Started my kegerator setup... pics of the progress...

[IanIanBoBian]

Well I started working on it Friday. I'm sick of bottling, and I got the fridge for free, so I figured I'd go for it. I ordered a lot of the stuff from micro matic and bought the rest at my LHBS. The fridge is going in the basement and I'm going to run the lines up the laundry chute and mount my taps in the kichen (I love being a single guy with my own house lol).

Here's the fridge with the hole drilled in the side. I had to peel it back a little after i realized that 2 inch PVC means the inner diameter is 2 inches. DUH! No way I could use a bigger hole saw on the metal after the first hole was drilled. This works for me though, since it will be covered up.

Here's my homemade trunk cable with copper cooling lines. The kind you can buy online is way too expensive, so I figured I'd make my own. I got insulation from Lowe's that is meant for copper pipe. I put my three hoses and the copper line inside the insulation, and put that all in he 2 inch PVC.

Here's the 2 inch PVC running up through the laundry chute, into the kitchen.

And last for now, the PVC all put together into the fridge. I sealed the hole with some duct-seal. I did the same thing on the inside as well. Should keep it pretty well insulated.

 

[IanIanBoBian]

All the beer lines hooked up, and the gas lines hooked up. I'm keeping the CO2 tank outside, so I still need to drill a hole for that. I also need to build a little shelf in the bottom of the fridge to get the one keg a little further back.

My new door that I made. Saving the old one in case I ever sell the house and want to take the fridge and everything with me. EDIT: Notice the apple juice for Apfelwein and the dog biscuits made from spent grain LOL.

The door put on. You can see the lines and the copper cooling line. I would like to have the cooling line wrapped around the shanks, but then It would be too stiff and I wouldn't be able to open and close the door, which I obviously have to be able to do. Hopefully this will keep everything cool enough.

And the door painted. It's acually the wrong color lol. My upstairs hallway is really close to this color, and I grabbed the wrong can lol. Oh well, it needed a second coat anyways. That's where I'm at right now. My perlick faucets should be in this week. Ordered a stainless drip tray tonight. Everything is coming together pretty nice. I still need to find a bucket for the cooling water in the fridge. Something tall and skinny would be ideal, since space is tight in the fridge. I'll have to look around and try to find something.

I'll update any progress! Thanks for looking.

 

[TwoHeadsBrewing]

Cool setup! My friend wants to do this, but just up through the floor into his kitchen from the basement. Got a few questions:

1. What length is that run up the chute
2. What liquid are you using for the coolant?
3. What are you using to push the coolant?

 

[MoRoToRiUm]

Looking good! I think you posted before about this- about an 8ft run, right?

 

[IanIanBoBian]

Ended up being a little more than 8 feet, so that I have enough slack to pull the kegs out of the fridge. Since it's 1/4 inch line, I think I'll be fine. If not, I can always shorten it. It's always easier to make it shorter than it is to make it longer.

I'm just going to use water for the cooling. Seems like other people have had luck using just water, and it isn't a long run, so I think it will work well enough. Just going to throw a pond pump in a bucket to move the water. I'm thinking about trying the bucket in the freezer. It would save me room, and cool better if it didn't freeze. Not sure if the movement from the pump would keep it from freezing or not though.

 

[NoneRequired]

I'm just going to use water for the cooling. Seems like other people have had luck using just water, and it isn't a long run, so I think it will work well enough. Just going to throw a pond pump in a bucket to move the water. I'm thinking about trying the bucket in the freezer. It would save me room, and cool better if it didn't freeze. Not sure if the movement from the pump would keep it from freezing or not though.

RV Anti-Freeze in the bucket in the fridge would probably work great... It wouldn't freeze. It's pretty cheap too...

 

[ajwillys]

RV Anti-Freeze in the bucket in the fridge would probably work great... It wouldn't freeze. It's pretty cheap too...

Plus, you could store the cooling reservoir in the freezer and it would be able to get much colder than 32.

Nevermind... didn't read all the other posts before responding. Carry on.

 

[IanIanBoBian]

well I'm about 90% done. still trying to get my pressure set right so I don't get a foamy pour, but still get good flow from the faucets. I get a pretty good pour right now, but it seems like there is air in my lines or something. Every time I pour a beer, it takes a couple seconds to start, and it spits and foams for a couple seconds before it starts flowing well. I also need to get a better pump for my cooling lines, since the one I got now isn't strong enough. Here's some more pics.

Lines all hooked up and insulated.

Faucets, trim rings, and drip tray all installed. Almost done!!!

 

[Ceedubya]

That is AWESOME! Good job

 

[FxdGrMind]

If you ever sell your house you will have to send the women's away and show the "MAN" the in Kitchen TAP'S!

Consider the house SOLD!

 

[MikeG]

That is fricking awesome! Nice set of perlicks.

 

[dagamore]

looks very nice, i dont know if a pond pump will be able to push enough water up 16+feet(8feet each way) of head with that small (.25" right) copper pipe. You might net get all that much flow and it might burn out the pump. Keep in mind that .25" line at 16 +feet but you should be ok if you use a quality pump like an ehime(sp?).

 

[bad coffee]

nice! You could probably get beverage grade check valves and put them on your drink lines. I bet the beer is settling back down into the kegs. 8 vertical' is a lot of pressure against 10-12psi serving pressure.

I have one question. Why do you mark the biscuits 'for dogs' Let random people pick them up and try them out!

B

 

[IanIanBoBian]

yeah, i think you're right about the beer settling back down into the keg. what kind of check valves are you talking about?

since my lines aren't cooled yet, it isn't so bad that some of the beer settles back down into the keg haha.

 

[camiller]

It's not so much that the beer is settling down into the keg, but the co2 in the beer is coming out of solution and going up to the top of the run.

 

[Reno_eNVy]

Wow, that is just STELLAR!

I've never seen the copper cooling lines before though. Does it pump from a reservoir inside the fridge or something?

 

[eschatz]

That's pretty slick. I like the set-up with those beautiful perlicks!

 

[kaiser423]

It's not so much that the beer is settling down into the keg, but the co2 in the beer is coming out of solution and going up to the top of the run.

It's probably a bit of both...Easy to check though, poor a tap with the door open and if it immediately sags, then its settling back in. If it appears full, but over some time drains down then it's probably settling out of the solution.

Either way, a check valve in the right place should really help. Or add in a recirculating line to keep CO2 from settling out:rockin:

 

[IanIanBoBian]

i bumped the pressure up a couple PSI, and the beer isn't settling down anymore, and I still get a good pour.

i have yet to get a pond pump strong enough to pump the water all the way up. just haven't gotten around to it yet. one of these days.

 

[Joe C]

Very cool!!!!

 

[IanIanBoBian]

Thanks for the compliments guys! I smile every time I walk into my kitchen!!!

 

[dutch101st]

Ok...so I am buying a house with a basement.

Where oh where here in California?!?

 

[NomNom]

Looks awesome!!

Where do I find the recipe for the spent grains dog treats?

 

[Dagatris]

That is straight sexy! Nice work.

What are the little metal cans attached to the side of the fridge?

 

[IanIanBoBian]

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f39/spent-grain-make-your-best-friend-cookies-87097/

And the metal cans are spices and herbs.