Chest freezer size?

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Willsellout

Well-Known Member
Joined
Jun 17, 2006
Messages
913
Reaction score
0
Location
Oregon coast
So what should I be looking at if I wanted to have a 3-4 keg setup in a chest freezer? What do you guys use?


Dan
 
I got mine from best buy. 9 CU chest freezerit will hold 4 cornies and my CO2 tank, withouthaving to make a collarheres a couple of pics. also i have casters on mine

DSC04871.JPG


DSC048112.JPG
 
Best bet is to make a couple of cardboard cutouts that are the same diameter as a corny keg. Take them with you shopping and make sure that they will fit. Cubic feet alone won't tell you much as interior dimensions will differ as well as the size and location of the compressor hump. If you want one to hold 5 cornies I would take 6 cutouts with you. Never hurts to have an extra corny cooling off.
 
jdoiv said:
Best bet is to make a couple of cardboard cutouts that are the same diameter as a corny keg. Take them with you shopping and make sure that they will fit. Cubic feet alone won't tell you much as interior dimensions will differ as well as the size and location of the compressor hump. If you want one to hold 5 cornies I would take 6 cutouts with you. Never hurts to have an extra corny cooling off.
So I suppose I should order some Cornies then:D. They have a sears nearby, I can go check some out there I suppose.
 
I see many mentions of making "collars" and I know the purpose for them. Seems like a PITA though. Does the collar affect the efficiency and energy usage? If it's done right will it maintain the same effectiveness?


Dan
 
I suggest Lowes' Whirlpool 8.9 cuft model for $268. It will hold 5 cornies perfectly. Even if you only want 4 faucets, you can leave the 5th corny in there cold conditioning and carbing. See my videos.
 
I bought a 7.0 CF GE from Sams for $177. It holds 4 cornies and a 5lb CO2 tank on the compressor hump at an angle if you don't build the collar.

Building the collar is a bit of a pain but if you have the right tools and you pick good wood from the start, it is realitively easy. I built mine out of 2x4s with a 2x6 outside lip to it. No problems. It fits great and their are now efficiency issues at all. Tight seal, better than I thought it would work. Now my CO2 tank can stand straight up.

I am also finished with my chest freezer cover/bar and when I get that done I will post pics of it. D*mn Beverage Factory people have told me that it was going to ship 3 times now only for it not too. Having to spend extra on shipping just to get it here by this weekend for a party I am having.
 
If you can swing it, Bigger really is better in this dept. I am using a 14.8 and it is large enough to run 4 tapped kegs, 20# C02 bottle, and 2 7 gal. fermerters. Also a few 6'ers of Craft brew. Wife wasn't thrilled at losing the space that it takes up, but then we had 2 of her beers on tap, two of mine, AND each had a competition brew in secondaries dropping clear. That was the selling point on the larger chest freezer.
 
Drunkensatyr said:
If you can swing it, Bigger really is better in this dept. I am using a 14.8 and it is large enough to run 4 tapped kegs, 20# C02 bottle, and 2 7 gal. fermerters. Also a few 6'ers of Craft brew. Wife wasn't thrilled at losing the space that it takes up, but then we had 2 of her beers on tap, two of mine, AND each had a competition brew in secondaries dropping clear. That was the selling point on the larger chest freezer.
Ultimately I would love to have 4 on tap, one clearing and a 20# tank...just cause I'm lazy and don't want to fill up all the time.


Dan
 
I boutht my 5 cu ft freezers @ Sams.
I knew height was no problem, so I took 2 of my 3 gallon cornies in the store.
I'm sure they wondered WTF I was doing.
Good way to verify they'll fit.


[SIZE=-1] I have your car towed all the way to your house and all you've got for me is LIGHT beer? .............Biff - Back To The Future (1)


[/SIZE]
 
I just picked up a 17.1 cu chest freezer, but I have not desided if I'm going to put kegs in it or just use it for fermenting. The thing is big, I think I can get at least 4 5gal carboys in there:D ... I'm just keeping an eye out for a smaller one. The big one wont fit into my basement and I don't really want taps in my garage. The teen-aged kids nextdoor would sure to know about it and I fear I would have to kill someone.
 
So how are you guys attaching your collars to the freezer? I've got the freezer at home and am planning to build the collar and hopefully finish off my kegerator over the coming weekend. Any tips?
 
Like someone said, either using cardboard cutouts or careful measurement (I've gone to Sears/HD, borrowed a tape measure, and stood there measuring inside dimensions) is necessary to make sure you know exactly what will fit.

I bought a used 7.2cu Fridgeadaire. Most of the smaller chest freezers seem to have a standard interior compartment depth (front to back) of 16", which is just slightly too narrow to fit 2 kegs exactly one in front of the other. So they have to be placed in a staggered pattern on the floor of the freezer. Sad because if the freezer compartment was just 1-2" bigger or the kegs were 1" narrower, I could fit 4 kegs in the deep part. As it is, my freezer holds 3 regular 5gal corny kegs plus I am pretty sure it will hold 2 of the shorter 2.5/3.0gal kegs on the shelf, if I move the CO2 tank outside the freezer (I currently have it inside on the shelf and no mini kegs at this time). That's enough for 4 batches worth of stoage, or 3 if you don't use the mini kegs.

I did have to build a collar both to give myself some needed vertical clearence for the kegs and my 5# CO2 tank and it's regulator, and to avoid needing to drill tap holes through the freezer itself. Not to mention a handy place to attach my gas line manifold.
 
My top adds around a pound for the extra cedar wood thats on it. I have it setup so my 10 LB tank fits nicely inside it.
Insideguts.jpg
 
you shouldn't put co2 in the fridge, it compresses the gas moleculesand makes it deteriorate more rapidly, you should store co2 at room temp to get the most out of the tank.
 
Back
Top