Storing Empty Corny Kegs

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RichBrewer

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Well, another first for me. I've drained a keg and I don't have a brew ready to go into it. How should I store it now that it has been emptied, cleaned and drained? Should I keep the lid off and store it up-side down? Store it with the lid on and pressure applied?
How does everyone else do it?
Thanks! :mug:
 
I've gotten into the habit of cleaning them and then putting some star-san in (about a gallon or so), seal the lid, give it a shot of CO2 to seal it, and let it sit until I need to use it. That way it is immediately ready when I need it.


The star-san won't go bad (or weaken) if it isn't exposed to air. Other sanitizers can't say that.
 
Dude said:
I've gotten into the habit of cleaning them and then putting some star-san in (about a gallon or so), seal the lid, give it a shot of CO2 to seal it, and let it sit until I need to use it. That way it is immediately ready when I need it.


The star-san won't go bad (or weaken) if it isn't exposed to air. Other sanitizers can't say that.
I'm going to have to switch to StarSan. I said I would do it when my Iodophor runs out but the bottle I bought about 7 years ago is going to last me another 10 years. Maybe I should just take the plunge. Sounds like a great idea. The keg is sanitized when you are ready to put the beer in.

The StarSan is acidic. Will long term storage in a keg harm the stainless steel?
 
RichBrewer said:
I'm going to have to switch to StarSan.

Idophor should be fine to if the keg is closed. Yes, it may gas into the head space, but the iodine is still in the keg. If you want, you can up the concentration to account for the partial gas-out.

I had an idophor solution in a carboy for a week with aluminium foil covering the neck and it didn't loose it's amber color at all. This means it was still an effective sanitizer after a week. -> As long as you keep the iodine confined, it will be fine.

Kai
 
RichBrewer said:
The StarSan is acidic. Will long term storage in a keg harm the stainless steel?

I'm not positive on that but I haven't noticed any problems yet. I know star-san hates copper, for sure. No more than an hour soak if using copper.
 
I had an idophor solution in a carboy for a week with aluminium foil covering the neck and it didn't loose it's amber color at all.
How much do you use? I go with the 20ppm solution and mine always looks clear after it mixes.
 
budbo said:
How much do you use? I go with the 20ppm solution and mine always looks clear after it mixes.

I go with a little more than 12.5ppm (about 17ml for a 5 gal carboy) and it always has an amber tint to it. At least in the carboy, when the volume is big enough. It also looks amber when it is in a corny keg.

Kai
 
I researched this a little bit....

This is what John Palmer says:

Phosphoric in 300 series stainless steel is generally okay, according the ASM Metals Handbook, Vol. 13 - Corrosion.
However, it does go on to say that any impurities, particularly chloride and sulfate, will accelerate pitting and crevice corrosion.

So, I will bet that those of you who have had pitting problems at the water line, or other etching, have high chlorides or sulfate in your water.

I never recommend storing anything wet. Don't care whether it's water, or Starsan or PBW or Onestep or vinegar. When you store metal items wet, you allow all the time necessary for oxygen deprivation of a local area to occur and then you have an activity difference and galvanic corrosion can start. Pitting at the water line is a prime example. Pitting at a dent or ding is another. Weldments are particularly vulnerable because the metal chemistry/structure is generally different.

You know how I store my kegs? Upside down and open. Sure I get a spider or two in there once in a while, but they are easily taken care of, and I just fill the keg with starsan and let it sanitize my racking cane and siphon.

Remember, I am just as FOS as the rest of you, but I hope this helps.
Cheers,
John

This is good enough for me. I'm not storing kegs with star-san in them anymore!

I also found out that Iodophor is actually the way to go if you insist on storing stainless steel kegs, "wet".

Good call Richbrewer! I'm changing my ways! Thanks for the heads up.
 
Dude said:
I researched this a little bit....

This is what John Palmer says:



This is good enough for me. I'm not storing kegs with star-san in them anymore!

I also found out that Iodophor is actually the way to go if you insist on storing stainless steel kegs, "wet".

Good call Richbrewer! I'm changing my ways! Thanks for the heads up.
Thank you Dude for the research. I had no idea which way was best. I'll be storing mine upside down with the lid off as well.
 
I use a chopped keg for a blow off chamber and I fill it with star san. It is severly pitted from letting it sit too long so I never store star san in my kegs.

When I blow a keg I rinse it with hot water, purge hot water through the dip tube to clear out all beer, empty out the water, put the lid on and pressurize it with Co2. leaving the lid off is just inviting bugs to find a new home.....
 
I've been
1 - drinking all the beer as fast as possible
2 - rinsing with HOT tap water 2-3 times to get all beer out as soon as possible
3 - connect back up and blow gallon or 2 through the lines from keg to clean
4 - fill with gallon sanstar and shake the heck out of it
5 - blow that through the system to clean the lines
6 - tear down and scrub/soak all keg parts & tubes in SANSTAR while I clean the keg the same way - 1/2 hour soak as I'm cleaning up
7 - rinse/brush everything in HOT water again 2-3 times
8 - air dry everything 2-3 days until TOTALLY dry in and out
9 - lube all o-rings and reassemble and hit with a few PSI of CO2/purge/CO2
10 - you have pressure when your ready down the road - the keg is holding psi & ready
11 - hit with a gallon of sanstar and shaken allowing it to run out of all connects
12 - blow it all out though my line
13 - then the system is all ready to go and sanitized for the fresh filled keg

all this takes 1/2 hour total - I'd rather store dry and sanitize just before use. tearing down after each batch makes me fell like nothing is old and clogged. again why chance anything at this point after 1-2 months of time for 1/2 hour.

2cents but it works well
 
jldesign said:
I've been
1 - drinking all the beer as fast as possible
2 - rinsing with HOT tap water 2-3 times to get all beer out as soon as possible
3 - connect back up and blow gallon or 2 through the lines from keg to clean
4 - fill with gallon sanstar and shake the heck out of it
5 - blow that through the system to clean the lines
6 - tear down and scrub/soak all keg parts & tubes in SANSTAR while I clean the keg the same way - 1/2 hour soak as I'm cleaning up
7 - rinse/brush everything in HOT water again 2-3 times
8 - air dry everything 2-3 days until TOTALLY dry in and out
9 - lube all o-rings and reassemble and hit with a few PSI of CO2/purge/CO2
10 - you have pressure when your ready down the road - the keg is holding psi & ready
11 - hit with a gallon of sanstar and shaken allowing it to run out of all connects
12 - blow it all out though my line
13 - then the system is all ready to go and sanitized for the fresh filled keg

all this takes 1/2 hour total - I'd rather store dry and sanitize just before use. tearing down after each batch makes me fell like nothing is old and clogged. again why chance anything at this point after 1-2 months of time for 1/2 hour.

2cents but it works well
Sounds like a pretty good plan to me. :mug:
 
I researched this a little bit....

This is what John Palmer says:

... any impurities, particularly chloride and sulfate, will accelerate pitting and crevice corrosion.

So, I will bet that those of you who have had pitting problems at the water line, or other etching, have high chlorides or sulfate in your water.

I never recommend storing anything wet. Don't care whether it's water, or Starsan or PBW or Onestep or vinegar. When you store metal items wet, you allow all the time necessary for oxygen deprivation of a local area to occur and then you have an activity difference and galvanic corrosion can start. Pitting at the water line is a prime example. Pitting at a dent or ding is another. Weldments are particularly vulnerable because the metal chemistry/structure is generally different.

...

Bit of a necro post but it just occurred to me that "store metal items wet" is not that different to having beer in the corny keg? So that some pitting of kegs in an unavoidable outcome of storing beer in kegs?
 
Bit of a necro post but it just occurred to me that "store metal items wet" is not that different to having beer in the corny keg? So that some pitting of kegs in an unavoidable outcome of storing beer in kegs?

I could be wrong but when you have beer in the keg it is pretty much an oxygen free environment so the effects of the beer on the keg would be minimal.
 
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