questions. 1) It came with a clamp to use where the red hose attaches to the regulator. But there is not a clamp for the other end of the red hose where it attaches to the keg coupler. Do I need one here? 2) There was a black round gasket about 3" in diameter and no reference of where this goes. I thought maybe between the tower and the top of the kegerator. Any ideas? 3) There is a small round marble type item. Any ideas where this goes? THANKS!!

Click to expand...

The black round gasket goes between the tower and the top of the kegerator. Do yourself a favor. Mount the tower and make sure it gets cold enough before you start modifying anything. There are instructions somewhere for turning a set screw and making it colder, but that didn't work for me so I ended up returning it. Eventially I found a used Haier for $250 on Craig's List (and promptly added another $500 or parts to it).

Thanks Displaced MassHole!! That was just what I needed to know. Now I can go get that first keg and give this system a try.

I found this post today because I just bought a Home Depot kegerator. (Vissani MCKC490S) Yeah it's a lower end model, but I'm going to give it a try.

To the point... HD is discontinuing this product. I just bought one for $297. If it holds temperature, I'm going to upgrade the regulator and go to 2 taps. I was thinking of calling Beverage Factory when & if I get to that point.

Anyway, I think it's a pretty good price.

Would be glad to read posts from those who still have, or had one and what they think of it.

While it is lower end, that doesn't mean it doesn't work. Look into cooling the tower, this will greatly help reduce foam problems.

Also, the regulator, if dual gauge will do fine for quite some time. No need to upgrade it right off the bat if you don't want. And when you go to two taps, as long as both beers dispense at the same pressure and are the same volumes of co2, the one regulator will work fine.

I think people who have had cooling problems with these have largely solved the problem by tweaking the thermostat. There are threads on these on the Micro Matic forums.

Double think before buying the home depot kegerator.Im in the middle of building one now and did alot of reseach.I had that same one in cart then left it there.first,the fridge has really bad reviews.thery say it doesnt get cold unless you take apart the thermestat.the hole going up to the tower is only 3/4" and everything Ive read says you need to get alot of air into the tower or your first beer on every pour will be warm and foamy,and the worst part is they had one on display and when i pulled on the tap the whole tower came forward cause the flange and column are 2 pieces that just slide over each other(not tightly).unless the tower was broken and thats why it was a floor model.that fridge is on clearance for 297 by me.i just got a sanyo fridge on craigslist for $80,dual tap on ebay for $85 free co2 tank from local beer distributer and $50 for regulator on ebay.$215 total and itll be a better kegerator.Just something to think about.

If the tower came off it was probably just assembled by one of the kids they hired that didnt care about assembly. Mine is on solid because I assembled it

FYI: The HD in Littleton, CO has a nice Danby Kegerator (model DKC645BLS)for about $400. It has a digital temperature display and control on the front and, more importantly, holds three cornys. It has a single tap, dual gauge regulator, 5lb CO2 tank, and Sanke fittings. I have had no problems with temperature control, seems to be better made than some of the earlier offerings by HD... have had it about one month and would definitely recommend this model.

Looks like the HD Vissani just might be a keeper. On a 0-6 thermostat range I set it to 4.5 last night. It's holding 35* all last night and today,(empty) without running much at all. I didn't have to go into the thermostat itself & adjust the range. Although the directions explain how to do that if needed.

I'm not saying it's better than any number of the other products or home made jobs out there... it was cheap & easy... and might be an option for others who are thinking about buying a kegerator.

Thanks for all the comments!

Salty, I agree, although once you have some kegs in there, you may have to adjust the thermostat.