Kegerator build: need help deciding how many taps

[Knightshade]

Yea that’s the deal that brewhardware has going. It’s intertap with shank, ball lock disconnect, and all Eva/duotight tubing/fittings. I think I’m gonna splurge, though, and build it up on more beer so I can have the nukatap faucet instead of the intertap. For sure going with the evabarrier tubing, though. Anyone know why intertap has a special shank? I know you don’t have to get it and the faucet will work with standard shanks just curious if there was anything special about it.

If I'm thinking of the thing...that I think you're referring to....I believe that shank just makes it easier to put a duo tight connector onto it. Which if you're trying to futz with lines and all that inside a tap tower...you'll appreciate...immensely.

https://www.morebeer.com/products/duotight-pushin-fitting-65-mm-14-8-516-reducer.html
I have no experience with a kegerator that doesn't have duotight/interap faucets, but I've been really happy with my setup. Really easy to switch out connectors for cleaning too.

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

If I'm thinking of the thing...that I think you're referring to....I believe that shank just makes it easier to put a duo tight connector onto it. Which if you're trying to futz with lines and all that inside a tap tower...you'll appreciate...immensely.

https://www.morebeer.com/products/duotight-pushin-fitting-65-mm-14-8-516-reducer.html
I have no experience with a kegerator that doesn't have duotight/interap faucets, but I've been really happy with my setup. Really easy to switch out connectors for cleaning too.

I went with the nukatap faucet with a stainless shank and all the Evabarrier/duotight fixins. I’m excited. If I can make it look decent enough, I might be able to move it upstairs.

 

[Knightshade]

I went with the nukatap faucet with a stainless shank and all the Evabarrier/duotight fixins. I’m excited. If I can make it look decent enough, I might be able to move it upstairs.

Does moving it upstairs = easier reach? You might find yourself definitely brewing more...or needing to brew more often if that is the case.

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

Does moving it upstairs = easier reach? You might find yourself definitely brewing more...or needing to brew more often if that is the case.

Haha it might but really it would just be easier. The fridge I have is not bad looking. I think I have my wife onboard. I’ll make it happen.

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

Is a spade bit fine? Or did you guys go with a hole saw? I assume it should be slightly bigger than shank diameter?

 

[bwible]

I always thought 3 taps was plenty and would allow different beers. Combine that with a couple batches in bottles and you’re good. With 3 taps I always thought you have a lighter beer like a lager, a hoppy beer like a pale ale or an ipa, and a dark beer like a stout and you have all the bases covered. Then you can add Belgians or whatever you want in bottles.

I have a real 2 tap kegerator. Not a converted fridge. I’m the only one in my house who really drinks beer. And I don’t have friends who come over all the time. The only problem is when I get a beer on tap like I have now, a club brew barrel aged RIS that isn’t a frequent drinker. But 2 taps is good for me as things are now. Each person has to find what fits their needs.

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

I always thought 3 taps was plenty and would allow different beers. Combine that with a couple batches in bottles and you’re good. With 3 taps I always thought you have a lighter beer like a lager, a hoppy beer like a pale ale or an ipa, and a dark beer like a stout and you have all the bases covered. Then you can add Belgians or whatever you want in bottles.

I have a 2 tap kegerator. I’m the only one in my house who really drinks beer. And I don’t have friends who come over all the time. The only problem is when I get a beer on tap like I have now, a RIS that isn’t a frequent drinker. But 2 taps is good for me as things are now. Each person has to find what fits their needs.

I’m in the same boat. I’m the only drinker and seldom have company. I guess its one of those things where if you go with two taps you’ll wish you had more but if you go with three or four you’ll never keep it stocked.

 

[Tom R]

Is a spade bit fine? Or did you guys go with a hole saw? I assume it should be slightly bigger than shank diameter?

Spare yourself some grief and get a carbide hole saw. Perfect holes in sheet metal, really quickly. I wouldn't use a hole saw meant for woodworking, it'll get ruined.

Yes, slightly larger. But it's really easy to enlarge the hole with a file, so if you already have a hole saw that's a bit small, you could use it.

You may also need a larger hole saw for the door liner (see photo post #26).
Since the door liner is plastic, no need for carbide teeth on that one.

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

Spare yourself some grief and get a carbide hole saw. Perfect holes in sheet metal, really quickly. I wouldn't use a hole saw meant for woodworking, it'll get ruined.

Yes, slightly larger. But it's really easy to enlarge the hole with a file, so if you already have a hole saw that's a bit small, you could use it.

You may also need a larger hole saw for the door liner (see photo post #26).
Since the door liner is plastic, no need for carbide teeth on that one.

Thanks for the heads up. I’ll splurge and get the carbine. Why does the door liner need a bigger hole saw?

 

[Golddiggie]

Thanks for the heads up. I’ll splurge and get the carbine. Why does the door liner need a bigger hole saw?

It doesn't. It all depends on how you want the inside end of the shanks setup. In my fridge, I simply had the nuts against the inside plastic. No issues. Later I removed the plastic and all the contours and replaced it with plexiglass. The nuts on the inside of the shanks would mate right up against that. Full insulation was still in use. IMO, you're better off keeping the full insulation/foam in the door than ripping it away.

 

[Tom R]

In my case, the shank nut tightens against the inside surface of the metal door panel. I needed a larger hole to be able to tighten the nut (and install the lockwasher).

You can also see the plywood rings that I used to stiffen the shanks. I didn't want to remove the liner, it has shelves that are useful to me. But I also didn't want to tighten against the door liner, it is too compressible. And I really didn't want the shanks to be able to rotate once mounted. With this method, the shanks can be torqued plenty tight. And I get to keep my shelves.

 

[Oleson M.D.]

There is no such thing as too many taps! Just like there is no such thing as a garage that is too big.

 

[bwible]

IME, having the gas bottle, and regulators, outside means you have more room for kegs.

Depends on the design of the kegerator. Mine has a little shelf inside in the back with metal brackets to hold the co2 tank in place. I don’t even think a 3 gallon corny would fit there. And there’s no hole to run a hose through. Mine is a kegerator, not a converted fridge. But with converted fridges and freezers this is probably mostly true.

 

[bwible]

I’m a big fan of CO2 in small paintball tanks. You can easily have two or more in the fridge just laying on top of the kegs or hanging beside on reg hoses. Easy to have kegs at different pressures for carbonating & serving. And you never lose a whole tank of CO2 if there’s a gas leak.

This is one of those issues thats been debated up and down the block. What is the current consensus on this? Is CO2 just CO2 or are there real differences between “food grade” and tanks and cylinders that are not labelled food grade? I remember hearing that the little gram CO2 cylinders for bb guns and such have some oil or lubricant added. I’m not sure about paint ball products, I have no experience with those.

 

[Golddiggie]

This is one of those issues thats been debated up and down the block. What is the current consensus on this? Is CO2 just CO2 or are there real differences between “food grade” and tanks and cylinders that are not labelled food grade? I remember hearing that the little gram CO2 cylinders for bb guns and such have some oil or lubricant added. I’m not sure about paint ball products, I have no experience with those.

I only use the paintball bottles when taking a keg someplace. It SHOULD be straight CO2 without anything added. Personally, it's far easier to swap out the regular size bottles as needed than try to get to the closest paintball supply store that fills bottles. Not to mention the cost of getting CO2 that way is higher than swapping out 5#, 10# or 20# bottles (I have one of each).

 

[jtgoral]

One tap less than the number of kegs connected to CO2 inside. This way the keg without a tap waits (lagers) for its turn to be tapped until one of kegs on tap gets empty.

 

[Ki-ri-n]

In my case, the shank nut tightens against the inside surface of the metal door panel. I needed a larger hole to be able to tighten the nut (and install the lockwasher).

You can also see the plywood rings that I used to stiffen the shanks. I didn't want to remove the liner, it has shelves that are useful to me. But I also didn't want to tighten against the door liner, it is too compressible. And I really didn't want the shanks to be able to rotate once mounted. With this method, the shanks can be torqued plenty tight. And I get to keep my shelves.
View attachment 745317

What I did was to make a "spacer" between the outer skin of the fridge and the inside plastic liner. I took a spear that was removed for a keggel, and cut it to length to fit between the two. Happened to fit perfectly over the shank. Made the install rigid and looks a bit cleaner on the inside, if you have OCD.

If you use a hole saw, you might not need to go "a little" larger. The hole saw will "walk" a little and make a slightly larger hole than the actual size.

 

[pvpeacock]

I have a keezer that holds six 5-gallon kegs and two 2/12 -3 gallon kegs on the hump. I have 4 taps: 2 for beer, 1 for sparkling water/hop water and 1 for kombucha. When I just had beer on tap, 2 taps were plenty. but when I started kegging kombucha and stopped drinking beer during the week, I needed 2 more taps.

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

Did anyone go duotight for the gas side? I’m wondering if I should even bother with a manifold and just buy some duotight fittings and build it out as I need it. Maybe add some inline regulators down the road if I need different psi. Any thoughts on that?

 

[Dr_Jeff]

I guess its one of those things where if you go with two taps you’ll wish you had more but if you go with three or four you’ll never keep it stocked.

I disagree, I have 18, and all are populated.

 

[Beerstein]

Did anyone go duotight for the gas side? I’m wondering if I should even bother with a manifold and just buy some duotight fittings and build it out as I need it. Maybe add some inline regulators down the road if I need different psi. Any thoughts on that?

I would like to hear opinions on this too. I'm in the same decision making boat.

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

I would like to hear opinions on this too. I'm in the same decision making boat.

I was thinking about building it out similar to what they have laid out on this board. It would only be worth it to go this route if you intend on using the inline regulators. It seems to be cheaper to go the manifold route but not worth it if you intend on getting inline regulators down the road. Saving money is somewhat a factor for me. And it would be nice to be able to have the option of controlling psi on each line. These are my thoughts so far.

https://www.williamsbrewing.com/Hom...lypropylene-Gas-Board-for-4-Inline-Regulators

 

[Beerstein]

I was thinking about building it out similar to what they have laid out on this board. It would only be worth it to go this route if you intend on using the inline regulators. It seems to be cheaper to go the manifold route but not worth it if you intend on getting inline regulators down the road. Saving money is somewhat a factor for me. And it would be nice to be able to have the option of controlling psi on each line. These are my thoughts so far.

Polypropylene Gas Board for 4 Inline Regulators

That is a lot of parts. For my purpose I only need two or three different pressures total across 8 kegs. I was looking at a manifold that has MFL, so you can attach the duotight connectors to it and skip the barbs.

 

[Knightshade]

Did anyone go duotight for the gas side? I’m wondering if I should even bother with a manifold and just buy some duotight fittings and build it out as I need it. Maybe add some inline regulators down the road if I need different psi. Any thoughts on that?

You mean like this?

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

That is a lot of parts. For my purpose I only need two or three different pressures total across 8 kegs. I was looking at a manifold that has MFL, so you can attach the duotight connectors to it and skip the barbs.

That’s the route I was originally going to go. I think no matter what I’ll be going duotight for the gas side as well. I was just considering eliminating the manifold altogether but I’m thinking I might just go that route and not worry about different pressures for now.

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

You mean like this?

Yes like that exactly

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

You mean like this?

That is all 8mm? Any issues? Now I might just go that route.

 

[Knightshade]

Yes like that exactly

Yeah..think the 5mm ID for gas, 4mm for liquid. If that was the recommended setup, that is what I did. I could look again to confirm.

I'm pretty happy w/it. I use the coiled up one to pressure transfer, hook up to that carbonation cap in the upper right to quick carb in the kegerator itself, or pressurize a growler. The top 4 are 0-15, the bottom one is 0-60, although I'm going to switch it out to 0-30.

I also ordered one of those polypropylene boards, just haven't taken the time to transfer everything over yet.

 

[Summa_Brewologica]

Yeah..think the 5mm ID for gas, 4mm for liquid. If that was the recommended setup, that is what I did. I could look again to confirm.

I'm pretty happy w/it. I use the coiled up one to pressure transfer, hook up to that carbonation cap in the upper right to quick carb in the kegerator itself, or pressurize a growler. The top 4 are 0-15, the bottom one is 0-60, although I'm going to switch it out to 0-30.

I also ordered one of those polypropylene boards, just haven't taken the time to transfer everything over yet.

That is amazing. Inspiring. I think I might do that. I’m just going for three taps anyway but can easily add to that later if I change my mind.
I forgot that they have a 5mm ID.

 

[day_trippr]

fwiw, I went with 5mm ID EVABarrier for all of my gas systems for the O2 barrier property.
Used something like 50 PTC fittings and ~2-1/2 rolls of tubing total. Worth it though...

Cheers!