(Yet another) Kegerator build (Stainless Steel)

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Misplaced_Canuck

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I've been using an old school, bottom-fridge/top-freezer fridge that I got for free about 3 years ago. It was my first kegerator, and it's served me well, but it's been hacked a good bit, it's creating a lot of moisture (water puddles inside and outside of it) and it just looks like crap - stains, some rust, a few extra unwanted holes... This time I decided to do it better, possibly even "right".

[insert pic of old tattered fridge here]

I decided to use a brand spankeen' new fridge, bottom freezer/top fridge, which will allow me to run the same number of taps (6) but will look much cleaner. I picked up a Maytag Stainless Steel front fridge from Home Depot, it set me back $1,080 or so ($999 + tax). It's a fine looking piece:

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MC
 
Shelf/spacer

The bottom of this fridge, like most of them, is not perfectly flat. It's better than a standard bottom-fridge, as the compressor is in the bottom of the unit (where the freezer part is), and therefore leaves a mostly flat area with a few dimples. I want to create a flat and level platform for the kegs to stand on, and something that looks reasonably nice.

I checked the diameter of my corny kegs, which come in around 8 1/2".

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8.5 x 3 = 25.5", so I decided to go with 27" wide, and 22" deep (measurements to be reviewed) This doesn't completely cover the floor of the fridge, as there are two vents on the floor where the air circulates. I want to avoid covering those at it would "suffocate" the fridge.

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I used 1/2" cabinet grade plywood, and a 1/2 quarter-round trim (it's tricky to install but do-able). So I did my two cuts, using a gate and my jigsaw (in retrospect, jigsaws are lousy to make straight clean cuts. I will look at circular saw in the future).

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I then cut a number of 2x4 pieces to elevate the platform/shelf to a reasonable height. I'm leaving those loose/unattached for now, but I may trim them and finish them in the future for a cleaner look.

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(notice that the 2x4 piece is resting on the high spots of the fridge's bottom).

I ended up using a total of 5 pieces, 3 of similar lengths and 2 of different lengths.

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This is the fitment with the complete (but unfinished/unpainted) shelf (showing only 3 2x4 pieces)

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MC
 
Installing taps is where things need to be 100% right, as it's what I will see the most (and so will my guests).

The inside of this fridge has a "ridge" starting from apx 10" up inside the door, all the way to the top. I measured the width of this ridge to about 3", from flat to flat. I decided that the spacing between taps would have to be 3 1/2" (center to center) to allow this ridge to be skipped over. Therefore, I will need 17 1/2" to draw up the 6 locations (there are 5 gaps of 3 1/2" = 17 1/2").

I drew a line, using an wet-erase marker and a level, on the fridge, which passes exactly half-way through the center of the handle. No particular reason for being in the center of the handle, but it just seems logical and it also seemed like the right pouring height for me.

I marked the center line (which is where the ridge inside the fridge door is), and proceeded to mark my 6 tap mounting points with the marker. It was actually rather difficult to mark the line, as the fridge door has a slight convex shape, so using a level was quite difficult. I think a soft tape measure or a ratchet strap would have been easier.

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(mounting spots are hard to see on the pic, but the center spot is pretty obvious.)

I proceeded to use an automatic center punch to mark the mounting location, and to prevent the drill bit from dancing.

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(Looks offset but it was the revised mounting spot, and was correct, the one to the right was caused by the yard stick moving due to the convex shape)

You can see the dimple left by the automatic punch.

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I used a small drill bit to create the first set of holes in the place I center punched.

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Then I used a 1" hole saw to drill very slightly oversized shank holes. The hole saw works pretty hard at cutting stainless, so I'd use it for 15 seconds, let it cool down a bit, etc. I'd say it took about 30-40 seconds to make it through the metal. Once the metal is punched, I'd remove the slug from the hole saw, then drill the insulation, as squarely as possible to have a vertical hole. It's pretty darn hard to have a perfectly straight hole, but I did my very best.

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The final set of holes, lined up perfectly.

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I used a small amount of Rustoleum paint to cover the edge and around the holes, just in case the heat from the hole saw denatured the stainless, and I let it dry.

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Last night, I got to installing the shanks, tap heads and the hoses. I went with an 8-foot length hose as my previous fridge was at 7-feet and was giving a slight amount of foaming. I can always shorten a touch if needed. The shanks were pretty well aligned, but I went ahead and installed them slightly loose (so they could move a touch), and with the slightly oversized shank hole, I used my level to make them all perfectly aligned and level. I think only one tap was slightly low by about 1/32", but I was able to level them perfectly.

I plan on using Stainless chrome covers, so I didn't put any spray foam in the shank holes yet. I will do that later, as a preventative measure to condensation running down from shanks.

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The taps are Perlick 525SS.

MC
 
Running the gas line into the fridge.

This fridge has an oddly convenient hole in the back. It has insulation in it, so I decided to investigate to see if it could be used to run one of the gas lines that I plan on using (I'm running one CO2 + one beer gas mix line).

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I gently inserted a small nail is the hole, until I reached about 3" of depth. I knew the fridge's wall was about 3", so I figured I was touching the plastic wall. I then decided to remove the insulation, and it went fine. The outer insulation was chemical type instulation, then a layer of styrofoam. But I did run into a problem: There's a cavity towards the right of the styrofoam, which is used to send air up to the upper vent. Snap, that's a no go. I used some of the removed insulation from the door, and patched the hole up moderately tight.

I moved left 2 inches, and drilled a small hole, and did the same business as above. This time, I only found styrofoam, and before drilling through the wall, I checked with a flashlight to see that i could see the light, and I did. I knew I was in the clear.

I drilled the outside sheetmetal using an ordinary metal drill bit, and continued checking for any obstruction until I had the right-sized hole for the grommet & hose that I was using.

I ran 2 lines for the gas, one is for CO2, and the other is for beer-gas mix.

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I used grommets on the inside too:

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MC
 
I use a 6-gang, in-line series of regulator. (This is how it came out of my previous kegerator).

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I decided to use a board to mount them on. I installed a couple of simple hooks to mount them in the original drawer holes in the fridge, and I mounted the gauge set to the board using wood screws.

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The width fits the inside of the fridge with about an inch to spare.

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I ran into a clearance issue with 2 of the regulators that have knobs. The keg is a touch too tall to slide under the regulator.

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I had varying lengths of supply pipe in this set-up, so I moved a longer one to the last spot (instead of a shorter one), and I raised the gauges as far as I could on the board to create a bit more clearance, and that worked fine.

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This is what the set-up looks like with all 6 kegs inside the fridge:

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MC
 
I decided to route the front kegs' gas lines UNDER the shelf, as this would create less overhead clutter, and I decided to route the back kegs line "captive" of the gauge cluster so that the clutter would also be reduced.

I'm using 2 types of gas line here, as 1) I wouldn't have had enough of the new lines 2) the new lines are VERY hard to flex and would never have slid onto the gas line barbs. I'm also using one-way check valves on all of the lines to prevent back flow.

Once it was all routed/cut/clamped and what-not, this is what the gas lines look like.

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I used a 90-degree brass elbow on the gas inlet to the gauge set (not shown). For the lone beer-gas line, I simply made sure that the hose can reach the furthest keg, put a fitting on the line, and let it sit in the back.

I had some concerns about the beer lines and that they would get stuck/kinked/etc in the door, but after I bundled them together with zip ties, they are quite simple to move about, and there's more than enough room for them to move around.

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(In picture above, I had only 1 zip tie holding the beer line bunch. I installed 3 more and left a "fan out" of the 6 hoses so that they can reach all their intended places.)

MC
 
Place holder to tell you it looks really cool, when you fill in all those place holders with really cool pictures. ;)

In all seriousness I have a similar style refrigerator, that I turned into a kegerator. (minus the stainless steel).

I would suggest that you attach your CO2 lines to the ceiling. My manifold is on the inside right wall, the beer lines hang down, this is a PITA. I have to then flip them up and then out of the way. What I need to do, is turn the manifold upside down, and aim the C02 lines at the ceiling. Once they get to the ceiling, make a 90 degree turn across the ceiling and use pipe clamps to hold them there, so they dangle down onto the kegs.

Hope this helps.
 

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