Room temp Keg storage -conflicting info

[htims05]

So I’ve been reading about storing kegs at room temp as I don’t have space all the time to keep all of my homebrew cold.

I’m seeing conflicting info...some say it’s not pasteurized and therefore it’ll go bad quickly

others say nah, carb it up at 30ish psi and let it sit for as long as you want - some only pour a glass once every year.

so which is correct?

I ask because I recently started having 2-3 brews ready to keg (I still ferment in a bucket and autosiphon to the keg) but no space in cold storage so I’ve just carbed them at 75f and let them sit. Now I’m worried that beer might be spoiled as some people say it will be.

 

[VikeMan]

If your beer has enough spoilage microbes to eventually spoil your beer, then warmer temps will accelerate that spoilage.

But I personally avoid storing most beer at room temp for a different reason; staling is accelerated. And that's without any bugs.

 

[KillerBrew]

You asked the question I was getting ready to post. I also am curious about keeping kegs at room temp due to space limitations in my keezer. I have been looking at a beer chiller/dispenser sold by Brewha and wondering if it would work well with the room temp kegs. I'm not looking at keeping kegs longer than a few months. If it doesn't get drank fast enough I'll probably dump and move on. Chiller/Dispenser

 

[htims05]

You asked the question I was getting ready to post. I also am curious about keeping kegs at room temp due to space limitations in my keezer. I have been looking at a beer chiller/dispenser sold by Brewha and wondering if it would work well with the room temp kegs. I'm not looking at keeping kegs longer than a few months. If it doesn't get drank fast enough I'll probably dump and move on. Chiller/Dispenser

Right - I'm likely only keeping them at room temp for at most 2-3 months.

 

[htims05]

If your beer has enough spoilage microbes to eventually spoil your beer, then warmer temps will accelerate that spoilage.

But I personally avoid storing most beer at room temp for a different reason; staling is accelerated. And that's without any bugs.

So then yeah since I'm fermenting in a bucket and siphoning to the keg...I assume its going to have some microbes in it. I heard though bigger/higher abv beers have less concern here as that helps keep them sanitized?

would it go stale within a few months at room temp?

 

[schmurf]

I can't imagine there would be much more difference than storing bottles in room temperature, which I guess most bottlers do?

 

[htims05]

I can't imagine there would be much more difference than storing bottles in room temperature, which I guess most bottlers do?

This is what I assumed as well...but googling says it's not the same....at least from random people on beer forums

 

[VikeMan]

I assume its going to have some microbes in it. I heard though bigger/higher abv beers have less concern here as that helps keep them sanitized?

It's true that most bugs don't like ethanol, so yes, higher ABV beers are, all else being equal, more antimicrobial.

would it go stale within a few months at room temp?

I can't tell you how fast your particular beer will stale to the point that it's noticeable. But consider this... a common rule of thumb for chemical reactions is to assume that they happen twice as fast for each 10C increase in temperature. I think beer staling fits this rule of thumb pretty well.

 

[Johnny_5]

2-3 months should be fine. You could also carb it in the keg with sugar. Then its pretty much the same as bottling. Saves a bit on CO2 as well.

 

[htims05]

2-3 months should be fine. You could also carb it in the keg with sugar. Then its pretty much the same as bottling. Saves a bit on CO2 as well.

I’ve never had good success carbing with sugar - although I’ve never tried in a keg.

 

[Moose_MI]

I did this once and didn’t have good results. If I remember I had them at room temp for a couple months and when I tapped them they had clearly developed some funk that was not good.
Im not saying this will happen every time but my guess is that if you do this consistently it’s going to happen more than you’re going to like
Ive never had an infection take over a beer like that so I like to think my sanitation is pretty good. I dont do closed transfer and i dont fully purge keg by filling with water and then CO2...I just purge the head space after filling from auto-siphon.
I’d also suggest you’re missing out on a great advantage of kegging that allows your beer to cold condition...I personally think this is one of the best things to ever happen to my beers.
I guess you could look into chemical stabilizers like campden or potassium sorbate to see if they might help.
...or hit CL for a small $100 5cu ft Freezer. . This was the option I chose

 

[htims05]

I found a small 5cu mini fridge that fits 2 cornies a 5lb co2 tank all without modification yesterday on CL for $50.

my issue is that a chest freezer is too big. I have nowhere to put it....so maybe this will work. I can have 2 on tap and two cold conditioning.

 

[tracer bullet]

Agreed that room temps accelerate whatever changes are going to happen. As to whether the changes are good, that is up to you.

Porters, stouts, Russian imperials? warm storage might be a good thing. IPA's? I'd cold store those for sure or they just go bland. Drinkable, but not as tasty.