have you tried fermenting and serving from the same keg without transferring?

[NickTheGreat]

This seems too easy. I'd rather test my gynecological skills by trying to clean a 6 gallon carboy through a 2" opening. And then getting myself all wet in the process.

Seriuosly though, I'm due for some brewing soon. Eliminating the carboys from my process would save a bit of time and a fair amount of water.

 

[MrFancyPlants]

The torpedo kegs are pretty darn easy. I still use the carboys to campden tablet some tap water. It seems I can’t avoid carrying something too heavy up some stairs.

 

[theredviper]

instead of watching the gravity readings, I check the pressure on the tank and see if it is building still. Beer is quick, but mead and due to temperature fluctuations, that is just how I do it.

Yeah I keep a spunding valve on mine and assume that once it has stopped increasing pressure for ~48h things are done. That can happen very quickly.

I just split a 5G batch into 2 spent kegs (with yeast left at the bottom) to test out new wort on "old" yeast. Both went nuts for 24-48h, then slowed, and didn't seem to ferment at all past about 7 days. Just crashing the first one now at about 10 days, will wait a full 2 weeks for the other to see if there's a difference.

 

[theredviper]

this is exactly what I'm currently doing. alwasy filter the wort so its clean. at the end of the keg the dip tube blows any excess yeast cake out and refill it with fresh clean wort

You're doing this without a floating dip tube? So the first pours are yeast but there's enough left at the end to restart another ferment?

 

[MrFancyPlants]

Yeah I keep a spunding valve on mine and assume that once it has stopped increasing pressure for ~48h things are done. That can happen very quickly.

I just split a 5G batch into 2 spent kegs (with yeast left at the bottom) to test out new wort on "old" yeast. Both went nuts for 24-48h, then slowed, and didn't seem to ferment at all past about 7 days. Just crashing the first one now at about 10 days, will wait a full 2 weeks for the other to see if there's a difference.

Pitching on a yeast cake is the way to get a rapid, clean ferment. It does’t matter if you pour some off near the dip tube, plenty of yeasties left to rumble.

 

[odie]

You're doing this without a floating dip tube? So the first pours are yeast but there's enough left at the end to restart another ferment?

My first few keg ferments were with a full length dip tube. After a few days I simply "'burpped" out the yeast cake into a couple half pint mason jars using a short picnic tap to harvest the yeast for another couple batches and let whatever was still in the keg finish everything up.

With a floating dip tube you cannot harvest any yeast. But when the keg blows (that last pint is going to be a lot of yeast), there will still be enough residual yeast cake in the keg to simply dump another fresh batch of wort into the keg and let it rip. If that last pint glass was CLEAN, you can probably save that yeast as well.

 

[theredviper]

With a floating dip tube you cannot harvest any yeast. But when the keg blows (that last pint is going to be a lot of yeast), there will still be enough residual yeast cake in the keg to simply dump another fresh batch of wort into the keg and let it rip. If that last pint glass was CLEAN, you can probably save that yeast as well.

I have done this no problem, I was just confused on your process a bit. I haven't seen an issue yet with lack of yeast, but there's some trub in there too I'm sure. I do some filtering of the wort but not with an extremely fine filter (yet).

 

[odie]

You're doing this without a floating dip tube? So the first pours are yeast but there's enough left at the end to restart another ferment?

I realized I did not fully answer your question...

yes...with a regular full length dip tube, after you harvest the yeast, and then after you drink all the beer, there is still residual yeast in the keg at the very end. Not a lot but enough to pitch wort onto. If for any reason you feel there is not enough yeast left in the keg, you can always pitch some of the harvest that you saved BEFORE you drank the keg.

 

[theredviper]

yes...with a regular full length dip tube, after you harvest the yeast, and then after you drink all the beer, there is still residual yeast in the keg at the very end. Not a lot but enough to pitch wort onto. If for any reason you feel there is not enough yeast left in the keg, you can always pitch some of the harvest that you saved BEFORE you drank the keg.

It seems to be that with the full length tube in there, you'd get a pint or two of yeast to start (which you can save, whatever), but then wouldn't you get some residual yeast in every pint as it gets agitated a little by the flow of beer? It's so close by the intake.

 

[odie]

after the first pint or two, all the sediment around the pickup should be cleared out and anything remaining is hard packed. Unless you disturb the keg, it will pour clear to the end after your first serving.

 

[North_of_60]

I've also just let it go 14 days. I figure I can test gravity at any time by hooking up a picnic tap and filling a test jar. I figure there will be enough push from the co2 that the yeast created.

I do this but without a picnic tap, I just use a liquid tap with a short pice of tubing attached.

 

[MrFancyPlants]

I definitely use the floating dip tube.. so I can hop stand in there without eorruyjng about filtering or bagging.

 

[user 263363]

So I just fermented my first batch in a keg. I do 2.5 gallon batches and have some 5 gal kegs for fermenting. I used a floating dip tube, but let me tell you that I absolutely hated trying to get that tubing on that small piece of metal tube.

It sounds like people are having luck with leaving the metal dip tubes. What say you all?

I think I’ll cut a couple inches off one and use that for my next batch.

I am really looking forward to trying my first keg fermented batch!

 

[Carolina_Matt]

I've been doing this for about two years now, and I like it. It's easy, it's convenient, and it saves on CO2 since the beer is naturally carbonated by the end of fermentation. There are several pages here that show the positives to this. I'm about to get a Fermzilla All Rounder though.

On my last batch, I decided to use fermentation co2 to purge a new keg, then I transferred the beer to that keg. I was a little surprised that only 4 gallons transferred. I fill the keg pretty much to the top when I ferment, and I figured I was getting ~4.25-4.5 gallons when you account for blowoff and the yeast cake. I didn't realize I was only getting 4 gallons. I've thought about getting a 6 gallon Torpedo keg, but they're a little too tall for my chest freezer and the prices keep going up on them. I'll try the All Rounder so that I can start with 6 gallons and end with 5 full gallons, rather than shortchange myself. It'll also be nice to be able to see the fermentation, as I've never had a clear fermenter so I haven't seen the process in person.

 

[murphyslaw]

In golf we sometimes hear people say "par is just a number." I think us homebrewers could some of that mentality here.

It took me a while to try fermenting in kegs because I wanted every bit of 5 gallons finished. It was like a mental block I couldn't get over. But man, I'm a married man with two young kids and a three tap kegerator my basement. I'm not drinking 12 gallons of beer fast enough to lose sweat over not having another 3 gallons.

 

[NickTheGreat]

In golf we sometimes hear people say "par is just a number." I think us homebrewers could some of that mentality here.

It took me a while to try fermenting in kegs because I wanted every bit of 5 gallons finished. It was like a mental block I couldn't get over. But man, I'm a married man with two young kids and a three tap kegerator my basement. I'm not drinking 12 gallons of beer fast enough to lose sweat over not having another 3 gallons.

This is the thought I keep having. Seems like I'm going to short myself some beer.

But your point makes more sense. I've got three kegs in my fridge, from many months back. And it's just me drinking it 98% of the time.

The time saved and ease of use would likely make this well worth while.

 

[T Murph]

This is the thought I keep having. Seems like I'm going to short myself some beer.

But your point makes more sense. I've got three kegs in my fridge, from many months back. And it's just me drinking it 98% of the time.

The time saved and ease of use would likely make this well worth while.

This is why I no longer brew batches larger than 5 gal and I don't brew again until I getting low or what ever it takes depending on what the next one will be. Plus I still enjoy having a sixtel of one of my favorites from commercial breweries on hand. I used to have a 4 tap kegerator plus a few waiting on open taps. Not anymore. I just can't drink it fast enough and don't have enough friends coming around to help me finish them off.

 

[theredviper]

So I just fermented my first batch in a keg. I do 2.5 gallon batches and have some 5 gal kegs for fermenting. I used a floating dip tube, but let me tell you that I absolutely hated trying to get that tubing on that small piece of metal tube.

Did your floating tube come with silicone tubing? Mine all have and they are a little tricky to attach but not that bad.

 

[user 263363]

Did your floating tube come with silicone tubing? Mine all have and they are a little tricky to attach but not that bad.

yeah I had to boil the end of the silicone tube to get it over the metal. It would be infinitely easier if I could attach it then slide it down in to the keg but it’s too big.

 

[VirginiaHops1]

This is the thought I keep having. Seems like I'm going to short myself some beer.

But your point makes more sense. I've got three kegs in my fridge, from many months back. And it's just me drinking it 98% of the time.

The time saved and ease of use would likely make this well worth while.

I think fermenting in kegs greatly improves the quality of my hoppy beers, being able to limit O2 extremely well. My though process was I'd rather have 3.5-4 gallons of great beer than 5 gallons of solid beer.

 

[DuncB]

@Carolina_Matt
You will find with the all rounder that you can bump the volume up because the top pressure you can apply early in the ferment, say 5psi
will help to hold the krausen down. Dry hopping in any vessel sucks up lots of liquid, I like the hops in a bag put in on a magnet and then raised out on the magnet. You get a bit of drip drying that way. I always manage more than 25 litres to keg / bottle with the fermentasaurus.

 

[theredviper]

Does anybody have tips/tricks/tools that help with cleaning kegs when they are blown? Fermenting and serving in the same keg has been great, until it comes to the cleaning. There's usually a krausen ring that's a bit dried on, and getting in there to clean it is a pain.

Just wondering if anybody has a secret tool or brush that works well.

 

[murphyslaw]

Does anybody have tips/tricks/tools that help with cleaning kegs when they are blown? Fermenting and serving in the same keg has been great, until it comes to the cleaning. There's usually a krausen ring that's a bit dried on, and getting in there to clean it is a pain.

Just wondering if anybody has a secret tool or brush that works well.

Children with small arms that can fit inside.

 

[balrog]

Does anybody have tips/tricks/tools that help with cleaning kegs when they are blown? Fermenting and serving in the same keg has been great, until it comes to the cleaning. There's usually a krausen ring that's a bit dried on, and getting in there to clean it is a pain.

Just wondering if anybody has a secret tool or brush that works well.

I use 20m with the mark2 keg washer, just a pump shooting up into inverted keg, using a couple tablespoons homemade PBW. Before I had the pump, I would put the homemade PBW and a gallon of water in the keg, lid back on, pump up with a little CO2 and blow some out to fill line out with cleaning solution, then invert several times every 3-5 min, over 20-30m. Blow all out and rinse 3 times, blowing out through line ea time.

It also helped to run a quart of plain water into the liquid out using a pump sprayer fitted with ball lock post, as soon as keg kicked. That won't do anything for the krausen line, but the liquid out line at least did not sit full of sludge that way.

 

[murphyslaw]

Oxiclean works wonders. I usually just fill the keg to the brim with oxi and hot water. Come back the next day or whenever I get to it.

 

[DuncB]

I give a good rinse out with water and then some warm Homemade PBW and the CIP spray. Have you tried a dishwashing brush they are angled and might get there. Given that the kegs are pressure safe if you don't have CIP you can fill with hot PBW and then seal keg and invert it leave for a good while.

 

[theredviper]

Thanks everyone. I do have a dishwasher brush that's angled. Part of the hassle is doing the cleaning, then rinsing, then looking. Then realizing you missed a spot, etc. I will try soaking with oxyclean.

 

[odie]

Does anybody have tips/tricks/tools that help with cleaning kegs when they are blown? Fermenting and serving in the same keg has been great, until it comes to the cleaning. There's usually a krausen ring that's a bit dried on, and getting in there to clean it is a pain.

Just wondering if anybody has a secret tool or brush that works well.

If I plan the same or similar beer...I just brew it up and dump it in the dirty keg. Plenty of hungry yeast left after the keg blows.

 

[hopjuice_71]

If I plan the same or similar beer...I just brew it up and dump it in the dirty keg. Plenty of hungry yeast left after the keg blows.

I have also done this a few times. It felt like some kind of blasphemy, but it worked great.

 

[mtnagel]

How does everyone dry hop using this method? This is what I've done before - hooked it up to a low level of CO2, release pressure, stop CO2, open the lid, turn on CO2, drop in hops quickly, seal lid and purge with CO2. I need to dry hop in the next day or so and wondering if there is a better method.