Danby DAR440BL Mini-Fridge Conversion to Kegerator...

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spaceyaquarius

spaceyaquarius

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You can easily save $400 by converting your own Danby mini-fridge into a double tap Kegerator. I kept looking for Kegerators that were already converted (on Craigslist you have the risk of a scam or non-working fridge), and off Amazon you have a total of around $800 for a double tap Kegerator with this exact Danby 440BL 4.4 cubic feet model. I just slowly bought the equipment needed from Amazon/Lowes until I was ready to spend one weekend day completing the project. You don't need a power drill, nibbling tool, any movement of refrigerant lines, or even DIY experience if you get this model. If I can do it, so can you in 20 easy steps!!!

Equipment Required:
• One Danby brand 4.4 inner cubic feet, model number DAR440BL mini-fridge = $200
• Two 5-gallon Cornelius kegs outer aluminum and inner stainless steel = $120-$180
• Double-tap stainless steel draft tower 3” ID w/Perlick 525SS faucets = $100-$120
• Vice grips/box knife/hammer/allen wrench/electrical tape/wire cutter = $25
• New CO2 tank (filled) = $90-$100 (with refills at $10-$20 each)
• Four MFL ball lock quick-connects w/3/16" male barbs = $32
• Two sets of 10 ft., ¾” inner diameter lines = $22
• Double CO2 regulator + plumbers tape = $100
• Drip tray for the top of the fridge = $40
• Progressively larger screws/ nails = $5
• PC fan with cool blue lighting = $15
• Two 5/16" ID vinyl gas lines = $20
• Waterproof aluminum tape = $7
• Power converter AC/DC = $4
• Two male to male barbs = $6
• Four fender washers = $2




01 – As of 2013, the Danby model number DAR440BL can be purchased from $120-$180 from Amazon, Wal-Mart or Lowes. If you have Amazon prime, you can get free 2 day shipping. Home Depot sells a Danby Kegerator built from this exact model for $800. You will be able to save about $400 building your own Kegerator. There are other Danby models which have an inner freezer that drops down vertically from the top of the mini-fridge which cannot be disconnected. You will need the model that has the freezer component attached to the back wall of the mini-fridge (see photos below). After reading several Danby "how-to" conversion instructions before that were based off of the older Danby 440BL which is not in production anymore, I thought that a newer procedure needed to written. The newer version of this model is easier to convert than the earlier versions (of course you should check your model against the photos below to make sure).
 


02 – Earlier versions of this model required that internal shelf supports must be cut out with a utility knife or dremel tool, but this model’s inner door shelves can be taken out by hand, and half of the door shelves can be hand removed (one Cornelius keg and CO2 tank can be placed inside without using any tools, see photo below).





 
03 - In order to fit in the second Cornelius (or Sanke keg), you do not need to cut any of the inner wall projections. Only the door of the mini-fridge will be altered. You can easily pull off the black rubber seal on the mini-fridge door by hand. It will come out with no problem as it is not secured by glue. It will also go right back on by hand. Again, no glue or other adhesive is necessary.

04 – Next, remove the mini-fridge door hinge by using a Phillips head screwdriver, and then removing two more Phillips head screws which are underneath the black plastic cover. The door will come right off without doing anything to the bottom hinge of the mini-fridge door.



05 – Take the removed mini-fridge door, place it on a table, and use your box knife to cut the outside edges of the white plastic shelving. Keep the box knife at a 90 degree angle to the plastic at all times.

 
06 – Next, pull out the four plastic soda can holders by hand. No tools are necessary.



07 – Use the box knife to cut the inner edges of the plastic, and then smooth out any pointed plastic edges while also smoothing out any insulation that is not flush to the mini-fridge door. You can try to pry off the unwanted plastic section with a flat-head screwdriver, though it seems easier to just pull the entire thing off by hand after the appropriate cuts have been made. Use your waterproof aluminum tape to seal the open areas. Two to three layers will ensure that no moisture gets into the insulation. You do not want any mold to occur inside the mini-fridge door.



 
08 – The center of the tower will be drilled 5.5” from the back of the mini-fridge (with the front door facing you), and 10” from the left of the top of the fridge. The tap tower may end up being slightly to the left of center while facing the front of the mini-fridge, but this is necessary in order to avoid the refrigerant lines. Take your measuring tape and mark the center of the draft tower. Then cut out a 3” diameter cardboard circle which you will use to draw a circle on the top of the mini-fridge with a red Sharpie pen. There are some Danby mini-fridges that have a refrigerant line that must be moved away from the drill area (see photo below), but this 2013 model does not require this.



09 – If you do not have a high torque power drill, it is cheaper and safer to simply hammer a 1/2" drill bit into the edge of the circumference of the circle that you have just drawn onto the top of the mini-fridge. After piercing the black sheet metal, you can now hammer progressively larger drill bits, nails, or screws into the original hole. A Klein brand nibbling tool ($20) can be used to cut the 3” diameter circle (though this will take some patience and an entire day timewise). I used a high quality wire cutter that was able to do the same job and which also cost only $3. The hole does not have to be perfect, as it will be covered by the draft tower.

 

















10 – The nibbling tool was taking too long to cut a hole in the top of the fridge, so after creating a hole, I just simply used the wire cutters to cut and then peel back the sheet metal in small parts. The hole will not be perfectly circular, though it is not necessary as long as you make sure to not create a circle that is more than a few millimeters outside the circle that you have drawn earlier with the Sharpie. After you have created a 3” diameter hole in the top of the mini-fridge, use the box knife and a flat head screwdriver to pull out the insulating foam while being careful to not cut any electrical or refrigerant lines (even though they should not be there). After removing the foam, use the box knife to easily cut through the thin white plastic which is the roof of the inside of the mini-fridge. Now your mini-fridge has a cylindrical hole cut from the inner area to the outer top of the mini-fridge.
 
11 – Next, take the waterproof aluminum tape, and with at least two layers, seal the hole that you have just made. You don’t want any moisture to reach the insulation. I used three layers of aluminum tape.

 


12 – Some people believe that waterproof polysheet (marine lumber) is needed in order to secure the draft tower to the top of the mini-fridge (above photo). I don’t believe that this Danby 440BL mini-fridge model requires it. Most draft towers have ¼” holes (or one size smaller). Now that the aluminum tape is in place, you can mark the four bolt holes with a red Sharpie pen, and then use the same 1/2" drill bit with the earlier hammer method, followed with progressively larger nails in order to create a ¼” hole. This may sound strange, but the 1/2" drill bit is only being used to create a hole, and will not result in a 1/2" hole in the top of the fridge. Keep checking the size of the hole for the perfect fit for your screws.

Of course if you have a high torque electrical drill, you can just drill the holes. The bolts will need to be 2 ¼” long with a small washer on top of the mini-fridge and a larger fender washer of the correct inner diameter for the underside. A plastic cover for the top and bottom of the bolt is recommended in case you have purchased a copper bolt which may be coated in lead, though the chances of this are miniscule. An allen wrench and/or socket set may be required to complete this part of the installation of the draft tower.
 





13 – Screw the bolts into the draft tower and make sure your 3/16” inner diameter, 10-12 foot long beer lines are ready to hook up to each of the kegs. Most draft towers come with 5 foot long lines, so you’ll need to purchase an extra 5-7 feet of beer lines and an adapter (male-male barb) in order to connect the two beer lines. I had to microwave a bowl of water for 2.5 minutes and soak the beer line for 5 minutes to get the male-male barb into each beer line. The barb can be forced into the first half of the beer line with your hands, while forcing the 2nd beer line onto the other half of the male-male barb will probably require a combination of vice grips and needle nose pliers.

Many HBT threads seem to suggest that if you have 3/16" inner diameter beer lines, you will need around 10-12 feet of beer line length, or you may end up "knocking out carbonation" from the beer before it ends up reaching the beer glass. If your beer lines are the wrong length/inner diameter combination, then you can easily end up wasting CO2 from your tank (if you are not [naturally] sugar carbonating). Having the wrong inner diameter and beer line length vinyl tubes resulted in several batches of acidic/carbonic acid aftertaste problems when I was very new to home brewing. Many "starter" home brew kits come with 1/4" inner diameter beer lines at 5 feet of length for some reason, and will need to be replaced.
 
14 – Utilize a socket wrench set in combination with an allen wrench of the correct size in order to secure the draft tower to the top of the Danby mini-fridge. You can see that the hole in the top of the mini-fridge is not perfect, and neither is the aluminum taping. You may need to adjust the aluminum tape so that it does not stick out of the outer diameter of the draft tower.



If you don't have anyone helping you, you can just put the allen wrench into the bolt at the top of the fridge and tighten the nut from the inside of the fridge with your socket set.

 
In order to extend your beer lines from the double tap tower to your 10-12 foot beer lines, you will need a male-to-male barb adapter. Soak the beer lines in hot water as previously stated. Make sure that the beer lines meet at the middle of the male-to-male aluminum barb. I have read that some homebrewers suggest that a small incision should be made with a box knife at the edge of the vinyl beer line in order to allow for an easier barb to beer line connection. I believe that this is asking for a beer line leak, and should only be used if your inner diameter beer line is smaller than the outer diameter of the male-to-male barb. Of course if you have a difference in diameter between the two, you should make sure to use a hose lock.


 
15 - Installing a PC fan/copper tubing to cool the draft tower Mini-fridge thermostats will cycle the refrigeration process off and on, resulting in unstable temperatures. You can either replace the thermostat with a $40 digital replacement (that you will have to re-wire yourself), or an $80 plug in thermostat that is a simple plug in adapter. If you choose to add a new thermostat, you should mount the probe into a water bottle which can be filled with the gel that is inside “Blue Ice”, which will maintain a constant temperature.

Alternately, you can install a $15 PC fan inside the fridge to ensure that the air circulation keeps the thermostat kicking on, in order to keep your kegs cooler. An Antec brand LED tri-cool 9V 100mA 4”x6” hobby box with 3” PC fan with PVC elbow is available on Amazon for $15 will work just fine and will also add a cool blue light. If you want to connect the PC fan straight into the draft tower to make sure that the very first pour is always cold and not foamy, you can purchase a "hobby box" from Radio Shack to enclose the fan, buy an elbow piece PVC, and then a 1" inner diameter plastic hose to push up into the draft tower.



I purchased the PC fan, though this does require a $4 AC/DC power converter that plugs into the wall. You will have to split the black and red wires on the PC fan and also the power converter and tape it with electrical tape. Make sure you match up the hot wire (red) from the PC fan to the hot wire (all black) of the AC/DC power converter. The black PC wire should be the ground, and the black and white power converter wire should also be the ground.







The power supply cord will fit through the drain hole of the Danby 440BL fridge (but not the DCR122BLDD, you will just have to run the power supply cord through the mini-fridge door.



Alternately, you can just purchase a short length of 1/2" inner diameter copper tubing from a hardware store and this will transfer cooler temperatures into the beer tower. About 12" should be long enough, so that it doesn't interfere with the CO2 tank/regulator. This passive cooling method requires no extra power consumption. Then with the addition of 2 more 12" (1/2" outer diameter) copper tubes into the draft tower, then extending 7.5" across the ceiling of the fridge and down another 10" down the inner wall of the fridge, you will not need a PC fan at all.











 
17 – In order to run two different 5-gallon kegs inside of this Kegerator, you will need a dual line regulator with 3 gauges (which runs about $100). Each keg can be set at a different PSI, allowing you to force carbonate one keg while serving your primary keg. Make sure to apply Teflon (plumbers tape) in order to seal the connection between the CO2 tank and the dual line regulator. The gas lines connected to the CO2 tank will not need to be very long, as there is limited space in your newly converted Kegerator.



At first I used vinyl beer lines for my CO2, there was a gas leakage problem of course. These red gas lines have 2 walls for protection, and only cost about $10 each on amazon and come with the hose clamps and ball lock quick disconnects. Make sure to secure the nut (next to the quick disconnect gas line) with a crescent wrench while twisting the quick disconnect. Then turn the gas on, submerge the gas post in a container of sanitizer and see if there are any bubbles.



 
18 – You may need to secure the CO2 tank with a bungee cord to make sure that is doesn’t fall forwards when you take one of the Cornelius kegs out of your new Kegerator.

 
19 – This configuration will fit either:


  • Two Cornelius 1/6 kegs with ball locks (Pepsi model)
  • One 1/6 pin lock (Coke model) keg + one 1/6 ball lock (Pepsi model) Cornelius keg
  • One Cornelius keg + one Sanke keg (which will need a Sanke keg tap adapter if you want to buy 1/6 kegs from your liquor store).
  • Some people have been able to squeeze in two pin lock (Coke model) kegs if you use the box knife to cut out the lower shelf supports.

The photo below shows my two Cornelius (Pepsi model) 5-gallon kegs with a 5 pound CO2 tank on the shelf behind the kegs which is secured by a bungee cord.


 
I have a very similar build. I am having a hell of a time adjusting my temperature to a decent range. I'm cold crashing in it now and just want it between 32 and 36. Whenever i check it is either below that or above no matter how much i adjust it. I have installed a computer fan as well. Unfortunately not with a cool blue light. Its a sinister red.
 
20 - Replace the cheap chrome plated brass faucets that came with your draft tower with either the nice $35 Perlick stainless steel faucets, or the even nicer $50 Perlick stainless steel faucets that have the adjustable side valve to adjust the amount of head you want in your pour. The faucets just come out with some pulling. Hook up all the hoses, place your filled kegs in the kegerator and set each keg to the PSI required. You did it!!! This took me about 6 hours, but I wasn't rushing.

 
Great writeup! I scored the white model of this fridge on craigslist and plan to do something similar to what you have done. Thanks!
 
Does anyone know whether the newer models currently on Amazon will work for this?

Black: DAR044A4BDD
SS: DAR044A5BSLDD
White: DAR044A4WDD
 
Hey chrismtb...just bought a Danby DAR044A4BDD from Wallyworld. Works fine. All I did was drill a hole for the tower, if your using only 1 corny dont even need to chop up the door. As long as your handy enough to know which end of the screwdriver to hit the nail with it's a 2 beer job. Gonna set up a tower cooler later, but for now just a 1-1.75" hole for beer line and then 4 screw holes...done. Didn't find any coolant lines in the top. Took my time excavating the foam but found nothing. Hope this helps.

IMG_0662.jpg
 
Thanks for the info. Unfortunately, I took a measurement of the mini-fridge cutout in my bar and it is only 20" wide vs the 20.7" for this mini-fridge. There is a metal frame that makes this width non-negotiable without major modifications.

Does anyone know of something similar that is slightly smaller in width? My space is 33" high by 20" wide with adequate depth for anything. Ideally, I'd like to not have a freezer compartment and fit 2 kegs. If necessary, I'd be willing to relocate the compressor and cut out the compressor bump, although it would be better if I could just modify the door and shelves.
 
I don't know of a slightly smaller fridge.
I do know that my kegs won't quite fit side by side in my beer fridge. I could have trimmed interior plastic from the fridge, instead I trimmed rubber from the edges of the kegs. The top and bottom rubber flares out where it laps the steel. I used a drawknife to shave it down. Most people don't own a drawknife, a sharp chisel or razor scraper will likely be fine. I only shaved the edges at two opposite points on each keg. Now they squeeze in.
 
That's a good approach for 2 kegs, but I have 24 in my rotation, so it would be much easier to trim the plastic in the fridge.

JohnSand said:
I don't know of a slightly smaller fridge.
I do know that my kegs won't quite fit side by side in my beer fridge. I could have trimmed interior plastic from the fridge, instead I trimmed rubber from the edges of the kegs. The top and bottom rubber flares out where it laps the steel. I used a drawknife to shave it down. Most people don't own a drawknife, a sharp chisel or razor scraper will likely be fine. I only shaved the edges at two opposite points on each keg. Now they squeeze in.
Click to expand...
 
Wow! :rockin:
Well, I have 5, so, still easy to trim. Good luck with your install. Mine is free standing, still using picnic taps. Planning upgrades (aren't we always?)
 
My outside bar, which is made of cement and stone, has a built-in metal box for a mini-fridge / wine fridge. The 33"x20" space worked perfectly for mounting my old (very heavily modified) mini-fridge kegerator. Unfortunately, some mice recently ate my beer lines, gas lines, and compressor lines and I'm stuck trying to find a replacement. I haven't been able to find anything yet that seems like it would fit 2 kegs without cutting out the compressor bump or making a collar, so I might be forced down that route (again).
 
Great thread! I'm looking at doing this Dandy conversion. Is there any reason not to mount the c02 tank outside? I have a 20# from an old welder I no longer use.
 
I purchased the fridge at Costco as well. Model DAR044A1SLDD

Could be very similar construction to the one you are asking about. Mine looks the same as in the pictures at the start of this thread except it has a faux stainless steel front.

My kegs are slightly slimmer than the korney kegs so I didnt need to trim the side of the fridge to fit two in. I just needed to trim the door a little.
 
I've bought a tap tower (well, 2, but that's another story) and I'm planning my conversion soon. I'd like to be able to adjust pressure without removing the kegs. Has anyone succeeded in moving the gauges to the door? Or on top of the kegs? Got pictures? Thanks.
 
my 5lb CO2 tank with regulator sits behind my two kegs in the middle. If you have a fat arm it will be hard to get in there to adjust the pressure. I am not sure how you would get the gauges to the door without moving the tank from the back to the front.
 

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