Kegs to modify

I just bought 2 Stainless steel kegs for $10 each. How are you guys cutting the hole in the top and what size do you cut 12"

12" will let you buy a lid for it. I use a Dremel with an EZ Lock cutting wheel. It works great and makes a clean cut that is easy to smoothout. One of the best things is the quick change out of the cutting wheels. I did my first keg with the normal ones and it took quite a while and about 25 discs. I did my second with about 3 of these in about 10 minutes.

Where do you guys get these kegs from for $10? And you are talking about using these for your liquor tanks and mash tuns and brew pots or what?

I went to the party store and asked, they said just pay the deposit which was 10 bucks. I want one for a kettle and one for a hot water tank. I will use my Igloo cube for the mash tun

So are these the big fat round kegs or are they Kornies? And how did they just give you these for a $10 deposit?

Brew-boy said:

I went to the party store and asked, they said just pay the deposit which was 10 bucks. I want one for a kettle and one for a hot water tank. I will use my Igloo cube for the mash tun

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So that means that you're renting it for $10 and not buying it. I'd like to see they're faces when you return them. If you want to legally buy them, stop by your local SS scrap yard and pick them up for about $1 a pound.

Wild

Really? They have them in the scrap yards? Are they the big boys that you can use for a brew kettle or just the Korny?

No No I bought just the empty Kegs outright the 15 gallon ones. I own them, the party store said its a service the keg compnay provides. If someone does not bring back the Keg no big deal the service will provide another one. Maybe I should buy more and put them on Ebay...lol

Good lord.....wanna buy me a couple and send them to me....

Perhaps the folks at the store don't understand the meaning of Property of Anheuser-Busch that is stamped on the top of the keg in inch high letters.

I've heard of other people buying a keg of their favorite commercial swill and keeping the keg at the cost of leaving the deposit at the store. Certainly not the most honest thing to do, but deposits are there for a reason...

Back to the topic at hand - here's a thread with some more info. EdWort sure is attached to that Dremel tool! I'd sooner stab myself in the eye with a hot fire poker than try cut a 12" hole in sheet metal with a 1" cutting disc! But seriously, a cutting disc on a die grinder, some carefully operated tin snips/sheet metal shears, Ed's blasted Dremel tool, or my favorite, the plasma cutter, can all be used to successfully make the cut.

UH.... YA you know thats one of the reason smaller brewerys dont make it!! those kegs cost any where from 90 to 110 dollars new. the party store just screwed the destributer out of the keg therefore the brewery just got screwed. In a sence its stealing from the brewery. Not a good thing. This is a HUGE problem in the brewing world and one of the reasons for the major increase in beer at the store level.
I have said this many many many times before. go to your local brewery and ask to BUY out of service kegs they will cost about $20.00 ea if you dont have a local brewery make a trip to one. If that wont work out let me know I can get some for you "IF my local brewery has any on hand" cut the top and send it out for probably 60.00 or so I would have to check on shipping cost
JJ

jaybird said:

you know thats one of the reason smaller brewerys dont make it!!

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I'm not advocating it...I just know it's been done. I do all of my kegging with cornies, and I brew with a 9 gallon brew pot from Williams Brewing. I doubt I'll ever really want one of those big kegs for anything, but I'll certainly go legit if I do.

Hey I didnt think it was stealing. I asked if I could buy one and the answer was yes. I didnt set the price they did. I was told it happens all the time people do not return the kegs, maybe same reason as me, so thay can brew.

it is the same reason as you "to brew" and god bless you for doing so... knowledge is power and your very correct not everyone knows that it affects the brewerys the way it does. But YOU cant say that again... we MUST have respect for the people and companys makeing a living makeing "the nectur of the GODS" even if they are a GIANT in the industry like AB
just my .02 take it or leave it
JJ

Soon, Keg deposits will be $50 to $80. That will take care of the problem. $10 kegs will disappear.

Edwort
A bunch of smaller breweries already have a $80.00 deposit. cant really say I blame them.
JJ

Yep I know. Live Oak Brewery here in Austin charges something like that for their kegs. Works for me.

All the keg deposits around here are around $70.

GABrewboy said:

Really? They have them in the scrap yards? Are they the big boys that you can use for a brew kettle or just the Korny?

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They're the 15.5 gallon sanke kegs plus others. You'll probably see pallets of them at the yard. Pick out the best ones you want and don't forget to unload the old beer inside. You're paying by the pound remember. If you can, yank the spear out too. Why pay for it if you don't need it.

Good luck,
Wild

Well after all this talk I feel bad. I talked to my guy at the LHBS and he thought the same thing. So tonight I went back to the party store and I returned the 2 kegs and got my money back. I will save up the money and buy them the right way. So much for my good deal.

Karma will reward you, my son. I have no doubt that if you now call up a scrap yard, they will have a NICER keg available for you for $8 each.

OK, maybe not, but something good will happen...

Any Micros in your area? I got all three of mine from Tree Brewing.

I see kegs regularly at metal salvage yards.

*REPOST*

Here are my step by step instructions for building your own boiling kettle using a keg.

Good luck

I took a piece of string and made a loop, adjusting the length to match a predetermined width that matched a couple of lids I had for other pots.

I took a Sharpie and using the string as a guide, drew a circle around the edge.

Quick safety tip, drill a hole in the scrap part first like I did, the escaping gas was impressive, and STINKY.

Also, when using the grinder, be sure to wear ear protection, it was amazingly loud. Neighbors came out for 4 houses to see what I was doing.

I then took my 4 inch angle grinder and using the Sharpie line as a guide, ground down through the top, being generous on the inside. Remember, you can always grind more but you can never add back. Using the lids as a guide I soon had a perfect fit. I used the grinder to smooth it all out then turned the keg on its side.

I changed the head on the grinder to a corse stainless steel cone wire wheel and sprayed it down with WD40 to help get the gunk off and went to work.

In about 20 minutes it looked like this




Cheers,

knewshound

Returning the kegs and doing it right is best. Good work. Call a scrap-yard and some micro-breweries...

Brew-boy said:

Well after all this talk I feel bad. I talked to my guy at the LHBS and he thought the same thing. So tonight I went back to the party store and I returned the 2 kegs and got my money back. I will save up the money and buy them the right way. So much for my good deal.

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Your brews will taste better for it.

Good luck,
Wild

In terms of cutting, stainless is actually pretty soft metal; it only gets brittle when it heats up. I use a jigsaw with a metal-cutting blade on very slow speed, water for the lubricant (carefully). Works great.

jp

FWIW

When I picked up my keg I fully intended on paying the full scrap price for it until I ran into a Miller distribution representative (no NOT the deliveryman) at the liquor store who told me I must be "stupid" to not get a keg for the deposit. Maybe the fact that Miller is literally 5 minutes from my house has something to do with it, but I dont know if there is actually a "right way" to obatin a halfbarrel keg.

I HIGHLY doubt a brewery has gone out of business because someone decided to keep all their kegs

No, but they have rasied prices in part from keg loss. That said, I personally could care less if BMC went out of business. (Wishful thinkning, I know)

Alright, well guys, here's my deal. A friend has a keg, he's had it for a long time. He doesn't plan on returning it...in fact, I don't think he even remembers where he got it. He said I could have it.

I was wondering, for a guy who owns absolutely no tools, is there any decent way I could turn it into a brewpot? Or would I be better off just buying a 150 dollar 8 gal brewkettle with spigot and thermometer port?

8 gal is too small. Get the keg, borrow some tools or find someone who has tools and is willing to help. Mention "beer" and you'llbe suprised how much help you can get. Especially when "beer" is accompanied by "I'll give you some".

rent/borrow an angle grinder
rent/borrow a drill
buy a few cutting disks and a whole saw bit and some cutting oil

I actually know of a blacksmith that cut the top of mine for me for $20, another $10 for the bit and oil and the cost of a weldless valve you'll be a lot happier then you would be with a 8 gallon $150 kettle

You may also want to invest in a thermmosight because TRUST ME sticking your head into a kettle of boiling wort tryng to guess at how much is in there ISNT fun. http://northernbrewer.com/weldless.html