DIY Growler tap?

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kunstler

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I saw a random picture of a grolwer tap - thought it was a cool idea but couldn't get much info out of the pic. Did a search and nothing I get has any info on building one - just commerical examples or "how long will beer stay in a growler" threads

Anyone have one or detailed pics so I could kinda figure it out.

I know it can't be that hard, but I'm a graphics kinda guy not an engineer that can come up with the stuff in my head - so any pics of a growler tap so I can figure out what I need from Homedepot/lowes to make one would be great.
 
All you really need is a 1ft section of hose that will slip over your normal tap so that the beer doesnt splash into your growler
 
I've read on posts somewhere here that growlers routinely fail when pressurized...it is not what they are designed for...I wouldn't do it.

Then I was thinking...2L is just over 4 full pints...do you REALLY need to tap that volume??? ;)
 
I've read on posts somewhere here that growlers routinely fail when pressurized...it is not what they are designed for...I wouldn't do it.

Then I was thinking...2L is just over 4 full pints...do you REALLY need to tap that volume??? ;)

Real Growlers are designed to hold pressure. Most of what we normally see are jugs but called Growlers.
 
Real Growlers are designed to hold pressure. Most of what we normally see are jugs but called Growlers.

How do you know if it's a real growler and what are they rated for? Curious as I have what I believe to be a real one.
 
How do you know if it's a real growler and what are they rated for? Curious as I have what I believe to be a real one.

I can't speak with autority, but if you have one like as pictured in that link, that's a real one. (Brown amber bottle with a flip-top air-tight lid.)

If your growler looks like a simple glass "moonshine" jug that you might find apple juice in at your grocery store, then it's just a jug and is probably not meant to handle pressure.
 
You can't.


From my experience, the brown ones seem to be much thicker glass than the clear ones.

if the top is a flip-top air-tight one, the growler can handle pressure. Otherwise breweries that fill those would be at risk for a lawsuit because the beer inside will be sloshed around and expell CO2 into the headspace when you travel with it. They would run the risk of exploding.

The ones with screw-on lids are not air-right and the CO2 will escape around the cap. If left in there long enough, the beer will go flat.
 
Correct I have a "german" growler. and it is rated to hold pressure.

why tap it? number of reasons and uses

1. I hate to bottle - so filling a growler is easy, but if it doesn't get all consumed in one shot it goes flat easy and then oxidizes (alot of the ones I see just pump in air, I'm hoping to use a seztler charger to pump in co2 so its only a little bit to deal with. When I go to a party, I can't bring the whole kegorator....but bringing a growler is easy and usually its an after thought (I think "oh I'll bring some beer)

2. these REAL growlers are real heavy....EMPTY and even heavier full - and on top of that they have a wider opening, I've had way to many people try to poor a pint and then spill half of the contents all over the place.

I'm not going to force carb using this, I'm looking for a small portable tap system that I can bring with me and not worry about people spilling half the contents or dropping the thing - it can sit in the fridge and they can just pull what they want. If it doesn't get all used up - it doesn't go bad.
 
I'm not going to force carb using this, I'm looking for a small portable tap system that I can bring with me and not worry about people spilling half the contents or dropping the thing - it can sit in the fridge and they can just pull what they want. If it doesn't get all used up - it doesn't go bad.

Depends on how you are putting pressure in for serving from this. If you put a little hand pump and force air in there, the beer will go bad from the air. It won't be flat, but could easily get funky.

That's the same problem with kegs at parties that use air pumps for serving pressure. It will work fine if you plan to consume all the beer in the keg in a very short period of time. If you attempt to leave that sit for a few days before finishing it, it'll be nasty.
 
I'm hoping to use a seztler charger to pump in co2 .


no I'm going to keep CO2 in there, but I don't know where to start to build something like this. The ones available are all just air pumps I would put a little charger on there.
 
I can't speak with autority, but if you have one like as pictured in that link, that's a real one. (Brown amber bottle with a flip-top air-tight lid.)

If your growler looks like a simple glass "moonshine" jug that you might find apple juice in at your grocery store, then it's just a jug and is probably not meant to handle pressure.

I do have one of the "official" brown growlers with the gasket seal and swing top closure. I really had no idea that they could hold pressure up to 58psi. Makes me wonder if I could make a growler tap as well or possibly one of the pop bottle taps. Yeah it's called pop, not soda!
 
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