Second hand kegerator rebuild

[Doug Bogg]

If I was going to buy a roll of one size of line to connect everything beer and C02 for a second hand kegerator what size is best? The old hose and taps is all gone but it seems to run ok and stays nice and cold. Don’t want to outlay for different size hoses if one size can work for both. What size fittings do I need? Thanks!

 

[AlexKay]

What parts do you have in place already? (Faucets? Gas manifold? Regulators?).

 

[Doug Bogg]

It came with a C02 tank with a place to screw in two fittings to go to the kegs. I have to buy the taps and fittings and hoses so there is no size I have to match. I guess beer and C02 hoses are usually different but to save me buying several different size of hoses its cheaper to just buy a roll so is there one size that can would work for everything? I'm sorry to bother you all thank. you for any ideas!

 

[sibelman]

I've found 4mm ID EVAbarrier works well for gas and beer. Many love Duotight fittings, though I prefer swivel barbs.

 

[AlexKay]

It sounds like you’re starting from scratch, more or less. You really need barrier tubing of some sort if you’re letting beer sit for any length of time (I.e., you’re not running a pub out of your garage). EVABarrier is the cheap and good option. There’s no reason you can’t use the same tubing (8 mm OD/4 mm ID) for CO2. Duotight is very convenient for semi-rigid tubing, though you have to be careful to push the tubing all the way in. You’ll want to get parts that can fit Duotight adaptors, which pretty much means MFL fittings. Regulators and manifolds with MFL are possible to get, though you may need to look a bit. Brewhardware.com is one source.

 

[Doug Bogg]

I've found 4mm ID EVAbarrier works well for gas and beer. Many love Duotight fittings, though I prefer swivel barbs.

I like the idea of flexible hoses to make it easy to get this put back together, might need to turn some corners a little. It's confusing because it looks like beer lines come in 3/8, 5/16, 3/16. Why can't they make up their mind Ok 4mm sounds good and I can just buy one single roll and do everything. Do they sell a bag of 4mm swiel nut connectors and hose clamps? You all are a great help!

 

[sibelman]

This tubing requires some extra effort unless you use the push-to-fit Duotight or John Guest widgets. A bit of heat (almost boiling water for a few seconds) and some careful stretching with an awl or other tool will allow you to push the tubing onto 1/4“ swivel flare adapters. It's worth it for the low oxygen permeability. Some practice may prove very helpful.

I get most of my hardware from Bobby at brewhardware.com. Another good source is morebeer.com. Others also sell this stuff.

Note: it's easier to use larger ID EVAbarrier tubing if you need to deal with bigger barbs, as with some regulators But the 4mm ID is fine with smaller barbs, and this narrow tubing provides higher/better resistance for beer lines (better than fatter tubing), which can thus be shorter while still limiting foaming at the faucet.

Good luck with your project!