Dry hop options in a keg

[khillian]

I have done the dental floss through the lid seal (had a few kegs leak this way, other times work perfectly), cut one of my dip tubes to dry hop loose in the keg (takes a while for all the particles to settle but no clogs just particle pints for a while), lastly I picked up the welded tab lid from more beer. The welded tab lid works pretty well but with both my kegs it's a little loose and I can see the o-ring through the gaps of the keg opening, have to seal with pressure and wiggle while checking for leaks. The bags can also be heavy pulling the lid down which is bad for the seal. The lids that came with kegs seal tight can't see o-ring through it. If I could find a local welder for food grade I guess I could have tabs welded to them so they fit better?

Wouldn't an easy solution be to drill a small hole in the short gas dip tube and place dental floss through it, place into keg then tie to post and hop bag? Would this mess with the steel after a re passivation?

Any other ideas? I wonder why no invetions or gadgets have been made to help with this process.

 

[kh54s10]

https://www.amazon.com/DRYHOPPER-Dry-Hopper-For-Kegs/dp/B00BUOM8PA

I have seen similar ones for as little as $25. I got this one: https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=590731

I plan on just dropping it into the keg. Hopefully, tonight.

 

[wixziu]

I just saw an article in the December 2016 issue of Brew Your Own (pg. 12, Charles Oldfather) for a DIY dry hop hook for kegs. You take 10 inches of SS safety wire wrap it around the PRV protrusion on the inside of the keg lid and wind it up really tight w/ some pliers. I'm going to try it the next time I dry hop.

 

[TheHopfather]

I bought a keg hopper from Jaybird off of this thread;

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=590731

That was mostly to improve my NE IPA as that beer uses so many hops. Before that I simply attached a little worm clamp to the PRV on the inside of the keg lid. Once you've got the worm clamp screwed down tight you can tie off a hop bag from it on the inside of the keg, no issues (for me) getting my keg lids to seal with that setup.

 

[WarEagleBrewer]

I put my hops in a white or neutral colored nylon stocking with some glass beads for weight and zip tie it to the dip tube just high enough for it to be suspended near the lower middle of the keg. Works great!

 

[khillian]

I bought a keg hopper from Jaybird off of this thread;

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/showthread.php?t=590731

That was mostly to improve my NE IPA as that beer uses so many hops. Before that I simply attached a little worm clamp to the PRV on the inside of the keg lid. Once you've got the worm clamp screwed down tight you can tie off a hop bag from it on the inside of the keg, no issues (for me) getting my keg lids to seal with that setup.

Do you find any corrosion on the clamps? Where are you getting food grade stainless worm clamps? The more beer ones have reviews of corrosion from being used inside kegerstors for beer lines, I worry about inside of the keg.

 

[TheHopfather]

It isn't food grade. It never touches the beer so I wasn't particularly worried about it. No corrosion on the clamp, again, it never touches the beer.

 

[Morrey]

Good question. I always use thin unwaxed, unflavored dental floss with 100% success. I tie one end to the collar or around one of the posts and the other end to a muslin bag with hops or what ever else you are hopping. I dab a small amount of keg lube (or Vaseline) on the o ring and it seals every time. Check to make sure no leaks with a spritz of starsan which will bubble if you have gas leaks.

 

[dallasdb]

I've used a muslin hop sack with the end tied off and some stainless washers to get it to sink.

Sounds like there are other "better" suggestions on here. I like the worm clamp or the zip tie to the dip tube idea.

 

[milldoggy]

I use one of those stainless mesh tubes, works great. I typically use 4-6oz. Just tie dental floss so it can be retrieved. I shake the keg once a day, this ensures all hops get wet. Next time, I am going to add a stainless ball(from a sanke keg spear) to help shake up the hops.