Groom thinking about gettin into kegging...

So Im gettin married on September 4. Of course I will be providing the beer. I plan on making 3 different 10 gallon batches and kegging them all in 5 gallon kegs. Ive never kegged before and am wondering if its worth the "hassle"?
I have a couple of questions:

#1- Would you recommend kegging a few batches prior to the wedding just to get used to the process or could I go in "green" and be successful?

#2- I do not have a kegerator and was planning on using picnic taps with the kegs sitting in buckets of ice. If the kegs arent tapped by the end of the night will they go bad?

#3- I was looking @ NB website and saw a used 5 gal keg w/ regulator and gauges for $140 but my LHBS has used kegs for $40 w/o gauges etc. Would it be better to buy everything seperate?

#4- Ive been researching on here and it is still unclear to me whether I need to add priming sugar when racking to the keg and have the CO2 tank or if the CO2 isnt necessary if I add priming sugar. Im thinking the CO2 is just to displace the beer as the keg is emptied right?

First my condolences or congratulations, which ever is in order.
#1 keg a few first or do a lot of research, No one wants to serve a poorly carbonated beer at their wedding.
#2 As long as pressure is kept on them they will be good. Some have pressureized and depressurized several times and still claim quality.
#3 Probably not, the kits usually include a CO2 bottle.
#4 yes and no. many of us force carb using CO2. This allows a faster carbonation and less sediment. You can prime with sugar to carbonate but will still require CO2 to drive the beer out at a constant pressure and will have more sediment in a short time span than would force carbing. I suggest force carbing and letting it sit until a couple days before the date. Then transfer to another keg VIA transfer hose for the cleanest beer.

1. Yes
2. No
3. Refurbished kegs are fine, sounds like you need 6 so that's the way I would go.
4. You can add priming sugar to your kegs but it will leave much more yeast on the bottom of the keg and can add a yeasty flavor. I prefer to carbonate from the CO2 tank instead of adding priming sugar but this would require you to carbonate each keg before your event and keep them cold all the way through serving. Kegging is less work than bottling but it takes a bit of reading and experimentation to get the carbonation right. As long as you can keep them all cold and carbonate from a tank you will be fine. I would definitely recommend playing around with it first.

Thanks fellas. I should also mention that one of these batches will be hefeweizen. Would it still be better to force carb this or would priming be better to impart that lovely yeastyness? What do yall do as far as kegging your hefes?

bjzelectric said:

Thanks fellas. I should also mention that one of these batches will be hefeweizen. Would it still be better to force carb this or would priming be better to impart that lovely yeastyness? What do yall do as far as kegging your hefes?

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I force carb everything, including my hefe. The "lovely yeastyness" comes from primary fermentation, not from carbonation.

All you have to do to force carb a keg is:
1. hit it with 30 psi until you hear it stop.
2. roll keg back and forth for about 10-15 seconds
3. repeat steps 1 & 2 until little co2 will inject into keg.
4. before serving, release all co2 in keg
5. inject continuous co2 at around 10 psi to serve.
6. Do all steps at cold temperatures.

or

keep at 10 psi for a week or so, maybe less I always do it the quicker way.

I am sure there are many ways to do this, but this is what works for me.

Cheers and congrats.