Overwhelmed with different kegging instructions

[msa8967]

I am going to make my first effort into kegging and after reading for over an hour on various methods of kegging I feel a bit overwhelmed with all of the different opinions on how to keg beer. Is sugar really needed? Are the kegs stored inside or outside the keezer during the conditioning? Do I pressurize each keg to a high psi and then disconnect from the CO2 source for a month?

What I would like to find is a straight forward method to produce kegged beer without rushing the process. I have plenty of bottled beer in stock and can let the kegged beer "condition" for a month or more if needed.

I have built a keezer and will have four tap line to corney kegs. Anyone have advice out there on how to produce well kegged beer that is relatively clear? If there are things I should avoid I would also like to know these if you are willing to share. After reading this forum for the last 1+ years I see that patience and proper preparation is the key to producing a good brew.

Thanks...

Mick in Iowa

 

[Blender]

I'm assuming your kegs are clean and hold pressure. You don't need to add sugar when the CO2 can come from the tank. I do not use a secondary so I carefully transfer the beer to the keg. I will purge out the headspace after the conection and let it sit at 10 PSI. Should be ready in 10-14 days. The first couple of pints might be cloudly but they clear after that due to the cold and time compacting the yeast.

If you keep the kegs outside the kegerator then set the lid with a pressure blast and set it aside. It will not carbonate this way unless you decide to use priming sugar but I never saw the need as I carbonate on the gas when I hook it up.

I clean the poppets and seals each time before refilling and the o-rings are still in great shape. Get some keg lube for the o-rings as it helps a bunch for sealing and installing the liquid out line securely preventing leaks.

 

[jppostKW]

Rack your beer into the keg keeping as much crap from the fermentation out as possible only after its cleaned and sanitized put on the lid. hit with 20psi to seal the lid put it into the keezer with the c02 hooked up to your desired serving pressure there are volume vs. temp charts all over the interwebz. i usually do 12psi and 43 degrees and let it sit until you cant stand it anymore or at least 2.5 weeks. this will settle most everything out for clear beer and let it cold condition. at 2.5 weeks tap the keg pour a pint which will have most of settled out stuff in it maybe do one more and than enjoy a pint of homebrew!!!

 

[msa8967]

Thanks guys for your advice. Sounds like I should let the beer carb up for 3 weeks while it is in my keezer.

 

[SpanishCastleAle]

Is sugar really needed?

No but if you want to get a jump start on the carbonation for beers that you can't fit into the keezer you could always naturally carbonate (prime) them at room temp. For beers that are going straight into the keezer you can force carb them. Both work but at different temps.

Are the kegs stored inside or outside the keezer during the conditioning?

Wherever you can fit them but you can store them at room temp no problem.

Do I pressurize each keg to a high psi and then disconnect from the CO2 source for a month?

If you're just stashing them away for when you have room in the keezer then yes, that'll work. I would periodically check to see that you still have pressure in the keg (just gently lift the relief valve manual release), sometimes you might have a slow leak. But even if you don't have a leak the pressure will decrease after you seal it just because the beer is absorbing some of that CO2. I sometimes have to periodically give a keg a burst of CO2 (ha, more for piece of mind than anything).

Anyone have advice out there on how to produce well kegged beer that is relatively clear?

Time and cold. You'll prob notice that the first part of a keg will be a little cloudy and it will slowly get clearer as you drink it (or wait) and the last pour of the keg will be crystal clear (and you may notice head retention gets a little better too). All the stuff that settles from the top of the keg forms a 'cloud' at the bottom, right where the OUT dip tube pulls from.

Random tips:
Don't forget to depress the OUT poppet (keg upright) after rinsing/draining cleaner/sanitizer so it all runs out the bottom and into the keg, then dump. It's a small amount but...
Chopsticks make good keg poppet depressors, butt-end of a small screwdriver for QD poppets works well.
I'm assuming you've read some of the keezer threads but imo, having beer lines that are a little too long is better than having them too short. Too short and you get a bunch of foam, too long and it just pours a little slower. Use 3/16" bev lines and start at at least 10' long, you can always cut it back. Coil up the excess line, zip-tie it, and shove it down between the kegs to keep cold. You need all that line length so you can carb and serve at the same pressure without getting pure foam pours.

Good luck.

 

[SweetSounds]

I am going to make my first effort into kegging and after reading for over an hour on various methods of kegging I feel a bit overwhelmed with all of the different opinions on how to keg beer. Is sugar really needed? Are the kegs stored inside or outside the keezer during the conditioning? Do I pressurize each keg to a high psi and then disconnect from the CO2 source for a month?

What I would like to find is a straight forward method to produce kegged beer without rushing the process. I have plenty of bottled beer in stock and can let the kegged beer "condition" for a month or more if needed.

I have built a keezer and will have four tap line to corney kegs. Anyone have advice out there on how to produce well kegged beer that is relatively clear? If there are things I should avoid I would also like to know these if you are willing to share. After reading this forum for the last 1+ years I see that patience and proper preparation is the key to producing a good brew.

Thanks...

Mick in Iowa

All the different methods you have read are all right! Just different.
You don't need sugar if you're going to carb from a CO2 bottle. Since you mention that you want very clear beer, that's what I'd recommend. Carbonating with sugar will cause more sediment in the keg.
Regardless of which way you go, here's the rules:
If you carbonate with CO2, do it at serving temperature.
If you carbonate with sugar, do it at room temperature, and use a quick shot of CO2 at 20 or 30 PSI to get the seal nice and tight.
That's all there is to that...

I secondary (Man I hate that word) - I age my beers in cornys, too...
I don't use pressure or anything. Just rack from primary to the keg, avoiding as much trub as I can (But I don't worry about it too much), and then let them sit in the basement for as long as it takes.
When it's time to carb, I transfer the beer from the aging corny to a serving corny with an "Out-to-Out" jumper - A well documented process here...

The key is to never disturb the aging keg. That way any sediment that did make it in there stays at the bottom of the keg. Then, when I transfer the beer to the serving keg it's nice and clear, leaving any sediment behind in the aging keg.

 

[Baldy_Beer_Brewery]

Thanks guys for your advice. Sounds like I should let the beer carb up for 3 weeks while it is in my keezer.

I've found that a week to ten days at serving pressure inside the kegerator is fine. However I age the beer normally as I would with bottling as the week of carbonation isn't a replacement for that.

 

[Hoppocrates]

I do 40 psi for 24 hours, then 30 psi for 24 hours, then set to serving pressure (usually around 12 psi) and start drinking. First beer or two is yeasty but thereafter they are crystal clear. I used to do the shake carbonation method but found it was too erratic. I am happy with waiting 2 days with my method and having predictable carbonation...