CO2 inside or outside the kegerator??

[Kolesy1829]

Was wondering what the advantages of each setup are.

I am in the middle of my kegerator build and and really just waiting for the paint to fully cure and for a new door seal to come in to complete it. I have a dual body regulator so I can maintain different levels of CO2 in my two kegs. So If I put the bottle on the outside I would have to drill two holes to run the lines (not really wanting to do this).

And a pic of the progress so far....... I can still fit at least 2 cases of bottles on the shelves above the kegs too!

 

[Yooper]

Inside is fine. Or outside. It doesn't matter.

 

[stmou984]

Here's a little more info to the previous answer. Either is fine. The problem may arise that your tank is reading low/empty if its in the fridge too long and thus you don't actually know how much co2 you have. If there is a leak of co2 this also is harder to know since it "looks" low.

 

[Kolesy1829]

Got ya! Thanks stmou! Makes sense that the pressure would show lower with the colder temps.

So my next question then would be would the gauges for the keg pressure also be showing lower than what they actually are? Just curious as far as when I would go to force carb.... Thanks again!

 

[Yooper]

Got ya! Thanks stmou! Makes sense that the pressure would show lower with the colder temps.

So my next question then would be would the gauges for the keg pressure also be showing lower than what they actually are? Just curious as far as when I would go to force carb.... Thanks again!

No. There is no difference in the fridge or at room temperature in the gauges.

 

[Kolesy1829]

Cool! Thanks Yooper for the info, I'm just getting into the kegging deal so this info helps.

 

[BBL_Brewer]

The only advantage to putting the tank inside the frige is not having to drill a hole for the gas line and also shorter lines I suppose. Disadvantages are that it takes up space and the tank capacity gauge doesn't read right like already stated. Other than that, it makes no difference.

 

[JeepDiver]

The only advantage to putting the tank inside the frige is not having to drill a hole for the gas line. Disadvantages are that it takes up space and the tank capacity gauge doesn't read right like already stated. Other than that, it makes no difference.

And as already said, the gauge reads the same as outside. CO2 gauges read the gas pressure which doesn't change until the liquid runs out. Same cold or warm

 

[pabloj13]

No. There is no difference in the fridge or at room temperature in the gauges.

There's no difference in the distribution gauge, but the tank gauge is going to read lower in the fridge because of lower vapor pressure, no?

 

[jbguzzi]

Yes there should be a difference. Pv=nrT.if temp goes down pressure does too with volume remaining constant. But its all good. I saw that with my setup.

 

[pabloj13]

Yes there should be a difference. Pv=nrT.if temp goes down pressure does too with volume remaining constant. But its all good. I saw that with my setup.

Right, in the end it doesn't matter I guess.

 

[JeepDiver]

Yes there should be a difference. Pv=nrT.if temp goes down pressure does too with volume remaining constant. But its all good. I saw that with my setup.

Yes there will be a difference, but the gauge outside will read X until right before empty, the one will read X-n until right before empty (where n is some number I'm not going to figure out on a Friday evening). They both read constant until right before empty

 

[Yooper]

Yes there will be a difference, but the gauge outside will read X until right before empty, the one will read X-n until right before empty (where n is some number I'm not going to figure out on a Friday evening). They both read constant until right before empty

Right- they will be different, but not accurate anyway.

I (half) joke that the best way to deal with that gauge is to cover it with duct tape. It's not like a full gauge that reads "full" or "empty". A co2 tank is more like a propane tank than a fuel tank. Just like a propane tank, co2 is a liquid that is dispensed as a gas. As such, the gauge is useless as it's not going to go lower until a, you put it in the fridge, or b, it's completely empty.

Empty is surely empty, but there is no advance notice!

Just like a propane tank- if you want to know how much gas is in the tank accurately, you have to weigh it.

 

[pabloj13]

Right- they will be different, but not accurate anyway.

I (half) joke that the best way to deal with that gauge is to cover it with duct tape. It's not like a full gauge that reads "full" or "empty". A co2 tank is more like a propane tank than a fuel tank. Just like a propane tank, co2 is a liquid that is dispensed as a gas. As such, the gauge is useless as it's not going to go lower until a, you put it in the fridge, or b, it's completely empty.

Empty is surely empty, but there is no advance notice!

Just like a propane tank- if you want to know how much gas is in the tank accurately, you have to weigh it.

Like this image I made today?

 

[jbguzzi]

http://www.co2info.com/files/chart02.jpg
Helpful?