Closed or Open Pressurized Transfer?

[boondocksaint]

Got excited to see my new ball lock keg filters (see pic) had arrived this morning.
Then, realized the filters don’t really do me much good if I’m doing a closed transfer from my Spike conical as any of the hop bits that got transferred from the conical are just gonna be inside the screen .
I don’t have time to do a full 2-3 day cold crash as I’m kegging Sat evening and going out of town Sun AM.
I’m thinking I’ll just cold crash about 12 hours (Sat AM-PM) and then keg (closed/pressurized transfer) and leave out the new toys this round vice doing an open transfer and risk O2 pick-up just so I can use the new keg filters.
Hoping the ~12 hour cold crash will drop out most of the hops from the last dry hop addition and since I’m transferring from the racking arm of the conical, I’ll leave behind most of the trub/hops. *I did the initial trub dump Mon evening.
Thoughts?
Cheers lads/lassies!

 

[Bobby_M]

My take; If you don't do a closed transfer, the beer won't be worth dispensing in a couple days anyway. The solution is actually pretty easy. After filling the keg to the top with starsan and dispensing it out completely with CO2, prop the keg upside down and fill it through the gas port. Connect a hose to the black QD and run that into a bucket of starsan if you're pushing CO2 into the fermenter (or loop it back to the gas in of the fermenter if you're doing a closed loop transfer).

All of this assumes that your current floaties are not going to clog the poppets on the fill. Those filters are cute, but it seems that they would be better served hanging on the end of the fermenter's racking port if at all useful. I think their only practical use is when you want to flavor/hop/oak beers in the keg directly.

 

[ITV]

I use an inline filter for closed transfers from my Spike conical to corny kegs, which eliminated plugged poppets.

 

[boondocksaint]

I use an inline filter for closed transfers from my Spike conical to corny kegs, which eliminated plugged poppets.

What filter are you using?

 

[ITV]

I made my own from parts laying around. It uses a Pall housing with a 6" bazooka screen.
Bouncer in-line beer filters seem to be popular. Link

 

[boondocksaint]

Thanks ITV. I'll check them out. On another but related note, as this was my first closed/pressurized transfer, I ended up with one keg that was super full (beer started bubbling out of the gas out line in the bucket of star-san); and one keg that is about a gallon shy. I was debating on putting together a jumper line with a black (line out) ball lock on either end and balancing the kegs out. Is it worth the trouble or just leave as is and roll with it?
For future use I'm thinking I'm gonna pick up a shipping scale (that doesn't time out and turn off) to keep better track of the weight and hopefully keep the kegs more even.

 

[ITV]

When I do a closed pressure transfer (one keg at a time), I cold crash so that I can see the "frost line" on the keg to see the fill level.
A scale would be a subsitute to determine the fill level.

 

[marc1]

Thanks ITV. I'll check them out. On another but related note, as this was my first closed/pressurized transfer, I ended up with one keg that was super full (beer started bubbling out of the gas out line in the bucket of star-san); and one keg that is about a gallon shy. I was debating on putting together a jumper line with a black (line out) ball lock on either end and balancing the kegs out. Is it worth the trouble or just leave as is and roll with it?
For future use I'm thinking I'm gonna pick up a shipping scale (that doesn't time out and turn off) to keep better track of the weight and hopefully keep the kegs more even.

I'd just leave it unless there was a good reason for the kegs contain exactly the same amount of beer.

 

[boondocksaint]

I'd just leave it unless there was a good reason for the kegs contain exactly the same amount of beer.

No, there is no reason to even them out I suppose…