Moving (possibly) into kegging

Hello all,

I've been brewing about 6 months and I'm considering moving into kegging, but am trying to do so economically. My current production schedule usually has 2-3 batches ready to drink at any one time, and current space limitations make a full-size kegerator impossible. I'm looking for a system that would allow 2 corny kegs ready to serve at any time, preferring to do a DIY build (I enjoy the process). Would 'dorm style' fridges suitably hold 2 cornys + tank? I could always mount the tank to the outside, if necessary.

Do the Sanyo 4912 (or Oyster equivalent) Look in my gallery for some pics of mine or do a google search and you'll find LOTS of how to's

Kegging is awesome....I drink my beer faster and have to brew more but hey...those are positives!

The sanyo 4912 is discontinued from what I've run into. When it was in production, it was difficult to find too. Bestbuy carries(d) it, so you might try the local one, I couldn't get one at my local bbuy. Fry's sells it also, but if there's not one near you, shipping is insane. I ended up ordering mine from costco, they pay shipping, I just had to pay tax. I don't think they require you to be a member to order from their website. The oster requires a little bit more modification, you have to move the thermostat housing IIRC, and I think some extra stuff has to be cut out from the inside.

I used this website to order the rest of the stuff I need http://stores.kegconnection.com/StoreFront.bok They have great customer service, and better prices than most places. They do charge shipping, so if you can find kegs locally, it will save you money, but they let you customize your kit to your specs. I dropped the kegs from mine and added perlick faucets. The total came out to $367 or something after shipping, and I also got rebuild kits and o ring grease. This is the kit that I got http://stores.kegconnection.com/Detail.bok?no=55

I'm expecting it to cost me around $650 for everything.

Yup +1 for Kegconnection They took a while with me but they came through really well.

I need to start checking the classifieds for the local paper and Craigslist to see if I can score something decent.

UPDATE: Just found a chest freezer on the cheap that might just fit the bill. Might be a good intro into kegging sooner than I thought possible!

SWEET! Do it! :fro:

SWEET! Do it!

Click to expand...

I totally should. I don't find bottling to be a huge chore, but having beers on tap certainly has its appeal.

Oh it definitely does! Bottling wasn't that bad but man, kegging has really changed how I brew.

I LOVE being able to pour just a small 4-6oz taster when I want.....or fill my big ass mug!

I honestly drink more now than I did when I bottled but then, like I said, I brew more now too so it's been a good thing.....

Do It! Hurry!

Well, assuming you get the chest freezer, you can do it on the cheap (which is what you originally stated) by initially just going with picnic taps...you know, no tower or shanks, just a hose with a tap on the end of it. You'll probably have to build a "collar" for the freezer to give you enough room for the kegs to stand up with disconnects attached.

So you're looking at:

-Kegs
-co2 tank
-co2 regulator(s):you can either get multiple regulator bodies so that each co2 line is individually adjustable, which is expensive, or you can just have one regulator body that feeds into a manifold that splits the gas line into however many you need. For instance, my setup has two regulator bodies, one goes straight to one keg, the other goes to a 3-way manifold that feeds 3 kegs.
-gas and liquid disconnects for each keg
-hosing and clamps as required
-picnic taps

The great thing about going the cheapo picnic tap route is that you can upgrade later on to shanks or a tower very easily, and you're only out the few bucks that the cheap picnic taps cost you. I actually still use picnic taps on my 4-keg fridge, and then I have a 2-tap tower and perlicks on my 4912 conversion.

I'd say, for a 2-keg picnic tap setup, you could get away with spending under $250 on the equipment, not counting the freezer.