Preventing coils freezing jockeybox during travel

[postalbunny]

Curious if there is any cheap solution to priming the jockey box with something that won't freeze for transport? I know you don't want to drop ice in the jockey box when it's empty in case any water is left over from cleaning is there and freezes blocking the coils. However; when traveling to an event it's not convenient to store ice in another cooler and dump in when we arrive.

When going to an event i'm pulling a pint through the jockey box to put beer in the coils that won't freeze then on the way I can pickup ice and drop it in the jockey box. However, that means i have to unhook everything and plug stuff up again (remove taps and plug, remove back connections and cover/plug) or else risk beer dripping in the car during transport.

Is there anything that doesn't have a low freezing point besides beer or spirits? I tested some starsan solution but the water in it froze... was hoping I could pbw/rinse/starsan my jockeybox when done and store it that way. I'd like to find something that's safe to keep in there and won't freeze.

or am i over thinking it... should i just use a shopvac to try and suck the rinse water out and it should be dry enough? Or, blow air through to dry it out...

 

[jekeane]

Make a hand pump diy line cleaner and fill the coils with cheap vodka. Store the vodka in mason jars in the cooler.

 

[postalbunny]

I had thought about using a cheap spirit... just rinsing with vodka or grain alcohol when cleaning is done and storing. That way anything "left over" in the coils wouldn't be freezable. Vodka is also expensive, even the the plastic jogs on the bottom shelf.

Maybe vinegar would work... it's freezing point is 28degF. It's dirt cheap... Need to see if there are any ill effects of keeping vinegar in the steel lines.

 

[Dr_Jeff]

You've got a Sabco BrewMagic as your avatar and you're complaining that cheap vodka is expensive?

 

[postalbunny]

You've got a Sabco BrewMagic as your avatar and you're complaining that cheap vodka is expensive?

Point taken... but it's def not a sabco; i'm VERY cheap... it's a rig i welded up using steel and keggles i converted from craigslist finds.

Thinking vinegar isn't a good idea in case the acetic acid ends up leaving a taste in the lines. But I don't want to spend $15 on vodka to leave in the lines either...

I may just see if i can use the shopvac to blow them dry after cleaning/sanitizing.

 

[Mike_kever_kombi]

What about highly salted water? That’s plenty cheap and shouldn’t freeze.

 

[Plutarch]

Wouldn't it just be simpler to stop at a convenience/grocery store near your destination to pick up some ice. The amount of melt, even in summer should be negligible. I guess if your going to a camp site hours away it would be an issue, even then most areas have a some type of store. (Bait shop, camp supply, etc.)

 

[postalbunny]

Wouldn't it just be simpler to stop at a convenience/grocery store near your destination to pick up some ice. The amount of melt, even in summer should be negligible. I guess if your going to a camp site hours away it would be an issue, even then most areas have a some type of store. (Bait shop, camp supply, etc.)

The problem is where to put the ice during travel... i would like to just put the 30-40lbs of ice in the cooler/jockeybox itself. If you do that and there is any water or sanitizer solution left over in the coils it'll freeze and cause serving problems (turbulence, co2 breakout, slow or blocked pours...). So the problem is that you get the box home later and clean it and there is always some water left in the jockey box.. no matter how long you let it "air dry".

You could just throw the ice in a trashbag so it doesn't get water everywhere, or bring another cooler. But now i'm taking up extra space and bothering with somewhere to store ice when i have this empty-ass-jockeybox sitting right there.

My initial solution was to just hook the kegs up and run beer through for one pour. Then cap it... that way I know it can't freeze because it's beer. But this takes extra time, i'd like to just grab the stuff and go. And i don't want to do this the night before and have "day old" beer in the lines funking everything up.

I settled on just using the shopvac to blow them dry... So i can take it home, pbw cycle, sani cycle, then shopvac blow it dry. Then when leaving for an event I can drop ice in the jockeybox with no worries.

 

[postalbunny]

What about highly salted water? That’s plenty cheap and shouldn’t freeze.

Thought about this too.. but i'm worried about the salt corroding the stainless... was looking up how much grain alcohol or salt i would need to add to lower the freezing point enough. Seems like just shopvac drying the lines after use is easier.