Challenge to the manufacturers, Better Kegging and transfer options Please!!

[marjen]

So I know the likes of spike, ssbt, brewer hardware and others visit this forum. They all make a ton of amazing products like kettles, unitanks, chillers etc. But one HUGE miss is my mind is better hardware and options for begging.

I just spent over an hour trying to unclog stupid poppiits filled with hop gunk trying to get them through the corney keg connections and honestly over and over again this is the single worst part of the entire brewing process. Croney kegs were not designed for beer. Someone, anyone please come up with a better solution. Something with maybe a 1/2 to 5/8 ID hose that has connectors that would allow at least some hop matter without clogging. With the popularity of hoppy beers I know I am not the only one who has this frustration.

Would love to see something are than ball locks as well. They are a PITA. And maybe some variety of keg sizes, 5, 7.5, 10. I would gladly shell over some cash to the first one to finally address this problem.

Time to get innovating guys!

 

[Bobby_M]

Not to be a smartass but they already exist. Sanke kegs.

 

[marjen]

Not to be a smartass but they already exist. Sanke kegs.

but are they very difficult for home brewers to clean?

 

[McKnuckle]

I agree with OP. For those of us already fully invested in corny kegs (i.e. everyone), and with NO interest in Sanke or other types of containers, it would be great to just get a new post design that retrofits corny kegs. This way they'd work on every corny from 1.75 gallons on up, not to mention the ball lock equipped growlers and other toys.

 

[Jag75]

This is why I bag my dry hops. All of the clogged lines and such posts have scared me away .

 

[Bassman2003]

I would like to see the corny keg redesigned. I know the Cornical is in existence but these things were made for soda back in the day. A "new" corny design incorporating the top draw approach, some kind of bottom drop like a conical etc... and better posts would be a win. Basically a keg designed for how homebrewers use them now. I have ideas but putting them into action is quite a large feat.

 

[Hwk-I-St8]

I may get a very small O2 exposure doing this, but it has never been a problem. I have a liquid connector with the insides removed on the hose that I connect to the fermenter spigot.

My transfer process is this:

Connect gas to keg, run really low pressure.
Unscrew the liquid line post and remove the spring/poppet
Screw the post back on, turn off the gas.
Connect gas to top of fermenter at very low pressure
Connect hose with gutted ball lock connector to spigot of fermentor
Drain from fermenter into a bucket until liquid is free of solids
clamp hose next to gutted ball lock connector to keep transfer hose full of liquid
Connect gutted ball lock connector to keg and start transfer
Put gas connector on keg to allow gas to escape
As drain is reaching end, pull gas connector from keg
Close spigot on ferm and pull gutted connector
unscrew post, install poppet and spring and screw back on
Connect gas to keg with low pressure and hose with picnic tap to pull Hydrometer sample
Put keg in kegerator and begin burst carb process.

Since I pull the hydrometer sample right away, the liquid in the beer line in the keg that was exposed to O2 is immediately removed from the keg anyway.

 

[Bassman2003]

That is a fair amount of work. Yes, we need a fresh look at these kegs!

 

[marjen]

It usually is not as bad as this time. I got a new sight glass for my unitank and attached it right under the conical. Well it basically completely plugged up. Even with close to 15 PSI in the tank it would not budge. So that caused a big backup of trub and hops as I could not dump it. I connected a larger hose and tried removing as much sediment as possible but just kept getting more and more. Not a furnace experience, wasted a lot of beer and made a giant old mess. Must have disconnected the connectors and cleaned them out 15-20 times before I got one keg to fill. I still have a couple gallons in there, but as soon as I disconnected and tried to fill other keg, it clogged up again. It just seems with so many innovative products that have come out in the last few years this is definitely one area where there is lots that could be done.

 

[Hwk-I-St8]

That is a fair amount of work. Yes, we need a fresh look at these kegs!

If you're talking about my post, the only extra steps are removing and reinstalling poppets, which takes about 5-10 seconds. Oh, and connecting gas to the keg before removal...another 45 seconds.

The rest of that I'm doing anyway. It just looks like a lot when you sell out each step. If you write up the steps to make buttered toast, it sounds like a lot too.

Open pantry.
Get bread
Open bread bag
Remove bread slices
Place bread slices in toaster
Push down lever
Open fridge
Remove butter


Ok, you get the idea...

 

[Bobby_M]

Brewers use ball lock kegs primarily because they are inexpensive for what they are, they have a big hole for cleaning, and they do a fine job for beers with low sediment. I don't think the vessel needs to be reinvented just because there are hoppy beers. Put a 300 micron TC gasket sock filter inline with your racking port on the UNItank. If you put a huge 1/2" pipe going in, you still need to funnel down to a 4mm ID line for serving so hops would get stuck on the way out.

The Sanke system is more tolerant of sediment because the poppet is huge. Yes, it's slightly harder to clean but it's more of a perception issue because you can't see inside to make sure it's clean.

FWIW, I have never had a failed trub/hop dump on a UNItank. If you can't get it to unplug with 15 psi behind it, you waited way too long. The solution is to hook CO2 up to the dump and pop the plug out. Dump the next day.

 

[day_trippr]