C02 inside or outside of fridge

[Hoont]

I too am just starting to 1) hate bottling and 2) look into kegging. I am hoping to get a fridge to fit 3 kegs but am wondering about the C02 tank. I think I have read its better for the C02 tank to be outside the fridge? Is this true? And is this that big of a deal or is the benefit negligible?

Follow-up question, if the C02 tank can be in the fridge, can it lay horizontal or should it be vertical?

Thanks in advance!

[Bugeater]

The tank can be either in or out. Being out, you get extra room inside the fridge. Also sometimes the high humidity inside the fridge can play havoc with the regulator, but many folks get by with it. If you keep it in the fridge, your pressure gauge will show lower head pressure in the tank due to the lower vapor temperature. This will not affect the pressure going to the keg, it just shows that more CO2 is in the liquid stage than at room temperature.

One thing you do not want to do is operate the tank on it's side. The liquid CO2 can get into the regulator and cause all sorts of damage.

Wayne

[zerokev]

If you're concerned about the warm CO2 changing the temperature of the cold beer, don't even worry about it. It only takes a very small amount of CO2 to push that pint, and you'll never notice the difference. It's way better to have the space for another keg!

[Stinkfist]

Just make sure you know where you are drilling if you drill holes into a fridge or freezer...unless you use a collar then it is a lot easier