Best way to make the hose easily removable from shank barb?

So I got a tap for Christmas last year and have probably run 50-60 gallons through it without any problems. The only thing that is a bit weird is for me to completely remove the tap for cleaning I have to cut an inch or so off the beer line because getting it off of the barb on the shank is impossible. Is there any way to work around this or do you eventually just have to buy new tubing when it gets too short?

Easy fix. Don't disconnect your line.

Why do you need to remove the tap for cleaning? Mix up whatever cleaning solution you would use in an empty corny keg, hook up the gas, and run that through the tap, then repeat with water or a non-rinse sanitizer if you're anal.

Get a tailpiece with an MFL fitting, and then put a barbed swivel nut on the hose.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/default/tail-piece-1-4-mfl.html
http://www.northernbrewer.com/default/1-4-barbed-swivel-nut.html

Well I've run oxyclean and iodophor through it before without disassembly but I just completely took it apart recently and it was pretty gunky in there which is definitely something I'd like to prevent.

Perhaps I just need to run more oxyclean through there more often to prevent buildup.

RogerMcAllen said:

Get a tailpiece with an MFL fitting, and then put a barbed swivel nut on the hose.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/default/tail-piece-1-4-mfl.html
http://www.northernbrewer.com/default/1-4-barbed-swivel-nut.html

Click to expand...

I'm not sure if I can attach those to my shank or not. My shank appears to have the barbed portion cast into the shank. Is this possible?

zanemoseley said:

Well I've run oxyclean and iodophor through it before without disassembly but I just completely took it apart recently and it was pretty gunky in there which is definitely something I'd like to prevent.

Perhaps I just need to run more oxyclean through there more often to prevent buildup.

Click to expand...

yes, or get some BLC. Run through, then let sit full for a while, then run through some more. Heat if the key.

Heat is the hard part since its a kegorator built into an old fridge so all the lines and tap are chilled.

Clean it regularly and plan to replace it yearly or however long you feel comfortable with. It's a pretty inexpensive part of your brewery.

zanemoseley said:

Heat is the hard part since its a kegorator built into an old fridge so all the lines and tap are chilled.

Click to expand...

Why would that be a problem? You don't have to worry about putting hot liquid through a cold line. It's pretty tough stuff. I have a crappy old fridge as my kegerator and anytime I blow a keg I:

- clean the hell out of the keg with oxyclean free, rinsing really well
- fill the keg with another round of oxyclean free solution, using very hot tap water (the water heater is set to ~150*F)
- hook that mo-fo up to the line and tap that need cleaning and send most of the keg through the line into a reservoir (usually the big effing bucket I use for cleaning)
- rinse keg really well with hot water, then fill the keg about halfway with hot water
- run that water through the line/tap
- fill keg halfway with cold iodophor solution, shaking it around and making sure to cover every surface inside the keg
- send it through the line/tap, making sure to run the keg empty so the CO2 pushes anything out of the line