Magic Chef 4.4 kegerator

Banjo-guy · Post by **Banjo-guy** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 6:21 am

I stripped the insides out of my Magic Chef MCBR440W mini fridge.
It will easily fit my two 2.5 gallon kegs and co2 canister and double regulator.

I bent the freezer compartment as far back as I could and didn't kink the line.

Here is the door with the bottle organizer removed.

Inkleg · Post by **Inkleg** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 6:29 am

Cool! Nice little project. Are you thinking of putting a tower on it or just run picnic taps like I do.

Banjo-guy · Post by **Banjo-guy** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 6:32 am

I'm not going to use tower if I can avoid it.

What material should I cover the door with now that the insulation is exposed? I think that I need to provide a vapor barrier to the inside of the door.
I'm going to put 2 taps in the door. For now I'll use my quick disconnect inside the fridge

I'll move the thermostat to make more space.
Hopefully there will be room for the two taps.

Post by **Beer-lord** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 7:46 am

Nice. Doesn't the sphincter get a good workout when you bend the freezer plate? I always expect to hear the dreaded his of a leak.
Have you thought about spray foam? Not sure how easy that would be to apply to the door but I'm sure you can buy some thin fiber board or styrofoam to put on the door.

Post by **gwcr** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 8:26 am

I basically used whiteboard material from Lowes to cover my insulation. Use the old door insert as a pattern to cut around and for the screw holes. Then put the old door seal on that and screw to the door. works like a charm.

Added bonus, you can write notes about each beer on the inside of the door with a dry erase marker!

Post by **gwcr** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 8:32 am

Here's the link to my build.

Danby Conversion

Also, I had some issues keeping the temp steady with just the fridge thermostat, so I picked up another STC-1000+ and made a temp controller. Much more stable temps now.

Banjo-guy · Post by **Banjo-guy** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 8:42 am

I just read through the post on your build. It really turned out well! I love the tower through the counter top.
I see that AIH has a sale on the Perlick Stainless Steel 630ss Perl Faucet for 40.00.
I need a shank as well and handle. Is there anything else I need to order?
Can I use my existing picnic tap lines to connect?
I just want to avoid missing part thats I should of bought.

Banjo-guy · Post by **Banjo-guy** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 8:53 am

gwcr wrote:I basically used whiteboard material from Lowes to cover my insulation. Use the old door insert as a pattern to cut around and for the screw holes. Then put the old door seal on that and screw to the door. works like a charm.

Added bonus, you can write notes about each beer on the inside of the door with a dry erase marker!

White board is a good idea. I'm not really sure what that is. Is it dry erase material?
I wonder if I need to provide a good seal for moisture.

Post by **gwcr** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 8:55 am

Thanks. It was a stressful but fun build. I would have been terrified to bend the freezer coils like you did. Great job!

I suppose you could use your existing picnic tap lines, but I would suggest getting new lines and connectors. It's always good to have a spare picnic tap or two around. They come in handy. Plus, you may want to play with your line length. I started with 10' with the intent to cut, but didn't need to. With the shank through the door you might not need as long of lines, but it is way easier to make the lines shorter than longer...

Post by **gwcr** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 9:02 am

Here is a link to what I used.

White hardboard

Got a 4'x4' piece. Dirty bastard to cut. Haven't had any issues.

Post by **Beer-lord** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 10:13 am

I'd also suggest getting new lines. Like Glen suggested, you might want to star with 10-12 feet and after a few pours, you can easily cut the lines to whatever size works best reducing about 6" each time.
This link has some info to help as a good start but it's always better to start with a little more then cut if needed.
http://beersmith.com/blog/2011/07/14/ke ... raft-beer/

RickBeer · Post by **RickBeer** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 3:14 pm

Banjo-guy wrote:
gwcr wrote:I basically used whiteboard material from Lowes to cover my insulation. Use the old door insert as a pattern to cut around and for the screw holes. Then put the old door seal on that and screw to the door. works like a charm.

Added bonus, you can write notes about each beer on the inside of the door with a dry erase marker!
White board is a good idea. I'm not really sure what that is. Is it dry erase material?
I wonder if I need to provide a good seal for moisture.

I've seen many people using that white board, and with the original seal in place you don't have to seal anything else, i.e. moisture's not going to get behind the white board.