Frigidaire Model FRC445GB Mini-Fridge Kegerator Conversion

[Kieran]

I'm to the point of mounting the tower. How did you guys secure your tower? From what I have read, I purchased a piece of 1/2 plywood, but are you guys screwing the tower to the top/inside of your fridge?

I got lucky on my build. I used the four mounting holes as a template to cut a square hole through the foam. I was able to drill through the fridge and bolt the tower directly because it cleared the refrigerant lines perfectly. Since my square hole was so small I didn't need any plywood support on top of the foam.

 

[davebach]

I'm to the point of mounting the tower. How did you guys secure your tower? From what I have read, I purchased a piece of 1/2 plywood, but are you guys screwing the tower to the top/inside of your fridge?

In my case, I ended up using smaller screws than supplied with the tower to mount it to the top of the 1/2 ply that I used. It's pretty secure... but if it were going to be long term (I plan on making my kegerator a built-in, and it will be mounted to the counter) then I would have used 3/4 ply on the top of the fridge and longer screws.

I see no need to mount it to the inside of the fridge.

Dave

 

[BrewThruYou]

Figured it out.

 

[blackstrat5]

Sorry to chanegt he subject a little. But does anyone have a 3 gallon better bottle and this fridge...and could i fit it in their to ferment in? It looks like maybe the door ridges might hit the bottle since it's square. Just curious. If it fits, I'll get this fridge and eventually change it to a kegorator.

 

[BIGREDIOWAN]

Well, finally got around to getting this fridge. My birthday was Friday so I got some money and was able to purchase the fridge with that money. Now, I just need to get my next brew day together so I can keg for the first time. WOOHOO!!!

 

[BrewThruYou]

Sorry to chanegt he subject a little. But does anyone have a 3 gallon better bottle and this fridge...and could i fit it in their to ferment in? It looks like maybe the door ridges might hit the bottle since it's square. Just curious. If it fits, I'll get this fridge and eventually change it to a kegorator.

I don't have a 3 gallon better bottle. I tried a 5 gallon glass carboy and it will not fit on the floor unless you remove the plastic door insert (with all the can holders, etc.) Then it'll fit quite easily.

On another note, I finished mine this weekend:

Pretty much followed two builds: Build 1 & Build 2. Should have beer in one of the kegs tonight.

 

[mforsman]

They keep changing the dang model numbers, best buy has the BFPH44M4LM

Since I live in Brooklyn and they only have one at the Manhattan location (plus getting a cab back is a total hassle, I've looked around for someone with delivery. Another vendor (linked below) has what appears to be the same fridge but with a different model number: FFPH44M4L

I don't mind spending the money as long as I'm not WASTING the money. Or should I just suck it up and hope I get a nice cabby?

Any and all help is appreciated.

http://www.ajmadison.com/cgi-bin/ajmadison/FFPH44M4L.html

 

[BrewThruYou]

They keep changing the dang model numbers, best buy has the BFPH44M4LM

Since I live in Brooklyn and they only have one at the Manhattan location (plus getting a cab back is a total hassle, I've looked around for someone with delivery. Another vendor (linked below) has what appears to be the same fridge but with a different model number: FFPH44M4L

I don't mind spending the money as long as I'm not WASTING the money. Or should I just suck it up and hope I get a nice cabby?

Any and all help is appreciated.

http://www.ajmadison.com/cgi-bin/ajmadison/FFPH44M4L.html

They aren't changing the model numbers. The new one starts with L at Lowe's and the Best Buy one starts with B.

I'm pretty sure the one at AJ Madison is the exact same thing. The model ends in M4LX where the M4LB is the all-black model and the M4LM is the silver "mist" model.

 

[BrainDfect]

Do you guys think BestBuy will price match the fridge even though the model number is not exactly the same? Lowe's has it for 179.99 and BestBuy has it for 199.99, but Lowe's does not have it in stock.

 

[bferullo]

Probably not since it isn't advertised in a flyer. I was thinking the same thing

 

[BrewThruYou]

I'm pretty sure they won't price match. That's pretty much why they have different model numbers for different retailers.

 

[BIGREDIOWAN]

No, Best Buy will not price match. All they will do is if the fridge goes on sale 30 days from the time you bought it is give you the difference back. How do I know...........I asked them because that was a concern of my as well. It only applies to them "in-house" from what I understand. They won't even consider Lowe's prices...........

 

[ruk]

Question to some of you who have done the front faucet design. How long is the shank used? Could the 2" work ? how about 4". The reason I am asking is that my LBHS has no 3" shanks and I really want to mod this tonight. Thanks to my wife and kids for getting me an early fathers day present.

 

[Vongo]

Question to some of you who have done the front faucet design. How long is the shank used? Could the 2" work ? how about 4". The reason I am asking is that my LBHS has no 3" shanks and I really want to mod this tonight. Thanks to my wife and kids for getting me an early fathers day present.

I used 4 inch with perlick faucets from Williams brewing. I don't see why 3" would not work... Will they let you take them back if they don't work out ?

 

[casey914]

I went out and bought one of these fridges because of this thread... mostly have just been putting my beer in there and letting it hang out, havent done the conversion yet. Was pondering procuring a setup for mounting a commercial 1/6th that I can get at my local Total wine... What type of connector do those traditionally use? I figured if i was going to do a homebrew setup i would want a ball lock from the research i have done here. Are commercial 1/6 kegs also ball lock? I keep reading Sanke but i am not sure where that fits in... Is there a kegs for dummies section?

Thanks in advance,
Casey

 

[BrewThruYou]

I went out and bought one of these fridges because of this thread... mostly have just been putting my beer in there and letting it hang out, havent done the conversion yet. Was pondering procuring a setup for mounting a commercial 1/6th that I can get at my local Total wine... What type of connector do those traditionally use? I figured if i was going to do a homebrew setup i would want a ball lock from the research i have done here. Are commercial 1/6 kegs also ball lock? I keep reading Sanke but i am not sure where that fits in... Is there a kegs for dummies section?

The commercial kegs will be sanke. Here are two posts with commercial kegs.

One 1/4 Barrel
Two 1/6 Barrels

If you are just doing homebrew, you'd want to go two corny kegs. Using commercial kegs, you would need to mod the fridge to accept two 1/6 barrels or even a 1/2 barrel (pics are in this thread somewhere). Ball locks are a tight fit side by side just by themselves (pin locks won't fit side by side).

I think you should be able to get some quick disconnects for switching between sanke and ball lock. Like run the beer line a certain distance and then have a disconnect that you could use to switch lines into the keg.

 

[mforsman]

How did you guys get your temperature probe in to the fridge? I ordered the Johnson digital temperature controller, and now that it's here I'm honestly not sure where to run the probe. While I'm in this thread, here's my kegerator!

Couldn't have done it without you guys, thanks for all of the heavy lifting you did to make it easy for me.

 

[redshift]

I've now read through the entire thread (53 pages - holy cow!), but I have one more question I'm hoping someone can help me out with. I already have a Kegerator setup that came from Sam's several years ago (Haier I think). I converted it to a triple tower setup after I got into home brewing.

At this very attractive price point, what I'm wondering is if I could make a nice little dual purpose setup. I have my old single tower I could put on this fridge for occasional dispensing, or if I added an external temperature controller could I also use this as a fermentation chamber? I've read somewhere in the thread that folks believed that a carboy would fit in the fridge, that it might just need a little wedge or something to keep it more level. I also saw some concern expressed about the airlock making it too tall.

I'm hoping someone would be willing to post a quick picture to help confirm that a carboy would fit.

 

[mforsman]

If I remember correctly and airlock will not fit, but a blowoff tube will.

 

[scrouch1]

Bumbler!!! I accidentally snapped the thermostat sensing coil (copper colored) at a point in between the thermostat itself and the inside wall of the fridge ... this is after removing the screws to the t-stat so I could relocate the entire t-stat/lighting unit farther back into the fridge.

My question is this>>>If that coil is snapped, you said "It is tagged and bagged. Need to get a new one." A new one what??? New sensing unit/thermometer OR a completely new fridge? I'm confused ... I don't want to go any further on my kegerator conversion if I have to buy a new fridge. Thanks, Bumbler

 

[Bumbler]

Bumbler!!! I accidentally snapped the thermostat sensing coil (copper colored) at a point in between the thermostat itself and the inside wall of the fridge ... this is after removing the screws to the t-stat so I could relocate the entire t-stat/lighting unit farther back into the fridge.

My question is this>>>If that coil is snapped, you said "It is tagged and bagged. Need to get a new one." A new one what??? New sensing unit/thermometer OR a completely new fridge? I'm confused ... I don't want to go any further on my kegerator conversion if I have to buy a new fridge. Thanks, Bumbler

Tagged and bagged only refers to the T-stat. It will now call for cooling 100% of the time and never shut off. Continue moving the t-stat as planned and add an external t-stat. Ranco or Johnson. Either one will work. It's just a slight change in plans.

 

[scrouch1]

I just plugged my fridge in for 5 minutes on full blast (level 6 on the thermostat) and didn't hear the compressor working ... won't I hear it working until I get a new external t-stat?

 

[scrouch1]

ClaudiusB, I've got a dilemma - I just recently was trying to move my t-stat to a location further back in the fridge to accommodate two corny kegs. However, during the move I accidentally broke the capillary tube to the t-stat (AND heard a hissing noise) at the same point as shown in your second photo (the one w/o the cap. tube).

From there, I saw your post and pulled the rest of the line from the inside wall of the fridge ... about 2 1/2 feet worth. It didn't connect to anything in the back of the fridge (ie compressor or other lines to be worried about). So I turned up the t-stat all the way to the #6 setting and the fridge compressor ISN'T turning on like you had posted it would. So I'm unsure where to go from here!!!!

Do I install an external on/off t-stat and hope that it will work then?? I also could pinch the remaining cap. tube together too - maybe that would cause the t-stat to register and cause the compressor to kick back up again.

ClaudiusB and anyone else who might know how to help ... PLEASE HELP ASAP!!!! I'm lost on how to get this fridge working again, and I'm starting to get thirsty for some cold homebrew. Thanks!

 

[ClaudiusB]

ClaudiusB, I've got a dilemma - I just recently was trying to move my t-stat to a location further back in the fridge to accommodate two corny kegs. However, during the move I accidentally broke the capillary tube to the t-stat (AND heard a hissing noise) at the same point as shown in your second photo (the one w/o the cap. tube).

From there, I saw your post and pulled the rest of the line from the inside wall of the fridge ... about 2 1/2 feet worth. It didn't connect to anything in the back of the fridge

The end of the capillary tube was attached to the freezer/evaporator plate.

Do I install an external on/off t-stat and hope that it will work then??

Connect the RED and BLUE wire together, compressor should start up and run forever.
To control the temp you need an external temp controller or for the looks a Love controller

Connect the two wires together and let me know.

Cheers,
ClaudiusB

 

[scrouch1]

instead of 1st connecting the red and blue wires together with a wire nut, I tried to touch the ends together ... nothing happened.

But then I switched the placement of the wires ... put the blue wire where the red one should have gone and the red where the blue one should have gone ... fridge kicked right back up and works like a charm!!!

 

[ClaudiusB]

instead of 1st connecting the red and blue wires together with a wire nut, I tried to touch the ends together ... nothing happened.

Should have worked.
The RED & the BLACK wires always have 120 V.

But then I switched the placement of the wires ... put the blue wire where the red one should have gone and the red where the blue one should have gone ... fridge kicked right back up and works like a charm!!!

Did you remove the wires at any time?

I am glad you compressor is running.

Cheers,
ClaudiusB

 

[hagbardceline]

I picked the Best Buy model of this (BFPH44M4LM) up last night for $100 off of craigslist that I'm going to use as a fermentation chamber.

A 5 gallon glass carboy fits on the bottom shelf, no problem. A 6 Gallon bucket fits on the back hump with a few inches to spare at the top for a blow off tube.

A 6.5 gallon glass carboy does not fit. Possibly with door modifications? Has anyone tried this?

I wonder if a 6 gallon better bottle is any smaller and would fit. Anyone know how they compare in size to a 5 gallon glass carboy or a 6 gallon bucket? I'm probably just going to end up using a bucket.

I set the fridge to 1, I had two gallons of water in there and this morning it was 40F.

I'm picking up a Johnson A419 Temp Controller tonight. Any suggestions on how / where to run the probe? For now I was thinking running it through the crease in the door and into a glass of water. Does this seem appropriate? Set it to 68 degrees with a 3 degree differential. I should then set the fridge to 6 (Max), correct?

Thanks!

 

[kraypd]

New poster here. Thought I would share my fridge buying story.
For the past three weeks I have been trying to buy one of the Lowe's Frigidaire 4.4 for $179 but after three weeks of them telling me that there would be one in next week I decided to drive the hour and a half to my closest best buy and plunk down the $199 for one of theirs. I called ahead and said they had two.
After reading this thread and noted how many were damaged I insisted at looking at it before they loaded it and I drove an hour and a half home. Sure enough when they opened it, the back edge was dented. Dented mind you nothing broken or smashed. I said as I am paying full price I would like to see the other one. The disgruntled employee trudged off to get the other one. While taking their time the manager came around and asked us why we were standing there. I told him I was not opposed to taking the dented one as long as it still had the warranty which he said it would have the same one year warranty for a discounted price. He was no less than elated to give me back $60 to take that one.
My cost $140, the dent will never be seen in the back corner. Also of note when I got it home the freezer hinge was broken too which I was taking out anyway. After hearing of everyones experience with damaged units and my own experience with seeing how these things are packaged. I think there is a very slim chance of getting one that isn't damaged. My conclusion is that this is a great unit for conversion and for lack of the manufacturer packaging it well enough, many new fridges could be had for conversion for much less than full retail.

Thanks for this great tip. I just bought mine at Lowes last Saturday. The retail price was $179 but the only unit that was on the floor had a box that was torn open at the seam. The others were up on the higher shelves and needed the forklift to pull down (pain in the butt for the sales team). I explained to the salesman that I wouldn't mind taken the one with the box damage if he could knock a little off. I got it for $120 and there was only a minor surface scratch on the right side.

Thanks again.

 

[brian231]

What type of glue did people use to glue the top back down?

 

[BrainDfect]

What level is everyone setting the original thermostat at?