Anything You’d Do Different In Your Keezer?

[Tyler.W]

I am looking to build out a keezer. I currently have a 3 tap kegerator, but I am getting tired of the juggle whenever a keg kicks, and I would like some more space.

I am looking to build a 6 keg keezer with a 7 cu. ft freezer. I know it’s right, but there are some models out there that can do it. I brew 3 gallon batches, so most kegs will be 3 gallon with the exception of a 5 gallon keg for seltzer water.

I want to run at least 3 kegs of beer, if not 4 and one keg of seltzer water, with the 6th (potential 5th) spots reserved for aging/lagering.

I will have 3 kegs of standard beer, with a potential 4th of high gravity beer that may be on tap for an extended period of time (>3 months).

I plan to run Evabarrier tubing and duotight fittings everywhere, and I may add some secondary regulators to allow me to dial in different pressures for each keg. I already have a fan for air circulation and an Inkbird for temperature control.

So, is there anything you would do differently with your setup? I’m just trying to get this done once so I don’t have to go back to the drawing board to fix things down the road. I do not think I will ever need more than 6 kegs in the fridge as they already last me 3 months each, and any longer would be less than optimal. I mainly want the extra space for lagering and seltzer water. Thanks!

 

[VikeMan]

I am looking to build a 6 keg keezer with a 7 cu. ft freezer. I know it’s right, but there are some models out there that can do it. I brew 3 gallon batches, so most kegs will be 3 gallon with the exception of a 5 gallon keg for seltzer water.

Do you plan on using stackable 3 gallon kegs and a (very) tall collar? Otherwise, what 7 cf freezer do you know that will fit 6 kegs?

 

[Tyler.W]

4 on the floor and 2 on the bump. CO2 outside. According to the master kegerator size guide there is at least 1, Danby I believe, that fits 6.

Edit: Danny, Frigidaire, Kenmore, and Magic Chef have 7-7.2 ct ft models that can fit 6, potentially with a collar, but not stacked crazy.

 

[VikeMan]

4 on the floor and 2 on the bump. CO2 outside. According to the master kegerator size guide there is at least 1, Danby I believe, that fits 6.

Edit: Danny, Frigidaire, Kenmore, and Magic Chef have 7-7.2 ct ft models that can fit 6, potentially with a collar, but not stacked crazy.

That Danby model (DCF700W1) is no longer made. I suspect you'll find most of the freezers on that list are also discontinued.

I would encourage making cardboard template discs that are the diamter of the kegs you plan to use, and physically verifying fit in the freezer you are contemplating, including a small margin for error. Trying to jam kegs into a keezer with dimensions that are exactly the same as what's theoretically required by the keg footprints may end in frustration, because freezer walls are not perfectly vertical and perfectly flat. I know this from experience, blindly trusting the chart.

ETA: Various corny keg knockoffs, especially the non-standard sized ones (like 3 gallons) tend to have different foorprints than the standard original cornelius brand 5 gallon soda kegs. I'd be sure to take that into account.

 

[Tyler.W]

Thanks for the heads up. I definitely will give it a go with the cardboard cutouts!

A 6th keg is not really necessary, as it will either be for an extra draft or conditioning spot, and I already have 3 beers which is plenty for me to have on tap. I mainly want to have an extra spot for dedicated lagering that doesn’t backup my pipeline as well as seltzer water which can help to save me some cash in the long run.

Is 5 kegs in a 7 cu ft a feasible idea?

 

[Rippchen]

I would put co2 in the keezer, but struggle to find small (2kg) food grade co2 tanks here in Germany.

When you plan the collar and especially the positions for the taps think about how you insert and remove the kegs. Build my taps in the middle and now have a hustle with the tubing every time I handle the kegs in there.

I had secondary regulators and threw them out pretty fast, because of leakage and the idea, that I don't need them since I bottle all high carbed beers.

 

[VikeMan]

Is 5 kegs in a 7 cu ft a feasible idea?

There may be a currently available 7 cf model that can do it, depending on the kegs you plan to use. But if so, I don't know what it is. Hopefully, if someone has done it, they'll chime in. Or you could ask in the Chest Freezer Specs thread and/or read through all of the posts in that thread. People are always looking for the small freezer with big capacity.

 

[Tyler.W]

What kind of setup are you running @VikeMan?

 

[VikeMan]

What kind of setup are you running @VikeMan?

I have an older GE 7 CF chest freezer I added a collar to. According to the old chart, it should have fit four cornys on the floor. It fits three comfortably. Ramming in a fourth is so difficult that it's not worth it. So I have four taps, one of which is never used.

I put a flush mount Love Controls temp contoller in the collar and an electrical box on the inside of the collar (covering the part of the controller that sticks through) that holds the wiring connections. Faucets are mounted on the collar on a side (i.e. not front) of the keezer.

 

[AlexKay]

I am looking to build out a keezer. I currently have a 3 tap kegerator, but I am getting tired of the juggle whenever a keg kicks, and I would like some more space.

I am looking to build a 6 keg keezer with a 7 cu. ft freezer. I know it’s right, but there are some models out there that can do it. I brew 3 gallon batches, so most kegs will be 3 gallon with the exception of a 5 gallon keg for seltzer water.

I want to run at least 3 kegs of beer, if not 4 and one keg of seltzer water, with the 6th (potential 5th) spots reserved for aging/lagering.

I will have 3 kegs of standard beer, with a potential 4th of high gravity beer that may be on tap for an extended period of time (>3 months).

I plan to run Evabarrier tubing and duotight fittings everywhere, and I may add some secondary regulators to allow me to dial in different pressures for each keg. I already have a fan for air circulation and an Inkbird for temperature control.

So, is there anything you would do differently with your setup? I’m just trying to get this done once so I don’t have to go back to the drawing board to fix things down the road. I do not think I will ever need more than 6 kegs in the fridge as they already last me 3 months each, and any longer would be less than optimal. I mainly want the extra space for lagering and seltzer water. Thanks!

Things I'd do differently include buying a larger freezer! Seriously, get the largest one that will fit in the space you have. Yes, larger freezers are more expensive, but chances are most of your cost is going into draft hardware anyway. Take it from someone who now has 3 keezers in his garage...

If you're working with Duotight/EVA, consider manifolds and regulators that have MFL connections already. It can be difficult or impossible to swap out hose barbs for MFL, and everything I've heard about putting EVA on hose barbs is negative. Check out BrewHardware for stuff with MFLs already installed.

If you haven't worked with Duotight before, be extra extra careful about getting the tubing pushed in all the way past the second O-ring. It can be treacherous, in that it will seal when half-way in, but then spray beer (or CO2) everywhere when you bump it.

Get stainless steel beer shanks, and make sure they're long enough, but not too long. If your frame is 2-by-X lumber, it might seem like a 3" shank is enough, but once you include the shank collar and Duotight adaptor, it's not. 4" works. (You can make 3" work, too, but you have to forego the collars and use SS washers instead.)

Get beer-plug-tap-brush thingies. They may seem unnecessary in the winter, but without them in summertime you'll be fishing bugs out of your beer.

My first keezer had a secondary regulator for each keg, and that's overkill. You'll need separate ones for beer and seltzer, and maybe you'll want two different pressures for beer, but that's it.

Get forward-sealing all-stainless faucets, of course.

Buy a plastic-tubing cutter and a faucet wrench.

You have a fan already, but replace it if it's AC-powered. If you do replace it, get a waterproof fan.

Include a long, extra CO2 line (with keg disconnect) that's not hooked up to anything. I've used mine for counter-pressure fillers, purging kegs that aren't going in the keezer right away, and purging bottles.

 

[BongoYodeler]

I have an older GE 7 CF chest freezer I added a collar to. According to the old chart, it should have fit four cornys on the floor. It fits three comfortably. Ramming in a fourth is so difficult that it's not worth it. So I have four taps, one of which is never used.

I put a flush mount Love Controls temp contoller in the collar and an electrical box on the inside of the collar (covering the part of the controller that sticks through) that holds the wiring connections. Faucets are mounted on the collar on a side (i.e. not front) of the keezer.

Very cool look. I have the same, or very similar 7cu ft GE freezer. I made my collar 12" and double-hinged it. This way I can fit a 5 gal corny keg on the hump. Even with a fan recirculating the hump keg is a few degrees warmer than the others, so I make sure to always have a temperature/carbonation appropriate beer there, ie: porter, stout, etc.

 

[storytyme]

I would go as big as you can afford. Use the extra space for storage of kegs, bottles, grains, hops, etc. Thats what Im going to do when mine dies.