1/2 Kegs

Can half kegs be used to be made into boiling kettles ? Found a seller on craigslist who has 4 of them for $50.00 and before I buy them I want to be sure I have a use for them.

For a boiling kettle, 7 1/2 gallons is a bit small. You're virtually guaranteed to have a boil over.

They make awesome fermenters though!

If they're slims and if you feel like shipping, I'd probably buy the lot of em from ya.

upperNY01brewer said:

Can half kegs be used to be made into boiling kettles ? Found a seller on craigslist who has 4 of them for $50.00 and before I buy them I want to be sure I have a use for them.

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Ha, I saw these too!


I was thinking of trying a similar thing for brew kettles but decided it wasn't worth the effort. Maybe they'd be good for fermenters.

I always troll craigslist for brewing stuff and I didn't see this until you pointed it out. Good find!

What's your location?
And are they 1/2 or 1/4 kegs? 7.5 go is a 1/4 keg

bmud0314 said:

I always troll craigslist for brewing stuff and I didn't see this until you pointed it out. Good find!

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Sure, no problem. I have a bunch of RSS searches saved for the Rochester, NY area for keg(s), home brew, beer, tap(s), etc. so I miss very little. It's helped me amass my collection of home brewing equipment.

Maybe those of us in the area can buy them and split them? For $12.50, I'd be willing to try to make a brew kettle from one of these.

Also, the CL seller lists them as 1/2 kegs but who knows.

Technically, a full sized keg is called a "half keg," because it holds half a barrel of beer (15.5 gallons). I've never seen a full, 1 bbl keg, though I'm told they use to exist.

From the pic those look like old Hoff Stevens kegs... Which are pretty rare these days and sought after because they are great for cask conditioning. They may have bungs in them which may be problematic using them as kettles. I'd wager that they are indeed full sized kegs. $12.50 is a steal, regardless.

drocu said:

Maybe those of us in the area can buy them and split them? For $12.50, I'd be willing to try to make a brew kettle from one of these.

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I appreciate the offer, but I picked up a 40 qt pot a year or so ago. I don't have the need at this time. Thanks though!

vonZwicky said:

From the pic those look like old Hoff Stevens kegs... Which are pretty rare these days and sought after because they are great for cask conditioning. They may have bungs in them which may be problematic using them as kettles. I'd wager that they are indeed full sized kegs. $12.50 is a steal, regardless.

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That's funny, I actually have a couple of taps for these types of kegs. Still, I can't see myself actually using them for anything useful although there are some good suggestions on this forum.

They'd probably make good fermenters. It would be a shame to cut them up considering their antique nature and relative scarcity. Bet one would look really cool with a good polish!

The one on the left looks suspiciously like aluminum- not all kegs were SS back in the day.

drocu said:

That's funny, I actually have a couple of taps for these types of kegs. Still, I can't see myself actually using them for anything useful although there are some good suggestions on this forum.

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I'm fascinated by these... I'd try to buy a tap from you, and secure one of these, but my keezer and fermentation fridge barely fit modern sankes. These older kegs have more girth than my set-up will allow.

BTW, on closer inspection of the pic, I can see bungs on two of these kegs. The one with the bung on the bottom might be an even older "Golden Gate" style keg.

vonZwicky said:

I'm fascinated by these... I'd try to buy a tap from you, and secure one of these, but my keezer and fermentation fridge barely fit modern sankes. These older kegs have more girth than my set-up will allow.

BTW, on closer inspection of the pic, I can see bungs on two of these kegs. The one with the bung on the bottom might be an even older "Golden Gate" style keg.

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Well, if you ever change your mind, let me know. I think I have two of them. I guess they're more common for kegs of root beer these days, or so I was told. These taps have been on my list of things-to-sell-on-HBT, but I just haven't gotten around to it.

davis119 said:

What's your location?
And are they 1/2 or 1/4 kegs? 7.5 go is a 1/4 keg

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They are half kegs...Im in Rochester, NY

Damn that's far from nj. I am looking for a decommissioned keg