Prep Water for Kegs

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deezy

deezy

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Wanting to put one keg on with carbed water for sodas; gonna scoop crystal light into glass and fill from tap.

Are you boiling your water before kegging or buying water to keep any nasty stuff out? How long of 3/16 ID do you recommend, and what pressure for serving?

Thanks!

-Denver
 
deezy said:
Wanting to put one keg on with carbed water for sodas; gonna scoop crystal light into glass and fill from tap.

Are you boiling your water before kegging or buying water to keep any nasty stuff out? How long of 3/16 ID do you recommend, and what pressure for serving?

Thanks!

-Denver
Click to expand...

Boiling your tap water?.... where exactly do you live? Kidding. If you can drink it it should be fine for seltzer. Since you aren't adding anything to the water in the keg (e.g. sugar or something for bacteria to eat) there should be no real growth (similar to the pipes in your house).

I usually carb seltzer at 30PSI. I serve using 1/8" line using about 6 feet. If you are using 3/16" I would use 15 to 30 feet.

My process for seltzer is fill keg with water from tap. Run CO2 @ 30PSI into the liquid in side and shake for a few minutes (to speed up the process). Then stick it in the fridge with the gas and liquid lines connected. Wait 2 days.... and serve.
 
Ha, just going off searched threads...I didn't get why folks were boiling it.

Thanks; exactly what I needed to know!
 
deezy said:
Ha, just going off searched threads...I didn't get why folks were boiling it.

Thanks; exactly what I needed to know!
Click to expand...

No problem. Unless Crypto or Giardia are a concern for you I would say boiling the water is a tad excessive... but by all means feel free.. :rockin:

Let me know if you have any other questions. A ton of people on here do seltzer (me included).... Wife loves it.
 
I tried hotfilling my keg as a means of extra sanitation. The near boiling water seems to have picked up an off flavor, maybe from contact with the o-rings, I'm not sure.
 
MrFoodScientist said:
I tried hotfilling my keg as a means of extra sanitation. The near boiling water seems to have picked up an off flavor, maybe from contact with the o-rings, I'm not sure.
Click to expand...

Shouldn't have. As far as I know the O-Rings are Buna-N (e.g. Nitrile). They are stable up to 108C... this assumes they are black. If they are red (some people use these now, including me) they are silicone and should be stable up to well over boiling... Anyone else weigh in on this?
 
not sure if anyone is going to check out this thread since its so old, but if i take one of those 5 gallon jugs from work and dump it in a clean corny, will the water last for the 6 months or more it will take for me to drink 5 gallons of seltzer?

nothing is gonna grow in there, right? its sealed and refrigerated.
 
jonp9576 said:
anyone???????
Click to expand...

Should be fine... It is under CO2 pressure so basically most bacteria wouldn't grow anyways. Anaerobic bacteria in theory could grow in the CO2 environment, but if you clean and sanitize your kegs I can't imagine much could grow in there.
 
jonp9576 said:
nothing is gonna grow in there, right? its sealed and refrigerated.
Click to expand...

CO2 pressure or not, bacteria and fungus can still grow in non-sterile tap water. Tap water contains soil runoff that supports growth.

My primary concern would be mildew growth over a long period of time. Have you ever opened up a sealed water canister that hasn't been used for 6 months? It typically looks and smells of mildew.

I'd recommend at least pasteurizing the water (162F for 5 minutes).
 
lamarguy said:
CO2 pressure or not, bacteria and fungus can still grow in non-sterile tap water. Tap water contains soil runoff that supports growth.

My primary concern would be mildew growth over a long period of time. Have you ever opened up a sealed water canister that hasn't been used for 6 months? It typically looks and smells of mildew.

I'd recommend at least pasteurizing the water (162F for 5 minutes).
Click to expand...

I suppose it depends where you live, but my water is pretty clean here. I filter it through a very fine carbon filter. Under CO2 pressure you basically only need to worry about anaerobic bacteria. Aerobic can't survive without O2. At those temperatures things also grow slowly. To each his/her own, but personally I don't boil mine. I have my water line feeding through a carbon filter into my carbonator, into my keg, and out the tap. This is just my $0.02.
 
i would be using the water from those big blue water jugs. i'm not sure if its spring water or just "purified drinking water" but it is from one of the 5 gallon jugs.
 
EFaden said:
I suppose it depends where you live, but my water is pretty clean here.
Click to expand...

Are you suggesting your tap water does not contain soil runoff and is impervious to mildew because you carbonated it?

If so, you should consider running for the GOP nomination. :D

Seriously, for long term water storage (6+ months), you should do one of the following:

  1. pasteurize or boil
  2. distill
  3. chemically treat (chlorine, etc.)
 
lamarguy said:
Are you suggesting your tap water does not contain soil runoff and is impervious to mildew because you carbonated it?

If so, you should consider running for the GOP nomination. :D

Seriously, for long term water storage (6+ months), you should do one of the following:

  1. pasteurize or boil
  2. distill
  3. chemically treat (chlorine, etc.)
Click to expand...

No. What I am suggesting is that the temperature, CO2, filtering, etc all make the likely hood of bacterial growth unlikely. To each his/her own. Personally I run my carbonator of of filtered tap water. If you are paranoid you could UV or chemically treat the water.

Can you quote some source to suggest how much bacteria, fungus, or mold you think is getting into the water? Specifically which anaerobic organisms you are worried about?
 
i am using water from the water delivery at work

this is from their website
"Just Pure Water Company utilizes ozone; (oxygen) treatment for sterilization of water, ozone significantly reduces the use of chemical agents’ chlorine. "

i assume this water should be fine in kegs for an extended period of time
 
Should be fine.
Also, in regards to water source for the others, it will depend on the source. If your "tap" water comes directly from a well water source that's not further treated, that's different than getting your "tap" water from a treated source.
My water is treated, fluoridated, contains chlorine/chloride, etc and is thus treated to the requirements of standard bottled water.

So if EFraden's water is standard "city" water, treated etc by the city, then he's correct and he shouldn't have any issues with the water. If he's drilled down to the local aquifer and has well water... well, I'd be leaning towards the treatment side of things. Given that his location is listed as Rochester, New York, I'd assume standard treatments, chlorine/cloride etc. Thus, no need to distill, further treat or anything else.

The given shelf life of city tap water is 6 months. Of course, with EFraden's continuous setup, it's not stored for 6 months and circulates... you know, unless they decide not to drink sparkling water for that long.

6 months of city treated tapwater in a sterile container taken from the department of homeland security website. Also that if the water was taken from a well, or water source that was not treated with chlorine that it does need to be treated for this turnaround time. Commercially bottled water has a life of 1 year.
 
KevinM said:
Should be fine.
Also, in regards to water source for the others, it will depend on the source. If your "tap" water comes directly from a well water source that's not further treated, that's different than getting your "tap" water from a treated source.
My water is treated, fluoridated, contains chlorine/chloride, etc and is thus treated to the requirements of standard bottled water.

So if EFraden's water is standard "city" water, treated etc by the city, then he's correct and he shouldn't have any issues with the water. If he's drilled down to the local aquifer and has well water... well, I'd be leaning towards the treatment side of things. Given that his location is listed as Rochester, New York, I'd assume standard treatments, chlorine/cloride etc. Thus, no need to distill, further treat or anything else.

The given shelf life of city tap water is 6 months. Of course, with EFraden's continuous setup, it's not stored for 6 months and circulates... you know, unless they decide not to drink sparkling water for that long.

6 months of city treated tapwater in a sterile container taken from the department of homeland security website. Also that if the water was taken from a well, or water source that was not treated with chlorine that it does need to be treated for this turnaround time. Commercially bottled water has a life of 1 year.
Click to expand...


Sorry... yes.... should have made that clear. I am using treated city water. If you are using a well I would treat with chlorine, UV, filter, etc.
 
Remember too, that this water is likely to be refrigerated, so I wouldn't expect issues beyond the 6 month period in a sanitized vessel, whereas the 6 month rotation is just sitting out in a cellar.

Personally though, I'd consider just tossing it and refilling with new water at the 6 month period. It's just water. Use it to wash the car or something.
 

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