Better Beer Blog

It took some time but my kegerator has arrived and is now up and running! I purchase the Haier HBF05EBSS-2 Dual Faucet Kegerator with Stainless Steel Door from the Beverage Factory and so far, so good but as always, it didn’t start off well. Chalk it up as a learning experience.

I researched a few places online for the best deals, mainly through Google. I knew I was going to inherit a chest freezer from my mother-in-law and I originally planned to convert that but then I went out and bought a three Cornelius (corney) kegs and found I could only fit one keg in the freezer. I really wanted a two keg system so I started to look at my many options. In the end, my wife just said, “Just buy the stainless steel, two tap system from that website. It’s not like you’re actually going to build one anyway!” So with a credit card in one hand and my shattered ego in the other, I made the phone call.

Just days later, I notice that FedEx has left a little note saying they came by and attempted to deliver the parts. To keep a long story short, my wife ended up going to FedEx to claim the refrigerator portion while the tap lines, tower and CO2 equipment were delivered separately. The day I put most of the kegerator together, I realized Beverage Factory forgot to ship the CO2 regulator. I called them the next day and they shipped the part to me within a couple of days later.

After purchasing the CO2 from a local provider (Carbonic Service), I finally set up my system. No one told me I needed to agitate the keg once hooked up. This explained why I had low pressure and flat beer for a few days. Needless to say, the system works well now. In my earnestness, I brewed two new batches of beer in consecutive days. I’ll write about these and my other homebrews soon enough. There’s a lot to say.

My experience with Beverage Factory was satisfactory, if that means anything. I was neither impressed nor disappointed by their service. For every action that bummed me out, there was something to offset. For example, they forgot to ship me the CO2 regulator but shipped me a new one without question the next day when I got a hold of them. Below is a small pro/con list.

Pros:

• Timely service – They shipped out my kegerator within a couple of days. Had anyone been home, I would’ve been up and going much sooner.
• Competitive prices – They were cheaper than the More Beer! people and some retail options as well (BevMo and Fry’s Electronics)
• Customer Services- When I explained to Customer Service that they forgot to ship me the CO2 regulator, they shipped one to me without question.

Cons:

• Understaffed – When I called to place an order or to follow up on the missing CO2 regulator, I had to wait quite a while for a live body to answer the phone. When ordering, I think I was on hold for maybe 10 minutes. That’s a bit too long to wait, in my opinion.
• Delivery options – Because of the cost/size/content of the shipment, Beverage Factory requires a signature upon delivery. Great, I like that. I appreciate that. I just wish they could’ve had a “Pick-up from FedEx” option. I have a truck and it’s no big deal for me to pick things up.

At the end of the day, would I recommend Beverage Factory? Yes, I would. Take my “endorsement” with a grain of salt as my experiences will differ from yours. As soon as my next two beers are done, I’m having a “Grand Opening” party… assuming of course the beers I made taste any good, ha!