Easy Corny Keg Washer

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jcaudill

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So this is nothing too new but my implementation of a corny keg washer.



Essentially I took a 5 gallon bucket, Superior Pump 1/3 HP, adapted it from 1 1/4" FNPT down to 3/4" slip and run 3/4" PVC to a 1/2" TC which I use my interchangeable rotating spray nozzle on (I say interchangeable because I use one nozzle for all CIP - it's connected to a TC adapter I can use for my conical, pots, etc etc). It's designed so the spray nozzle is almost at the top of the keg when flipped upside down for full coverage. The liquid flows back in via 5 2-1/4" holes drilled in the lid and the corny has a open gas and liquid ball lock connector to let any accumulated liquid back through.

So my basic CIP program is:

1) Cold Rinse
2) PBW Hot
3) Hot Rinse
4) Flush with filtered air
5) Star Sans Cold
6) Flush and Pressurize with CO2

With this setup I can run 6 kegs with just a couple of gallons of solution in a coupe of hours. Saves so much water, time and effort. Hope someone finds this useful! More pics upon request.
 
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Cool. You should make some kind of addapter on it. So you can wash all your carboys on it also. I like it.
 
I have two conicals (Brewhemoths) - no Carboys. But if there's some interest I could see about doing something for a carboy.
 
If you are using plastic carboys you need to pay closer attention to the heat of the water you use... i killed a carboy with my cleaner by going too hot.

I also found that my cleaner (pretty much the same as yours) would leak all over the place, so i took a bucket, cut out most of the bottom, and put it upright between the keg and the bucket with solution, acting like a funnel.

Viola, problem solved.
 
I'm not having any issues with leaking - cleaned 6 kegs today and it worked like a champ. The key is large enough return holes. Also the spray nozzle helps keep the flow steady. Without that I could see there being a leaking issue.

Here are some pics:





 
I built one of those also, one of the best things I've ever built. I can clean 9 kegs in 45 minutes where it used to take hours.



I also clean my 30 gallon fermenter with it...

05D26AE8_zpsade24040.jpg


For a carboy you only need a carboy stand...

E37D07EE.jpg
 
so is that just a simple sump pump that you are using? i really may have to build one of these! just got hot water in my garage/brew house and want to start cleaning there instead of the kitchen. This would really help. i use plastic carboys so any info on what to do or not to do would be great as well! Thanks!
 
It is a simple submersible pump. In my case I use a Superior 1/3HP, 91330. And then I use it with the standard PVDF rotating spray nozzle that a lot of people on here use for CIP and you can pick up from McMaster. This ensures full coverage.

As for PET carboys - assuming you are using something like a Better Bottle: max temp is 140. Most household water isn't this hot and you don't need the water to be this hot for a good cleaning. Run a bit colder, and longer. Hot water just helps speed up the process a bit.

Hope this helps.
 
Thanks for the parts list! will have to put the parts on the christmas list! having trouble trying to figure out what to buy! i need like 4 things...but dont we all!
 
This keg washer is one of the best things I ever built, I washed 18 kegs in 1 1/2 hrs. Before I built it I would have never attempted to clean that many kegs at one time.....

5C6952C7.jpg
 
Just a quick follow-up - this is probably still the most valuable piece of equipment in the brewery that I built. It saves a lot of time and more importantly it saves chemicals! One thing I did add is a tee right under the lid. The tee has a barb that I attached some PVC tubing to with a liquid ball lock connector. After I slide the keg down, I connect this to the out side. This way I blast PBW through the liquid dip tube the entire cycle and there is absolutely no need to break the keg down. I attached a bare gas ball lock connector to the gas side so that it allows PBW to pass through. Highly recommend this!
 
That's a pretty sweet Keg / Conical / Carboy washer. I have been thinking about building one myself and thought that a bucket wouldn't work, however I believe changed my mind.

Thanks for sharing the idea and updating the thread
 
Apologies in advance for the necro...

My keg washer is a spin on what the OP designed; however, I use a Challenger VI (flat bottom corny) as my primary fermenter, and I cannot seem to CIP the krausen ring without a good toilet brush scrubbing (don't worry, it's dedicated to the brewery & never seen a toilet).

I typically use home-made PBW (although I have used real PBW with similar results) at just over the prescribed minimum CIP concentration (1/3C:2.5gal or 1.06oz/gal) at 145-155degF for 20-30 minutes, but even an hour on the washer leaves some krausen behind. Incidentally, an overnight soak at the same concentration is typically sufficient to kill the ring completely following a hot rinse, so it's not as if the cleaner lacks the necessary cleaning power, but I don't want to wait overnight to clean a keg - especially when I have more than one to clean - but I want to be able to do something else while the keg is washing.

The material differences in my design are 1) my washer is not standalone, it is integrated with my hard-piped, all copper & aluminum brew rig - so no acid cleaners - and 2) I don't have a nozzle on the washer output... instead I drilled a bunch of 1/8" & 3/16" holes in a 1/2" copper cap at the top and seven 3/16" holes winding down the sides of the copper tube. The flow rate seems adaquate (4-5 gpm) and I'm all but certain that I'm getting 100% coverage inside the keg. As the cleaning solution cools, the liquid level inside the keg rises above the krausen as a result of the negative pressure, so the entire ring is even getting a good soak for at least 15-20 minutes of the 30 minute cleaning cycle. My guess is that I'm not getting the penetration necessary to break up the krausen since the cleaning solution simply flows over the krausen ring at the mere speed/force of gravity for those first 10-15 minutes; however, if I simply drilled some holes near the bottom of the tube (so as to spray the top of the inverted keg), I'm afraid I'm still going to still have a ring but with small circles of clean stainless where the streams actually hit the ring.

Has anyone had any success CIPing a krausen ring in under 30 minutes without mechanical intervention?

Is a lower/higher flow rate necessary? Should I up the concentration of PBW? Is a nozzle the answer? Or is it just not possible without a long soak and/or scrubbie?

Keg Washer.jpg
 
Apologies in advance for the necro...

My keg washer is a spin on what the OP designed; however, I use a Challenger VI (flat bottom corny) as my primary fermenter, and I cannot seem to CIP the krausen ring without a good toilet brush scrubbing (don't worry, it's dedicated to the brewery & never seen a toilet).

I typically use home-made PBW (although I have used real PBW with similar results) at just over the prescribed minimum CIP concentration (1/3C:2.5gal or 1.06oz/gal) at 145-155degF for 20-30 minutes, but even an hour on the washer leaves some krausen behind. Incidentally, an overnight soak at the same concentration is typically sufficient to kill the ring completely following a hot rinse, so it's not as if the cleaner lacks the necessary cleaning power, but I don't want to wait overnight to clean a keg - especially when I have more than one to clean - but I want to be able to do something else while the keg is washing.

The material differences in my design are 1) my washer is not standalone, it is integrated with my hard-piped, all copper & aluminum brew rig - so no acid cleaners - and 2) I don't have a nozzle on the washer output... instead I drilled a bunch of 1/8" & 3/16" holes in a 1/2" copper cap at the top and seven 3/16" holes winding down the sides of the copper tube. The flow rate seems adaquate (4-5 gpm) and I'm all but certain that I'm getting 100% coverage inside the keg. As the cleaning solution cools, the liquid level inside the keg rises above the krausen as a result of the negative pressure, so the entire ring is even getting a good soak for at least 15-20 minutes of the 30 minute cleaning cycle. My guess is that I'm not getting the penetration necessary to break up the krausen since the cleaning solution simply flows over the krausen ring at the mere speed/force of gravity for those first 10-15 minutes; however, if I simply drilled some holes near the bottom of the tube (so as to spray the top of the inverted keg), I'm afraid I'm still going to still have a ring but with small circles of clean stainless where the streams actually hit the ring.

Has anyone had any success CIPing a krausen ring in under 30 minutes without mechanical intervention?

Is a lower/higher flow rate necessary? Should I up the concentration of PBW? Is a nozzle the answer? Or is it just not possible without a long soak and/or scrubbie?

This is hard to answer without seeing more detail in the setup - but I'm just going to take stab. So while I don't have your precise situation, I do CIP my conicals that would have the same krausen ring and I don't ever have to scrub anything. I am going to guess your main problem is you aren't generating sufficient pressure in your sprayer to help the chemical out. Really for an adequate CIP you need both chemical, and pressure. Another problem I see is the location of your spray compared to where your krausen ring is. It doesn't look like you'd have adequate spray pressure at in that area.

Soaking generally isn't enough - unless you can let it soak for a loooong time. And it's a waste of water and chemical. I think you need to figure out how you can get more spray pressure around where the krausen ring is.

Again - just a guess from what I'm seeing in your drawing!
 
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