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It's Christmas Eve. Time to Tap the Kegerator!

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Christmas Eve Kegerator

Christmas Eve. In popular songs, it’s a night filled with wonder and hope, excitement and anticipation. At least if you’re a kid. As a small child, you put on your new pair of jammies and hustle off to bed, awaiting the arrival of the jolly ol’ man himself and all the gifts that he brings. For some, sleep comes quickly, because they know that Santa can’t arrive until they are fast asleep. For others, the excitement of what is to come makes them toss and turn all night long.

But what if you’re an adult on Christmas Eve? Chances are that you have loads to do to make the upcoming Christmas Day one that is extra special. There may be gifts to wrap, trees to decorate, lights to hang, and food to prepare for family and friends. Feeling a bit overwhelmed? That’s why it’s a good idea to tap into your home kegerator to set the mood and make the long to-do list a bit more palatable.

If you have a kegerator, or even a mini kegerator, you probably already know how good it can taste to fill up a nice cold, frosty mug of beer. On a night such as Christmas Eve, which can sometimes turn into a stressful time filled with lots to do, a kegerator can be a lifesaver – giving you a chance to relax and unwind a bit as you cross things off your list one by one.

Sure, you can also open a can or bottle of beer that’s sitting in the fridge, but the taste of a draft beer straight from the kegerator tap is smooth and appealing on a busy winter night. And chances are, there’s no room in your fridge anyway because it’s filled with all the fixings for tomorrow’s big holiday meal. So, unless you have an extra fridge in the garage or basement, or you have a kegerator, you may not have access to that great tasting beer at all.

Why drink beer on Christmas Eve, rather than wine or even egg nog?
We’re not saying you can’t, but if you like beer, you like beer. Wine can make you sleepy, and you can’t afford to be sleepy on a night like this – there’s too much to do. Egg nog is a great drink to have once you’re all gathered together in celebration of the holiday, but it is rather heavy and sweet and is not the type of drink you typically have on its own, without the accompanying holiday festivities.

So, once you get the kids to bed, why not thinking of heading over to your kegerator with your spouse and taking a few minutes to share a refreshing beer together as you plan your night’s activities. Then you can divide up the chores, put on some festive music, and get to wrapping, and decorating, and preparing food for the day ahead. Make it a point to reconvene by the kegerator, or by the fireplace if you’re looking for something cozy, at the end of the evening, to maybe share one last drink and rejoice in the excitement that the holiday brings, despite all the work that may be involved now that you’re an adult and not a wide-eyed child. Then call it a night, and head off to bed, dreaming of the joy-filled day that lies ahead.

It don't matter if you're black or white

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MJ said it best and now it’s your turn to choose! Tap Boards, Inc. already has their patented write/erase tap handles in Chalkboard. Coming soon in mid-October there will be a new White board version added to the line. So, now it really doesn’t matter if you’re black or white. Just make sure you keep the moon walking to a minimum. We know how excited you all get about new beer gadgets.

The (dry erase) White board Tap Boards will be available mid-October (just in time for the holidays) on their website TapBoards.com and we will have them on Kegerators.com too. The new White board version comes with one standard black dry erase pen, but the new white surface will allow you to get a little more creative with colored pens.

Tap Boards

Kegerator Modifications: Splitting CO2 Lines

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Splitting CO2 Gas LinesOne of the great benefits of owning a kegerator is tinkering with and modifying it.  One of the most popular modifications is to add an additional tap or two.  To modify your kegerator to dispense additional beers, you will need to split your CO2 lines.  You will probably want more than one tap on hand, so your kegerator can dispense from sanke kegs, soda or Cornelius kegs, or whatever keg may appear at your doorstep.  Splitting your CO2 lines can be as simple as a t-joint or as complicated as a multi-tap regulator for dispensing different beers at different pressures.  We will look here at the kits and equipment currently available on the market and processes for modifying you kegerator for dispensing any kind of beer from commercial to home and craft brew.
Co2 Splitter
For adding a quick extra beer tap onto your kegerator, a stainless steel or plastic t- or cross joint will do the job of splitting the CO2 to the different kegs – but gas leakage may occur if your keg tap isn’t maintained properly.  This is the most inexpensive way of splitting your CO2 line, and all you will need is the appropriate taps for the beer you want to dispense, surgical tubing, hose clamps, and of course the kegs of beer.  Adding an inline valve will even make it so that you can minimize gas wastage when changing kegs.  The T-splitter will cost you less than $5 and the inline valve probably less, and you can find for these items online or at your local hardware store in the plumbing section.  Aquarium supply stores may also have the fittings.  You will still need beer taps – more on that later

A more refined approach to splitting CO2 lines is the use of a gas distributor.  These units have one gas in and multiple gas outs to facilitate multi tap kegerator modifications.  The gas distributor has valves for each of the line-outs, and you can use a gas distributor to split your gas out in multiple directions.  Gas distributors are available in a number of configurations.  Two way gas distributors cost roughly $40, while the larger multi tap distributors with 6-8 line-outs can cost $120 or more.

For a draft beer system that requires dedicated individual pressures for different beers, a secondary regulator panel or a dual body CO2 regulator is necessary.  This is very advanced stuff most people need not go into this much detail, but these units will cost upwards of $150 just for the regulator panel, the price depending on how many regulators you need, or $120 and up for a dual body CO2 regulator.  If you want to force carbonate your beer while dispensing beer from the same unit, a secondary regulator panel or dual body CO2 regulator may be the modification you want to make to your kegerator.

One factor to keep in mind when splitting your kegerator’s CO2 line is that your operating pressure will decrease depending on the length of tubing you use.  When long lengths of tubing are used, the tubing expands and makes it difficult to keep the CO2 pressure at a constant rate.  The same also goes for beer lines.  If you cannot avoid having a long-draw system, you will need to use certain materials for the majority of the draw in order to ensure optimum beer quality and cleanliness.  You should strive to have no longer than six feet of regular surgical tubing from CO2 canister to keg, or 12 feet of beer lines all together from between keg and faucet.

Although there are some exceptions, long-draw systems still push beer from the keg via CO2.  The standard flexible surgical tubing is used, but coupled with a special “barrier tubing” soon after leaving the keg.  Barrier tubing is thicker than regular surgical tubing and has a mesh cover, which keeps the vinyl tubing from expanding and causing CO2 pressure irregularities.  With the use of a tubing flare tool, you can create your own stainless steel tubing for your beer lines as well, which are by far the most durable and cleanest options, although they are harder to build and modify.

See related:
Modification Project: Adding Double or Triple Tap Tower
Placing CO2 Disconnect Couplers
Installing Co2 Lines Efficiently
CO2 Tank, Pressure and Regulator Questions
CO2 Tank Guide