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Wow... can't believe no one has responded to this yet.
I've run two brews through each of two kegs and I only rinsed 'em out with hot water in between. I left the kegs in the fridge when empty, figuring that would keep the nasties at a minimum. When the next batch was ready, I fetched the keg from the fridge and rinsed it out good and then filled it. Total time with beer in them is around four months (been drinking most of it myself, hence the long drain time). I'm nearing the end of the second batches and they still taste fine.
The eBay beer guy I bought my kegerator parts from says he only breaks his down every third batch. With my success thus far, I'd say that's pretty safe.
__________________ So long, and thanks for all the beer...
Tap 1: Empty Tap 2: Zippo Tap 3: Nada Tap 4: Man... I gotta get brewing Bottles: Dust
I clean the insides and the lids of my kegs in PBW (Powdered Brewers Wash) after every beer. I have yet to replace or disassemble any of the posts, but I am getting ready to do that. I also use Keg Lube on the lids, so that I get a good seal and CO2 does not leak out.
maybe i'm just paranoid, but i take everything apart before i use it, and clean with b-brite if i need to, rinse out, and then sanitize, put everything back together, and then transfer beer to the keg
I have a couple of disconnects that I connected garden hose fittings too. I back flush through both connections then fill the keg up with water and add 6 table spoons of bleach, seal up the keg then connect the garden hose to the gas disconnect and allow the water to over flow through out the black disconnect then vice verca. I seal it up for 20 mins, empty, back flush through each disconnect, rinse add a drop of dilute sodium metabisulphite solution to neutralise any chlorine, empty and it's ready to go.
If i'm short on time though, back flushing and swilling a littie iodophor around does the trick.
I reckon I only need tol dismantle completely every 5-10 uses (which is around once a year) with this method.
I just started kegging and I've done two batches. I cleaned them taking them apart and soaking the lids and all gaskets, rings and poppits in a small bowl of sanitizer, and then fill the keg 2/3 full with sanitizer, then flip over with the buicket on top method. It all gets done quickly and easily enough that I will do that every time.
When kegging a brew, how long can it be left stored in the keg before having to carbonate and then how long could it be stored for after carbonating for building up stocks ?Once opend and put in a fridge what would the time be before it started to go off?
Last edited by beerbarron; 07-18-2006 at 10:12 AM.
When kegging a brew, how long can it be left stored in the keg before having to carbonate and then how long could it be stored for after carbonating for building up stocks ?Once opend and put in a fridge what would the time be before it started to go off?
The big three factors for helping beer keep are no direct sun or fluourescent light, avoid heat, and keep it in a closed container. As long as you keep the keg sealed and relatively cool, I've been told the beer should taste fine for six months or more. The most one of my kegs has had beer in it is 2.5 months and I didn't detect any off flavors. In fact, most seem to get better as they age.
I'm working on building up a five keg system with four in the fridge and one for rotation. I figure I'll pressurized and release that keg (as if I were placing it in the fridge) a couple times to purge out any O2 from inside and then put it in the coolest part of the basement until I need it. If you're carbonating naturally, shelf life shouldn't be any different than bottling. Probably would be better since there's comparatively less head space to liquid than when bottled.
__________________ So long, and thanks for all the beer...
Tap 1: Empty Tap 2: Zippo Tap 3: Nada Tap 4: Man... I gotta get brewing Bottles: Dust
I have 4 kegs and store each with iodophor and water. Before filling with beer, I simply empty, rinse, and run hot water through the disconnects. When the keg is spent, however, I pull the disconnects and wash each part with hot water/soap, rinse, then fill with iodophor and water. Me = anal.
__________________ On Deck Simcoe IPA Fermenting/Conditioning Cascade IPA, Steam, Midas Touch, Ginger Saison, Sour Brown Almost Gone Chile Lager, Chablis Mead, Sticky Red Raspberry Mead
I have 4 kegs and store each with iodophor and water. Before filling with beer, I simply empty, rinse, and run hot water through the disconnects. When the keg is spent, however, I pull the disconnects and wash each part with hot water/soap, rinse, then fill with iodophor and water. Me = anal.
If you're leaving the kegs for weeks/months with the iodophor solution in them, you might be wasting your time. It degrades and thus loses its effectiveness.
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