Build A Kegerator

If you've got a knack for building and can follow a basic design blueprint, it's not too difficult to build a kegerator. For the uninitiated, a kegerator, as its name suggests, is the product of a beer keg and a garden variety refrigerator used specifically to administer cold, frothy, alcoholic beverages (though any carbonated drink will do). Most kegerators are "devoted" refrigerators; they're typically not used as day-in and day-out appliances.

To build a kegerator, you'll need a few basic pieces of equipment beyond the keg itself. The most important of these is a CO2 tank from which the gas is dispensed to be mixed with the beer. An average CO2 tank runs five gallons and may be filled at a local party store or liquor shop for about five or 10 dollars. To go with this tank, you'll also require a regulator with a pressure gauge to help keep an eye on your kegerator's PSI level. If it's too high or too low, you and your guests will taste the difference.

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Once you have your CO2, your keg, and your regulator and gauges in place, you'll also need a tap, which usually comes along with an air line, and a faucet as well. Many people confuse the tap and faucet, but the tap is the instrument that fits directly on top of the keg while the faucet is the site where the beer comes out. Finally, there are a host of fittings that go with your CO2 tank that are used to seal their contents and adjust their flow.

Before you build a kegerator, you should decide on the basic layout of your system. Some beer kegerators enclose both their kegs and CO2 tanks inside the housing unit. In other instances, the CO2 may be kept separate, provided the air line still reaches and can be properly affixed. There are also those beer fans who enjoy showing off their handiwork, while others build their systems to conceal everything but the faucet.