Anyone keep Star-San in an extra keg?

Does anyone keep star-san in an extra keg? I'm thinking that with the O2 purged from the keg, the starsan would stay fresh indefinitely.

Would be nice to have starsan ready to go whenever one would need to sanitize a line or beer gun. Not to mention not wasting CO2.

After I clean my kegs I put about a gallon of Star San in them. This way come kegging day, I can just shake, dump, and have a sanitized keg. I usually have a couple clean ones laying around, so I always have a keg of Star San to push through the lines etc....

I try to have starsan in one of my 6 kegs at all times. After cleaning my spent kegs I just rotate the starsan around.

I have a keg dedicated for star-san. Anytime I change a keg I flush the lines with star-san before connecting another keg. If not connecting a another keg I just leave the star-san in the lines. I also occasionally connect a picnic tap to sanitize bottle or growlers. I also use this keg to push BLC when I actually get around to cleaning my lines.

I have a 3 gallon keg I keep StarSan in. I make it with distilled water. I push it out with regular air from a bicycle type pump that I attached a disconnect to. Lasts months.

Spartan1979 said:

I have a 3 gallon keg I keep StarSan in. I make it with distilled water. I push it out with regular air from a bicycle type pump that I attached a disconnect to. Lasts months.

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Why distilled water?

Also, do you notice your starsan going cloudy using atmospheric air?

the only thing that reduces the effectiveness of starsan (which is an acid) is minerals in the water that counteract the acid, forming salts. oxygen or co2 do not affect starsan. that is why you should use distilled water.

I recall reading somewhere (on here) that starsan wasnt good for SS...hum...anyone?

audger said:

the only thing that reduces the effectiveness of starsan (which is an acid) is minerals in the water that counteract the acid, forming salts. oxygen or co2 do not affect starsan. that is why you should use distilled water.

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Makes sense. Thanks

Does leaving an acid, albeit a weak one, in contact with metal for prolonged periods lead to problems? Seems it would eat away at the metal.

RC0032 said:

I recall reading somewhere (on here) that starsan wasnt good for SS...hum...anyone?

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I was going to say, starsan is very acidic, and I have seen it corrode my aluminum kettle to a degree- I stored a batch in a bottling bucket, which sat inside my kettle, and the bucket leaked a bit, and you could see a bit of corrosion where it had pooled.

Stainless steel is susceptible as well. Considering kegs are pricey and hard to come by, I am not sure its a great idea to be storing star san in there, even in diluted concentrations.

kevstev said:

I was going to say, starsan is very acidic, and I have seen it corrode my aluminum kettle to a degree- I stored a batch in a bottling bucket, which sat inside my kettle, and the bucket leaked a bit, and you could see a bit of corrosion where it had pooled.

Stainless steel is susceptible as well. Considering kegs are pricey and hard to come by, I am not sure its a great idea to be storing star san in there, even in diluted concentrations.

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Disclaimer: I am not a Materials Engineer and I am only speaking from my own experiences.

When mixed according to the directions star-san has a PH of 2.5 and is considered effective up to a PH of 3.0.

Soda has similar PH ranges, see link http://www.juicing-for-health.com/images/ph-value-chart My thoughts are that Star-san, when mixed properly, is no more corrosive than soda

I have not seen any degradation to the same keg that I have been using for over three years of almost constant contact with Star-san.

I have left StarSan in a brew kettle for a few days before and gotten some sort of scale that was very difficult to get off. In the end, I had to boil some PBW water in the kettle to dissolve the scale.

It must have something to do with it being exposed to excess oxygen, though, because I have a dedicated StarSan corny keg as well, and have never had the same issue with the keg.

I have star san in my kegs and bottles in all of them. I´m not brewing anymore I´m a star-san drinker. Don´t blame me after reading al the signatures in the bottom with people with star san in their fermentor I tough that was for being drink. It´s quite tasty but Don´t do it if you have acid reflux or care about your life.

Kegs have a higher purpose then storing starsan, keep mine in glass gallon jugs.

beaksnbeer said:

Kegs have a higher purpose then storing starsan, keep mine in glass gallon jugs.

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It's hard to push Starsan through lines, picnic taps, and beer guns when it's in a glass jug.

Have a DIY hand pressure pump to push through the lines. I just don't leave starsan in it as it rusts the spring.

Every empty keg of mine is filled with sanitizer that way you can clean anything any time ready to go