Using Sanke of 15.5 Gallon Kegs for Homebrew Kegging

dzeccola · 03-16-2008, 03:01 PM

Hey all out there. I just was given 4 good condition Sanke or some other brand of 15.5 gallon Kegs, the kind most bars use for domestic beer.

I am planning a big party this summer (my wedding) and I wanted to see if I could use these kegs to dispense some of my brew. Usually I would use Corny kegs, as they're much easier etc. but since I have these ones and I need a lot of beer, I would like to use them.

Has anybody ever used these kegs for kegging their homebrew? What sort of maintenance, rebuild etc will I need to do? How about carbonating the beer? I could prime it I guess or force carbonate, but even if I prime it I will need to pressure seal the gaskets like on a corny keg before I let the yeast do its work. How do i hook up my corny keg co2 system to this keg and how do I tap and dispense it?

Thanks for the advice have at it.

**Bobby_M** · 03-16-2008, 03:15 PM

You'll have to get sanke couplers for each keg that you want to dispense and they're about $30 a piece. Then gas and bev tubing attach to that.

You'll have to take the center spears out and then fill them with PBW or oxyclean, then sanitize as usual.

**EdWort** · 03-16-2008, 03:22 PM

They are a pain to clean and you never really know if you cleaned it. My recommendation would be to turn them into keggles, use one for a HLT, another for a boil keggle, then sell the other two and use the money to buy more cornies to go with your existing system.

Just my two pfennigs.

**WortMonger** · 03-16-2008, 03:35 PM

Here is something to read if you want. http://www.homebrewtalk.com/f11/kegs-their-benefits-brewer-53280/

I like Sanke better than Corny. I think they are easier to thoroughly clean and have way less parts (1 rubber gasket on the Sanke to 5 on the Corny), but Corny's have them beat on opening and closing time-wise. I can get into my Sankes in a matter of seconds. I can take them completely apart in a little over a minute (dip tube assembly). It is really hard to lose a Sanke part during cleaning when compared to the little gaskets and popits and things on a Corny. I will always admit that I have a biased view of Sankes over Corny's, but.....

EdWort is right, you can't stick your arm in a Sanke. I use a very good cleaning regiment and do check the inside of my kegs with a flash light and a thin mirror, but they are always clean. I even use an unmodified Sanke for my primary fermenter, and everyone that has brewed knows what a gunked-up fermenter looks like.

**Yuri_Rage** · 03-16-2008, 03:41 PM

I recommend getting some internal snap rings to take the place of those PITA spring clips if you plan on refilling Sanke kegs. They are WAY easier to use!

**WortMonger** · 03-16-2008, 03:44 PM

Yuri, do you have any info on these internal snap rings? That really is the only reason I have any bad feelings towards my Sankes at all.

**Yuri_Rage** · 03-16-2008, 03:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WortMonger

Yuri, do you have any info on these internal snap rings?

http://www.homebrewtalk.com/467297-post27.html

**EdWort** · 03-16-2008, 04:02 PM

Good points on both sides. My back, however, thanks me every time I lift a corny instead of a 165 pound Sanke.

**WortMonger** · 03-16-2008, 05:07 PM

Ed, you know they make them in 1/6 bbl right

? Same weight as a corny. I completely agree when I am using full size though, I have dropped many a nut lifting those bad boys.

Yuri, that is frickin awesome. I am ordering some today. Best Idea in a long time. I am only worried about the thickness of the snap ring vs. the lock "spring" ring. Are they the same thickness?

**Yuri_Rage** · 03-16-2008, 05:11 PM

They are within a few thousandths of the same thickness and compress the seal just fine. The "ears" can get in the way a little when trying to tap the keg, but I've always managed to work around them.