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Here is the culmination of a couple months of watching craigslist, a failed upright freezer CL purchase, and Christmas presents...

Behold the beast!

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It's not much to look at, but it's mine!

Here are some specs and costs:

  • 10 cf chest freezer - craigslist for $50
  • Ranco controller - $61 with shipping, plus $8 for the power cord (wired myself)
  • 20 lb CO2 tank - craigslist for $60 (empty), swapped at airgas for a full one for $28
  • Regulator, corny, all hoses/disconnects, picnic tap - local homebrew shop for $99
Approximate total cost: $306

The keg contains a pale ale that I hope will be ready for a party in a couple of weeks.

I spent a little more than that since I didn't have the right size wrench to disassemble the corny posts, or tighten the CO2 regulator.

Not bad if I do say so myself. I have plenty of room for expansion (my next purchase will be at least 2 more cornies), I can lager if I so choose. Someday I hope to build a collar and get some perlicks, but the picnic tap works fine for now.

Thanks to everyone here for the support and inspiration!
 
i found the tower on craigslist,
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it was dull and crappy.
it came with plastic faucets.
i found brass ones on here for cheap, and i traded someone a regulator for a stout faucet.

i shined up the brass parts, and painted the top. then i got handles from a bar we deliver to and i sanded them down and repainted them.
this was them before
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I still like that custom CO2 cylinder you did... I do love the final though! By the way, did you resolve a way of posting your brews on tap?
 
not yet. its been so crazy around here with the holidays. i just brewed my first beer in over a month. and then i had a little mishap with 5 gallons of apfelwein leaking into the bottom of the keezer. i havent given the labels much thought.
i still dont even have a drip tray
 
not yet. its been so crazy around here with the holidays. i just brewed my first beer in over a month. and then i had a little mishap with 5 gallons of apfelwein leaking into the bottom of the keezer. i havent given the labels much thought.
i still dont even have a drip tray

My suggestion: paint numbers on the tap handles and post a chalkboard with the numbers as they correspond to the beers on tap.

That should be relatively simple, given your talents thus far...:mug:
 
So I have now looked through this entire thread and i noticed that no one with a sanyo or other mini fridge setup has installed the taps to the door. This a matter a preference or functionality? I am hopin to find a good deal on a mini fridge to do a door install sometime soon.
 
How tall are you? Unless you put the fridge on a table or something, the taps will be kind of low. You'd have to mount them a few inches down from the top of the door. I'm not very tall and I think that would put the taps right at crotch level. Could make for some cool party tricks, I guess, but I wouldn't want it that way all the time.

With the Sanyo, a tower puts the taps at pretty much the right height (for certain values of right).
 
So I have now looked through this entire thread and i noticed that no one with a sanyo or other mini fridge setup has installed the taps to the door. This a matter a preference or functionality? I am hopin to find a good deal on a mini fridge to do a door install sometime soon.

If you're under 4 feet tall that might work. :D

As for me, I like my guests to stand up straight while drawing a pint, not bending over. ;)
 
How tall are you? Unless you put the fridge on a table or something, the taps will be kind of low. You'd have to mount them a few inches down from the top of the door. I'm not very tall and I think that would put the taps right at crotch level. Could make for some cool party tricks, I guess, but I wouldn't want it that way all the time.

With the Sanyo, a tower puts the taps at pretty much the right height (for certain values of right).

I am hoping to build this into my liquor cabinet (see below) where the top of the fridge will be up against the bottom of the main shelf. I'll be lowering the smaller shelf to hold it upright. So after is all said and done I can have those taps pretty close to an easy serving height while still matching what I already have.

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Definitely want those taps up high...]

Wow BM, that's just wrong... I need to splash some starsan in my eyes now :)

I know there was one thread where someone put them on the door of a sanyo 4912 conversion (no pictures). I pointed it out there, but also very easy to hit them by accident when they're that low (OP was putting it by a recessed wall which made it a bit more sheltered).
 
Wow BM, that's just wrong... I need to splash some starsan in my eyes now :)

I know there was one thread where someone put them on the door of a sanyo 4912 conversion (no pictures). I pointed it out there, but also very easy to hit them by accident when they're that low (OP was putting it by a recessed wall which made it a bit more sheltered).

Well once I get it in the bar it will be close the the height if I just put in a tower (thinkin about 18" of elevation). Running into shouldn't be too much of an issue since it will be a low traffic area. If it does prove tough I will just install some guards. Now to buy all the materials. Looks like I can get the kegs, cos, taps, and line for $280 from keg connection. Then hopefully find a fridge on CL or buy one on sale for $160, heard of some sales going on. Thanks for all your feedback, this forum is amazing.
 
Being a fan of the Buckeyes and living in SEC country i got to say that LSU Kegerator aint got $h!t on my Soon to be Buckeye Nation Keezer.
 
Here's a few of my newly completed "Cold Box" style kegerator. Currently set up with 2 taps but have enough space for as many as 5 (maybe 1 day). Ignore the mess. It's freshly completed and I'm haven't finished cleaning up yet :)

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I got the pieces for this over time but when i came down stairs this morning it was like christmas when I saw the package with the final pieces...

It's the standard Sanyo conversion... but it's mine :D:ban:

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Once again, Ohio State talks big but has nothing to show for it...:cross:

Damn it! football seasons over we will just have to wait until next year.:rockin: However hopefully my kegerator will be done before that. I do wish i could get my kegerator to look that good though. Oh well your kegerator mey be cooler but my football team has Prior and hopefully he can lead us to the BCS Bowl. Of course i would settle for the humanitarian bowl if we could win the damn thing. :D Is it fall yet.:mug:
 
Damn it! football seasons over we will just have to wait until next year.:rockin: However hopefully my kegerator will be done before that. I do wish i could get my kegerator to look that good though. Oh well your kegerator mey be cooler but my football team has Prior and hopefully he can lead us to the BCS Bowl. Of course i would settle for the humanitarian bowl if we could win the damn thing. :D Is it fall yet.:mug:



Its Pryor (not prior).
Quite a ways until fall, but the spring game is only a couple of months :rockin:
 
How about this? It's a freezer though, not a fridge. But under $200 new...
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/sizing-your-chest-freezer-corny-kegs-75449/#post906654
Lot's of good info in that thread for sizing a freezer!
Here's a pic to illustrate:
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I've been toying with the idea of using the Holiday Freezer myself. It's about the same size as a small refridgerator but holds 3+CO2 bottle. I'm thinking of building a collar if I get one and keeping the freezer intact (read: without a hole in the lid)
GL with whatever you choose! :)
 
Thanks, I have considered a freezer. In fact I just picked one up off Craigs List last week. I planned on dressing it up and making it nice enough that the War Department aka: SWMBO would allow it in the house.

But after looking it over and putting more thought into the project. I decided that would not be my best option. I want a 2 tap Tower. With a tower on the lid of a freezer it would be too much effort to get in to change kegs.
 
I dunno, I weighed the alternatives and I am leaning to it being more advantageous to not lose all the cold air and have to move kegs out to get to the one(s) in back.
For that reason I lean towards making a collar for the taps & saving $100+ for a tower.

To each their own tho! :)
 
Finally, my keezer is done:

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She holds up to 3 cornies with a 5# CO2 tank, but I will have to wait to expand to 3 until I want to move the 20# tank I bought outside the unit. The tower is porcelain and brass plated with full brass faucets. It also has room for another faucet when I am ready to do that. The tap handles I got off of Ebay and the wife loves the Goose Island handle.

So far I have been drinking at least one glass a day and I can't believe I ever bottled. Prost!
 
After years of wanting one, I finally found the freezer on Craig's list and bit the bullet. She is a 14.8 cubic foot GE, about 3 years old. I was going to buy a 7.2 cubic ft. unit, but this one is going to be much more versatile. I can serve 5 kegs and store/condition 3 more. Perlick faucets, and a stout faucet on the far left for nitro. I decided to attach the lid to the 2x6 collar, and the hinges hold it adequately. I am waiting on a few more tap handles to arrive that I got on eBay. I can't wait to fill 'er up!

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After years of wanting one, I finally found the freezer on Craig's list and bit the bullet. She is a 14.8 cubic foot GE, about 3 years old. I was going to buy a 7.2 cubic ft. unit, but this one is going to be much more versatile. I can serve 5 kegs and store/condition 3 more. Perlick faucets, and a stout faucet on the far left for nitro. I decided to attach the lid to the 2x6 collar, and the hinges hold it adequately. I am waiting on a few more tap handles to arrive that I got on eBay. I can't wait to fill 'er up!

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Nice setup....very similar to mine with an added Nitro setup. Did you get your manifold from Midwest?
 
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