Costco has a Danby Full Size Kegerator on sale for 379.99 I have a couple questions

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andrewk

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If I were to purchase this kegerator what would i need to do to use Corny Style kegs? The kegerator is setup for commercial kegs. Would you use ball lock or pin lock? Thanks.
 
Converting from Sanke to pin/ball is easy enough. That one is a single full size keg though right? Not sure how many cornies you could get in there and even if you could fit more than one you would need additional taps and a manifold or regulator.
 
+1

$379 is not much savings if you ask me. You can pick up a mini fridge from Lowes for under $200. Pick up a dual tower for $100. CO2 tank for $50. Add hosing and disconnects and you're ready to go. Probably for less than that $379, and you get to make it your own.
 
Thanks guys! Im just worried im going to destroy the fridge If I try and make my own. Can someone send me a link to a dual tower and conversion kit please?
 
search kegerator build......... the danby one is almost foolproof. assuming you can operate a drill. I would go for that also takes up less space
 
Another alternative if you are not inclined to go the DYI route is the BeerMeister. They are certainly a higher priced option, there is no question about it. But you get 1-3 taps, CO2 tank, all fittings and hoses, and 1-3 corny kegs, shipped to your house. In other words, you get everything you need (except for the actual CO2 gas that goes in the tank) and don't have to risk screwing something up or taking the time to do the work.

I got a three tap one a few months ago and I'm totally satisfied with it. I was up and running in no time.

BeerMeisters.com (Make sure you include the "s" at the end. That gets me every time.)
 
What do you guys think of this one? Its a little cheaper than the BeerMeisters one.

Model: KC2000TWIN
EdgeStar Full Size Dual Tap Kegerator & Draft Beer Dispenser
 
The beermeisters one includes kegs and fittings. Assuming you are homebrewing that is a good thing. Not making any claims to quality or preference since I have never used a commercial one like that but just pointing out the difference.
 
I don't know about the danby but I bought a vissani a number of years ago from home depot before I started brewing. It was meant to fit one half barrel in it. After I started brewing I was able to fit 2 pin locks in there. I did have to buy another shank, faucet, dual regulator and pin lock disconnects. I would build it like others had said because it will probably cost less.
 
I think I have seen this one. From one it looks to me, the CO2 cylinder stays outside the kegerator and their may be room for 2 cornies, but that's about it. It is smaller than my Haier 1/2 barrel system that I converted for 3 kegs.

Kegerator2.jpg
 
I got this Danby from Costco and am quite happy with it so far. It gets quite cold without any of the control board modifications I read about (I actually froze a bunch of bottles when trying it out). The "deal" seems fine to me as you get the fridge, CO2 bottle, regulator, tower, faucet (granted, I plan to swap this out with a better one)...ANY time I tried to price all that stuff out it came out quite a bit more than $400, and that's not even including the tools/bits I would have to buy to cut a hole in the top of the fridge, etc. (wasn't having much luck or patience with the Craigslist lotto, either, for this equipment)

I have the CO2 bottle inside the fridge with one pin lock, it'll easily fit a second like that, and if the CO2 is outside it maybe would fit a third though I wouldn't count on it. It probably would fit 3 ball lock kegs a bit easier. [EDIT: I just looked at a picture I took, it'll take 2 pin locks +CO2 on the inside easily, probably wouldn't take 3. Not sure about ball locks since they're a little narrower, it might be doable, again as long as the CO2 is outside]

Overall, it looks nice in my kitchen and works well without a ton of work or refurbishment. For the eventual second keg I might get a new tower, or I might just modify the current one. Either way, still happy. YMMV.
 
I got this Danby from Costco and am quite happy with it so far. It gets quite cold without any of the control board modifications I read about (I actually froze a bunch of bottles when trying it out). The "deal" seems fine to me as you get the fridge, CO2 bottle, regulator, tower, faucet (granted, I plan to swap this out with a better one)...ANY time I tried to price all that stuff out it came out quite a bit more than $400, and that's not even including the tools/bits I would have to buy to cut a hole in the top of the fridge, etc. (wasn't having much luck or patience with the Craigslist lotto, either, for this equipment)

I have the CO2 bottle inside the fridge with one pin lock, it'll easily fit a second like that, and if the CO2 is outside it maybe would fit a third though I wouldn't count on it. It probably would fit 3 ball lock kegs a bit easier. [EDIT: I just looked at a picture I took, it'll take 2 pin locks +CO2 on the inside easily, probably wouldn't take 3. Not sure about ball locks since they're a little narrower, it might be doable, again as long as the CO2 is outside]

Overall, it looks nice in my kitchen and works well without a ton of work or refurbishment. For the eventual second keg I might get a new tower, or I might just modify the current one. Either way, still happy. YMMV.

+ 1. I bought this from Costco recently as well. Only item I had to purchase extra was a set of ball-lock disconnects (one for gas input and one for beer output). The fridge remains nice and cold - actually I have to turn down the dial to the lowest, otherwise it gets a bit too cold for ales.

Currently I have only one keg, but like troub, I plan to get a nicer draft tower with two/three taps in the future.

My only complaint is with the tap. My other keggerator (converted freezer) has Perlicks on them, and I guess I am spoiled a bit. The tap with this tends to stick a bit. Again, avenue for future investment.

You can probably save a bit by going the DIY route. But I figured the savings weren't that great to justify the time I would have to put into it.
 
I have one. I got it for free on CL. The reason is the membrane control pad on it went south. So I went to radio shack and picked up 3 push buttons for 2 bucks and rewired the temp buttons and C/F button.

The tower in it has a 1/4" thick foam sheet for insulation which sucks. The stock tap on it sucked as well. I bought a perlick to fix that.

The CO2 tank does mount on the back of it. I installed a bunch of 80mm computer fans to circulate air in it.

Overall Im glad I didnt pay for it. The temperature fluctuates several degrees. If I was going to spend the money on a new one I would just do a keezer.
 
If I were to purchase this kegerator what would i need to do to use Corny Style kegs? The kegerator is setup for commercial kegs. Would you use ball lock or pin lock? Thanks.

Regarding ball lock or pin lock, you should measure the enclosure. Since your kegerator is built to handle a 1/2 barrell sanke keg, it should be ok for the height of the ball-lock style corny kegs. I've attached an image showing keg sizes, and you will notice that the pepsi style keg (ball lock) is almost the same height as the 1/2 barrel keg. Regarding width, you might be able to fit two of them in there given some space for the co2 canister.

For fittings and connections, if you want to be able to switch back and forth from sanke to corny you can do this. I had to buy a couple of pieces that allowed my sanke tap to be used with my corny system. For the corny system, don't buy barbed QD's, instead get the type with a flare and nut that connect to the QD...that way you can a) hook it up to the sanke tap and b) hook it up to pin-lock QD's.

Finally, I went this way because I got a used converted refridgerator with faucet, lines, co2 canister and regulator, sanke tap, etc...all for $40. But, if I were buying from scratch, instead of getting a kegerator, I would go the keezer route (which I am doing now).

You could look for the GE 7.0 cu ft. model like this one 7.0 cu. ft. Chest Freezer in White-FCM7SUWW at The Home Depot, which a bunch of us were able to pick up for $159 around Thanksgiving.

Hope this helps. If you need more detail on the sanke + corny set up, let me know and I will take pictures of the parts for you.

KegSizes.jpg
 
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