DIY Tap for Mini Keg

Hey everyone!

I'm looking for help in creating a tap for my mini keg (5 liter). I found some info on the net but a lot of the pics and links seem to be broken. I found an instructable as well as a YouTube video, but I guess I'm a bit confused on just how to assemble the tap. I was hoping to use the standard two piece bung that come with the kegs and I have some 1/4 ID beer line that I wanna use for the tubing. Is it as simple as using a T conector with some tubing on each end? One to gas, one to the beer line? What's this stuff with compression pieces. Any help would be great. Maybe a parts list or some more instructions would be great.
And please, before anyone talks about real kegs, I brew in my dorm and do not have the space or cash to get them now. I wanna use my mini kegs.

Thanks!

What is a mini keg? Sanke? Corny? Party Pig?

Sorry, I mean the 5 L ones like what you would get Bitburger in. Most of the stuff that I find lead to broken links or dead fourms. I think I finally pieced it together, but help would be great.

Ha, I've just spent the last hour searching around here and the web for the same info and parts list... there's a couple of decent videos but the first one has no parts list, and the second one refrences a post on Northern Brewer's forum which looks to be lost in a site update...

I think it'd be fun to do some 1 gallon batches and still be able to force carb and keg them, and serve from my keezer.

Here's the video with a plastic one...


And this is the one that references northen brewer...I also found it on pintrest, but still going to the defunct Northern Brewer forum page. I've tried all manner of google fu to find indo, but I've hit a wall...then ended up back here.



I understand the principle- but figuring out the requisite parts is difficult.

Thanks! Sorry for the late reply. I kinda sorced the parts out with those videos and made a working tap!

Arminius757 said:

Thanks! Sorry for the late reply. I kinda sorced the parts out with those videos and made a working tap!

Click to expand...

Are you going to post a parts list then?

I could most certainly do a bit of a write up with my experience. I'll have to do it this weekend, classes starting up. I'll also reformat the post so that it can be more accessible

Someone on youtube pointed me in the right direction to an instructable for one.



Materials:
2 1/2" threaded to 1/4" push to connect
1 1/4" to 1/4" push to connect
1 1/2" threaded to 1/2" barbed fitting
1 1/2" Brass Tee
Some 1/4" Ice maker tubing
1' Length of vinyl tubing (not pictured)
Teflon Tape

I used the instructions that Revvy linked to above. It works ok, though I am still tweaking things. I'll post a photo later.

Why not just buy the party star tap for mini kegs? Less than a hundo, will save you lots of grief.

BrunDog said:

Why not just buy the party star tap for mini kegs? Less than a hundo, will save you lots of grief.

Click to expand...

Why would anyone want to pay a "hundo" when you can make something that works for 20 bucks? I would rather spend the remaining 80 on, I dunno...food, beer, ingredients, rent, redheaded midget hookers . As well as having the continued satisfaction of making something with my own hands.

Part of the love of this hobby for me is building my own gear... otherwise one might ask, "why not just buy beer, rather than brewing it yourself, it'll save you lots of grief."

Especially since I want something that I can hook the kegs up into my keezer (which I built myself) and is something that I may only use once or twice a year when I brew a small batch of something and want to keg and carb it. It's not going to be a pony tap I'm gonna have it inline.

Hey I'm down with DIY... But I also value my time, and certain things aren't worth re-engineering.

But like you said, it's a hobby/pride thing.

Sorry it's been so long guys! Basically, I found that instructable and used the parts that Revvy mentioned. The only part I changed was for my gas in line, which I chance to a .5" male threaded to .25" barbed. Otherwise, I attached my picnic faucet by just running the .25" OD tube into some .25" ID tube and clamped it tight with a few screwable clamps, worm screws I think they are called? Anyway, it runs like an absolute champ, and is super easy to make. I recommend this for anyone with some mini kegs around the house. I'm gonna test out doing some force carbonation in the kegs using this set up.

I concur with Revvy. I would rather spend the extra money on more beer. I also bought a beertender so I could have beer on tap but not have to find room for a full size kegerator.

I did some research because I saw that party tap system but all the reviews came out quite negative... So I figured why waste the money when I could just build one myself at a cheaper price?
Also, audioa84, how did you step up your hose so that it fit the picnic line?

Since mine is constructed to be used with the beertender, I didn't need to adapt the hose to a picnic line. The "valve" that the beertender uses fits nicely into the line. You can see where they join right above the clamp on the red hose. My first thought if I was going to use a picnic line would be to do what you described.

Does anyone know what this connector they're using to go from beverage line to fridge line is?This is probably what I'll need to hook it up inline to my keezer when I want to use it.

Isn't that just a barb connector to butt two lines together? Should be able to find that at Lowe's or Home Depot.

Yesfan said:

Isn't that just a barb connector to butt two lines together? Should be able to find that at Lowe's or Home Depot.

Click to expand...

Yeah I can't really make it out in the pic. I wasn't sure if that's a whole connector of some type, like a little quick release, or something like just a barb fitting with two small worm clamps holding it together.

From my experience, I couldn't find a barb that small... Checked both home depot a d Lowe's. They didn't step down that far. It is a really large step down if you think about it...

This is what I thought it was.





3/16" barb coupler - Amazon



A couple of small worm clamps and you're in business. I could have sworn that HD carried them, but Amazon has them if the local joints don't.

I was looking for something to step a .25 OD hose to a .25 ID hose... But for Revvy's purpose it should work