kegs

[windy]

Hi All,
Looking at moving to kegs 19 litres would be good for me as i only have 19 Litre fermenter at the mo.
Ithinking how to keep the beer chilled, would I have store it in a fridge of some kind, or are there coolers I can buy for a small amount of brew.
regards
Windy

 

[soccerdad]

19 litre, or 5 gallon kegs, are the most common kegs out there - at least here in the states. You can also get smaller kegs, anywhere from 1.5 to 3 gallon, which fit into smaller spaces for cooling.

 

[The Brew Mentor]

And down the rabbit hole you go!

 

[The Brew Mentor]

Short answer is yes you'll need some sort of refrigerator to keep the keg cold.
Fridge, kegerator, converted chest freezer with a temp controller (keezer).
And then the footprint to keep it.
I had/ built them all and I liked the refrigerator with a top freezer the most, but it's really a personal preference thing as they will all do the job.
Good luck!

 

[Mark Farrall]

If you're really stuck for space there's chillers that work between the keg and glass with a keg at room temperature. They're expensive and for most you have to stuff around with glycol for cooling. A fridge is a better option in most situations.

 

[Minbari]

For $500 you can get a kegerator that will hold 3 5gallon corny kegs.

 

[Minbari]

And down the rabbit hole you go!

Lol, yup. $500 for a kegerator is half what you need to keg beer lol

 

[Sunfire96]

For $500 you can get a kegerator that will hold 3 5gallon corny kegs.

Do you mean an upright regular fridge or something else?

 

[Minbari]

Do you mean an upright regular fridge or something else?

Like this

EdgeStar BR3002SS 24 Inch Wide Kegerator Conversion Refrigerator for Full Size Keg - Stainless Steel https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07G7FQL8...abc_NDPEGCZ25ATFFP0HH62C?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Sunfire96]

Like this

EdgeStar BR3002SS 24 Inch Wide Kegerator Conversion Refrigerator for Full Size Keg - Stainless Steel https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07G7FQL8...abc_NDPEGCZ25ATFFP0HH62C?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

Thats listed at $700. The kegerator that I bought used was new for $600. I don't think you can get one much lower than that full-sized, at least brand new. But you can easily find a used upright fridge for a couple hundred bucks

 

[Minbari]

It was $500 2 month ago. Wait till after Christmas

 

[Bubba Wade]

For $200 (5 cu ft chest freezer from Walmart) plus the cost of a couple of 2x4’s and an Inkbird controller, you can build a keezer. Here’s a photo of mine. Note that I use part of the capacity as a chilled water reservoir for fermentation. Should fit 2 kegs easily plus a 3rd if you use 2x6 or 2x8 for the collar. You’ll need to measure the specific freezer and kegs to verify.

 

[The Brew Mentor]

For $200 (5 cu ft chest freezer from Walmart) plus the cost of a couple of 2x4’s and an Inkbird controller, you can build a keezer. Here’s a photo of mine. Note that I use part of the capacity as a chilled water reservoir for fermentation. Should fit 2 kegs easily plus a 3rd if you use 2x6 or 2x8 for the collar. You’ll need to measure the specific freezer and kegs to verify. View attachment 18531

But the $200 doesn't include the temp controller, CO2 tank, connectors, lines shanks, and faucets.
Like I said earlier, it's a rabbit hole!

 

[Herm brews]

Bottles my friends, bottles …….

Says the avatar

 

[Ward Chillington]

Bottles my friends, bottles …….

Says the avatar

+1 on that my brewers friend! I lose a bottle and I don't care except for maybe the 12 oz of precious content that might have been in there....you lose a keg and that hurts!

 

[Donoroto]

Bottles my friends, bottles …….

What's the opposite of a rabbit hole?

I love it!

 

[Bubba Wade]

But the $200 doesn't include the temp controller, CO2 tank, connectors, lines shanks, and faucets.
Like I said earlier, it's a rabbit hole!

Very true. But if go down the rabbit hole, a cheap keezer is way less than a kegerator.

 

[BarbarianBrewer]

Bottles my friends, bottles …….

Says the avatar

I agree with that statement on any day I'm not cleaning bottles!

 

[Josh Hughes]

Handcrafted beer tastes awesome in many forms.

 

[WesBrew]

you can get kegerators and chest freezers on the used market to save some money. A neighbor gave me a summit kegerator 9 years ago that was old and beat-up when i got it. I thought i'd build up a keezer when it quits but it simply wont die! Currently holding 4 5G kegs.
Either can be expanded from a 1 keg start-up to 3+ kegs. With a single keg you can bottle clean, carbonated beer from it to keep more than one brew available.