Rust inside kegs

[Dan2539]

Is there an easy fix to restoring a keg with rust on the inside, or should I probably look for other rust-free kegs to restore? Is it bad to steel wool the inside of a keg or to use BKF on the inside?

 

[TipsyDragon]

i wouldn't want to use steel wool. that will scratch the steel giving a nice place for bacteria to hide not to mention removing the protective oxide layer. personally i would look for a rust free keg.

 

[davebl]

Use some BKF and a non-metallic abrasive pad to scrub it out. Rinse really well then let it air dry.

After some time it will re-passify and you'll be good to go. Rust in a stainless keg comes from mild steel touching it.

 

[abracadabra]

It's really hard to say it depends on how extensive the rust is, can you get to it and what you feel your time is worth. I just got some cornies for $16 each, from www.homebrewing.org but they have since gone back up to $23.

I wouldn't worry about scratching stainless steel, the pits from the rust are a greater concern. And you'll probably need a fairly abrasive pad to scrub the rust off. Depending on the size of the spot you might could get it off with the small wire wheel brush that attach to a dremel tool. Once the rust is gone you can always polish the spot back out if you feel you need or want to. It's not like plastic where a scratch is hard to clean and sanitize and you can't do much with it once it's scratched.

Once you get the rust off you can re-passivate the Stainless steel with Bar Keeper's Friend abbreviated in the previous post as BKF. But since he didn't name it or mention that it re-passivates Stainless I figured I would.

There are a number of things that can cause Stainless to rust the name stainless is really somewhat of a mis-nomer as it's really stain and rust resistant not rust proof as the name implies.

 

[SpanishCastleAle]

Use some BKF and a non-metallic abrasive pad to scrub it out. Rinse really well then let it air dry.

After some time it will re-passify and you'll be good to go. Rust in a stainless keg comes from mild steel touching it.

^^^I agree. FWIW, BKF makes a Lime & Rust remover too.

If you follow the cleaning with a short soak with Starsan it should help the passivation. Typ stainless would be cleaned with a caustic solution (eg - sodium hydroxide), rinsed well, then passivated with an acid solution (eg - nitric acid). PBW/Starsan are not nearly as strong but they are basic/acidic respectively. I've never used BKF and I'm just assuming it's not acidic.

 

[abracadabra]

Bar Keeper's Friend contains Oleic Acid