Keggle Cleaning

I have an old keg that I'm converting to a keggle. It had Foster's in it. It still had pressure on it and some soured beer. It's got some kind of funk streaking the walls and bottom. I used BKF and oxyclean. I scrubbed the he$$ out of it and it will come off but I'll be an old(er) man with Hulk Hogan arms at this rate. Should I let the oxyclean set over night? Any other ideas?
I posted this on the sticky under cleaners/sanitizers, but didn't get a response. So, I copied it here. After soaking overnight a couple of times, I still had to scrub forever to remove the funk. Finally, I used some 220 grit sand paper and then knocked it down with steel wool. I scrubbed it again with oxyclean and then BKF. The funk is gone but there is some discoloraton/dark spots where it was. Should I work it over with 320 grit and then 400 to keep from having the scratches? Also, after I weld in the couplings, do I need to re-pickle the stainless? I read yes and no on here and was kind of looking to consolidate the info in this thread. Thanks for the help - Dwain

What are you using the sanke keg for? If for a keggle then I wouldn't worry to much.

WHat concetraiton of oxiclean were you using? I generlaly get everythung off that isn;t burnt in with 1-2 scoops per gallon.

Steel wool should NOT be used, it will imbed small pieces of steel into / on the stainless and stain / corrode. Additionally, any tools such a grinders that have been used on regular steel should not be used w/ stainless. The smallest trace amounts of regular steel will tarnish.

Wilser is right. Do not use steel wool, use fresh Scotch brite pads, scrub it again. For the passivation of the stainless after scrubbing and welding, From what I understand, the BKF being oxalic acid does the trick, I would also do a full boil with water before you use it for beer.
I have seen streaking that did not want to scrub off from the lid being cut with a plasma cutter.

Bar Keepers Friend... it's your friend. I know you said you used it, but... Use the powdered version, and use very little water to keep it a little pasty. You can let the paste sit for a bit, scrub a little, and repeat until it's purdy. Eventually, it'll get the inside of your keg looking brand new. If you've got some heavily caked on stuff, I'd use a little sand paper, and then go over it again w/ BKF.

I suggest you scrub the holy hell out of that thoing again with a nylon scrubby or a (new) toilet brush. You have likely destroyed the passivated layer and will only be greeted with rusting.

PBW is an excellent no scrub cleaner for organic soils. 1 ounce per gallon at 150*f and let soak overnight. I have yet to find any organic material that can hold up to it.

Follow that up with a coating of the BKF or some Acid #5 to speed up re-passivation.

And put that sand paper away till you get something woody!

Thanks Guys,
I plan on using it for a HLT. I used 3-4 scoops of oxyclean per gallon of warm water, then I used the powdered BKF with very little water so it was a paste. I already used the steel wool. I plan on scrubbing it again with BKF after I weld my two couplings on for the coil. Which ScotchBrite should I use? Also, is there any other step that I used take to mitigate the steel wool? Thanks again - Dwain

Mine was half full of old Miller when I got it. Smelled like piss and stale beer.

A good, two day soak in hot oxyclean got the smell out.

After I do a boil in it, I use a long handled pot scrubber to clean it. The scrubber is kind of like a cross between a toilet brush and a teflon pot scrubber. It works good and I can reach all parts of the keggle without trashing my back.

Dwain said:

Also, is there any other step that I used take to mitigate the steel wool?

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No huge deal, just don't make it a habit.

bdavanza said:

Wilser is right. Do not use steel wool, use fresh Scotch brite pads, scrub it again. For the passivation of the stainless after scrubbing and welding, From what I understand, the BKF being oxalic acid does the trick, I would also do a full boil with water before you use it for beer.
I have seen streaking that did not want to scrub off from the lid being cut with a plasma cutter.

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Well, he could use a SS wire brush on a drill.

I use the Scotch brite pads at the hardware store, grey is the fine, red is more coarse. Once you have it good and clean, maintenance should be done with something less aggressive, like normal nylon pot scrubbers.

Timely post, as I just got my kegs back from being cut today. there is some black nasty stuff in the bottom from the plasma, and nasty beer leftovers in it.

Is the BKF something you can get locally, or do I have to order it?

I plan to give it a good soak with oxyclean tonight, and then will try to find the BFK to scrub it good.

Bar Keepers Friend is usually found in grocery stores near the Comet cleaner in a similar round can.
barkeepersfriend.com

Ceedubya said:

Is the BKF something you can get locally, or do I have to order it?

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I bought my can of BKF at Wall-Mart.

ace hardware