new kenmore 4.6 cu ft slide out freezer tray *KEGERATOR* help

Hi,
i went to sears today to try and find a good mini fridge to use as a 2 keg kegerator.. Has anyone done this with the kenmore 4.6 cu ft minis with the slide out tray for the freezer. i assume that since it is 4.6 cu ft its plenty big enough for 2 5gal cornys and a tank. but since the tray for the freezer slides out will it be more risky to install a tower? Has anyone done it? Its only $167 at sears.
model # is 94683 for the stainless one.

Thanks, Matt

 

If you could provide a link to the exact fridge it would help a little more.

 

this is the fridge http://www.searsoutlet.com/4-6-cu-f...cid=794&pn=1&ps=10&pid=43332&mode=buyUsedOnly

 

anyone?

 

I am not sure if that will work or not but for that price you could get a bigger chest freezer and convert it into a kegerator with a temperature controller. Then you would have room to lager if you wanted to too.

 

ya i thought about that but its more work to have to build a collar and wire a temp controller and all that stuff. and i want something more portable and nice looking to keep inside. idk if i will be moving from my current house to another house, or an apartment in january so portability may be an issue

 

Understandable. You don't have to build a collar with a keezer by the way. I have a 2 tap tower mounted to the top of mine reinforced by a 2x8 that I sunk in the insulation. I have 2 kegs, a pc fan box/blower, 5lb CO2 tank, and a carboy that I am lagering in there right now. I think it is a 7.0 cu ft. I hear ya on the portability thing but it might be worth looking into, especially for the extra room to expand or lager if you want to.

 

I just bought that mini fridge. I believe I have already seen someone convert this one. But now I can't find the pics.

Any help would be appreciated. If I do manage to convert mine, I'll post the pics.

Thanks,

 

I'm considering this same fridge for a conversion, it looks like it will work. Has anyone done it?

 

I realized it was a Frigidare, but it looks very similar to this model. I have not yet found the time to try and take the top off, since I want to drill in the middle of the kegerator to install a tower.

Looks like its safe if you drill towards the front, but that won't work for me.

 

I recently acquired this Kenmore fridge and would love to make a kegerator of it. Clearly, putting shanks through the front door should be no problem, but I'd really prefer a tower. I was afraid of drilling through the top of the fridge, since evidently this is where the cooling lines lie, but I was greatly encouraged by accounts of a few sweet Frigidaire conversions:

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/frigidaire-model-frc445gb-mini-fridge-kegerator-conversion-89013/

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/my-frigidaire-kegerator-build-150576/

The Kenmore and the Frigidaire look remarkably similar on the interior, and the indentation pattern on the Frigidaire's foam top (with black top removed) looks a lot like the pattern on the Kenmore's black plastic top. So, my guess is that the conversions should be pretty analogous as well: Pry the plastic top off, carve out the foam to expose the cooling lines, and drill around the lines. (And, you know, some other steps in between.)

My problem is that I'm having a heck of a time getting the plastic top off my fridge. I've worked all the way around the edges with a knife to pry the "side" of the top from the body of the fridge, and tried to pop the top off with a mini crowbar, but it just won't budge. But several who did the Frigidaire conversion noted that the top popped right off—maybe the Kenmore uses better glue? Anyway, I refuse to give up at this point, even if it means some minor cosmetic damage to the rear of the fridge (who's going to see that, anyway?), but I'm not sure where to go from here. I'm inclined to believe that prying hard on the top can't do too much damage, since any cooling lines are presumably separated from my crowbar/hammer by an inch or two of foam. A bit disconcertingly, though, sometimes prying into what foam I can access emits a rather foul odor—rotting fish comes to mind. Is this a bad sign?

I think this fridge has a lot of potential for a nice conversion, not least of all because it's a smidge bigger than the Frigidaire (and, of course, because I actually have one), so I'd hate to see this thread die. Anybody have any suggestions for getting past the tenacious top? I'll try to post some pictures of the current state of affairs shortly.

 

I have also been having trouble getting the top off. I haven't pried too hard, because I don't wan to break the top, but I am now considering cutting a small square maybe 3x3 in where I want to locate the tower instead of taking the whole thing off. I know Ill have to do something about it once I put the tower on, but maybe that way it'll be easier. In any case I want to put a granite top in the future, so maybe the ugly-looking square that I cut off will only be provisional.

Any thoughts? Anyone successfully converted this one yet?

 

Yeah, I had thought about cutting out a small square on top and going in that way, but I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to stabilize the tower on a plank of wood under the top like others are doing. But it hadn't occurred to me to just add another layer on top like granite and securing to that—that's a really great idea that I'll look into.

Nice to know others are in the same boat on this one. I'm willing to experiment a bit on my fridge (within reason) since I don't really have much use for a mini-fridge that isn't also a kegerator.

 

So I finally found the time to go into the top of the fridge. I will say I am not the handiest person out there, nor do I have all the best tools for this. But here's what I did:
I decided to cut a square in the center of the fridge over the black plastic top. I aimed for the 4 squared in the middle. The plastic was tougher than I though and I had a hard time trying to cut it first with an exacto knife, later I drilled holes all around the perimeter of the square to make the task easier, and finally I used a sharp pairing knife to take it out. I guess the glue on the top is better than other fridges, since I even had some minor trouble to take it off.

I can confirm the rotten fish smell. It probably comes from the foam. I then started digging to look for the cooling lines and found them about after 2 or 3 inches of foam.

Turns out this may be easier than I thought. If you look at the fridge on the inside, you can see where the cooling lines run, as they are etched into the plastic. If you aim for the dead center of the fridge you will miss both of the lines running parallel to the sides. I used a 1 in holesaw drill bit, but it is kinda tight between the cooling lines. There's probably about 1 1/2 in of space between them. I later enlarged the hole a little bit with the knife, since I want to fit two 1/2in copper tubes in there. You can't make the diameter longer without risking hitting a cooling line, so I just cut into the back of the hole.


I haven't finished the project yet, but here are the inital pics. I hope this helps others. I still have to figure out the best way to secure the tower on this...

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/members/luisfrancisco/albums/kenmore-4-6-cu-ft-kegerator/

 

Anyone else experimenting with this conversion?
I've already done some more modifications and am almost ready to try this one as a kegerator. I need some help with something:

While I was moving the thermostat I inadvertently pulled the green wire from where it was connected. It must have happened while I was tugging to move it out of the way. Can anyone tell me where the green wire goes. I can't seem to see where it plugs. I don't know if I'll have to solder it back or something. I hope not.

Thanks.

Also, I haven't finished yet, but it looks like I will have to cut out the edges where the shelves used to rest in order to fit the two cornies in the fridge.

Although the 5lb aluminum Co2 tank rests very nicely with the two regulators on the back.

 

Just an update for everyone. I am trying to fit the two cornies and it is VERY tight. I am still not sure I will be able to fit them.
I have two ball lock kegs and I already removed the plastic on the door and replaced it with a flat surface. I maybe still be able to fit them both, as I already managed to close the door forcing it a bit, but it's so tight that it doesn't stay closed.
I even tried removing the sides where the trays used to sit to get a little more space. But it is still tight. Also, if you remove those parts, be careful on the right side, as some of the wiring for the temp controller runs through there. I accidentally cut some of those wires, and now I have more work to do. sigh.

Just wanted to alert others that it may require some tinkering to get two kegs in there, and even then, it may not fit. Still trying to figure out a way to make it work, since I already cut everywhere on the fridge.

I will post some more pics later if anyone's still interested.

 

Did you get this to work? I've got one in my living room right now and wondering if I should give it a go.

 

I just got this fridge as well, after I can confirm that this unit is working I plan on making this a kegerator and hopefully will get a decent tutorial written up.

I read on another forum that if you mix some water and corn starch and spread a thin layer on the top of the fridge, the corn starch will harden where the coolant lines are. just some food for thought. Ill give this a test before I make any physical changes to the unit.

 

Am I crazy or is the price on the Sears website only $21?

 

Looks like the Memphis store has it for $20.93 Cheapest price near me is $136.93, but they are all reconditioned.

 

more pictures would be nice. Any additional developments in your build?

 

Sorry I hadn't come back to post. I didn't know anyone else was interested. I actually finished with the conversion. The two cornies were a tight fit, but they did fit after all. I had to move the temp controller to the back making the wires a little longer. Also had to cut the edges where the trays used to fit, and replace the door plastic with a flat one.

I will post some pics tomorrow. As for where to drill the hole, just remember that the coolant lines are etched into the top of the fridge on the inside. You can clearly see where the coolant lines run. The hole can't be that wide, but if you make it a little long and not completely wide, you can easily fit the two lines for a tap tower.

 

I just bought one of these last week (was on sale at sears for $146 for the SS model). I have been converting it for the past few days. Not the easiest convertion, the fridge is listed as 4.6cf but I think it must be slightly narrower than other brands. I had to remove the molded rails on the left side to fit two corneys. I was able to leave the rails on the right side. They came off very easily with a Dremel tool. I considered covering the removed portions with something but they cannot be seen with kegs in the fridge. The door panel is very easy to remove, I ended up cutting out the perimeter of the panel, put the seal back on it and it works great. I still need to find something to cover the insulation that was exposed. Next step is to install the tower. I would love to see any pics or writeup related to this fridge especially for the tower install. Overall its a very nice looking fridge for a nice price, I think the front exterior is the nicest looking compact fridge I've seen (its actual metal, unlike others that seem to be plastic)

 

$146? You could have gotten 7 of them for that price!

 

The one I bought was brand new not a refurb. The cheapest refurb at a sears outlet anywhere near me was more than the new one. I'm guessing that $21 one in memphis was dropped down a few flights of stairs and then run over by a hoard of elephants to be that cheap!

 

chymera: I got mine from sears as well, same price $146, and the stainless looks great. I read somewhere that dry erase boards are good for the inside of the door, because they have a nice finish and you can jot notes on whats in the keg(s). Do you have any pictures of your progress?

luisfrancisco: I look forward to seeing those pics, what did you end up mounting the tower to?
do you think it would be possible to house 2 3Gallon kegs as well as a 5 gallon inside? (assuming the c02 is outside)

ptakers: If 7 of them happened to be in stock in sears refurb section, and you also happen to be in Memphis at that moment I guess it might have been possible =)

 

Hi,

I added some more pics to the same gallery. Here's the link:

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/members/luisfrancisco/albums/kenmore-4-6-cu-ft-kegerator/

As for getting two 3 gallon kegs, I wouldn't know. What are the dimensions on those? I guess they could if you can somehow sit them on the back ledge, but I don't really know how tall or wide they are. The two 5 gallon cornies fit really tight and you have to move the around quite a bit to make them fit. Mine aren't perfectly circular so, they fit with some moving around and pushing.

Other 4.6 cu ft fridges seem to be wider and my guess is this one has a bigger ledge on the back, because the tank rests very nicely on the ledge, and I have seen some other conversions where they had to put a small stand to help the tank sit well.

Sorry about the quality of the pics, my blackberry is old and I was too lazy to have my big camera fixed.

Let me know if I can help with anything else.

Luis

 

Anyone drill the top yet?