buying a kegerator locally

[Stefan A]

Because I would like to save on shipping costs, I would like to buy a summit kegarator locally. I live about halfway between Baltimore and Harrisburg. But I would be willing to travel as far as DC or Phili if it will save me money. Who sells them? If there were a place in Northern Deleware, I could save on tax too :).

Stefan

[kinjar]

I'm from the Harrisburg area originally myself. Knowing several people who have purchased kegerators that live in PA, I recommend looking south. PA has a lot of weird ABC laws that seems to prevent people from easily pruchasing a quality kegerator.

Everyone I know ordered theirs on-line from a good retailer that specialized in 'rators. That way they had some help via phone getting it set-up and troubleshooting when they had problems.

I saw your other post as well. Look towards Mechanicsburg for a variety of beer stores that sell a host of micro brew kegs in the 1/6 size. You'll be able to get the Troeggs varietys for much cheaper than if you went to MD or VA.

Hope this helps.

[chazwicke]

This place has an excellent selection of sixtels and also sells Beverage Air kegerators. I saw two of them on display. They had the same model that I do except I put a dual tap tower on mine so that I can run two different beers. They are not too far from the York area.

http://www.extonbeverage.com/alternativeimportedbeers/

I bought a sixtel of Troegs Pale Ale.:D

[Stefan A]

I wish I could bring myself to spend $1100 on a nice kegerator, but I just can't right now. They are only about 1.5 hours from me, so it looks like a good place to shop for kegs.

Stefan

[HogieWan]

Try building one yourself. Many on this forum have done so with great results.

You'll need a chest freezer that will hold how ever many kegs you plan to have on tap at once, an external thermostat, co2 cylinder and regulator, taps, and faucets.

It sounds like a lot, but the less expensive kegerators will probably be more headache than building your own, and cheaper than the high-end ones. Besides, when you friends come over and gawk at your beautiful 10-tap monstrosity, it'll be worth it. I'm planning the construction of mine for sometime this winter.

There are pictures and discussion all over the boards here - try searching kegerator.

[Stefan A]

I am certain that you are right about building your own. And one day I may get on here and say that I wish I listened. But at this point, it is not a hobby...yet. And I don't have a bar or a lot of space...yet. For now, spending the least amount of money with the least amount of work is what I need. If I really get into it, I will probably sell the cheapie and invest in either a chest or a beverage-air level. Also, there is a wife factor here to deal with and she hardley approves of the cheap one - and certainly not one that is twice as expenive. I should take what I can get :)

Stefan

[HogieWan]

With my wife, if I want to buy something, she always asks "I am going to be paying for bigger/better model in a year?" If the answer is yes or maybe, she'll usaully cave and say spend the money now instead of wasting on the cheapie and spending the bigger bucks anyway. 'm waiting until christmas and get some other people to buy parts of it for presents and put it all together.

[Stefan A]

If I went and bought the better one, she would be none the wiser - although that would be dishonest on my part. Fact is, I am not commited to spending the money. Maybe you can comment on what is so bad about the Summit. Maybe there are certain things that could be upgraded without taking it way out of the ballpark.

Stefan

[HogieWan]

I'm not taling about the summit - I wsa refering to Haier and other bargain brands. I've only heard of trouble from those. Summit should be a good buy, but I'm not that familiar with any of the commercial kegerators.

[Stefan A]

Yeah, I had read a lot of reviews about the Haier saying how poor it was. From the unit to the customer service. So, even though I could get it cheaper than the Summit, I won't be getting that brand.

Stefan

[HogieWan]

Unless someone else can say otherwise, I think your beer is in good hands in the Summit

[chazwicke]

You could look on Ebay or Craigslist.com in your area. You might find a good used one. One thing to look for is a cooled tower.