Kegerator Questions

Hey all, I had a question about kegs and my planned kegerator setup.

Im prob. only going to have the one tap setup to begin with until I can afford more and expand. My question is though, is it possible to keep multiple kegs getting conditioned in the fridge while one is being tapped?

Basically, lets say I have beer #1 on tap and flowing, but I want to have beer #2 ready immediatly when beer #1 is done. So can I force carb beer #2, disconnect it, then leave it sitting in the fridge conditioning while beer #1 is being drank? Then same for beer #3 and so on and so fourth.

Im not really sure how kegs work and since I only have one tap to begin with I want to make sure that im not waiting a month for conditioning in between brews.

Yes,you can certainly do that. It might take a bit longer under refrigeration but that is not a bad thing considering most breweries do it that way. I let my brews ferment for 3 weeks in a primary and then hopefully not start drinking it until 3 more weeks after kegging.

Blender said:

Yes,you can certainly do that. It might take a bit longer under refrigeration but that is not a bad thing considering most breweries do it that way. I let my brews ferment for 3 weeks in a primary and then hopefully not start drinking it until 3 more weeks after kegging.

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I thought in order for force carbing to take effect they had to be refrigerated? Anyway, I was just making sure that I can still always have good to go beer in my kegerator even though I have one tap at a time. Thats awesome that I can.

It may take longer to condition and not force carb. Sorry if that was confusing. I think you can force carb at room temps but you need higher pressure. If I was doing carbination at room temp I might just prime them with sugar and then let them sit like a big bottle.

Blender said:

It may take longer to condition and not force carb. Sorry if that was confusing. I think you can force carb at room temps but you need higher pressure. If I was doing carbination at room temp I might just prime them with sugar and then let them sit like a big bottle.

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What about carbing them then leaving them in the fridge un tapped for a month or so? Do they always have to be pressurized with CO2 in order for them to get conditioned or can they be un hooked from the CO2 after the initial prime? Thats what Im looking for....I will only have so much tubing and only one regulator and CO2 tank ya know?

EamusCatuli said:

What about carbing them then leaving them in the fridge un tapped for a month or so? Do they always have to be pressurized with CO2 in order for them to get conditioned or can they be un hooked from the CO2 after the initial prime? Thats what Im looking for....I will only have so much tubing and only one regulator and CO2 tank ya know?

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They do not need to be carbed for conditioning to occur, most people don't carb until they want to serve. I'd suggest leaving your freshly filled kegs at room temperature for a few weeks, then transfer to your fridge. Get a splitter or manifold for your regulator, and you can carbonate one keg while continuing to serve another. Carbing will take longer at typical serving pressures, but it sounds like you're in no hurry.

Another approach to carbonation would be to prime your keg with corn sugar, leave it at room temperature for three weeks, then move it to your fridge. May as well put those yeast to work, and save a little Co2 in the process!

Storing and cold-conditioning your kegs in your kegerator is ideal, IMO. That way you don't need to move them, so no sediment gets stirred up.