Keg King kegerator series 4

[dammag]

When I gave the 4mm line a go I started with around 3m because I wanted to start long and shorten it until I got the performance I wanted.

At 3m the thing hardly even poured so I would suggest starting at 2m and shortening from there.

I didn't bother experimenting with shortening the line as I was too worried about leaks so just went back to my 5mm ID Valpar line.

 

[Jack of all biers]

Thanks for the advice Dammag. I'll go with 1.5 m (sort of forced too as KK sent through only 5 m of 4mm that I ordered extra for something else). The "4mm" line I requested for the beer line turned out to be 5mm, which must be a mistake as they sent the normal amount of 5mm also, so I have about 21 m of the stuff. So the 5mm will be used for gas and keg transfer lines and the 5m of 4mm will be used for the 3 x lengths of beer line. 2 x 1.5m and one at 2m and see how I go from there.

 

[peteru]

If you have Flow Control Intertaps, you can probably go with whatever line length gives the neatest fit. It's always easier to shorten the line.

Why not try an experiment and hook up same length of 4mm and 5mm line to two different FC taps? Let us know what the differences are, if any.

 

[Jack of all biers]

No FC taps. I couldn't see the point in spending the extra money (justify) if I could get the line lengths right. I've got the standard SS Intertaps. I went with 2 x 1.5 m lengths and 1 x 1.1 m (for English Ales and Stouts), which left me with a spare 2 m if I ever want to put a Weisse on tap (unlikely as I enjoy pouring from a bottle and I feel it tastes better from the bottle as opposed to having it on tap). Although you never know when I might get into a highly carbed Belgian (beer that is :lol: )

 

[Jack of all biers]

I've put my Kegerator Series 4 together now and am just going through the inevitable pressure testing procedures (read headaches. A story for another thread). I went back through this thread and realised there weren't many pics of peoples setups. So I got the phone out and snapped away as a picture tells a 1000 words.I forgot to take photos until I was almost finished, but you will get the idea without the 'million photos for dummies, step by step approach'.

I made some improvements to the font insulation in an effort to try and make it a bit more efficient. Just used some double sided foil insulation I had. Cut to size, rolled and sealed together with some duct tape. I left the foam that came with it in there as it would provide extra insulation as intended, but I wanted to improve things a bit.


Inserted and drew where the holes were with a texta, removed and rough cut out the holes.


Getting the shanks in wasn't as hard as it looks, as the insulation, being flexible, just pushed back and once the nuts were tight was pushed over the outer part of the shank.


Capped off with some more rough cut insulation and sealed with some duct tape for better efficiency. The duct taped cap will be easy to remove if I need to get in there for some reason (leaks etc).


Unit setup complete from the front


and back, with 5kg tank mounted on the unmodified mounting bracket. The gas line is split with a Tee and has a shut off valve going into the unit and a long line with disconnect to use for high pressure 'Ross Method' carbs and carbing bottles of water/pre-mix whiskey and whatevers etc. This means the fridge doesn't need to be opened and the internal pressure is not upped, when I force carb something externally.


Internally there is a 2 way (later can be a 3 way) splitter screwed to the roof near the glass rack holes. I figured they have pre-drilled holes for the glass rack on both sides, so there's likely no refrigerant lines running through the top of the fridge.

keg fits in front of the splitter, but would go underneath if I wanted it to.

I have a Tee prior to the splitter, with a gas disconnect leading down, so that at the moment I have 3 disconnects for 3 kegs, but later I can put another valve on the splitter and have 4 gas disconnects. This is so I can have a mini keg in the back, sitting on the compressor hump connected to the rear most disconnect.


Anyway, I hope it helps someone some day, or gives some ideas.

Now I just need to find a good solution to plug the hole for the gas line going into the fridge. I've seen Bradsbrew used blue tack, but I was hoping for other ideas of things people have used.

 

[bradsbrew]

I initially put my 3 way gas manifold in the fridge but have now placed it outside as it makes it easier to turn gas supply off to individual kegs when needed without opening the door plus i found it a bit difficult to get my fat hands in there with 3 kegs.
3 gas lines easily fit through the gas hole.

 

[peteru]

+1 for manifold mounted to the outside of the fridge. Just pull out the plastic plug hole thingie and you'll easily fit 3 gas lines through the hole drilled in the back of the fridge. You could probably squeeze in 4 gas lines if you need to. I sealed the gaps around the gas lines by stuffing in some packing foam.

 

[Rocker1986]

+2 to the manifold on the outside. I have a series 3, and while I started with those T-splitter things they just became a PITA. I have a four way manifold that sits on the outside of the fridge held on with double sided tape. 3 of the lines go through the back into the kegs (had to remove the plastic sleeve from the hole to fit them, as the power lead for my water pump to the flooded font goes through there too) and the fourth one is the spare mainly for purging kegs/pressurising for cleaning if not running through the tap, and the very rare occasion that I do a quick carbonation.

 

[not2oldru]

+1 for manifold mounted to the outside of the fridge. Just pull out the plastic plug hole thingie and you'll easily fit 3 gas lines through the hole drilled in the back of the fridge. You could probably squeeze in 4 gas lines if you need to. I sealed the gaps around the gas lines by stuffing in some packing foam.

Is this a series 4 ?So you just pull the plug out with pliers or something like that?

 

[peteru]

Yes, series 4.

I can't quite remember if it was threaded or pulled straight out, but I am pretty sure I did not require any tools to get it out. Just grabbed it with my fingers.

 

[blink471]

If I can just ask a question about getting the 3 tap system... Im no expert in gas fittings so bare with me. With the regulator that is supplied it hopefully comes with a spitter like seen in other posts photos. But do people find this a problem because as I understand it all 3 taps then have to be the same pressure with this regulator? Or do you reduce pressure to individual kegs by reducing opening/closing with valve handles? But then you dont know exactly what the pressure is without a gauge. I like the idea of control over each keg.. Is it a problem to anyone or is it fine?

 

[Grott]

Someone will correct me if I'm wrong but without either extra 2 gauges/pressure control and outlets connected to the existing regulator or a manifold that you shut off to particular kegs/taps and adjust pressure accordingly, the pressure will be the same for each tap. Alternatively you could have taps with flow controls and run each tap differently.

 

[blink471]

Someone will correct me if I'm wrong but without either extra 2 gauges/pressure control and outlets connected to the existing regulator or a manifold that you shut off to particular kegs/taps and adjust pressure accordingly, the pressure will be the same for each tap. Alternatively you could have taps with flow controls and run each tap differently.

Yeah thought so.. was just wondering as I get a little more experienced in brewing with different styles... serving pressure may vary say from a pilsner to a stout? Thanks for your reply mate.

 

[gazza1055]

Hi all jack of all biers i have the kk kegerator 4 if you are only using one gas line in like i did all i done was got the black plastic piece that screws into the white piece that fits in the fridge was got a 8m drill bit and drilled a hole threw the center of the black plastic and put my gas line threw it and screwed in back in the white piece. hope this helps Gazza happy brewing.

 

[peteru]

When I bought my 3 tap KK4 it came with two T pieces so that you can split the gas line. No control whatsoever over individual kegs with that kind of setup. I never actually used it that way. I also ordered the 4 way manifold so that I could shut off each individual keg and have an external gas line for other tasks, such as purging and pressurising freshly filled kegs destined for conditioning. That kind of setup is relatively inexpensive and gives you some control over each keg. It requires a little bit of thinking and fiddling in practice, but it's workable. If you want more control than that, you would need to go for multiple regulators. You can get low pressure regulators that can be hoked up in series. It gets very expensive if you do that and I suspect also very complex, bulky and unsightly.

 

[blink471]

When I bought my 3 tap KK4 it came with two T pieces so that you can split the gas line. No control whatsoever over individual kegs with that kind of setup. I never actually used it that way. I also ordered the 4 way manifold so that I could shut off each individual keg and have an external gas line for other tasks, such as purging and pressurising freshly filled kegs destined for conditioning. That kind of setup is relatively inexpensive and gives you some control over each keg. It requires a little bit of thinking and fiddling in practice, but it's workable. If you want more control than that, you would need to go for multiple regulators. You can get low pressure regulators that can be hoked up in series. It gets very expensive if you do that and I suspect also very complex, bulky and unsightly.

So they give you just a tee piece ok... Maybe I should do a similiar thing and buy a manifold and mount at the back... and go from there. An extra outlet would be handy for gassing soda water or purging.

 

[neal32]

Hey guys,

My old keezer died and I've just finished setting up my new series 4 with the SS intertap taps. I mounted the gas manifold outside and fed three gas lines through and sealed with blu tack. Seems solid so far and a test pour this morning was good, if not a little fast, but good carbonation (with 5mm valpar line). I didn't drink it because I had to goto work so tonight will be the final test.

A couple of q's. The fridge and fan are louder then I expected, do you guys leave the fan running the whole time or only before pouring a beer? Also what temperature do you guys set the fridge to? I used 4 degrees on my old keezer and have got it set to that.

 

[blink471]

Hey guys,

My old keezer died and I've just finished setting up my new series 4 with the SS intertap taps. I mounted the gas manifold outside and fed three gas lines through and sealed with blu tack. Seems solid so far and a test pour this morning was good, if not a little fast, but good carbonation (with 5mm valpar line). I didn't drink it because I had to goto work so tonight will be the final test.

A couple of q's. The fridge and fan are louder then I expected, do you guys leave the fan running the whole time or only before pouring a beer? Also what temperature do you guys set the fridge to? I used 4 degrees on my old keezer and have got it set to that.

I just set mine up too.. I set it to 3 degrees.. Tasted first beer last night and seemed right. I also wondered about fan and i turned mine off overnight, and will put on when serving. I only have one keg in at the moment but when I have more might be best with circulation to have on. Not sure myself yet.

 

[fungrel]

Hey guys,

My old keezer died and I've just finished setting up my new series 4 with the SS intertap taps. I mounted the gas manifold outside and fed three gas lines through and sealed with blu tack. Seems solid so far and a test pour this morning was good, if not a little fast, but good carbonation (with 5mm valpar line). I didn't drink it because I had to goto work so tonight will be the final test.

A couple of q's. The fridge and fan are louder then I expected, do you guys leave the fan running the whole time or only before pouring a beer? Also what temperature do you guys set the fridge to? I used 4 degrees on my old keezer and have got it set to that.

My fan died in the arse after the first year, don't bother with it now. Hasn't frozen up yet. Bought an identical fan and plugs etc to rewire the font only to find out that the wiring is stuffed, not the fan. Not impressed.

Check the temperature with a container of water and STC. My series 4 is out by 4c and froze my kegs solid when i first started using it.

 

[neal32]

My fan died in the arse after the first year, don't bother with it now. Hasn't frozen up yet. Bought an identical fan and plugs etc to rewire the font only to find out that the wiring is stuffed, not the fan. Not impressed.

Check the temperature with a container of water and STC. My series 4 is out by 4c and froze my kegs solid when i first started using it.

4 degrees lower I'm assuming? What do you have your temp set to? 8?