Need ideas for kegerator in a cabinet

[TravelingLight]

I'm almost done converting my mini fridge into a kegerator. I've already got the hole drilled in the top (no coolants lines!) for the iron pipe draft tower I built. But now my creative juices are flowing and I want to kick it up a notch. Here is where I need some advice...
I'm thinking of building a cabinet similar to this:

I would tweak it some to basically leave the back open (so the fridge doesn't overheat) and give it plenty of clearance on all sides, and top and bottom. Here is my question. So I've already got the hole cut in the top of the fridge for the draft tower and beer line. With this cabinet I would obviously mount the tap tower on top. So there will be a 2-3" clearance inside the cabinet from the top of the fridge to the "roof" of the cabinet. You see where I am going with this? How do I keep that hole in the top of the fridge "sealed" to reduce the cold air coming out as much as possible? I thought about doing the old copper conduit wrapped in foam stuck up through the hole, through the roof of the cabinet and into the draft tower. It wouldn't be an airtight seal on the fridge hole but the cold loss would be minimal I suppose?? Any thoughts? I'm brainstorming before I start building this thing. TIA.

 

[tracyk]

How big is your hole that you cut? What about PVC pipe, nobody would see it and you could insulate it on the outside along with the inside and also use a flange or coupler on both ends to fill the gap. To me it is easier to work with than copper.

Not sure how much of a gap you would have, but if it is small how about silicon glue.

 

[TravelingLight]

How big is your hole that you cut? What about PVC pipe, nobody would see it and you could insulate it on the outside along with the inside and also use a flange or coupler on both ends to fill the gap. To me it is easier to work with than copper.

Not sure how much of a gap you would have, but if it is small how about silicon glue.

Good idea. I was thinking about PVC. The hole in the top of the fridge is about 1 3/4" IIRC. I'm thinking about possible putting a flange on top of the hole in the fridge and have it "connect" to a hole in the top of the cabinet, possibly with some more PVC and/or another flange. That's what I'm thinking right now. I've just got to sit down and figure out the correct measurements so everything is nice and tight before I start building.

 

[rarick513]

I did something similar with a very old mini fridge I picked up at a yard sale for 20 bucks. With mine I mounted all the wood directly to the mini-fridge leaving no gap between the fridge walls and the wood surrounding. This is more permanent than placing a fridge inside a cabinet but that's the way I decided to go about it.

P.S. sorry for the large sideway images. Cant figure out why they turned sideways and how to correct it.

 

[HomebrewSupply]

Good idea. I was thinking about PVC. The hole in the top of the fridge is about 1 3/4" IIRC. I'm thinking about possible putting a flange on top of the hole in the fridge and have it "connect" to a hole in the top of the cabinet, possibly with some more PVC and/or another flange. That's what I'm thinking right now. I've just got to sit down and figure out the correct measurements so everything is nice and tight before I start building.

Yeah, PVC might be your best bet here. You might want to insulate it a bit, too, just in case.

Separately, I wonder if you could build the cabinet without a bottom, so the mini fridge could slide in and out (you could even put it on casters). Might be easier if you need to clean it or adjust anything, too.

 

[HomebrewSupply]

I did something similar with a very old mini fridge I picked up at a yard sale for 20 bucks. With mine I mounted all the wood directly to the mini-fridge leaving no gap between the fridge walls and the wood surrounding. This is more permanent than placing a fridge inside a cabinet but that's the way I decided to go about it.

P.S. sorry for the large sideway images. Cant figure out why they turned sideways and how to correct it.

Wow, that looks fantastic!

 

[TravelingLight]

I did something similar with a very old mini fridge I picked up at a yard sale for 20 bucks. With mine I mounted all the wood directly to the mini-fridge leaving no gap between the fridge walls and the wood surrounding. This is more permanent than placing a fridge inside a cabinet but that's the way I decided to go about it.

P.S. sorry for the large sideway images. Cant figure out why they turned sideways and how to correct it.

Holy Toledo. That thing is beautiful. And almost exactly like what I want to do! So when you drilled into the wood top you just drilled straight down into the fridge as well? My draft tower is exactly like that as well, except I'm just doing a single tap. Did you do a thread with this build?? I would love to see the process. Well done!

 

[TravelingLight]

Yeah, PVC might be your best bet here. You might want to insulate it a bit, too, just in case.

Separately, I wonder if you could build the cabinet without a bottom, so the mini fridge could slide in and out (you could even put it on casters). Might be easier if you need to clean it or adjust anything, too.

Yeah, I thought about that, but I've decided against it for various reasons. I am, however, going to put the cabinet on casters to be able to move it around if need be.

 

[HomebrewSupply]

Yeah, I thought about that, but I've decided against it for various reasons. I am, however, going to put the cabinet on casters to be able to move it around if need be.

Awesome, that works well too! Good luck with the build - DIY projects are so rewarding.

 

[rarick513]

Holy Toledo. That thing is beautiful. And almost exactly like what I want to do! So when you drilled into the wood top you just drilled straight down into the fridge as well? My draft tower is exactly like that as well, except I'm just doing a single tap. Did you do a thread with this build?? I would love to see the process. Well done!

Ya. After all the wood was placed and nailed down I chose my tower location and used a 2" hole saw to drill straight down through the wood and fridge then lined the inside with aluminum tape to insulate it a little. Just make sure to avoid coolant lines if you have any running through the top.

But unfortunately I didn't take any pictures during the process cause I'm typically too preoccupied figuring out how to go about creating what I have in my head to take the time to step back and snap a few pics. Something I always regret. Haha. But overall this was pretty basic and what you see is what you get.