Beer On Tap

[35mastr]

Any one covert a fridge or buy a complete unit to have you favorite adult beverage to share with your buddies in your home or at your shop??

I am looking to covert a fridge at the moment. But would like to see what others have done.

Also what about the bottle that will be needed to push the brew out of the tap?

Are they real costly? How long will a bottle last?

 

[sixball]

Isn't there a "keg-o-rator" or something like that ? I remember being in a guys basement that had what looked like an oversized college dorm fridge that had a pony keg in it, but I didn't pay much attention to it at the time. But the subject came up at work last summer, and a co-worker that had worked part time a liquor store said it's easier to get all the stuff and do it yourself.

I'm interested in this as well, sometimes I crave a draft beer over the bottle or can, and with a keg, my trashman won't think I'm such an lush

 

[larry4406]

I have done this, pictures and description below.

I used a chest freezer. Unbolted the lid, and made a 2x8 skirt. The hinges for the freezer lid still engage what was the upper bolt hole on the freezer body and the other hinge hole is now screwed to the wood skirt. Dead weight and the hinge are enough to hold all in place. Did not bother to insulate skirt.

The skirt is then drilled for the CO2 and air-shaft - avoids concern over puncturing a freon line. The air shaft is a 4" pvc pipe with a concentric 2" pvc pipe on the inside (PIA to cut just right). I use a Dayton blower to pull cold air from the freezer box, blow in to a 4" pipe, then a 3x2 concentric conical reducer which nests perfect inside the 4' pipe, the beer lines enter upstream of the reducer, and cold air and beer lines then run to the tap. Just short of the tap mount, the 2" pipe stops, so the air then turns 180 degrees and returns via the annulus back to the freezer where the 4x3 wye returns it to the bottom of the freezer for turnover of air. At the tap, I used a toilet closet flange to receive the 4" pipe and mount the tap. The drip tray is plumbed to a sink tail piece adapter for a dishwasher.

I have a controller with a capillary tube shoved in the 3" return. The controller turns a quad box on and off based on temperature. The quad box has the blower, freezer, and a separate fan I installed which blows on the compresser.

The CO2 bottle in the picture has probably pumped 15 or more kegs.

Sizing of the beer lines is not trivial. There are different beer line diameters available, elevation head to be considered, serving temperature, as well as volumes of CO2 disolved in the beer of your choice which determines the overpressure (stouts have less CO2 dissolved than say pilsners or German wheat beers). Solubility of CO2 varies with temperature. Basically, if everything is set up right, at the end of the tap while flowing, the pressure drop and elevation head in the beer lines reduces the overpressure to zero so as to prevent foaming.

Who knew so much science was involved in simply serving beer!

Cheers.

 

[72chevy]

One stop shop here...
http://www.beveragefactory.com/draftbeer/conversion-kits.shtml

 

[ovilla]

Don't mean to get too off-topic but does anybody know of a good site that shows how to set up fountain drinks or one of those bar guns that let you push the button for Coke, Diet Coke, water, etc.. I'm in the process of building a new bar in the basement and will definitely be using the sites above. Now I just need something to take care of drinks for the kids. Thanks

 

[333 Half Evil]

How about getting an old pop machine and just dispensing cans or bottles of your favorite beverages? You can set some up to not charge, you could also have a .25 or .50 charge for them that way there if truely a "fund" for refreshments!!!

 

[ovilla]

How about getting an old pop machine and just dispensing cans or bottles of your favorite beverages? You can set some up to not charge, you could also have a .25 or .50 charge for them that way there if truely a "fund" for refreshments!!!

I've considered that but those machines take up a ton of space. Then you also have to constantly purchase pop and then load it into the machine. Plus, I've heard that syrup bags make it so pop at home becomes really really cheap - much cheaper than cans. I just don't know exactly how to set up a system for even just a few drinks. I've seen the bar "guns" on ebay and they're not that badly priced. Just need to learn about what else is needed and how it all works. Hoping to find a site like the ones listed above. Thanks

 

[banzaitoyota]

I run a BEER TENDER with heineken draught kegs. In 2 months new castle and dos equixes will be avalabe

 

[some zilch]

i converted an old fridge with a kit from kegworks.com

ive run about 6 kegs through it now, and i'm still on the original 10lb co2 tank. i do keep the setup in my unheated (unless i'm in there) shop. it sure beats having cans and bottles everywhere.

 

[Brian R]

I have done this, pictures and description below.

I used a chest freezer. Unbolted the lid, and made a 2x8 skirt. The hinges for the freezer lid still engage what was the upper bolt hole on the freezer body and the other hinge hole is now screwed to the wood skirt. Dead weight and the hinge are enough to hold all in place. Did not bother to insulate skirt.

The skirt is then drilled for the CO2 and air-shaft - avoids concern over puncturing a freon line. The air shaft is a 4" pvc pipe with a concentric 2" pvc pipe on the inside (PIA to cut just right). I use a Dayton blower to pull cold air from the freezer box, blow in to a 4" pipe, then a 3x2 concentric conical reducer which nests perfect inside the 4' pipe, the beer lines enter upstream of the reducer, and cold air and beer lines then run to the tap. Just short of the tap mount, the 2" pipe stops, so the air then turns 180 degrees and returns via the annulus back to the freezer where the 4x3 wye returns it to the bottom of the freezer for turnover of air. At the tap, I used a toilet closet flange to receive the 4" pipe and mount the tap. The drip tray is plumbed to a sink tail piece adapter for a dishwasher.

I have a controller with a capillary tube shoved in the 3" return. The controller turns a quad box on and off based on temperature. The quad box has the blower, freezer, and a separate fan I installed which blows on the compresser.

The CO2 bottle in the picture has probably pumped 15 or more kegs.

Sizing of the beer lines is not trivial. There are different beer line diameters available, elevation head to be considered, serving temperature, as well as volumes of CO2 disolved in the beer of your choice which determines the overpressure (stouts have less CO2 dissolved than say pilsners or German wheat beers). Solubility of CO2 varies with temperature. Basically, if everything is set up right, at the end of the tap while flowing, the pressure drop and elevation head in the beer lines reduces the overpressure to zero so as to prevent foaming.

Who knew so much science was involved in simply serving beer!

Cheers.

I've seen well built garage mahals, rebuild barns, fantastic use of small space, wooden shops, poor-man's retro 440 retreat (all things I would want to wrench in) - but nothing beats the ingenuity and science in this!

Well done.

 

[porschedude996TT]

I run a BEER TENDER with heineken draught kegs. In 2 months new castle and dos equixes will be avalabe

This is great news. I've been telling people that Krupp's (Maker of the Beer Tender) should start pounding on some doors at other brewery's.

I have had mine for over a year and it works great.

 

[trainer]

check out the forum at northernbrewer.com
It's geared towards home brewers, but the draft and kegging stuff is the same.

You need to be religious about cleaning your lines, fittings and taps
Ebay is a good source for the componants.

 

[scopx]

Will be using the chest freezer type as above, utilizing the 2X insert below door for kegging. The faucet and gas will be mounted thru the 2X also.
Nice work Larry 4406. I do most my drinkin' in the garage rather than plumb into the house. Will pull old scuba 20 gal tank out of garage loft, re-valve and re-certify to use for gas.
Larry4406: I will be making wheats, big ales and eventually lagers. Do you recommend 3/8 heavy wall tubing for all 3, or will it be necessary to individually plumb?
35Mastr: Any working fridge can be converted. The bigger, the better. The door can usually be drilled and faucet installed. But stay away from the side walls and the rear. They build some strange configurations. co2 bottles can either be bought or leased, depending upon your locale, proximity to refills, etc. If you eliminate all leaks, and drink wisely, a 20# should last 6-10 months, unless you really running thru the beer. There is, supposedly, a medical grade co2, but if we are working in the garage, are prob going to ingest more **** than in reg co2. And if you are going to go that far, why not all the way and make your own. I know Ca. is another country, but in the woods, you do pretty much as you want. Right?

 

[tdkkart]

How long does beer keep in a pressurized keg before it goes skunky??
You gotta drink alot of beer to justify one of these setups.

 

[z28snksknr]

How long does beer keep in a pressurized keg before it goes skunky??
You gotta drink alot of beer to justify one of these setups.

Beer turns "skunky" when exposed to light. I have home-brewed beer in a keg right now that has been there for over 9 months now - no discernible difference. Beer in kegs never sees light, so they won't "skunk", although there are other issues related to cleaning the lines that are present.

 

[bigdav160]

Perhaps I 'm being dense this morning but what is the purpose of that 4" "air tube" in the setup above?

I have a chest freezer I use for lagering and 19 cu/ft refrigerator with a modified floor and faucets in the door for serving.

I've bought a lot of parts from More Beer and from my local homebrew shop.

 

[Mickey_D]

Pasteurized beer has a shelf life of about 12 months if you keep the oxygen and sunlight away from it and maintain a constant temp. When you buy keg beer, always check the date on the keg. If you are just buying one, sometimes they will slip you an old one figuring you won't know the difference, just ask to see the fill date when you get it. Some imports and specialty beers can have a shorter shelf life, so best to drink those faster.

 

[TAMPAGT07]

Here's mine. It's a True.

 

[larry4406]

Perhaps I 'm being dense this morning but what is the purpose of that 4" "air tube" in the setup above?
QUOTE]

My draft setup is in my basement wet bar and the keg fridge is remotely located in an adjacent room. The air tube allows cooling of the beer lines all the way to the remote tap, and is an extension of the chilled boundary. It is a pipe within a pipe with the chilled air and beer lines in the inner pipe. At the end of the run, the outer pipe is connected to the tap while the inner pipe stops short allowing the air to change directions 180 degrees and return thru the annulus back to the chill box. Other remote storage techniques involve gylcol chillers and pumps, but I was concerned over leaks. I did not have the room to mount the keg fridge in my cabinet under the tap.

Here is the link I used to size the beer lines (length and diameter). You will need to decide beer type, serving temperature, etc.
http://www.franklinbrew.org/brewinfo/balance.html


Here is a schematic of the air shaft tube within a tube:
http://www.micromatic.com/draft-keg-beer-edu/faqs-air-cooled-cid-530.html

Overall, I am quite pleased with the system. It has been in use now for about 5 years. Kegged beer will last for months in the home (assuming you let it!). Just keep the CO2 on.

I used to home brew quite heavily, but life has gotten in the way on that hobby. Thus, I just pump commercial beers for now. The chest freezer is ideal for home brewers that use the 5 gallon soda pop syrup canisters for kegging of home brew. Buried in my basement is my converted 3 keg 2 tier brewery, 150k btu burners, pumped recirculation mash, .....

 

[Norcal]

If using a old fridge be real careful, if you do not see external condensor coils feel the outside cabinet, if warm when running the condensor coils are spot welded to the inside of the cab. & it is super EZ to hit a refrigerant line if drilling the cabinet.

 

[82_454_shorty]

I've seen well built garage mahals, rebuild barns, fantastic use of small space, wooden shops, poor-man's retro 440 retreat (all things I would want to wrench in) - but nothing beats the ingenuity and science in this!

Well done.

I was planning on posting my setup until I saw Larry's. Simply amazing!

 

[Selkirk]

Any one covert a fridge or buy a complete unit to have you favorite adult beverage to share with your buddies in your home or at your shop??

I am looking to covert a fridge at the moment. But would like to see what others have done.

Also what about the bottle that will be needed to push the brew out of the tap?

Are they real costly? How long will a bottle last?

I have a set up like the one below, sitting unused at my weekend place.
It has about six month of use on it, after that it went unused for the last five years. Only had two kegs thru it.

It worked very well in a old fridge I had laying around. If fact, too well for all my beer drinking buddies.

I can pick it up and take some pictures of it this weekend if you have any interest.

Selkirk



http://www.defalcos.com/products/Draft-Kit/2008072402.html


http://www.defalcos.com/products/Draft-Kit/Draft-Kit.html

 

[brokenknee]

Just let your buddies know that beer is not free. The old man had a kegmeister in the garage for about four years; he even had a jar located on the keg for donations for the next keg. He rarely had enough money in there to even pay for half of a new keg.

He finally sold it because he got tired of buying all the neighbors and his buddies beer.

 

[35mastr]

I have a set up like the one below, sitting unused at my weekend place.
It has about six month of use on it, after that it went unused for the last five years. Only had two kegs thru it.

It worked very well in a old fridge I had laying around. If fact, too well for all my beer drinking buddies.

I can pick it up and take some pictures of it this weekend if you have any interest.

Selkirk



http://www.defalcos.com/products/Draft-Kit/2008072402.html


http://www.defalcos.com/products/Draft-Kit/Draft-Kit.html

You have a PM.

 

[nathank]

Just let your buddies know that beer is not free. The old man had a kegmeister in the garage for about four years; he even had a jar located on the keg for donations for the next keg. He rarely had enough money in there to even pay for half of a new keg.

He finally sold it because he got tired of buying all the neighbors and his buddies beer.

This is sooooo true.

 

[82_454_shorty]

Just let your buddies know that beer is not free. The old man had a kegmeister in the garage for about four years; he even had a jar located on the keg for donations for the next keg. He rarely had enough money in there to even pay for half of a new keg.

He finally sold it because he got tired of buying all the neighbors and his buddies beer.

I swear my buddies had a 'draft radar'. They'd start arriving withing minutes of me hooking up a fresh keg.

 

[brokenknee]

The old man is such an easy going guy he would never ask for any donations; as a matter of fact it was one of his buddies that always did pay his fair share that came up with the donation jar.

I did speak up on more than one occasion when there happened to be some of the biggest freeloaders there. My dad pulled me aside latter on and asked me not to say anything anymore.