Neccessary to dismantle/sanitize kegs?

Hi, I'm new to kegging and wondering if you really need to take off the posts and ensure everything is sanitized.

I kegged a few times in 2011, gave up brewing, and left a little beer in each keg. Now the posts are totally impossible to remove. I will have access to proper deep sockets/impact wrenches in a month, but want to keg tomorrow as is.

I filled both kegs with hot PBW and ran thru the lines and perlick faucet, which appears to clean both. Tastes clean after rinsing....so no prob?

I normally use the kegs at fridge temps only and don't let them sit more than a month, so I am trying to talk myself into forgoing sanitizing for this brew,

Thanks for any advice!!

I breakdown and clean/sanitize all my kegs before I refill them. It's amazing the gunk you find. Now, I know some will sorta rinse/sanitize their kegs before refilling. But, if the keg has been sitting with beer in it for 2 years? Dude.... Would you make spaghetti sauce in a crock pot and leave it dirty on the counter for 2 years and then just rinse it off to reuse? I use simple open box wrenches to take off the posts, no need to buy a whole socket set. Sometimes, when I first get the kegs (which still have soda syrup in them from years ago, sound familiar?), I have to tap the wrench with a hammer to break it loose. Your spending all this time and money to make a brew, why jeopardize it?

Hammy71 said:

I breakdown and clean/sanitize all my kegs before I refill them. It's amazing the gunk you find. Now, I know some will sorta rinse/sanitize their kegs before refilling. But, if the keg has been sitting with beer in it for 2 years? Dude.... Would you make spaghetti sauce in a crock pot and leave it dirty on the counter for 2 years and then just rinse it off to reuse? I use simple open box wrenches to take off the posts, no need to buy a whole socket set. Sometimes, when I first get the kegs (which still have soda syrup in them from years ago, sound familiar?), I have to tap the wrench with a hammer to break it loose. Your spending all this time and money to make a brew, why jeopardize it?

Click to expand...

Agree 100% with Hammy, I also clean them every time.

Once you take the posts, and hold the long diptube up to the light and see all the crap in there, you'll want to do it every time! Plus, it takes a total of 10 minutes.

There are some brewers I know who only break down their kegs every second or third time, and just refill them when empty with a quick rinse. I think they are happy with that, so it really depends on the person.

I have 1 wrench I use to take down my kegs. I always take them down for cleaning. I fill the keg with oxyclean. Let it sit a hour or so and then run the oxyclean though the lines to flush them. Then I take apart the kegs and taps and soak them in oxyclean for a while. I rinse everything well and then add starsan to the keg and run that though the lines to rinse them. I leave the starsan in the lines until it's time to serve beer.

I keep one keg for cleaning and use it when I need to clean the tap and lines when switching kegs. I just fill it with oxyclean, push it though the lines, clean the taps, then push starsan.

I clean them each time I use them. I do not completely break them down each time though. I rise completely, fill with water + oxyclean then let sit for an hour or two. Scrub with a brush inside, pump the solution through the line to clean the dip tube + line, then rinse. I pump clean water through after a rinse to rinse the tube and beer line. Sanitize then fill.

To not waste c02 I put a gas fitting on a line for an air compressor and push the fluid with with air.

Every 2nd or third use break break them down to check the dip tube for gack and check the O rings.

I have found that you can actually use a picnic tap to creat a siphon and open the pressure relief valve to rinse through the dip tube. no gas or compressed air needed.

I'm one of those that Yooper alluded to who clean out the keg every few batches. This is usually because I make a few batches in a row. I also use Oxyclean, and boiling water afterwards.

If I'm doing a quick cleaning, I just use hot water and blow through with CO2. I'm lucky to have a 20# tank and my refilling station is under a quarter mile down the street.

OP... if it's been years, you'll want to clean it out.

I usually break down everything when I clean it. I started doing this because as others said a lotta gunk can be left over in the keg and sometimes random hop particles can get stuck in the poppet springs. I usually put everything back together and run sanitizer through the lines to sanitize and haven't had a problem.

You couls just run percarb through and sanitizer and call it good but you might get an infection. However, if you are going to be drinking the beer quickly and it's refridgerated the whole time it probably won't be noticable.

Just a separate note that you might wanna change some of those O-rings if they have been sitting around for that long.

Thanks for the advice, I am surprised how many brewers dissemble and sanitize their kegs! I will do that for sure now I know better.

I had thought I was safe bc it was going to be in the keg for a short time only, at 4 degrees. Maybe part of the reason the posts are so stuck in the first place was that I did not dissemble for the last couple of brews last year, then get a little dried beer to glue them together...

Thanks for the tips! Seems like a lot of brewers use OxiClean, here in BC its not really available as the stuff called that could be anything.

Lots of people use OxiClean because it is a cheaper version of Sodium Percarbonate which is usually the recommended way of cleaning your equipment. I think they just cut Oxi with more stuff to make it cheaper.

DrunkleJon said:

I have found that you can actually use a picnic tap to creat a siphon and open the pressure relief valve to rinse through the dip tube. no gas or compressed air needed.

Click to expand...

Can you elaborate? I only have a 5# tank--looking to conserve gas any way possible.

mmcouch said:

Can you elaborate? I only have a 5# tank--looking to conserve gas any way possible.

Click to expand...

Not sure how he does it, but I could see using hot water, which will create a moderate amount of positive pressure, hooking up a long hosed picnic tap, where the tap is lower than the bottom of the keg, and opening the picnic tap. Once the flow starts, it will naturally want to keep going, provided that the pressure release valve is opened (and no vacuum is created).

MC

I break down new kegs and replace all of the O rings. For kegs that I have had good beer in, I use a keg cleaner with a central sprayer and with quick disconnects for both the in & out fittings. I run OxyClean through all this for a while with each keg, then rinse them out with water. Just be sure to rinse out and drain the dip tubes as well, as OxyClean will not enhance the flavor of your beer.
Here is an article with something similar: http://www.slobrewer.com/howto/kegcarboy-washer/
However, I used a pond pump from Harbor Freight that cost about $20, IIRC. It has worked well for a few years.
Here is a better article: http://www.slobrewer.com/howto/kegcarboy-washer/

Hmm. I don't break down my kegs very often. I usually rinse really well (I use a shower stall and I have a hand-held shower head that I get into the keg and spray all over with the spray pattern that puts out a single pretty strong stream of water) and several times with hot water. Then I fill the keg with oxyclean and hot water and let sit overnight. Then I empty and rinse the kegs (I usually do 4-5 at a time), fill one of them up with fresh oxyclean and water then I have a little tube with a beer out on one side then a tee with a beer out and gas in on the other side. I push the oxyclean through both the dip tube and gas tube about 1/4 of the way for each keg. Then I put the lid on the keg and shake it around. Then another round of rinsing really well. Then I fill one keg with starsan and water. Repeat the process of flowing it through the poppets and dip tubes. Shake the kegs. Open and let them drain upside down.

mmcouch said:

Can you elaborate? I only have a 5# tank--looking to conserve gas any way possible.

Click to expand...

I am in the same boat with the 5# tankm so here is how I do it. Either use the hot liquid in a closed container to cause a little positive pressure like detailed above, or you can always just create your own siphon. To do so, fill the picnic line with liquid, close the valve and hook up to your kegs liquid out post. Put the picnic tap below the level of the bottom of the keg and open the valve and the relief (or just put a gas in connector with nothing attached to it on the gas in post if your relief does not stay open on its own) and the liquid draining out of the tap will create a siphon which will slowly drain the entire keg.

So long as you can get it coming out of the tap to begin with it will keep going on its own. I have used this method to bulk Oxy a few kegs and then after a good rinsing run sanitizer through them again. No problems have been seen as a result.

Bringing this back from the dead with a tag on question. Can I clean and sanatize my keg and then put the cap on until I'm ready to keg my beer or does it need to be done right before kegging. Thanks

May need to just spray some PBW/Star Stan on the line valves and lid but I c02 purge them after cleaning and let them sit until needed.

indymedic said:

Bringing this back from the dead with a tag on question. Can I clean and sanatize my keg and then put the cap on until I'm ready to keg my beer or does it need to be done right before kegging. Thanks

Click to expand...

Some people leave some star San in the keg so all they have to do is drain it and add beer. No cleaning necessary

I would for sure, clean yours well and thoroughly, then sanitize.

For me if I kick one quickly, just a few weeks in the keg, and have another batch right after, I will rinse and sanitize thoroughly, and refill. If it sits empty for any time I break it all down for cleaning.

I'm with most of these guys, I pull the kegs apart every time and clean with about a quart of PBW and soak all the little parts in PBW.

For my kegerator lines I usually clean them every time. If I switch kegs back to back, it's with a similar beer without letting an empty keg sit in there for a while. I keep a bottle of starsan on top of my kegerator to sanitize connections any time I'm disconnecting or reconnecting.

So far I have never noticed any off flavors from my keg system practices, so I'm going to stick with it.

How do you clean the gunk from the diptube? Is there a little brush i can use? I bought some kegs that had old soda syrup in them and some have a deposit inside the diptube.

With one of these.

Jim311 said:

Some people leave some star San in the keg so all they have to do is drain it and add beer. No cleaning necessary

Click to expand...

That's what I do. Clean and leave sanitizer in the keg til needed.