I'm going to start kegging! Help!

Alright, so I decided to bite the bullet and start kegging. I've already got some ball lock cornies on the way. Now I need to get whatever else I need. I have volunteered to bring a keg of homebrew to a company Christmas party and really have no clue as to what I need to do it. I'd like to get whatever I need in order to keg and serve from the keg at the party, but will hold off on buying everything I need for a kegerator until I have a freezer for it. So I guess in addition to the kegs I need a CO2 tank (5, 10 or 20 lb?), a regulator, some lines? and some kind of faucet for the party? right? Is there a beginners guide somewhere? I'd like to buy the bare minimal right now. Help!

You might just want to buy a starter kit from one of the homebrew companies.

You need: Kegs, CO2 bottle with regulator, CO2 lines with fittings, and beer lines with fittings. Also, starsan or other sanitizer that plays well with stainless steel and keg lube.

Kegging Systems :: Midwest Supplies Homebrewing and Winemaking Supplies

Midwest seems to have the best prices, I've been fighting off spending the cash on this for a while now .

$150 for a single keg kit or $200 for a dual. These are about as bare bones as they come, functional but no frills. The taps are the ones you usually see on hand-pump sanke kegs, little plastic thumb taps.

You could grab a CO2 tank locally for a bit less maybe and save on shipping, but that's about as cheap as they come.

Kilgore_Trout said:

Kegging Systems :: Midwest Supplies Homebrewing and Winemaking Supplies

Midwest seems to have the best prices, I've been fighting off spending the cash on this for a while now .

$150 for a single keg kit or $200 for a dual. These are about as bare bones as they come, functional but no frills. The taps are the ones you usually see on hand-pump sanke kegs, little plastic thumb taps.

You could grab a CO2 tank locally for a bit less maybe and save on shipping, but that's about as cheap as they come.

Click to expand...

Yeah, I bought their 2 keg system. I really like the dual regulator setup.

How do you plan to carbonate your beer? Without a fridge or freezer for a kegerator, you'll need to find room in your normal fridge to chill...if you want to force carb. Room temperature kegs don't force carb well.

You could naturally prime the kegs with priming sugar...just like bottling.

Believe it or not, my rolling kegerator (link below) is pretty minimal in terms of investment. Plus, whatever you purchase can be used on your permanent kegerator.

Super cheap...$70. All you need is a keg and a way to keep it cold, and to get the CO2 tank filled. This place also sells a keglove and ice blanket combo that will do the trick.

Kegging System with NO Keg

Moonshae said:

Super cheap...$70. All you need is a keg and a way to keep it cold, and to get the CO2 tank filled. This place also sells a keglove and ice blanket combo that will do the trick.

Kegging System with NO Keg

Click to expand...

I was looking at this as well but had a couple concerns:

The kegs aren't reconditioned, so add the cost/hastle of new seals. They are tested to hold pressure but the seals are pretty gunky from what I've read.

They only include 3ft of beer line, which is way less than most folks recommend.

I would consider ordering from there if I heard good things, but there's a few posts around here that have turned me off to them, along with their terrible site.

If anyone with some experience wants to chime in I'm listening, would love to save the cash if the company's reputable.

EDIT: This is what I was looking at, $104.99 with a 4lb tank and Quick disconnects.
http://www.homebrewing.org/Homebrew-Kegging-System_p_24-69.html

thanks for the help everyone! i had been looking at the setups at midwest but wasnt sure what would work. i have a better idea now.

BierMuncher said:

How do you plan to carbonate your beer? Without a fridge or freezer for a kegerator, you'll need to find room in your normal fridge to chill...if you want to force carb. Room temperature kegs don't force carb well.

You could naturally prime the kegs with priming sugar...just like bottling.

Believe it or not, my rolling kegerator (link below) is pretty minimal in terms of investment. Plus, whatever you purchase can be used on your permanent kegerator.

Click to expand...

i was going to let it carb in my garage, which stays pretty cool this time of year. i haven't decided yet whether to set it to serving pressure and wait or to force carb at a higher pressure for a few days then drop it down to serving pressure when it's carbed. the party is mid-December so I've got some time. i was going to make something similar to EdWort's Haus Pale Ale since its something most people can enjoy and he only ferments for 7-10 days, cold-crashes then kegs.

Garage could be a bit of a problem. The amount of Co2 in solution is related to temperature. So if you set it at 12 PSI at 33 degrees you get 2.8 volumes and at 50 degrees you have 2 volumes of Co2. So depending on how stable the temperatures are it could work out.

Kilgore_Trout said:

I was looking at this as well but had a couple concerns:

The kegs aren't reconditioned, so add the cost/hastle of new seals. They are tested to hold pressure but the seals are pretty gunky from what I've read.

They only include 3ft of beer line, which is way less than most folks recommend.

I would consider ordering from there if I heard good things, but there's a few posts around here that have turned me off to them, along with their terrible site.

If anyone with some experience wants to chime in I'm listening, would love to save the cash if the company's reputable.

EDIT: This is what I was looking at, $104.99 with a 4lb tank and Quick disconnects.
Homebrew Kegging System

Click to expand...

I don't recall hearing anything bad about them, and the price sure is right. Just yesterday I received the very same system (with the tank and disconnects) and all is as advertised, not to mention the super-fast shipping. I haven't opened it to check the inside yet, but the used keg they sent appears to be in better condition than the "reconditioned" one that I got from the LHBS. It came holding pressure and has no dents. I do think it was marked "Made in Italy". I'm not sure what constitutes a good regulator, but it's there and is new. Obviously the 4# CO2 cylinder is non-standard. As has been mentioned elsewhere on this site, it looks to be a converted oxygen tank, so you'll have to find someplace to get it refilled as you probably won't be able to swap it out anywhere. I called a nearby fire-extinguisher service and they quoted about $12.00 for 5 pounds. My tank is quite current with a date of 7/08 stamped on it.

So-far I'm very happy. Now I just need some beer to keg up (I'm behind in my brewing right now). One thing to keep in mind is that Jason over there at A in H seems to do his e-mail correspondence in the evenings, so if you e-mail them, don't get too concerned if you don't get a response right-away.

Chris