Magic Chef HMCF9W2 9CF 9.5" Collar Keezer

[pbrennan10]

https://mcappliance.com/brands/magic-chef/hmcf9w2.html

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Magic-Chef-9-0-cu-ft-Chest-Freezer-in-White-HMCF9W2/302245064

I bought this freezer from home depot for $168 without really knowing what I was doing re keezer, it was large, had wheels, and was cheap so I bought it.

I did the layout with ball locks, a 20# co2 tank, and a 13" diameter fermenter to make sure it would be suitable.

Ended up at 9.5 inches for the collar, partly because I had wood that made that work. Insulated 0.5" XPS and covered with 3/16 underlayment. Probably will weatherstrip along the top.

The most interesting thing was that after taking off the grate, a black cover on the back of the control, and popping out the control board (W19-56AB) is that it has a tab (C) that makes it function as a refrigerator when in place. It comes broken off so i scraped the end and put solder on this to reestablish this circuit. I did this about an hour ago and set my temperature control to min and it's up to 46 degrees without tripping the compressor so it appears to be effective.

Anyway, not sure how it'll all pan out but this seemed to be a new model with no data out there so I wanted to share.

Thanks,

 

[BBow]

I saw this same deal when thinking about upgrading my current keezer. How do you like it so far? How many ball locks can you fit? Are the wheels sufficient for a fully loaded keezer or flimsy?

 

[pbrennan10]

Unsure about the wheels but they seem fine.

The first image is the unit with ball locks laid out.

 

[KYBLUE]

Good find.

Looking forward to updates on the thermostat function.

 

[pbrennan10]

Thermostat deal seems to be working but has a ~15° temp swing (33-48), but this is empty, i expect it to improve with additional mass inside. It's about 0.25" shy of closing with ball locks and john guest fittings for a keg on the shelf but it looks like it'd be fine with regular fittings.

I put in two faucets on 8" centers, mainly trying to avoid shanks in the wood joints. I figured I could put one in the middle and be back on 4".

Bev seal ultra and push fittings seem nice.

 

[KYBLUE]

I picked one up today. Will likely wire it through an inkbird itc-1000 and use it as a fermentation chamber until I am ready to build out a multitap keezer. Will slap a cheap chrome plated tap through the door of the basement beer fridge in the meantime.

Thanks for the update.

Subscribed to follow the build.

Best of luck to ya.

 

[pbrennan10]

It has an alarm feature that I was concerned about with external controller because it resets with power and alarms when above freezing.

 

[KYBLUE]

I am no electrician but if I am understanding correctly it is possible to bypass the freezer controller altogether. Replacing it with the inkbird.

 

[Jayjay1976]

Man that looks great! Nice perlicks btw, I've been itching to pull the trigger on a 7cu ft model but having second thoughts that maybe a 9 cu ft would be a better choice in the long run, with room to lager a couple of kegs.

 

[sativen]

Meant to post yesterday, but I picked this freezer up for $147 at Home Depot in Greenwood, IN yesterday. Online price now shows $147 as well. For the size, it's a helluva deal.

No offense to @pbrennan10, but I prefer actual usage pics over drawings and circles (I bought a 7 cu ft based on my 8.5" circles earlier in the week, and couldn't quite get the 4th keg on the floor, despite the cardboard circles fitting).

Here is mine, a pic with 4 ball locks and a 20lb tank. I don't have another ball lock handy, but there is enough wiggle room to get a 5th on the floor, and I moved them after this pic and there is plenty of room for two more on the hump.

 

[mongoose33]

Thermostat deal seems to be working but has a ~15° temp swing (33-48), but this is empty, i expect it to improve with additional mass inside. It's about 0.25" shy of closing with ball locks and john guest fittings for a keg on the shelf but it looks like it'd be fine with regular fittings.

I put in two faucets on 8" centers, mainly trying to avoid shanks in the wood joints. I figured I could put one in the middle and be back on 4".

Bev seal ultra and push fittings seem nice.

It looks like very nice workmanship.

One issue with a very tall collar is lifting kegs into the keezer. I know that part of the benefit of the tall collar is being able to put kegs on the compressor hump. Another alternative is to use pinlock kegs or Morebeer's Torpedo kegs, the squattier ones, not the slimline ones. I can fit two of those on my compressor hump where I can't fit a normal ball-lock corny keg on the hump. I use the slimline torpedo kegs (and other used ball-lock corny kegs) in the lower part of the keezer as the diameters are smaller and if I hold my mouth just right, I can fit 6 in the lower part, two on the hump. I feed CO2 from the outside through a bulkhead shank.

 

[pbrennan10]

It looks like very nice workmanship.

One issue with a very tall collar is lifting kegs into the keezer. I know that part of the benefit of the tall collar is being able to put kegs on the compressor hump. Another alternative is to use pinlock kegs or Morebeer's Torpedo kegs, the squattier ones, not the slimline ones. I can fit two of those on my compressor hump where I can't fit a normal ball-lock corny keg on the hump. I use the slimline torpedo kegs in the lower part of the keezer as the diameters are smaller and if I hold my mouth just right, I can fit 6 in the lower part, two on the hump. I feed CO2 from the outside through a bulkhead shank.

Thanks

Yes that was a quick reality check. I'd like to build a platform in the bottom with it aiding in that and to lift the co2 tank up to give the double regulator clearance above the kegs.

This is also in a room with plenty of exposed steel overhead so i may do a small block and tackle depending on how much it ends up bothering me.

In other news i ordered 4 ball lock kegs off eBay and when they showed up 3 of them are converted pin locks so i accidentally have a selection.

 

[ancientmariner52]

That's much too pretty to change, but I got to wondering. Maybe a hinged drop-down section in the side of the collar? Or a lift-out removable section? Just to lower the lift height. Has anybody done this?

Also, are the published specs measured at the top or bottom of the chamber? Those vacuum molded liners have a lot of draft on them to ease removal from the mold plug. Could seriously affect the theoretical capacity. Don't ask how I know this.....

 

[pbrennan10]

Been loading it up inside to see what needs doin. The pin locks are ok but I'm not going to be able to fit a fermenter with them.

I think a removable panel would be doable, make it tongue and grove or similar and slide it in and out, but i think anything would likely increase air loss. Having it exactly where you always want your keg and avoiding taps would be an issue. Side taps with a full front removal sounds pretty straightforward.

 

[ancientmariner52]

Gotcha. To get good access it would have to be front or both sides.

 

[summerofgeorge]

Why not just hinge the collar and the lid? That way you can lift the collar for loading kegs and don't have to worry about the extra clearance. I did this with my 7' keezer. I used the freezer hinges for the collar to support the weight and just normal door hinges for the lid.

 

[pbrennan10]

That's probably what I would/should do and seems like the common solution.

Do the lines opening up with the top or the open space behind needed to swing the whole top cause you any issue?

 

[PADave]

Man that looks great! Nice perlicks btw, I've been itching to pull the trigger on a 7cu ft model but having second thoughts that maybe a 9 cu ft would be a better choice in the long run, with room to lager a couple of kegs.

I had the same thoughts. Was looking at this model of freezer, and the high temp alarm convinced me. I didn't want to deal with that. Also, as I started placing kegs in my 7cf fermentation chamber freezer, I realized things would be tight. So I went with a Fridgidair 8.7 cf model. Easily fits 5 ball locks on the floor, possibly 6, and I wont have to deal with the hump. Build thread is here: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/forum/threads/frigidair-8-7-cf-fffc09m1rw-keezer-build.639727/

 

[mongoose33]

That's much too pretty to change, but I got to wondering. Maybe a hinged drop-down section in the side of the collar? Or a lift-out removable section? Just to lower the lift height. Has anybody done this?

I've seen a few designs where the keezer collar is hinged at the bottom, i.e., where it connects the freezer mouth. You could do this using the original hinges. That would allow the opening to be no more higher than the freezer mouth.

You can see one in this article here: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/want-build-keezer.html It's Redtab78's

Downsides I: you'd have to make that collar as light as reasonably possible so the hinge springs could hold it up--or just use some sort of support stick to prop it open, or hook it to overhead support while in the open position.

Downside II: You'd have to keep the keezer away from the wall a fair amount to allow room for the collar to tilt back--or put it on casters or rollers to bring it out from the wall.

 

[pbrennan10]

Gotcha. To get good access it would have to be front or both sides.

Forgot to answer your size question. That's what I measured as clear area inside with lid closed so the height accounts for the lid recession (hopefully). All measurements taken from the top with a tapemeasure so def prone to error. I'll check it out and see if it seems consistent top to bottom.

 

[ancientmariner52]

Thanks. I didn't intend to question your measurements, I was wondering about published specs, and if they were trustworthy.

 

[brewswithshoes]

just picked up this freezer model from Home Depot today and with a sale they have going on it's 117 +tax. i'll deal with high heat alarm for that price, and try to figure out a way to shut that down.

now on to building the collar and insulation......

 

[pbrennan10]

just picked up this freezer model from Home Depot today and with a sale they have going on it's 117 +tax. i'll deal with high heat alarm for that price, and try to figure out a way to shut that down.

now on to building the collar and insulation......

Per the second picture on the first post of the control board I suspect the BUZ1 is the alarm speaker so that may just need a tactical stabbing

 

[brewswithshoes]

Per the second picture on the first post of the control board I suspect the BUZ1 is the alarm speaker so that may just need a tactical stabbing

were you able to disable this on yours? I am planning to try running mine via my inkbird to see if it goes off, but wondering if i do go for the kill, if you'd tried as well??

 

[pbrennan10]

I didn't attempt because im not replacing the board and it hasn't caused any issues running mine as a fridge. Maybe @KYBLUE will give his a stab if he's replacing it anyway

 

[KYBLUE]

I can confirm the high temp buzzer does sound each time the inkbird switches to cool when wired as a two pigtail setup as pictured.

As a result I can too confirm a small drill bit to the piezo buzzer(BUZ1) does work. The warning light still functions but no more noise.

I considered taping a small piece of foam over the buzzer to possibly preserve the warranty but there was a piece of foil tape around a portion of control panel assembly which would show it had been accessed. So the more satisfying power tool assisted solution proved irresistible. .......DIE YOU ANNOYING BUZZER I SAID.....

The unit currently houses two empty kegs, the temp probe immersed in a quart jar of water and an old hair dryer set to low.

With the inkbird temp difference set to 1°F, the temps swing +/- 5-7°F. As @pbrennan10 alluded to, more thermal mass of full fermenters and kegs would alleviate a lot of this but I think the estimated 250 watts of the hair dryer is too much. I am thinking a 75 watt ceramic heat bulb should do nicely.

 

[Dustin_J]

I can confirm the high temp buzzer does sound each time the inkbird switches to cool when wired as a two pigtail setup as pictured.

As a result I can too confirm a small drill bit to the piezo buzzer(BUZ1) does work. The warning light still functions but no more noise.

I considered taping a small piece of foam over the buzzer to possibly preserve the warranty but there was a piece of foil tape around a portion of control panel assembly which would show it had been accessed. So the more satisfying power tool assisted solution proved irresistible. .......DIE YOU ANNOYING BUZZER I SAID.....

The unit currently houses two empty kegs, the temp probe immersed in a quart jar of water and an old hair dryer set to low.

With the inkbird temp difference set to 1°F, the temps swing +/- 5-7°F. As @pbrennan10 alluded to, more thermal mass of full fermenters and kegs would alleviate a lot of this but I think the estimated 250 watts of the hair dryer is too much. I am thinking a 75 watt ceramic heat bulb should do nicely.

Good to know. I picked one of these up over the weekend to use as a fermentation chamber and had noticed the buzzer going off. Mine was actually pretty quiet, but still annoying - that won't be an issue anymore.

 

[Raddlocke]

What did you do with the power cord going up into the lid? I'm guessing it's for the light inside the lid but it's very short

 

[pbrennan10]

What did you do with the power cord going up into the lid? I'm guessing it's for the light inside the lid but it's very short

You can turn that cap over and its good to 9.5 collar but I'm at the limit

 

[Raddlocke]

You can turn that cap over and its good to 9.5 collar but I'm at the limit

Wow that is at the limit! Thanks for the info, nice build!

 

[stat]

Got this freezer, was surprised by the high temp alarm. Find the black+white wire going into the control board and power them independently, disconnect them from the compressor and use an extension cord to constant power. Use the factory power cord to your external thermostat, cut and cap off the red wire leaving the factory thermostat, jump the other end of the red wire (still connected to the compressor relay) to the black(hot) wire powered by the external thermostat. That way the external thermostat and the factory thermostat are separated. You'll only need to turn the alarm off if you have a power failure, and it's reversible, and you still have a light inside. Or you could stab the buzzer, I guess.

 

[brewswithshoes]

Had a chance to "86" the high temp piezo buzzer today. Not sure why i was nervous. Took all of 10 minutes total to unscrew panels, get to board and a gentle pop/twist on one side of the buzzer to snap one of the 2 connection points, and then put panels back on. High temp light still goes on, but no more noise. Works great now with my Inkbird.

thanks to those above for the info.

 

[KYBLUE]

Had a chance to "86" the high temp piezo buzzer today. Not sure why i was nervous. Took all of 10 minutes total to unscrew panels, get to board and a gentle pop/twist on one side of the buzzer to snap one of the 2 connection points, and then put panels back on. High temp light still goes on, but no more noise. Works great now with my Inkbird.

thanks to those above for the info.

May be the safest(best) method yet, to disable the alarm.

Converting for keezer or ferm chamber?

 

[brewswithshoes]

Keezer. Was just about to pull the trigger on a 7 cu ft. when this thread popped up and the home Depot deal came along. So cool to now have the extra room in this, and happy to get to go buy more kegs too. [emoji16]. Now I'm planning to build the collar and doing a "thru wall" tap setup. 4 lines in the brewery (laundry room) and now can get 2 more on the collar. With room for a 7th keg to be conditioning. I feel like christmas came early!!

 

[neovox]

@pbrennan10 - Has the temp continued to swing so dramatically with kegs installed?

@stat - Can you explain how you have your controller wired in a little bit further. I understand wiring the controller in via existing freezer power cable, like this. But I'm missing what you're doing with the black/white/red connections going between the control panel and the compressor. Are you saying that once cut, the black and white wires going towards the panel get constant power and the red gets capped? And then going towards the compressor the black and white get capped, and the red gets joined with the black from the freezer power cable?

Not sure yet if I'm going to go the same direction pbrennan10 did and use the original electronics for the fridge or use an external controller.

 

[pbrennan10]

I have 15 gallons in there now i'll clear my thermometer and let it run for and report back. Using my infrared thermometer and shooting it around the inside that the temperature varies about 12 degrees in various places. I'm not sure what a typical result would be but that seems very high to me and I have a fan that runs 2 minutes every 15 minutes.

I made the mistake of clicking over to the 3rd "cool" setting on the thermostat and froze a keg, i forgot to check temp but I think it was a serious jump from 2 to 3 "dots". If stats hasn't had any problems, you are not strapped for cash, and do not have a problem hiding the extra controller i'd say that's the safe bet (not speaking to compressor life)

In other news

I set up a block and tackle using a rig off amazon (https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B006P39M8C/?tag=skimlinks_replacement-20) and unistrut etc from lowes. probably not applicable to most but a pretty nice way to pull or set kegs/co2.

I set up a little pad to lift the co2 tank above the kegs which makes everything a little more manageable

and I also completed my first beer, which tastes a little weird but better than I expected.

 

[KYBLUE]

Congrats on the first beer.

 

[pbrennan10]

@pbrennan10 - Has the temp continued to swing so dramatically with kegs installed?

@stat - Can you explain how you have your controller wired in a little bit further. I understand wiring the controller in via existing freezer power cable, like this. But I'm missing what you're doing with the black/white/red connections going between the control panel and the compressor. Are you saying that once cut, the black and white wires going towards the panel get constant power and the red gets capped? And then going towards the compressor the black and white get capped, and the red gets joined with the black from the freezer power cable?

Not sure yet if I'm going to go the same direction pbrennan10 did and use the original electronics for the fridge or use an external controller.

with approx 15 gallons in the swing was 37-44.

 

[pbrennan10]

Just two taps didn't last long. Added a tap and a manifold. Wishing i had done 3" (2 are 4") shanks from the start. The 90 degree John guest fittings are nice too.

 

[BrewSomeMore]

Got the Magic Chef 9 cf $117 on clearance at Home Depot. Real good deal. I also have a MC 5.2 cf keezer. Works fine. Here's my build. I used pliers to take buzzer completely off, just go gentle. Got seven taps, used some from my side by side fridge that was using to much electricity and icing up badly on freezer side. Have to get some more kegs in there for sure.