# Aldi Stirling 150L Keezer



## maxim0200 (16/10/13)

Aldi have freezers on sale today 229$ gets you a 3 star (currentlt in NSW if you were to run it without a temp controler it would cost you 69$/year to run) 150L freezer.

Now for the good news by my calculations im 99.99% sure it will fit 2 kegs,  (and possibly a gas cylinder)
when i pick one up il confirm that + post a pic.
It should also fit a fermenter if you want to ferment in it.






Blurb:
_ Product Description

- 3 Star Energy Rating 
- Manual temperature control 
- Fast Freeze switch for rapid cooling 
- Defrost drain system 
- 4 recessed wheels for easy manoeuvrability 
- 835(H) x 685(W) x 625(D)mm 
- 150L Chest Freezer offers ample space for long term storage 
- 36 month in home warranty
- For more info, go to stirlingappliances.com.au
_

Edit: details


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## OneEye (16/10/13)

I've got a 150L freezer with a collar and I've got 4 kegs/taps on it. Pretty much the same dimensions too!


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## Bribie G (16/10/13)

Being the Aldi watcher here, that slipped under my radar: thanks for that, I don't need a keezer but I have a two door fridge freezer grinding away 24/7 in the garage and all I use it for is hops, yeasts and frozen curries etc. 

Been on the lookout for a cheap chesty for ages. Bottles of yeast cake and Wyeasts can get a spot in the kitchen fridge. 

Cheers. 

edit: can chesties be transported on their side or back? Fridgemate travelled ok on its back.


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## maxim0200 (16/10/13)

Being the Aldi watcher here, that slipped under my radar: thanks for that, I don't need a keezer but I have a two door fridge freezer grinding away 24/7 in the garage and all I use it for is hops, yeasts and frozen curries etc. 

Been on the lookout for a cheap chesty for ages. Bottles of yeast cake and Wyeasts can get a spot in the kitchen fridge. 

Cheers. 

edit: can chesties be transported on their side or back? Fridgemate travelled ok on its back.


When Aldi first came i was a naysayer but ive been converted recently :lol:

I believe you can as long as you let them rest upright for acouppe of hours after. I think older fidges were effected allot but not so much for the new ones.


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## Bribie G (16/10/13)

Off topic but on Bribie Island when they started building the Aldi, there's a row of houses over the back and one guy started flying the biggest Australian Flag you've ever seen. When they put up the car park high fence he installed a new flagpole. A year later his wife was working there. No flag any more. :lol:

we were all waiting for a personal shopping gate to be installed into his place.


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## jaypes (16/10/13)

Bribie G said:


> Off topic but on Bribie Island when they started building the Aldi, there's a row of houses over the back and one guy started flying the biggest Australian Flag you've ever seen. When they put up the car park high fence he installed a new flagpole. A year later his wife was working there. No flag any more. :lol:
> 
> we were all waiting for a personal shopping gate to be installed into his place.


Haha - FAIL!


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## Bribie G (16/10/13)

2 kegs _and _a Bunnings 30L fermenter, clingwrapped of course. Just the job for CC. 

To fit 4 kegs with 2 sitting on the compressor hump you'd need a major collar, and I mean really major collar, would look too tall and weird.


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## JDW81 (16/10/13)

Bribie, did you get that one today? Reckon it would fit in the back of a VW golf?

Cheers,

JD.


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## Bribie G (16/10/13)

Fitted in a Mazda2 with shopping room to spare - dimensions are on the site.


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## JDW81 (16/10/13)

Bribie G said:


> Fitted in a Mazda2 with shopping room to spare - dimensions are on the site.


Outstanding, might have my keg set-up ready for christmas after all.


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## maxim0200 (16/10/13)

Right i just managed to fit the following combonations:
1) 3 pepsi ball lock kegs no collar required
2) 2 pepsi ball lock kegs and a co2 cylinder, collar required for my big tank
3) #2 combo Pluss 2 more kegs with a big collar (or 2 9L kegs)

Pics to come soon.... 
Gota appease SWMBO by cleaning up/cooking and hope she dosent notice :lol:


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## mr_wibble (16/10/13)

I got mine today, haven't had time to unbox it ... but its getting the temperature controller add-on as soon as that arrives.

While you're at it, Aldi at Toronto still has a bunch of Paulaner Oktoberfest, and some of the Stiegel x5+glass packs - which make OK xmas presents.


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## JDW81 (16/10/13)

Bribie G said:


> Fitted in a Mazda2 with shopping room to spare - dimensions are on the site.


Also fits in a Golf... Was planning to use it for kegs, but Mrs JD has it slated as an actual freezer <_<


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## maxim0200 (16/10/13)




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## maxim0200 (16/10/13)

How many were there at the other stores? i think there was only 2 on the floor at my aldi (i got the last one on the floor they may have had more out the back though).

Im in 2 minds on where to insert the STC-1000 Im thinking of replacing the thermostat So that when you open it the light still comes on or just putting it in like 'normal' so it turns the whole fridge on and off.
on the STC-1000 front they manual states that if you unplug the freezer and plug it in the compressor may not start for 3-5min, id think that could be a good delay time for the STC.
What variance dose everyone set their keezer at? IE: +- 2DegC...

I also might replace the light with LED's B)


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## JDW81 (16/10/13)

There was only one on the floor out my way, but seemed that there were plenty out back.


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## mr_wibble (17/10/13)

maxim0200 said:


> How many were there at the other stores? i think there was only 2 on the floor at my aldi/quote]
> 
> 6-8 i would guess at Toronto... At 9:30 yesterday


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## Bribie G (17/10/13)

Mine's working sweetly. It's so quiet I had to press my ear against the lid to hear if it was on. I love that 80w ... less than many old style light bulbs. 

Full of meat, curry and hops now but I need to get a couple of extra baskets for easy handling as the thing is really deep. Local BiLo in the village here has a "no returns to warehouse" policy like a lot of the Coles group do and if they have to clear stuff they don't frig around, often have stuff like Osso Bucco pre packs for $2 a kilo to get shot of them, lambs fry vac packs for a dollar, get rid of them. Aldi had mounds of Turkish Bread Rolls 3pack for 89 cents: no problem, load the trolley up :lol:

Should have bought one of these suckers years ago.


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## Phoney (17/10/13)

I bought one of these from 2nds World a few years ago to convert to a kegerator. They're permanently on special for $250. With a collar it fits 4 kegs, but not the gas bottle.
It's so good I went and bought another one to use as a fermentation fridge. Fits 2 fermenter's in nicely, and it runs at a fraction of the time that my big old upright freezer did for cold crashing in summer.


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## Beerisyummy (20/10/13)

Great deal on those freezers.

You might want to be careful drilling any holes in them though. R600a is the flammable type of refrigerant although I suppose that just adds to the level of excitement.

Any fridge mechanics out there with an opinion on these?

I can't seem to find any hint on the Aldi website. Is this one of those one weekend only type deals?


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## maxim0200 (21/10/13)

Oooo its keezer roulette! :lol:

Yeah i think its a weekday special. Hopefully they will get them back in eventully.


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## manson81 (25/10/13)

Anybody know if these would still floating around at aldi? Or do they return unsold specials each week back to the warehouse? 

SWMBO has decided that my converted fridge kegerator is the reason for our large power bill, and after buying a power monitor tonight, she may be half right. Only going on 3 hours of data, and extrapolating out, looking around $60 a quarter... Obviously I need more data to be accurate, but not looking good so far. 

So if I can get a freezer and run it for $35 a year or less, I'll be in the good books! 

Just gotta toss up whether I buy a cheap new one like this, or an old $30 job off Gumtree and risk it still chewing heaps of power.


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## Bribie G (25/10/13)

You could be lucky. For example they had 8kg washing machines over a month ago and they still have four or five sitting in my local store. Depends how many, if any, they ended up with after the special ended.


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## doon (25/10/13)

They still had 3 or 4 at south melbourne store the other day


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## manson81 (25/10/13)

Was planning on calling around and checking if any of my local stores have any. Turns out you can't call aldi! 

I'll have to drop into a few and see what I can find. 

I have just ordered all the gear I need to convert it from keg king though!


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## manson81 (25/10/13)

Dropped in to aldi at Stafford on the way home from work and apparently every aldi in brisbane is sold out of the freezer. Damn! Now I gotta find alternatives...


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## macca05 (25/10/13)

Beerisyummy said:


> Great deal on those freezers.
> 
> You might want to be careful drilling any holes in them though. R600a is the flammable type of refrigerant although I suppose that just adds to the level of excitement.
> 
> ...


There are two ways you can drill into fridges or freezers. With the keezer most add a wooden collar between the top of the freezer and the door so you then just drill all your holes through the wood.
Another way which I did for my fridge was to drill through the outer wall of the fridge. Then using a nail that is longer than the thickness of the wall. Poke it through the hole and through the foam. If you touch the other side and you can wiggle it around a bit and you dont feel/hear any contact with metal/ally (whatever the tubing is) you should be good to go  Worked a treat for my fridge


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## manson81 (25/10/13)

phoneyhuh said:


> I bought one of these from 2nds World a few years ago to convert to a kegerator. They're permanently on special for $250. With a collar it fits 4 kegs, but not the gas bottle.
> It's so good I went and bought another one to use as a fermentation fridge. Fits 2 fermenter's in nicely, and it runs at a fraction of the time that my big old upright freezer did for cold crashing in summer.


How would yours go without the collar? I'm trying to get out of putting a collar on mainly because I don't know how! 

I'm happy with only two kegs in there..


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## stakka82 (25/10/13)

I am an absolute spastic with my hands and I managed to do it... So it has to be easy. Many guides on the web and this site.


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## maxim0200 (25/10/13)

Il be going a collar b/c my gas tank is to tall, for those who want to know itl need to be 70mm+ for a KK 6kg cylinder and a micromatic reg.


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## maxim0200 (25/10/13)

Il be going a collar b/c my gas tank is to tall, for those who want to know itl need to be 70mm+ for a KK 6kg cylinder and a micromatic reg.


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## manson81 (26/10/13)

Yeah, my tank is huge too but was planning to mount it outside


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## mr_wibble (31/10/13)

Has anyone fitted an STC-1000 into the Aldi / Stirling yet?

Mine arrived yesterday thanks to MashMaster & express shipping.
(The one *still* coming from China can be a spare.)

I expect there's some space above or below the existing control panel, as this is under the "compressor hump".
Of course getting your hands in there can be a problem, but a bit of child-labour is good for those hard-to-reach places.

The last freezer I modified was already beaten up, and cost a fair bit less, so I wasn't so concerned about stuffing it up.

Nothing in this thread, so I guess I'll go it alone, and take some photos.


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## maxim0200 (31/10/13)

I will be fitting a stc-1000 when it comes on a slow boat from china:angry::angry::angry:

I am thinking about putting it in place of the existing thermostat, i will be putting up a how to when it comes.


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## mr_wibble (1/11/13)

My STC-1000 is installed. Woohoo!

Here's some notes:

I sited the stc-1000 / stc1000 25mm above the existing control centre. This was mainly to clear the existing wiring, so I could get my hands in there.
There's plenty of room here. I gave the corners of the hole a light tap with the punch before drilling, it keeps the bit in place.
I drilled out the corners with a 1.5mm (2mm?) bit, then cut between the holes with a cheap-shit(TM) angle grinder (1mm cutting disk).
Oh, you need a 72mm by 30mm hole, but best decide on this size for yourself.

The thing holding the power cable in has those 3-flap screws FAARK! I replaced these with some phillips. Getting these feckers out was the hardest part of the job. And I even had a bit for it. You have to be so careful working around those coolant pipes.

I pushed my screwdriver from inside the "compressor hump" right through. I'm not sure it's 100% perpendicular (it's close), but it comes out on the wall of the hump. The metal interior of the freezer is basically only a medium foil. Pushing my screwdriver from the inside of the hump made a dent in the foil on the inside the freezer. I simply pushed (a bit more firmly) on this dent from the inside, found the hole and managed pentration. Maybe I thumped the back of the screwdriver with my hand, I can't remember.

So ... it seems I missed the coolant system. I have attached photos of about where I put my hole. 
I just guessed this position, but I did take a good look to make an educated guess at what direction the pipes seemed to be going first.

I undid the power cable and pulled another 15cm through for the wiring. This was enough, but it was still pretty tight.

Once I had the heater and sensor wires pulled through my hole I siliconed it up on both sides. The wires together filled the hole I made, so I couldn't see the point of extra insulation, there was nowhere to put it.


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## backyard_ brewer (1/11/13)

Has anyone ever seen any other homebrew paraphernalia at Aldi?


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## maxim0200 (1/11/13)

Mr wibble bloody great job mate! Thankyou for the pics and writeup!

Yes there is aldi apple juice??? :lol:


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## maxim0200 (2/11/13)

What settings did you use for your stc?


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## mr_wibble (2/11/13)

maxim0200 said:


> What settings did you use for your stc?


I set F1 to 18 and that was it.

I checked it this morning at 05:30, the read temp was 16.7 - a bit low, ambient was 8.5 
but the heater pad was on.
So thats working ok.


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## technobabble66 (2/11/13)

Has anyone ever seen any other homebrew paraphernalia at Aldi?


Bribie G. 
He sees brewing equipment. 
Especially at Aldi.


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## technobabble66 (2/11/13)

Oh, & congrats Mr Wibble, fantastic job on both the DIY & the report. Looks great!


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## punkin (3/11/13)

technobabble66 said:


> Bribie G.
> He sees brewing equipment.
> Especially at Aldi.



WHYWASMYALDITHREADCLOSEDBribie



backyard_ brewer said:


> Has anyone ever seen any other homebrew paraphernalia at Aldi?



There is a dedicated thread somewhere mate. PM Bribie and he will show you where it is.


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## NewtownClown (3/11/13)

backyard_ brewer said:


> Has anyone ever seen any other homebrew paraphernalia at Aldi?


Besides ingredients e.g. oats, flaked wheat, flour, honey, fruit etc?

Sure - Aluminium foil, plastic wrap, funnels, bar fridges, silicon bakeware. To name just a very few....

EVERY supermarket, $2 shop or corner store stock items that can be utilised in a home brewery


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## punkin (3/11/13)

Picked up some nice digital thermos the other day and a real good power paint mixer that will be sharpened for doing fruit wines.


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## maxim0200 (8/11/13)

Here is my attempt at modding my keezer.

http://youtu.be/3tf3ZV_k7o4


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## Bribie G (8/11/13)

I once made an Aldi Ale with cornflakes, oats, brown sugar etc :blink:

Aldi is good for those often expensive brew cave items that they pop out on special a few times a year, not often found at Colesworth.. including:

Probably the best copper bottomed 10.5L stockpot on the market for under $20 (in stock now)
Digital thermometers
Small hot water urns
vacuum sealers
really cheap eskies
kitchen timers

As well as the usual bar fridges, freezers.


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## sp0rk (8/11/13)

Bribie G said:


> I once made an Aldi Ale with cornflakes, oats, brown sugar etc :blink:
> 
> Aldi is good for those often expensive brew cave items that they pop out on special a few times a year, not often found at Colesworth.. including:
> 
> ...


I'm jonesing for them to bring back their eskies and vacuum bags
Way too lazy to trawl ebay for cheap ones...


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## Camo6 (8/11/13)

Don't forget cheap electric pressure cookers for yeast farming and who could forget the Aldi randall.


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## merlin032 (9/11/13)

Grabbed one today after reading this thread, Aldi Warringal (heidelberg, vic) have one left if anyone is looking for one. Fits in the back of an i30... 

Also picked up the materials to build a collar, that'll be my project for tomorrow.

Looking quite nice next to my Aldi esky mash tun...


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## maxim0200 (9/11/13)

Grabbed one today after reading this thread, Aldi Warringal (heidelberg, vic) have one left if anyone is looking for one. Fits in the back of an i30... 

Also picked up the materials to build a collar, that'll be my project for tomorrow.

Looking quite nice next to my Aldi esky mash tun...


Nice mate, im supriesed they still have stock left!

Do UL some pics once you have the collar done, also give me a PM if you need help with the stc-1000


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## carniebrew (4/1/14)

What were the dimensions on the Aldi unit? Would something like this compare?
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/TCL-150LT-CHEST-FREEZER-TCF150Q-BRAND-NEW-RRP-399-00-SAVE-/111250369495


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## maxim0200 (4/1/14)

im not shure mate, specificallywhat dimension are you after? i can go measure it if you want.


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## carniebrew (4/1/14)

Interior width/depth/length would be really useful, thanks.


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## maxim0200 (5/1/14)

Alright mate,
Witdth(side to side ex hump) 535mm
Depth (front to back) is 445mm
Height (bottom to top lip exc lid) is 685mm

And the hump is:
Wide 190mm
High 210mm
And depth full.

You can fit x2 kegs and if you had smaller 9L cornys 2 of the to.


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## leighaus (15/10/15)

sorry for a thread bump.. just thinking of when my keezer dies, will this take 3 cornys and a small co2 bottle without collar? looks a fraction small to me.


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## Bribie G (15/10/15)

No


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## leighaus (15/10/15)

cheers bribie !


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## JDW81 (24/7/16)

Has anyone put a collar on one of these freezers to make it big enough to take 4 cornies? I've done some measuring and it's going to need a fairly big one to make it so.

I've been given the green light to turn mine into a keezer, however I'd rather have four kegs on the go than 2.

Cosmetics aren't an issue, as it is going to live in the garage, however just wondering if there is a theoretical limit for collar size?

Cheers,

JD


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