So, I came across a really good deal on 18 half barrel sanke kegs that I plan on converting to a few brewing kettles to myself and then likely converting the others and maybe giving to friends or selling them.
Anyhow, the "how" I came by them is that they were all in a large brushfire here in San Diego, and apparently had wine in them at the time. The dip tubes have blown off the tops of them from the heat, but the kegs themselves seem structurally sound. There is a lot of carbon buildup and some surface rust, I'm sure to do with the heat they were exposed to.
I'm looking for a way to get these cleaned up to where they're presentable and usable as brewing vessels. I haven't really put a lot of elbow grease into it yet (just picked them up tonight), but I did try some barkeeper's friend on it as a test. The carbon seems to come off, but the rust obviously does not with just a towel and BKF.
Before I go at these with a wire brush on the drill or something drastic like the, I figured I'd ask here to see if anyone had similar experience. I've heard that using non-stainless things on stainless steel can damage the stainless. I don't know though.
I'm sure someone on here is an expert in this and has some advice.
Thanks in advance for any help you can provide!
Josh
Anyhow, the "how" I came by them is that they were all in a large brushfire here in San Diego, and apparently had wine in them at the time. The dip tubes have blown off the tops of them from the heat, but the kegs themselves seem structurally sound. There is a lot of carbon buildup and some surface rust, I'm sure to do with the heat they were exposed to.
I'm looking for a way to get these cleaned up to where they're presentable and usable as brewing vessels. I haven't really put a lot of elbow grease into it yet (just picked them up tonight), but I did try some barkeeper's friend on it as a test. The carbon seems to come off, but the rust obviously does not with just a towel and BKF.
Before I go at these with a wire brush on the drill or something drastic like the, I figured I'd ask here to see if anyone had similar experience. I've heard that using non-stainless things on stainless steel can damage the stainless. I don't know though.
I'm sure someone on here is an expert in this and has some advice.
Thanks in advance for any help you can provide!
Josh