Buy kegerator or build one?

[TheBrewGoose]

I've been dreaming of a kegerator for a long time. I bought a fridge (with a front door) and the plan was to build one myself. But i've been looking at Kegerators on amazon, with 2 taps and they look amazing. But i have no experience with them nor do i have any clue if they are worth buying.

So, should i build one or buy it ready? I havent bought any equipment yet.

And what kegerators (2 tap) would you recommend?

Cheers!

 

[TallahasseeBrew]

I'd just build it, seeing how you have the spare fridge anyway. If you're halfway decent at carpentry, you can make it as good and usually better than the pre built ones.

 

[TimmyWit]

When I first got into brewing, I bought one. A few years down the road, I wanted more taps so I built one. If I would have known how easy it is to build one, I would have never bought that first one. Browse this thread for ideas:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=29053

Also, whether you build or buy, give flow-control faucets some consideration. They let you serve beer at different pressures without having to change out the length of your line.

 

[TheBrewGoose]

When I first got into brewing, I bought one. A few years down the road, I wanted more taps so I built one. If I would have known how easy it is to build one, I would have never bought that first one. Browse this thread for ideas:
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=29053

Also, whether you build or buy, give flow-control faucets some consideration. They let you serve beer at different pressures without having to change out the length of your line.

Alright. Thanks for the tip!

What is the estimated cost?

 

[day_trippr]

- Two SS forward sealing faucets: $70 and up
- two SS thru-fridge shanks: $24
- SS tail pieces, beer nuts and gaskets: $10
- two pairs of beer and gas disconnects: $16
- four sets of SS flare fittings: $8
- 6 SS tubing clamps: $4
- 24' of 3/16" ID beer line: $12
- 10' of gas line: $6
- primary single-body regulator: $50 and up
- splitter: $5
- CO2 cylinder: $50 and up
- two kegs: $100 and up

Estimated minimum: $354

Cheers!

 

[ChelisHubby]

If 2 taps is all you will need then you can Buy a ready built kegerator but most of us have found that two kegs just is not enough variety so we build. Cost wise a pre made kegerator is expensive, you can build for a lot less. I think that I might be happy with three taps but I made mine where I can have 4.

 

[Moose_MI]

I think it depends on a lot of things. Probably save a lot of money if you find one that you like on CL. I built mine out of some new stuff, some used stuff and some stuff I had on hand. I'm not particularly handy but it was fun and looks good by my standards. It's more fun to show off something you built in my opinion.

 

[TheBrewGoose]

Could this be worth buying? Seems like a good deal.

https://www.kegoutlet.com/tower-keg-kit.html

 

[Moose_MI]

I do not have any experience with towers. I would find out if you need to circulate cold air up the tower and if so have a plan for that. I think you're also going to be drilling a hole in the top/lid of a fridge/freezer. I don't think this is an issue for most freezers since the lids do not usually have any coils but of course once you drill that hole in your freezer your committed . If your going to put it on a mini fridge then I guess just make sure you have schematics so you don't ruin your fridge.
Again, I'm just speculating since I never really looked into towers. I dont have any facts but it seems more people start with a keezer with a collar and Perlick taps vs doing a tower.

Hopefully others with towers can give you some feedback.....good luck

 

[TX_Brewing]

Build!! Until you get to the roughly $1000 or higher range of kegerators you are much better off building. Especially if you already have the fridge! An inexpensive kegerator will likely need some tweaking, and for the same or less you can have top of the line components plus a freezer to store extra hops, grains, etc...

 

[griffi]

I got a craigslist mini fridge and ordered a kegco 2 tap (Perlick 650ss flow control) tower. waiting on a drip tray and some cabinet pulls for a guard rail... Going to have $360 invested when all said and done but I paid $100 for the fridge. There are some detailed build threads on this site.

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showpost.php?p=7373600&postcount=18

 

[brewerdoc]

To me part of the fun of brewing was building my own kegarator but to each their own. It can be cheaper to build your own, depending on how extravagant you go and or if you buy second hand off craigslist.