Feel silly asking - when kicking a keg do you clean immediately?

[Rev2010]

Never thought to ask until I realized my Pumpkin Ale is probably getting low and wondered... what if late at night I'm pouring a pint and the keg empties? Should I clean it and the lines out then or is waiting until the next day or two fine? Again, I know this sounds silly but with bottles that people have returned to me without rinsing I had to throw them out due to the hardened cake of beer/yeast on the insides. I know a keg isn't the same and can still be scrubbed, just wondering what you all do and if there's any other repercussions waiting to clean a keg and the lines. Boy I feel silly asking this but oh well, better to have the knowledge before hand.


Rev.

 

[Siberian]

I've let kegs sit for 3-4 days before cleaning, isn't a problem since nothing is getting in from outside and they don't dry out. As long as you don't purge it and leave it pressurized it's not really a problem. :rockin:

 

[stru]

I don't even keg my beer and I would say that it's better to clean it as it kicks. Things are much easier clean immediately after emptying them.

 

[Doctor_M]

Hot water and pbw soak works wonders. It is easier to clean immediately but no harm if you dont.

 

[NathPowe]

It'll be fine man. I'm not even going to mention how long I've waited to clean kegs a couple times (suffice to say that it was a while). Didn't really make much difference that I could tell. I don't make a habit of putting it off though, and 9 times out of 10 I clean the keg the next day (as they tend to kick in the evening/night).

Hope that's helpful.

Cheers and enjoy the brew.

 

[Yooper]

As long as they are cold in the kegerator, I wait until I have time (during the day, usually!) when I can clean. You can easily go a day or more without them getting crusty and caked on, but I try to get to it sooner rather than later and they are much easier to rinse and clean with no soaking needed.

 

[dryboroughbrewing]

I've left them for a few days on occasion (New Years is always bad), they're still simple enough to clean up, but cleaning them right after they kick is much easier.

 

[ChemEng]

I usually don't have time to clean a kicked keg until the weekend. So if I kick it on monday it sits there until Saturday or Sunday. I just leave it in the fridge on CO2 until I get around to it. I have never had a problem with crustiness.

I rinse with water, pull off all the fittings and dip tube, put them inside the keg, fill with home made hot pbw solution and let soak for 2 hours, scrub with a brush, rinse with water then a weak vinegar solution then water again and drip dry upside down.

 

[geoffm33]

Thanks for the reminder. Kicked one over the weekend and forgot about it! Just flushed the lines now and have the keg soaking.

 

[SpentGrains]

The keg or lines can't really dry out like a bottle if you keep them sealed under co2 pressure, don't worry about it man.

 

[day_trippr]

I usually have space in one of my brewery fridges to stash a pair of kicked kegs 'til I get the time and inclination to clean them. Just cleaned a pair this afternoon, one kicked about eight days ago and the other on Sunday.

I've found as long as they're sealed and chilled they're no harder to clean after a week or so than if I took them straight from the keezer to the kitchen sink...

Cheers!

 

[Rev2010]

Wow, thanks so much for the info everyone! I felt like a goof asking, but hearing about the CO2 and cold temp providing a little bit of a safety net is a relief. I have no reason to have to wait a week or more to clean. Was just wondering if a day or a couple of wait time would be detrimental and am glad to hear it's not an issue. Thanks again!


Rev.

 

[b-boy]

I'll admit to waiting weeks, or possibly even a month or more in a few cases. I like to let them pile up and clean them all at once. Since they are sealed nothing dries out.

 

[jbaysurfer]

I'll admit to waiting weeks, or possibly even a month or more in a few cases. I like to let them pile up and clean them all at once. Since they are sealed nothing dries out.

I have 4 right now that have been out for 2 weeks. 2 of them I even opened to dump the remains before resealing. LOL..could be ugly, but I'll get 'em clean.

Most of these have been recommissioned after sitting in a warehouse for years with syrup residue in them, a couple weeks of beer shouldn't be too difficult.

 

[dobes]

I usually don't clean them until i am cleaning some other brewery equipment(fermenters and such). I don't store them cold, and bleed the pressure off right before i clean it. Never had an issue with cleaning them.

 

[muels]

Wait...you're supposed to clean them?


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[kornkob]

I'll admit to waiting weeks, or possibly even a month or more in a few cases. I like to let them pile up and clean them all at once. Since they are sealed nothing dries out.

I'm in this camp. And usually my dirty keg isn't in the kegerator.

Also I bought a tool that has changed cleaning for me: http://wineandhop.com/collections/washers-and-brushes/products/the-keg-cleaner

And you can buy pads that have arms long enough for a carboy: http://wineandhop.com/collections/w...-pads-for-the-carboy-cleaner-2-pads-4-washers

Couple inches of cleanser in the bottom, fire up the drill and this bad boy cleans it right out.

 

[m1k3]

Sounds like I am in the minority - I rinse the empty keg with a garden hose and dump StarSan in a kicked keg right away. (it take less then 5 minutes)

Then again, I don't leave dirty dishes in the sink... must just be me.

 

[johngaltsmotor]

I'm a bachelor so it's like asking "when do you run the dishwasher?" "When the cupboards are empty."

Unless I get some divine motivation (yes dear...), I've been known to leave a kicked keg until I transfer something into another keg (or need the kicked one).
Rearranging the kegs in the fridge is a hassle, and it's never taken more than a little hot water and PBW to get them squeaky clean again so I don't fret about doing it right away.

 

[jbaysurfer]

Sounds like I am in the minority - I rinse the empty keg with a garden hose and dump StarSan in a kicked keg right away. (it take less then 5 minutes)

Then again, I don't leave dirty dishes in the sink... must just be me.

I actually clean my kegs before I sanitize them....must just be me.

 

[Doctor_M]

I actually clean my kegs before I sanitize them....must just be me.

No its not just you you are doing it right.

Sounds like I am in the minority - I rinse the empty keg with a garden hose and dump StarSan in a kicked keg right away. (it take less then 5 minutes)

Then again, I don't leave dirty dishes in the sink... must just be me.

You definitely should be using a cleaner before sanitizing your kegs... cleaners like pbw/ oxyclean do not sanitize just like starsan/saniclean/ iodophor do not clean.

 

[LLBeanJ]

I'll admit to waiting weeks, or possibly even a month or more in a few cases. I like to let them pile up and clean them all at once. Since they are sealed nothing dries out.

This is exactly what I do. I usually wait until I have 3 or 4 that need cleaning or if I need a clean keg for a fresh brew, before I open them up, which means the early ones to kick will sit a month or two. I've not noticed any difference in cleaning effort between one that is freshly kicked and one that has been sitting for a couple of months. I do keep a pipeline, so a fresh keg goes on tap immediately, but the chore of keg cleaning is usually put off as long as possible.

 

[MerlinWerks]

I just started brewing again in August after seventeen years. I had six or so kicked kegs that sat that long in my basement, still pressurized. When I opened them they were almost in the same condition as if I just emptied them a week a go. No funk at all, cleaning them was not a problem. Of course I wouldn't recommend waiting quite that long

 

[b-boy]

This is exactly what I do. I usually wait until I have 3 or 4 that need cleaning or if I need a clean keg for a fresh brew, before I open them up, which means the early ones to kick will sit a month or two. I've not noticed any difference in cleaning effort between one that is freshly kicked and one that has been sitting for a couple of months. I do keep a pipeline, so a fresh keg goes on tap immediately, but the chore of keg cleaning is usually put off as long as possible.

yup - I just pulled 2 out of my kegerator tonight. I tossed them in the back of the basement. I'm brewing and bottling on the 22nd, so I'll probably get to them on the 21st.

 

[bobeer]

I try to clean then within a day or so after they kick but I've waited a month or more on occasion. I have even left fruit in the keg after it kicked for over a month and it was fine when I opened it to clean it.