DIY Beer Line Cleaner

CornyKegs 728
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I did not have a problem with the poppet seating. I don't know if people are using different types of posts, but I didn't have a problem. However it seems easily remedied.
 
I had no problem with the poppet either. I did get a Firestone post instead of Cornilius as it has a shorter threaded area. Maybe that is the way to avoid this possible problem.
 
http://***********/component/resour...It Yourself/374-build-a-hose-cleaner-projects

http://***********/component/resource/article/117-Departments/569-draftline-cleaner-projects
 
Jorgen said:
I had no problem with the poppet either. I did get a Firestone post instead of Cornilius as it has a shorter threaded area. Maybe that is the way to avoid this possible problem.
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The Firestone has the proper threads to work with the adapter while the Cornilius doesn't (fine vs course). The issue I was having was that the the flare fitting was bottoming out inside the post and not going in far enough for the poppet to seat on it. A single washer fixed this. I think the issue with leaking or not has more to do with the fittings we choose and not the post it self.

OR, if the poppet feet are splayed inside the post a washer may not be required. (you know how when you pull off a post you sometimes have to really push to get the poppet out?) If this is the case, I'd be concerned that it may get dislodged on down the road and leak later.

OR, it could be the style of poppet too. I'm no poppet expert but I've seen some longer ones out there.
 
Bigscience said:
The Firestone has the proper threads to work with the adapter while the Cornilius doesn't (fine vs course). The issue I was having was that the the flare fitting was bottoming out inside the post and not going in far enough for the poppet to seat on it. A single washer fixed this. I think the issue with leaking or not has more to do with the fittings we choose and not the post it self.

OR, if the poppet feet are splayed inside the post a washer may not be required. (you know how when you pull off a post you sometimes have to really push to get the poppet out?) If this is the case, I'd be concerned that it may get dislodged on down the road and leak later.

OR, it could be the style of poppet too. I'm no poppet expert but I've seen some longer ones out there.
Click to expand...
hmm, what size washer did you use?
 
went to home depot and got some 5/16 neoprene washers and I am good to go!
there is a small leak where the sprayer connects to the adapter but it isnt a big issue
 
Not sure of the exact size off the top if my head but it fit inside the post up where the poppet goes. The flare fitting pushes up against it. I think that because the flare tip is sort of cone shaped, the poppet may fit around it. The washer gives it something flat to sit on. Take a post to the hardware store and just try little ones until one fits. I got a SS one for a few cents.
 
Bigscience said:
Not sure of the exact size off the top if my head but it fit inside the post up where the poppet goes. The flare fitting pushes up against it. I think that because the flare tip is sort of cone shaped, the poppet may fit around it. The washer gives it something flat to sit on. Take a post to the hardware store and just try little ones until one fits. I got a SS one for a few cents.
Click to expand...
Yeah thats what I ended up doing. Dont know why I didnt just do that the first time around... oh well it works now!!! time to clean my 3 picnic tap lines for the first time (its only been about 2 months for one of the lines)
:ban::mug:
 
Here is some great info about keg posts and thread sizes and other kegging parts (can somebody import it here into a Wiki/sticky?):

http://www.dresselbrew.com/Keg_Info.htm

You can see that there are 2 types of Firestone posts, one is longer that the other. There are also different poppet lengths as well. Maybe some people are using the shorter ones or longer poppets and it's working while others are using the others and require the washer. Either way, I'm Oh-fer 2 on the ones I've built with posts from 2 different sources.
 
The bottom line is if you use the same parts that I did, you won't have a problem with poppets, etc. But if you want to get parts from other sources, it may leak But the good news is, others have figured fixes.
 
geniz said:
The bottom line is if you use the same parts that I did, you won't have a problem with poppets, etc. But if you want to get parts from other sources, it may leak But the good news is, others have figured fixes.
Click to expand...

yeah, I wish that HD had that part in stock. Oh well this works
 
For those of you looking for a quick and easy Sanke cleaner, I rigged up this mess for a few dollars with minimal brain activity. The beer line screws right onto that fitting at the end of the clear hose

DSC02085.jpg


DSC02086.jpg
 
DodginBUIs said:
For those of you looking for a quick and easy Sanke cleaner, I rigged up this mess for a few dollars with minimal brain activity. The beer line screws right onto that fitting at the end of the clear hose
Click to expand...

will keep this in mind for once I move. My roommate works at a bev-mo so we can get 5 gal micro kegs at a little over cost. hopefully 3 homebrews and 1 microbrew on tap at all times! :mug:
edit: my beers tasted much better last night after cleaning the lines :). its amazing what only 5 weeks or so can do. the beer tasted a bit better! I plan on cleaning them every 2-3 weeks form now on
 
geniz said:
I picked up a Firestone ball lock liquid post assembly from Brewmaster's Warehouse (my LHBS)



The threaded end of the liquid post is 3/8 flare. The threaded end of the pump is 3/8 MIP. I picked up an adapter from Dome Hepot.




Click to expand...

Firestone is type A right?
 
It seems that beer out posts from different keg models have all types of different thread types. I lucked out with the Firestone I picked up and it was easy to couple it to the pump.

Here is the catalog page from Brewmasters Warehouse with the Firestone Liquid Post:

http://www.brewmasterswarehouse.com/product/0102273/ball-lock-liquid-post-assembly-firestone

AS to the "type A", If you are referring to beer posts from the Northern Brewer's catalogue, this seems to be a type A.

If the 3/8 coupler fits, but the poppet leaks, there are fixes discussed by others here that involve putting a washer or O-ring between the flare fitting and the post.


Hope this helps
 
Yes I was looking @ NB and wanted to double check. I haven't bought from BMW yet but hear nothing but the best about retail & online experiences.
 
I just happened to buy from BMW because they are a few miles from home. I was able to go there and pick what I wanted from their bins. I have nothing against NB. I just know that this one from BMW works. More than likely, the one from NB is the exact same one. Has anyone gotten a post from NB and built this cleaner?
 
What sprayer did you get? The one from HD is not available in all stores and I cant purchase it online. I've been waiting for a long time to goto another store which is far away to pick one up.
 
I'm having issues. I got the same sprayer, same adapter, I'm using a firestone liquid post. Did the post fit the adapter easily or did you have to use a bit of elbow grease? I get the first thread in or so and then it feels like I'm about to strip the threads, even without the nylon tape. Do I just take a wrench and force it on?

After double checking my kegs say Cornelius Co. but the posts look like the one pictured. I guess the older Cornelius keg posts look like this. Anyone with more info? Thanks.
 
They have different threads on the and a Cornie one won't work. Just because it's got the short base, it doesn't mean it's firestone. If you try to wrench it down farther, you'll just ruin the brass.
 
Bigscience said:
They have different threads on the and a Cornie one won't work. Just because it's got the short base, it doesn't mean it's firestone. If you try to wrench it down farther, you'll just ruin the brass.
Click to expand...

I agree, I think you are using a Cornelius post which has different threads. My Firestone post fit easily with no crossed threads. If you are using a Cornelius post, take it to the hardware store and see if you can find the proper adaptor.
 
I don't think there are any fittings out there that will work with the Cornie post. I tried this route at a pretty good local store and came up empty. Let me know if you can find something though.

It seems like for others building this from now on, sourcing a firestone post and an adapter from Home Despot would be easier than a magical fitting from a specialty plumbing store to use with a Cornie post.
 
Bigscience said:
I don't think there are any fittings out there that will work with the Cornie post. I tried this route at a pretty good local store and came up empty. Let me know if you can find something though.

It seems like for others building this from now on, sourcing a firestone post and an adapter from Home Despot would be easier than a magical fitting from a specialty plumbing store to use with a Cornie post.
Click to expand...

I'm trying to do some research here regarding the cornie post.. it seems that they are 9/16-18 thread size.. By googling that I've found that there are brass adapters in that size for brake systems.. I may swing by the autoparts store tomorrow if I have time and see what I can find. For the record, the autoparts stores around here suck.

Other than that, I picked up the 56HD pump and A-176 adapter today at HD. Now the challenge is getting the 3/8"MFL attached to 9/16-18 and put a pin lock post on it (preferred), or just a 1/4"MFL that I can attach my beer line to. (Example)
 
Well I got mine together with a little variation, which is fine for my application since I doubt I'll find a fitting for the pin lock post to thread onto, and my beer line connects to the pinlock disconnect fitting using 1/4" flare threads. I've also adapted my sanke coupling to 1/4" flare threads on the gas in and liquid out so I don't have to change my gas or beer lines when using the occasional sanke in the kegerator.

Instead of the A-762 fitting, I got the A-765 (3/8"FIPx1/4"FIP) which threads onto the A-80 (1/4" Flare x 1/4"MIP). It's basically what Geniz built without the cornie post, but instead of a 3/8" flare fitting, mine has a 1/4" flare fitting, which connects directly to my beer line where the cornie disconnect would.

To lessen the confusion when shopping for these parts, FIP = Female Iron Pipe; MIP = Male Iron Pipe. The thread standards are based on iron pipe thread standards from eons ago, and the standard applies to brass (and other) parts today.

Also, I'm not entirely sure that the threads coming off the HD56 are in fact 3/8" MIP. If you compare the inside of the green tip to the inside of your A-762 or A-765 fitting, the thread spacing looks a little different. It felt like the brass fitting was basically cutting it's own threads in the plastic, which is fine as long as you use plenty of teflon tape, make sure that it seats evenly, and limit the number of times you take this fitting on and off. I tested mine with a 1/4" flare cap and it holds pressure just fine. Come to think of it, the threads on the HD56 sprayer are probably metric, being that it came from China.:drunk:
 
Great build idea and it saved me 40 bucks for a dedicated pre-built line cleaner. I'm hoping now my co2 refills will be much less frequent.
 
TheBroonery said:
Well I got mine together with a little variation, which is fine for my application since I doubt I'll find a fitting for the pin lock post to thread onto, and my beer line connects to the pinlock disconnect fitting using 1/4" flare threads. I've also adapted my sanke coupling to 1/4" flare threads on the gas in and liquid out so I don't have to change my gas or beer lines when using the occasional sanke in the kegerator.

Instead of the A-762 fitting, I got the A-765 (3/8"FIPx1/4"FIP) which threads onto the A-80 (1/4" Flare x 1/4"MIP). It's basically what Geniz built without the cornie post, but instead of a 3/8" flare fitting, mine has a 1/4" flare fitting, which connects directly to my beer line where the cornie disconnect would.
Click to expand...

I wish I'd seen this before I bought a Corny post and the A-176 part. I was attempting to figure this out at HD but couldn't. Also, I just found out that the Corny post I have won't fit onto the A-176 part (different thread sizes). So I guess I'll head back to HD, return the A-176, and pick up the A-762 and A-80 instead. Thanks a ton for posting this.

As an aside, I picked up my sprayer from Christmas Tree Shops. Only cost $3 and fits the A-176 part so I'm guessing it's 3/8", the same as the HD sprayer.

Update: The A-762 and A-80 perfectly fit onto the sprayer I got from Christmas Tree Shops. Now I can connect my beer lines (which have a female flare to barb attached) directly to the sprayer without using a liquid post. I used this yesterday to clean out my lines, and it worked perfectly. Thanks for the great idea.
 
Sorry I don't have a pic, but basically the one I made has the same threads (1/4" male flare) as the disconnect for my corny keg. I haven't had a chance to use it yet (keg not kicked) but I made the beer line more part of the fridge by screwing down saddle brackets on the inside of the fridge with the beer line coiled neatly on the wall.
 
Just used mine this weekend to clean a line and to flush a beer out post on a keg
 
Thanks! Just built this using the same Home Depot parts and the Type A Liquid ball lock post from Norther Brewer. I removed the original white "washer" from the plastic tip of the sprayer and flipped it around in the flare like was suggested and I have a functional trigger. Also using enough thread tape on both the plastic and metal piece solved all my leaks. Great DIY! Now I'm going to give my lines a well over due cleaning!
 

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