General Category > Kegging and Bottling

Keg Virgin Questions

(1/7) > >>

gymrat:
I am going to set up a kegerator after the first of the year and I have a number of questions. First off I took advantage of a sale on midwestsupplies and ordered a reconditioned 5 gallon ball lock keg for $25. How do I clean it? Would oxyclean free and a bottle brush work? Then when I get my kegerator exactly how do I go about kegging? Rack from my fermenter, put it under 7 lbs of pressure for a week, then enjoy? Does anybody prime their beer before kegging it? If so does that cause more sediment to be cleaned out of the bottom of the keg?

I did do a search but couldn't find any definitive answers to these questions.

tschmidlin:
You can do it like you're outlining, it will work.  You may need something longer and stiffer (insert joke here (insert second joke because I said "insert")) like a toilet brush to get to the bottom of the keg for scrubbing, it depends on the size of your forearm.

As long as you're using a carb chart to determine the proper psi for your temp and desired volumes of CO2, no worries - the set and forget method of force carbonating works really well and is the main way I carb my beers.

morticaixavier:
On the priming front, you can naturally carbonate with priming sugar, just add the dissolved sugar to the keg prior to adding the beer. Seat the lid with some co2 and leave it in a warm place to carb up. It will leave more sediment in the keg but after the first pint or so it's not really a prblem unless you move the keg.

Joe Sr.:
$25?!? Score! I would have bought many at that price.

Give it a good soak.  Scrub the interior.  I have a dedicated toilet brush. 

If you have a tiny brush you can scrub the dip-tube.  Pressurize it while it is soaking and then depress the poppet to get some cleaner in to the tube.  Do the same when rinsing and again when sanitizing.

When you first seal the keg after filling, hit it with 20 or 30 lbs of pressure to get a good seal on the lid, then you can dial back down to your carbing pressure.  Also, keep a spray bottle of starsan handy to check the lid and poppets for leaks.

I've found that warming up the lid o-ring can help getting it to seal well.  Warm water or even putting it in the microwave in a bowl of water will soften it up.

yso191:
An important question is which kegerator did you buy?  If it is one of the common inexpensive ones (Danby, etc.). There are issues specific to them.  A great place to do some learning is here:  http://www.micromatic.com/forum/us-en/kegerators-kegerator-kits-home/

There are several issues that new kegerator owners have, but once they are set up, they are the way to go.  If you have specific questions, ask away.  I say that so I don't clog the thread with a dissertation.  My kids tell me I'm the kind of guy that if you ask me what time it is I'll tell you how to build a watch.

Steve

Navigation

[0] Message Index

[#] Next page