Help with my first kegerator setup

I've seen this deal for kegerator supplies this weekend and I just picked up my freezer today so I really wanna do this thing but I don't know a lot about it. I wanna be able to do up to 3 beers at a time

My questions are:
- If I only get the single gauge regulator how many beers can I dispense and carbonate?
- Is the only difference between single body and double body regulator the ability to dispense and carbonate at the same time?
- They have a kit with a single body reg, but with a manifold for 3 kegs. But it doesn't have the ability to carbonate and dispense at the same time. Is this a big deal? So, with the 2 keg kit I have the dual body reg and can carb and dispense at the same time, but only for 2 beers, leaving me to have to switch lines for the 3rd beer when it needs to be hooked up? And with the 3 keg kit, I can dispense 3 beers but without the ability to do 2 different pressures I can only dispense or only carbonate at one time without switching the hoses around? Is this correct? And if it is, which sounds like the easiest one to deal with?
- Is the digital thermostat really a lot better ($80 versus $50) than the manual one?
- Are the racetrack style kegs really that much of a pain or are they totally worth it for $17??

I really really want to get this thing going but once again have NO idea what I'm doing! Thanks for the help guys

1. you can dispense and carb as many beers as you can fit in the freezer with one regulator. you just have to split the line between them with T's and you can only serve/carbonate at one pressure.

2. double body allows two different pressures to be set, so you could in theory force carb one keg at 30 psi and serve another at 12.

3. you don't HAVE to carbonate at 30 psi, you can just set it the same as the other kegs and be patient. i have a single body/single gauge regulator and i serve 4 kegs off it, all at 12 psi and it works fine. if i really need to force carb, i just take the pressure off the other 3 and they will still serve a few beers without any CO2 in them, so i can set the reg at 30 psi for 24-36 hours or so and still get beers w/o any problem from the other kegs.

4. totally your call on the thermostat, if you're just using it to get the serving pressure, an analog one will be fine, but if you're trying to fine tune fermentation temps, digital might be a better choice.

5. i've had problems with the one racetrack keg i own, but that's just me.

What Android said, but.....
after you force carb the new keg, disconnect it before reconnecting your on tap kegs. Otherwise your 30 lbs of force carb pressure in the new keg will just go back out to your on tap kegs.

Just a point of clarification.....

In single body, dual gauge regulators, one gauge shows you the amount of CO2 left in your CO2 bottle. The other one lets you set the dispensing pressure.

I'm also a keggin newb, but having just set-up my own keezer, I'll offer my insight as well:

- With one regulator, you can add a distributor to your liking to serve as many kegs as you can conceive... or at least fit. All will be at one pressure.
For about $20... you can serve 2 kegs... Or... for $120... 12.

- I believe the dual gauge regulators offer one gauge for monitoring tank level, and a second for outgoing pressure... still only one set-up.

- Generally, if they include a distributor for 3 gas lines, they also include 3 taps, so I'm a bit confused. But.... with that said, I'm initially setting mine up to serve two taps, but gas a third keg as recommended by a few on here. That way, when I blow one, I have one ready to roll. Soon to add another tap for 3 total outs with 4 gassing.

- I went digital... because face it, it's cooler, adds bling, and is only $30 more. That's not even a tank of gas in the old pickup. Functionally, though, it's probably no better.

- Not sure about the racetrack kegs, but also watching for others to respond... planned to jump on an order today, but now you've got me nervous. I'd rather pay $30 a keg and not struggle, then save $13 once only to ***** all the time.

HOP-HEAD said:

- Not sure about the racetrack kegs, but also watching for others to respond... planned to jump on an order today, but now you've got me nervous. I'd rather pay $30 a keg and not struggle, then save $13 once only to ***** all the time.

Click to expand...

Exactly!! I know myself, and while I want to get the best deal I can, I'd be pissed if the cheaper kegs were just a waste of my time. But I was still waiting to see if others would jump in to tell me that there's absolutely nothing wrong with them.

Also they have 10# CO2 tanks for $65 versus $112 regular price. Is 112 really the going rate for CO2 tanks? Someone told me I might want to get two tanks so running one empty for a weekend party won't be such a big deal. So is $65 for a 10 pounder really that good of a price?

Also is their Brew Clean a mandatory cleaner for this stuff, or would Oxy Clean suffice for everything (stainless kegs, fermenter buckets, and everything)?

Thanks again

I use OxyClean Free ( no dyes / scents) for almost all of my cleaning. I clean copper with a vinegar / water boil, and deep clean stainless occasionally with Bar Keeper's friend. Otherwise I normally clean my kegs with OxyClean Free as well it works great.

Using regular Oxyclean my make your beers taste like a dryer sheet =)