Mini-Fridges

[Bob Villa]

If you buy a thermo-electric (Peltier type) mini fridge, be aware of their limitations: they can only lower the ambient temperature by 40 degrees. (Don't expect cold beer when it's in a 90 deg. garage) : (

[LouB]

Geeze in Florida the temp can hit 110 or more:-((

[Han]

Bob Villa wrote in news:cec44789-8d28-428d-b7a6- [e-mail]:

Real beer should not be colder than 10°C (=50°F). American beer, that's a different story.

Well, maybe YMMV ...

[Bob Villa]

I would say 50 is cool...not cold. It sounds as though you're saying our beer needs to be cold...so it numbs the tastes buds? I hope that's not the case.

[DerbyDad03]

re: "I hope that's not the case."

...or the six pack.

[ransley]

What is the efficency of those units.

[Tegger]

Han wrote in news:Xns9DCB4D2CC1331ikkezelf@207.246.207.166:

You obviously have never tried any of the many excellent American microbrews that are out there.

Most of the mainstream European beers I've tried (and there have been many) are about as bland and humdrum as most of the mainstream American beers. Heineken? Becks? Blah.

[Han]

Bob Villa wrote in news: [e-mail]:

That was an implied sarcastic smiley, Bob. I'm Dutch by origin, and Dad used to store the beer in the cool cellar. Ice-cold beer was a nono. Here in the US, it's a different story, probaby in part because of taste, partly because it is usually hotter here. I'm easily adaptable (in some respects), and definitely NOT a beer connoisseur.

[LSMFT]

How odd.

[DerbyDad03]

re: "What is the efficency of those units"

I can't answer that directly, but I'll toss out this "tip"....

When I bought a small (5 cu ft) freezer I was told that they operate most efficiently when filled to about 3/4 capacity. It's related to air circulation.

I assume the same applies to any cooling device appliance.

[Doug Miller]

Yeah, that's pretty much the case. Mainstream American beers (Bud, Busch, Miller, Michelob, etc.) really aren't all that good when compared to decent European beers.

[jamesgangnc]

I'd be inclined to think it was related to the stuff in it. It's the stuff that stays cool, air doesn't hold a lot of heat. You only need to remove .02 btus from a cubic foot of air to lower it a degree.

[jamesgangnc]

-

I don't find a lot of the high volume beers here or in europe to be all that good. One exception I find decent personaly is Yuengling, but that may not be something everyone agrees with. US microbeers are another story, I find a number of them are pretty good. When in europe I always inquire from the pub/bar owner and find that most everywhere I can get good local beers. Sometimes not so in the big cities like Paris, London, etc. but always in the countryside. I'm not a fan of the real heavy beers like Guiness.

[Stormin Mormon]

I wouldn't make that assumption. Some chest freezers do not use air circulation. And therefore, most efficient when cram full.

[Steve B]

Little fridges are just a little bit better than nothing. I have one of the smaller ones in my container, and it definitely does bring down the temperature more than 40 degrees, so I must have a different type than you are referring to. Temps inside reach the 120 range, and I can always go pull a really cold bottle out. I have to watch it, and not set it too low, or it freezes the water. I'll get a regular one soon as I start brewing beer. Maybe five.

Steve

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[jamesgangnc]

There are two basic designs. The ones that use a heat source to circulate the refrigerant and ones that use a small compressor. The first style is a lot cheaper but not as effective. The second is just a small version of your big fridge.

I have the later in my bar. I like the fact that I can put a ton of stuff in it warm and not care about raising the temp of food stored in it cause there is no food in it. When you load a bunch of drinks in your home fridge it can raise the temp of the surrounding items for a while.

[Steve Barker]

Our little mini will freeze stuff solid if you turn it down too far. It may not be the type you refer to however.

[tnom]

They are hardly worth the money. In addition to the Peltier limits of above all the ones I have seen will never run 24/7 like a standard frige.

Air flow is a must for the Peltier type. The air path easily clogs with dust and the transfer efficiency goes down rapidly. The fan bushings will start to drag and further reduce the air flow and efficiency.

[jamesgangnc]

Not neccesarily, many don't use much electricity. I remember a really old one that used a regular incandesent light bulb for heat.

[Steve B]

That confuses me, too. I have one like yours that will freeze stuff if you have it set too cold. The statement by the poster seems to infer that all little reefers are this way. I seem to recall that ammonia refrigerators in RVs have some limitations like that, but then, the Dometics will freeze stuff, and the fridges I have had in all my RVs kept stuff cold.

Go figger.

Steve

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