Kegging Questions

[3RiverBrewer]

I'm looking to convert a chest freezer into a keggerator and I had a few questions/concerns I was hoping I could get some advice on.

1. I was thinking of keeping the keggerator in my basement and running a line up a floor and having my taps come out of the wall. My only fear about doing this is that there will be 7-10 foot of beer line not being kept cold how big of a problem is this going to be if I do this?

2. I was looking at some 15.5 gallon half barrel kegs for future scale up of my batches but from what I have looked at they seem difficult to obtain and difficult to clean (special equipment/taps/etc) would it just be easier for me to get more Corny's and just fill up multiple 5 gallon kegs instead?

3. If I do the multiple 5 gallon kegs what do I do if I don't tap them right away? Do I force carbonate and store or do I store and then carbonate them when I need them?

Thanks for any advice!!

 

[david_42]

1. Some people insulate the lines, some run cooling, some don't worry. If your lines will be in the basement and the basement stays cool, I'd say don't worry.
2. Stick with cornies.
3. Add priming sugar, seal by hitting them with a little pressure and let them naturally carbonate in a cool place.

 

[Jrod]

Fill the beer line length with water and then drain it into a measuring cup so see how much beer would be warm. I think with 10ft it may be less than 2 oz. Not sure though.

 

[3RiverBrewer]

Thanks for the advice guys, I'm looking forward to getting this thing up and running!

 

[Golddiggie]

I would NOT prime a keg with sugar. You don't need to carbonate it right away. I routinely store kegs once sealed with a hit of CO2 for weeks/months before they go into the brew fridge for carbonating and then serving. I just hit the keg with 10-15 psi of CO2 to get the lid o-ring to seat/seal and don't worry. I also make it a habit to check the pressure inside the keg before moving into the fridge. Helps to eliminate too much carbonation. Especially with the kegs that I was partially carbonating outside of the brew fridge.

 

[day_trippr]

Fill the beer line length with water and then drain it into a measuring cup so see how much beer would be warm. I think with 10ft it may be less than 2 oz. Not sure though.

Good guess! 3/16" ID beer line holds about 1/6th ounce per foot...

Cheers!

 

[chemman14]

I would NOT prime a keg with sugar. You don't need to carbonate it right away. I routinely store kegs once sealed with a hit of CO2 for weeks/months before they go into the brew fridge for carbonating and then serving. I just hit the keg with 10-15 psi of CO2 to get the lid o-ring to seat/seal and don't worry. I also make it a habit to check the pressure inside the keg before moving into the fridge. Helps to eliminate too much carbonation. Especially with the kegs that I was partially carbonating outside of the brew fridge.

why? I love doing this as it allows me to have a keg carbonating while serving 4 and lagering one. Otherwise i would have to wait for the beer to carbonate between keg changes

 

[Golddiggie]

why? I love doing this as it allows me to have a keg carbonating while serving 4 and lagering one. Otherwise i would have to wait for the beer to carbonate between keg changes

I have three taps in my brew fridge and room for four kegs. The fouth spot IS for carbonating while I'm drinking the other three. I place a keg in that spot when another has kicked and the carbonated one takes its place.

Sounds like you need a bigger keezer/brew fridge. Havw enough carbonating on gas to take the place of kicked kegs. Figure out how many you go through in 2-4 weeks and get that many spots.

Besides, I've always found carbonating with sugar to be unpredictable at best, unstable at worst. With CO2 its a lot more precise and predictable.

 

[chemman14]

I have three taps in my brew fridge and room for four kegs. The fouth spot IS for carbonating while I'm drinking the other three. I place a keg in that spot when another has kicked and the carbonated one takes its place.

Sounds like you need a bigger keezer/brew fridge. Havw enough carbonating on gas to take the place of kicked kegs. Figure out how many you go through in 2-4 weeks and get that many spots.

Besides, I've always found carbonating with sugar to be unpredictable at best, unstable at worst. With CO2 its a lot more precise and predictable.

hmm not me, I have used beer smith to calculate and it has worked out well for the last 6 kegs or so. Not sure what size upright fridge would fit 6 kegs plus a bottle of co2

 

[Golddiggie]

hmm not me, I have used beer smith to calculate and it has worked out well for the last 6 kegs or so. Not sure what size upright fridge would fit 6 kegs plus a bottle of co2

Put the CO2 tank outside the fridge... Mine is. There's no way I could fit my 20# tank in there and have more than one, maybe two, kegs in there. I use 3 gallon kegs, since I get 6 gallons out of every batch.

For fitting 6 kegs in an upright, that's easy. Get an used fridge, cut out the wall dividing the fridge and freezer sections and you've got more room.