How do I clean my picnic tap line??

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HoppyDaze

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So im looking at this thing and cant figure it out....It looks like I should just be able to pull the tap out of the line. The other end where the disconnect is looks a little more complicated. If I could just get one end off I could get the thing clean....thanks!
 
While you are cleaning the keg You can run some cleaner and then starsan through the hose. This is how I do it. I never take the hose apart.
 
Not sure what level of cleaning is necessary. If it isn't too bad you can put a couple gallons of a cleaning solution such as Oxyclean in the keg and run it through the system, then flush with water, then a Starsan mix.
 
I'm all about easy, so I know the easy way!

See the flat long slot on the black QD? Unscrew that, but do it over a white paper towel, so you can see the parts. There will be: one spring, one plastic pointed thing, one gasket (which might stick to the slotted top), and the top. Put those four parts together in some oxiclean. Now, unscrew the top of the picnic tap. It comes right off. Now you can run oxiclean, water, and then star-san through it. Put the picnic tap top back on. Then, in reverse order put together the black QD. The "short" plastic pin goes down, with the long side sticking up, then the spring goes over that, then the slotted top with the gasket back in place.

It sounds way more complicated than it is! It's so easy even a Yooper could do it!
 
While you are cleaning the keg You can run some cleaner and then starsan through the hose. This is how I do it. I never take the hose apart.

Yeah, when I clean a keg after it runs dry, I keep a couple of gallon of star san water under pressure in it, sitting next to the kegerator. Cleaning a liquid line only takes a second.
 
Unless it has been abused, you can just clean it, without having to get rowdy on it's azz with oxyclean.

They make this stuff called Beer Line Cleaner. I put some in a keg and feed it into the beer line and up through the tap. I let it set in there to soak. Then I flush with some star san, letting it soak a bit.

After that, hook it to a beer filled keg and drain off the first few ounces until it looks like beer again.

If you haven't been cleaning it at all for a while, then disassembly may in order.
 
It may be good to take apart the picnic tap and QD every couple kegs. Occasionally a biofilm may form on the silicone (?) part inside the tap itself, especially if it's a slow-to-kick keg or a soda keg.

Just make sure not to disassemble either over the sink or just throw them in the keg to soak. It sucks to catch a glimpse of the QD gasket or other part swim down the drain. :p
 
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