Cleaning Kegerator Beer Line

Hey all,

Just finished version 1.0 of my kegerator and I realized I don't know how to clean the beer lines. There's ample information out there on how to build, set up and balance your kegerator but not so much on how to clean them.

Any information or a point towards a good existing thread would be greatly appreciated.

When I first set it up I more or less cleaned the lines/faucets by running the BPW and StarSan through them when I cleaned the kegs, but I question if this is the right way or often enough since I don't move through a whole keg very quickly.

Thanks

I clean lines every 3rd keg or so.Theres a DIY line cleaner you can make with a bottle from Home Depot someone will chime in on.Otherwise when you clean your keg just run some solution through the system like you did

I use a pond pump to circulate the line cleaner solution through the line. If you are using MFL connections on your keg disconnects, it's pretty easy. I run a PBW solution first for about 15 minutes. Then use line cleaner for 15 minutes. Just make sure the tap faucet is open when you turn on the pump.

My connections are:
Bucket of cleaning solution maybe half full
Pond pump with outlet barb facing up (I use the 264 GPH pump from Harbor Freight but I plan to step it up because the lift isn't as much as I want)
6" piece of silicone or vinyl tubing (no need to secure it on either end as long as it is on snug)
1/2" Barb to MFL flare (https://www.buyfittingsonline.com/search.aspx?find=Bev-504)
MFL swivel nut to beer line
Tap
Silicone tubing dumping back into bucket

hezagenius said:

I use a pond pump to circulate the line cleaner solution through the line. If you are using MFL connections on your keg disconnects, it's pretty easy. I run a PBW solution first for about 15 minutes. Then use line cleaner for 15 minutes. Just make sure the tap faucet is open when you turn on the pump.

My connections are:
Bucket of cleaning solution maybe half full
Pond pump with outlet barb facing up (I use the 264 GPH pump from Harbor Freight but I plan to step it up because the lift isn't as much as I want)
6" piece of silicone or vinyl tubing (no need to secure it on either end as long as it is on snug)
1/2" Barb to MFL flare (https://www.buyfittingsonline.com/search.aspx?find=Bev-504)
MFL swivel nut to beer line
Tap
Silicone tubing dumping back into bucket

Click to expand...

You said you run it for 15 minutes each PBW and Line Cleaner so I'm assuming your taps empty into the bucket and then the pond pump recirculates it through the beverage line via the connectors and its just a continuous cycle? do you leave your keezer/kegerator door open for the full 30 minutes then?

+1 on the DIY homedepot bottle. cost me $15 to make and works perfectly. add line cleaner pump to pressurize and run,add rinse water repeat and finish with starsan

SGTSparty said:

You said you run it for 15 minutes each PBW and Line Cleaner so I'm assuming your taps empty into the bucket and then the pond pump recirculates it through the beverage line via the connectors and its just a continuous cycle? do you leave your keezer/kegerator door open for the full 30 minutes then?

Click to expand...

Yes, it dumps back into the bucket to recirculate. Just make sure to have the hose that comes off the tap not outlet below the surface of the fluid in the bucket. For me, it runs faster when the hose outlet is above the surface.

I close the fridge as much as possible. I just have one line of tubing sticking out of the fridge so it can close almost all the way. The door is open maybe 1/2".

The Home Depot spray bottle solution is the cheapest, and indeed I've built one that I use to clean my picnic tap lines. However, it leaks quite a bit, and can get fatiguing pumping away for any length of time.

Another solution is to put some hot PBW or beer line cleaner in a keg, pressurize it, and push it through the lines/taps. Followed by a rinse with a keg of plain water, followed by sanitizing with a keg of Star San. I did that for a while, but it can be wasteful of CO2.

Finally, I assembled a purpose-built solution to allow me to easily clean my kegerator lines much more thoroughly, without wasting CO2 or wearing out my shoulder pumping a spray bottle. All I did was take one of my regular silicone hoses and put a ball lock liquid post on one end. I really should write an article on this, with some pictures, but I'll try my best to describe it.

First, I take my grant (just a little 2 gallon bucket with a ball valve outlet with a barb on it) and fill it with hot PBW. A picture is worth 1,000 words, so here's a photo of my grant (photo was taken while recirculating a mash though, that's obviously not PBW):



I put this underneath the tap I'm planning to clean. I connect a silicone hose from the outlet barb of the grant to the inlet barb on my Chugger pump. I then connect my custom hose (the one with the liquid post on one end, as described above) to the output barb of my Chugger pump. Finally, I connect the tap's quick disconnect to the liquid post on the cleaning hose.

I then open the tap and the valves on the grant and pump to prime the lines with cleaner. I then turn on the pump. It pumps the cleaner through the lines and out the tap, where it drains back into the grant. I can recirculate like this as long as needed.

Once I'm satisfied the line/tap are clean, I unplug the pump, dump the grant, refill it with plain water, repeat the steps above to rinse everything out, then do it again (PBW residue can be persistent), then a cycle with Star San, and I'm done. No CO2 wasted, no hand pumping, no leaks.

I tried several things, but overall this was the best combination of price, simplicity, and time savings for me:

http://brulosophy.com/2015/10/22/quick-easy-kegging-hacks-diy/

I try to clean mine every month, which at the rate I go through kegs is more or less once per keg.

5 minutes of recirculation with LLC (liquid line cleaner) followed by 5 minutes of recirculation with water, and you're all done.

If I'm going to be swapping styles dramatically on one of the taps (say going from a kombucha to an IPA) then I will clean the line before serving the next beverage.

I know a lot of people like that little hand pump contraption, but I've got 6 taps, and that is a serious amount of pumping.

drgonzo2k2 said:

[...]I know a lot of people like that little hand pump contraption, but I've got 6 taps, and that is a serious amount of pumping.

Click to expand...

I hear ya. I still use my DIY pump cleaners occasionally, but this winter I built a 6 line recirculating cleaning rig and use it at least once a month.

The two key chunks (definitely need to take better pictures next run)...





A small but beefy mag aquarium pump runs the show.
Takes about five minutes to set up and cleans from stem to stern including all the flow meters...

Cheers!

I use my keg and put in 4 ounces of liquid beer line cleaner in 2 gallons of hot water. I then use this handy little inline regulator that connects to my air compressor. I got this idea from Huaco who posted this originally. This way I can use air instead of wasting C02 to pump the cleaner through my tap lines. I collect the exiting cleaner in a bucket and then fill the keg back up and do it again. After that I rinse with water and then blow out the line with air. Works great and is another option to consider. Here is a pic of the inline regulator and connector to use with my air compressor.

Ive always used a caustic cleaner (from the LHBS). Fill a keg with the desired dilution, run it though each tap and let the solution sit in the lines for 30 min, then flush with clean water.

day_trippr said:

I hear ya. I still use my DIY pump cleaners occasionally, but this winter I built a 6 line recirculating cleaning rig and use it at least once a month.

The two key chunks (definitely need to take better pictures next run)...

A small but beefy mag aquarium pump runs the show.
Takes about five minutes to set up and cleans from stem to stern including all the flow meters...

Cheers!

Click to expand...

That looks pretty cool but I guess I don't understand the system. how do you get the cleaner into your lines? Looks like you hook the beer lines to that beer line manifold (for lack of a better term) but what does that feed from? Just from a tube hooked onto your pump?

How much did the rig cost to build?

I definitely need more & better pictures.

The manifold is fed from the pump in a bucket sitting on the floor outside.
I chock the lid up just enough to keep the feed line from pinching.
The PVC collector connected to the spouts drains back to either the same bucket (recirculating) or another bucket (flushing/rinsing). It was more convenient than six separate drain lines.

In practise, I flush the lines with fresh water, then recirculate BLC for ~20 minutes while I find something else to do, then rinse the lines and put everything away.

It's not an inexpensive system. The manifold was a b'day present from one of my sons, but it'd cost ~$100, and the pump was ~$40.
Add in the pvc bits (cheap) the tubing and random clamps and the whole thing approaches $160...

Cheers!

I just wrote and submitted an article to HBT on this very topic - haven't heard back yet, but if they decide not to run it, I'll just post it to the forums and link to it from here.

day_trippr said:

I definitely need more & better pictures.

The manifold is fed from the pump in a bucket sitting on the floor outside.
I chock the lid up just enough to keep the feed line from pinching.
The PVC collector connected to the spouts drains back to either the same bucket (recirculating) or another bucket (flushing/rinsing). It was more convenient than six separate drain lines.

In practise, I flush the lines with fresh water, then recirculate BLC for ~20 minutes while I find something else to do, then rinse the lines and put everything away.

It's not an inexpensive system. The manifold was a b'day present from one of my sons, but it'd cost ~$100, and the pump was ~$40.
Add in the pvc bits (cheap) the tubing and random clamps and the whole thing approaches $160...

Cheers!

Click to expand...

It does look pretty kick ass but $160 After all the investment I've made recently in my brewing equipment, kegging system and then the kegerator I don't think I can step up to the plate on that one.

kombat said:

I just wrote and submitted an article to HBT on this very topic - haven't heard back yet, but if they decide not to run it, I'll just post it to the forums and link to it from here.

Click to expand...

If it gets published I'd love to read it.

also, I just found this video/blog post: https://brewonabudget.com/2014/10/04/recirculatingblc/ it uses some fittings and a cheap aquarium pump. whole build is like $30 ish. Its obviously more expensive than the Home Depot Special but from what I can tell, basically the difference is just swapping a 15 dollar pump for a 5-10 sprayer, might be worth it for folks with multiple taps (though you'd still be cleaning them one at a time).

I think this is more or less what @hezagenius was suggesting but with a video showing the system and maybe a few extra fittings.