Kegging Questions—Help Needed

So, after reading many different threads, as well as links to articles, I am still a bit confused about kegging. First, a little bit about my situation. This will be my first shot at kegging after a little more then a year of bottling. I just got fed up with the whole process. Anyway, I have four ball lock kegs, 5 pound co2 tank, a Dual Primary CO2 Regulator Battery, and of course all the connecting tubes and so forth. I have four beers sitting in the secondary right now and all the beers are going to be used for a celebration at the end of May. Finally, I have large walk in cooler (don’t know the temp yet) at the school I attend which the cook is willing to let me use. My kegerator is at home and therefore nowhere near me at this time. With all this in mind these are my three possible plans.

Plan (A)I thought I would take the 2 secondary’s full of beer down to the walk in cooler and let them sit for 1-2 weeks to cold condition. After this I would transfer the beer into two cleaned and sanitized kegs. Then I would purge the headspace of oxygen by connecting the gas to the IN line and hitting the CO2 with the regulator set to 30 psi. This would be followed by using the pressure release valve to purge the head space. I would do this processes four times for each keg. After this I would hook the gas line up to the OUT and, while leaving both kegs in the cooler allow them to carbonate for 1 week. At the same time I would bring the other two secondary’s down for cold conditioning after which I would repeat this process for the other two kegs. After the 1 week of carbonating each keg I would remove them from the cooler and bring them back up to my room(room temp 70 degrees) until I take them home with me at the end of this school year. Then I have a kegerator at home where I can hook up 2 kegs at a time bleed of the head pressure and set to serving pressure of about 10psi. Aside from asking you guys to please critique this plan I’m wondering what the carbonation pressures should be. I know it depends on the temp of the cooler which I still need to check but two of the beers are wheat and one is a Belgium Saison. I would like these three to have a heavy carbonation. If I am reading the charts write this means to get 3 volumes of Co2 into the beer, depending on the temp, I would have the set the regulator as high as 20-30. If I do this at this cool temp for one week can I assume that the beer will carbonate as well as stay carbonated once I take it off the gas and out of the cooler. Can I also assume that when I get it back home in a couple of months and re-cool it down in the kegerator, bleed of the pressure and set it to serving pressure it will still be the desired carbonation?

Plan (B) Prime the kegs with 1/3 cup corn sugar, purge head space of O2 as previously described and let them sit like bottles for two months. After which I bleed out the pressure, cool them down in the kegerator, set the serving pressure to 10psi and serve once cold.



Plan (C) Put beer into kegs, purge O2 as previously described and set the seal at of the keg by hitting it with 10-15psi. Let them sit for two months and then force carbonate kegs.

I know this long but any and all comments and suggestions are appreciated. I’m just looking to serve the best beer possible.

Well, I like option (B). I sort of do that now. I only have room in my fridge for two kegs, so while they wait for a space, I prime and leave them at room temperature. I hit it with the co2 to seal the lid and then purge it and do it again to remove any oxygen, then leave it at room temperature. Just like a big bottle, really. Then, before it goes onto the gas, I just purge. Then I put it in the fridge and set it to dispensing temps. Carbonated and conditioned beer.

With option A, one of the things I'm unsure about is if you carbonate at cooler temperatures what happens to the beer at room temperature. Also, I don't think you'd want to put the gas on the "out" for a week. That is why there is an "in" for the gas. It also sounds like a pain hauling all that stuff around and racking there.

With option C, you'll have well conditioned beer, but still have to wait for carbonation! Of course, you can force carbonate quickly (within a day), so maybe that's not so bad.

I guess I'd do either B or C.

YooperBrew said:

Well, I like option (B). I sort of do that now. I only have room in my fridge for two kegs, so while they wait for a space, I prime and leave them at room temperature. I hit it with the co2 to seal the lid and then purge it and do it again to remove any oxygen, then leave it at room temperature. Just like a big bottle, really. Then, before it goes onto the gas, I just purge. Then I put it in the fridge and set it to dispensing temps. Carbonated and conditioned beer.

With option A, one of the things I'm unsure about is if you carbonate at cooler temperatures what happens to the beer at room temperature. Also, I don't think you'd want to put the gas on the "out" for a week. That is why there is an "in" for the gas. It also sounds like a pain hauling all that stuff around and racking there.

With option C, you'll have well conditioned beer, but still have to wait for carbonation! Of course, you can force carbonate quickly (within a day), so maybe that's not so bad.

I guess I'd do either B or C.

Click to expand...

Would you cold condition for a week or two in the secondary before racking/priming? Also, if I want a higher carbonation in the wheat beers how much priming sugar should I use?

Thanks for the reply.

YooperBrew said:

With option A, one of the things I'm unsure about is if you carbonate at cooler temperatures what happens to the beer at room temperature.

Click to expand...

Not much other than:

- If served warm you will a lot of foam and a tinny bit of warm, flat beer.
- It will take a few days for the C02 to go back into solution after you chill it.
- The normal instability with storing beer warm and fluctuating temperatures.

anyone else?

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I think the beer would be fine if you carb it at a cooler temp then warm it up, however I don't know how easily the amount of CO2 lost by the warmup would get back into solution when you cool it back down. Purely conjecture, but I would guess you'd probably need to put the CO2 back on it for a day or so to get back to the right carbonation level.

It's a closed system. The CO2 will go back into solution where it started from without anything but time.

Keep em comen

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