A while back I dug around on the forums here to see if anyone had done a conversion on the Haier model #HMSE05WABB. Seems like the HMSE version fridge is a bit less common, but after I found one on good ol' craigslist for a song I gave it a shot at conversion. To get to the point though, if you are wondering, this fridge will fit 2 5-gallon ball-lock kegs with a 5lb co2 tank in the back, along with a dual taprite regulator.
This is the first time I've done a DIY project like this, and while I can say there was some trial and error during this build, I think if I had to do it a second time, things would go much faster. Below is the chronicle of my build.
Unfortunately it didn't really occur to me to take pictures until after I started working on the fridge so you can take a look here at some pics someone else posted regarding the same model. Doesn't look like an update on its success will be coming anytime soon. As you can see, there is no freezer compartment. There was a small shelf and door at the top which was easily removed with just one or two screws.
The door shelving was easily removed exposing the insulation and what looks like a wet spot where the lock mechanism fits. The door seal was screwed down partially under the shelving. As a way to make sure that the seal would sit properly in the door, I used some cutting shears and removed just the outside frame of the door shelves, allowing me to screw it back down with the seal. I covered the door insulation with some aluminum ducting tape to make sure it is nice and insulated.
This is what it looked like when all done. Eventually I bought some black shelving paper and covered up the inside of the door to make it look more presentable.
The most difficult part of this build was getting the top removed. I had to removed the front door mounting part, then carefully pry off the top using a paint scraper and a screw driver for leverage, along with an extra set of hands to pull it off of the foam as I went.
This is what it looked like once removed and I dug into the foam a bit. There was a nice circular indentation in the foam where I dug down to the bottom.
Moving on from there I had to find where the coolant lines were. The water and corn starch method did me no good before I pried the top off, so once I dug down into the foam I got a better look at what was underneath.
Not sure how easy it is to see there, but those raised lines are the coolant lines. Thankfully they are spaced far enough apart that I could make a hole through the top of the fridge into the interior. After a little poking, I realized that the plastic I was looking at was the interior of the fridge and very thin.
Of course once I did this and compared it to the inside, I realized I probably could have saved myself a bunch of hassle had I known this spacing in advanced. Here is what it looks like from the inside.
See those different sized raised lines? The thicker ones are the recesses that the coolant lines rest in from above. The thin raised portions are completely superfluous. If you drill upwards between the thicker lines, you should have no worries about hitting anything important.
Since I destroyed the top of the fridge when prying it off, I had to replace it. The original top wasn't all that nice looking anyways. I had to level off the foam with the now exposed sides of the fridge so I could replace the top properly. This is what it looked like after leveling.
Doesn't look pretty, but it works. I used thin copper wire attached to both ends of a hacksaw blade as a way to remove the foam. It is a good idea to have a vacuum handy when doing this. Foam was everywhere.
Once that was all done, I double checked to make sure two kegs would fit into the fridge. Yes, I should have done that before even starting this project, but I was still waiting on them to come in the mail, and I was fairly sure they would fit. They do, but it did take a little modification to the interior of the fridge.
First was the removal of the temp controller housing.
The wiring had almost no give in it, so even without the housing I thought it may be difficult to get kegs in there. Another problem was the bumps that shelves are held by took just enough space away to keep two kegs from fitting in there. That means they have to be cut out.
I used a box cutter to cut through the plastic. Wasn't too difficult. Wished I had a dremmel to make it easier at the time. I got a little overzealous though when I went to remove bits from the right side. This happened.
Buried just beneath the foam insulation under the plastic was the wiring for the temp controller. It runs almost straight down to the bottom of the fridge from the little black hole there. Some splicing and electrical tape fixed it all up though.
Once that was taken care of, and I made sure the kegs fit in there with a 5lb CO2 tank sitting on the hump, I moved onto replacing the top.
I double checked the spacing of those coolant lines, comparing it to the gasket for the tap tower. I marked the foam with a marker and drilled down into the plastic from above. Then I measure and marked the tap tower's base and the screw holes on the wood I was going to replace the top with. Got things aligned and cut a hole into the wood.
This is what it looks like after the top had been measured, cut, drilled, stained, and sealed with polyurethane.
I glued down the top to the foam using liquid nails and I fit molding around the edges and nailed them into the side of the top.
In order to remount the door, I had to refit the door mount to the front of the new top. I used a handful of small nails and liquid nails to affix the mount to the top.
That curved plastic black portion is the door mount.
From the bottom I cut a small block of wood to mount the bolts coming down from the tap tower. Afraid I forgot to take pictures of that.
This is the finished product.
Now I have a week of carbonating a hefe-weissen in one of the kegs and will soon be enjoying great beer with the rest of you folk. Hope this comes in handy to someone else out there.
This is the first time I've done a DIY project like this, and while I can say there was some trial and error during this build, I think if I had to do it a second time, things would go much faster. Below is the chronicle of my build.
Unfortunately it didn't really occur to me to take pictures until after I started working on the fridge so you can take a look here at some pics someone else posted regarding the same model. Doesn't look like an update on its success will be coming anytime soon. As you can see, there is no freezer compartment. There was a small shelf and door at the top which was easily removed with just one or two screws.
The door shelving was easily removed exposing the insulation and what looks like a wet spot where the lock mechanism fits. The door seal was screwed down partially under the shelving. As a way to make sure that the seal would sit properly in the door, I used some cutting shears and removed just the outside frame of the door shelves, allowing me to screw it back down with the seal. I covered the door insulation with some aluminum ducting tape to make sure it is nice and insulated.
This is what it looked like when all done. Eventually I bought some black shelving paper and covered up the inside of the door to make it look more presentable.
The most difficult part of this build was getting the top removed. I had to removed the front door mounting part, then carefully pry off the top using a paint scraper and a screw driver for leverage, along with an extra set of hands to pull it off of the foam as I went.
This is what it looked like once removed and I dug into the foam a bit. There was a nice circular indentation in the foam where I dug down to the bottom.
Moving on from there I had to find where the coolant lines were. The water and corn starch method did me no good before I pried the top off, so once I dug down into the foam I got a better look at what was underneath.
Not sure how easy it is to see there, but those raised lines are the coolant lines. Thankfully they are spaced far enough apart that I could make a hole through the top of the fridge into the interior. After a little poking, I realized that the plastic I was looking at was the interior of the fridge and very thin.
Of course once I did this and compared it to the inside, I realized I probably could have saved myself a bunch of hassle had I known this spacing in advanced. Here is what it looks like from the inside.
See those different sized raised lines? The thicker ones are the recesses that the coolant lines rest in from above. The thin raised portions are completely superfluous. If you drill upwards between the thicker lines, you should have no worries about hitting anything important.
Since I destroyed the top of the fridge when prying it off, I had to replace it. The original top wasn't all that nice looking anyways. I had to level off the foam with the now exposed sides of the fridge so I could replace the top properly. This is what it looked like after leveling.
Doesn't look pretty, but it works. I used thin copper wire attached to both ends of a hacksaw blade as a way to remove the foam. It is a good idea to have a vacuum handy when doing this. Foam was everywhere.
Once that was all done, I double checked to make sure two kegs would fit into the fridge. Yes, I should have done that before even starting this project, but I was still waiting on them to come in the mail, and I was fairly sure they would fit. They do, but it did take a little modification to the interior of the fridge.
First was the removal of the temp controller housing.
The wiring had almost no give in it, so even without the housing I thought it may be difficult to get kegs in there. Another problem was the bumps that shelves are held by took just enough space away to keep two kegs from fitting in there. That means they have to be cut out.
I used a box cutter to cut through the plastic. Wasn't too difficult. Wished I had a dremmel to make it easier at the time. I got a little overzealous though when I went to remove bits from the right side. This happened.
Buried just beneath the foam insulation under the plastic was the wiring for the temp controller. It runs almost straight down to the bottom of the fridge from the little black hole there. Some splicing and electrical tape fixed it all up though.
Once that was taken care of, and I made sure the kegs fit in there with a 5lb CO2 tank sitting on the hump, I moved onto replacing the top.
I double checked the spacing of those coolant lines, comparing it to the gasket for the tap tower. I marked the foam with a marker and drilled down into the plastic from above. Then I measure and marked the tap tower's base and the screw holes on the wood I was going to replace the top with. Got things aligned and cut a hole into the wood.
This is what it looks like after the top had been measured, cut, drilled, stained, and sealed with polyurethane.
I glued down the top to the foam using liquid nails and I fit molding around the edges and nailed them into the side of the top.
In order to remount the door, I had to refit the door mount to the front of the new top. I used a handful of small nails and liquid nails to affix the mount to the top.
That curved plastic black portion is the door mount.
From the bottom I cut a small block of wood to mount the bolts coming down from the tap tower. Afraid I forgot to take pictures of that.
This is the finished product.
Now I have a week of carbonating a hefe-weissen in one of the kegs and will soon be enjoying great beer with the rest of you folk. Hope this comes in handy to someone else out there.
