What to know before kegging

[muse435]

I have now made several batches of beer and have a hard time finding cheep bottles and am thinking of investing in a keg system. All of the stuff i keep finding online is about people who have been kegging for a while. I was just wondering if there are any cons of kegging or other things that are involved with it. Also what is the difference between using a chest freezer and a mini fridge?
Thanx
__________________
Primary : Empty.
Secondary : Oktoberfest
Bottled : American Amber
Next Up : Christmas Ale

"Hooray Beer!"

 

[lumpher]

chest freezer: you have to use some kind of temp regulator to keep it from getting too cold, but you can get them big enough to hold a few kegs

mini-fridge: usually too short, or won't hold more than a co2 bottle and 1 keg, but are compact and easy to put out of the way

full-sized fridge: large, can get in the way, but doesn't need any temp regulators, and are usually tall enough to hold kegs, and can hold a co2 bottle and 3 kegs or so. the choice of many keggers, including me

 

[JonK331]

Kegging is awesome. I can't really think of any cons at all. You can even bottle a few really easily right off the keg.

A mini fridge holds a keg or two and the CO2 but not much else. The advantages are that it takes up less space and uses less energy. A chest freezer can hold many kegs or can be used as a fermentation or lagering chamber. If you have the space, a chest freezer is the better option as it is much more versatile.

 

[JonK331]

chest freezer: you have to use some kind of temp regulator to keep it from getting too cold, but you can get them big enough to hold a few kegs

mini-fridge: usually too short, or won't hold more than a co2 bottle and 1 keg, but are compact and easy to put out of the way

full-sized fridge: large, can get in the way, but doesn't need any temp regulators, and are usually tall enough to hold kegs, and can hold a co2 bottle and 3 kegs or so. the choice of many keggers, including me

You can easily find a Sanyo mini fridge to hold two kegs and the CO2 if you think that is the best option for you.

 

[Flomaster]

I hear kegging is the way to go, i've yet to brew any beer, but I have the kegs and chest freezer. I just need a CO2 tank setup and i'll be all set.

-=Jason=-

 

[stevo155]

Chest freezer with a wooden collar built on it to put you taps through ( so you don't have to drill into the chest freezer itself ) and it provides headspace so you can put kegs on the hump inside.

The only con I see is always wanting more taps

 

[tekknoschtev]

The con for me is that it makes me want to brew significantly more frequently - and in reality that a "pro" to me and just a "con" to my wallet. I have 5 more kegs coming, and I suspect between my brother, a friend of ours, and myself we'll have 'em full in a few months.

We opted for full size fridge with freezer on top because we snagged it cheap on Craigslist. If we wanted, it could easily fit 6 kegs and the CO2 tank and still have room in the door shelves for a few 6-packs of other beer. The freezer is great for storing mugs/glasses and some liquors.

There's something satisfying about cracking the cap on the bottle of beer you brewed, hearing the pfffst and then pouring - and you lose that with just a straight kegged setup, but there's something even more satisfying about pulling the tap handle and pouring a pint in the comfort of your own home. That, and you can buy/make a "beer gun" to fill bottles from your keg as well - so you don't even really lose the ability to bottle

 

[waldoar15]

Even though I keg, I still bottle about 1/3 of my beer for consumption away from the house. Camping trips or just taking a six across the street to drink with the neighbor on a nice summer evening. Stuff like that.

 

[muse435]

Thank you everyone, i am really looking forward to putting beer in my first keg. Two more quick questions: first, are all keg kits created equally, every website i look at has a different kit they offer. i was looking at Brew Logic Dual Tap Draft System (just wondering if anyone has an opinion). Second, do beer guns work as advertised?
_________________________
Primary : Empty.
Secondary : Oktoberfest
Bottled : American Amber
Next Up : Christmas Ale

"Hooray Beer!"

 

[stevo155]

This is the one I got: http://stores.kegconnection.com/Detail.bok?no=326

There are other options available ( i.e. more kegs, dual-pressure, etc ). They are also running free shipping over $100 but I don't know how long that will last.

 

[starrfish]

My Danby DAR482 BLS mini fridge holds 2 ball lock kegs a 5lb CO2 tank with a 3 gauge 2 pressure regulator and a spare 20 oz Paintball CO2 tank. I also ran 2 1/2" copper tubes at 30" tall for the beer lines from inside fridge up into tower to help chill the tower. It's SNUG... but it all fits!

 

[TheMan]

Beer gun, no need...
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/we-no-need-no-stinking-beer-gun-24678/

 

[starrfish]

Beer gun, no need...
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/we-no-need-no-stinking-beer-gun-24678/

building one of those soon!

 

[85shadow]

Well, I am drinking my 1st glass of kegged Pale Ale right now. Good thing that I bought TWO kegs because the OUT on one did not fit the dispenser. This is a memorable experience. It tastes good and it is a great looking beer.

 

[muse435]

OK, I'm ready to buy a 2 keg kit, and i was wondering if there were any acceseries i need. The beer in my secondary right now should be ready to go into the 1st keg shortly after it arrives, i just want to make sure when the kit gets here i then realize i needed something else. (Obviously i know i need a fridge

 

[lotbfan]

A way to cool it and co2 to fill the tank that comes with the kit and you are good to start, you can always add bling later. decide on fridge or freezer with controller, might i suggest flipping through the show us your keezer/kegerator thread to see what you like more?

if all else fails get something cheap from craigslist and then start looking for an upgrade later. in oregon they pay you 50 bucks to decommission old appliances which will usually cover the cost of a cheap old fridge, if your area has something similar that's an efficient route to take as you aren't out anything in the long run.

oh, you probably need to do some cleaning of the kegs, so make sure you have extra pbw/oxyclean and some starsan, but you should have that stuff already.

 

[stevo155]

OK, I'm ready to buy a 2 keg kit, and i was wondering if there were any acceseries i need. The beer in my secondary right now should be ready to go into the 1st keg shortly after it arrives, i just want to make sure when the kit gets here i then realize i needed something else. (Obviously i know i need a fridge

Check out the kegs when you get them and change out the o-rings if it wasn't reconditioned. Even if you buy the reconditioned, still check them out.

 

[muse435]

In my cart i have a 2 keg kit & 2 o ring packs. i have "Star-San" Sanitizer on hand, do i need any special cleaner, there are a bunch for sale. also i saw something called keg lube, is that something i need. Finally do i need any tools that i can't find in my tool box to assemble?

 

[stevo155]

Key lube is a good idea for all the rubber parts to keep them from cracking. Use whatever cleaner yyou use in your brewing ( PBW, Oxiclean, etc ). To disassemble, you'll need a 12 point deep socket wrench, most likely either 7/8" or 11/16" depending on the keg manfucturer. I picked mine up at the local Lowes.

 

[fishnuttoo]

sorry to hijack, just ordered an exonomy one keg set up.

do those kegs need to be broken down and completely cleaned or just washed out and sanitized???



thanx

 

[therealrsr]

Find your CO2 supply first. If all they do is swap and not fill it really sucks to spend $60+ on a 5# and give it away before your first use. My supplier also sells them cheaper than the keggerator supply places.

Dual regulator or a multi manifold are real differences. Specific styles of corny's is another (w/o spacers under popits, in good shape). Upgrading picnic taps is another. Other than that not much.

I find it very hard to imagine you will not LOVE it.

 

[IffyG]

Whenever I get a new (used) Corny keg from a vendor, I always soak it in PBW then tear it down and replace the gaskets before even considering using it. The last thing you want is beer that gets a soda taste or aroma from old gaskets.

 

[muse435]

The keg system is on its way I have five star sani clean that i use for brewing, and i also have some oxiclean. are there any other cleaning supplies i need for kegging? My plan is to tear down my keg and clean it with oxiclean, then replace the o-rings and lube them. Then fill the keg with some sanitiser, shake, then force it through under pressure and look for any leaks. Is there anything else i am missing or forgetting?

__________________
Primary : Empty.
Secondary : Oktoberfest
Bottled : American Amber
Next Up : Raspberry

"Hooray Beer!"

 

[starrfish]

sounds right... just got a new corny,,, came pressurized. but popits are different DOH! 1 corny 1 firestone!
firestone is a bit thinner!


Wish I had 2 firestone kegs
just a smoother fit in mini-fridge

 

[muse435]

It all arrived today and i'm so excited. Thank you to everyone who helped. There seams to be a lot of debate on how long to leave your brew in a primary, secondary, and keg before you drink it. I currently have a batch of oktoberfest in my secondary, and the fermentation has really slowed down. I am about to go out of town for about a week around the holidays, should i keep it in the secondary until i get back, or should i put it in the keg and pressurize so that its ready to drink when i get home?

 

[muse435]

Just a quick follow up. My keg is fully set up, the beer is carbed, and it taste great, thank you all for the great advise.