Sanke 1/2bbl 15.5gal keg fermenter?

[afro_lou]

Hey all,

I've been seeing some information pop up from time to time about converting a keg for use in fermentation. Sounds like an interesting idea!

Specifically, I'm interested in these conversions:

http://brewhardware.com/valves-69/137-tcsanke

The bottom drain tri-clover fittings, with a 2" tri-clover spud on the top sounds like a pretty sweet/cheap setup to me!

Anyone using this kind of setup? Is it anything like a conical in terms of ease of use? I kind of like the idea of saving hundreds on $ over even a Stout Tanks conical...


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[afro_lou]

Not very popular, eh?

Makes sense, I suppose, kegs don't seem to be too common.

Maybe I'll just have to bite the bullet and report back here!

 

[dcbc]

I use one of the 2" TC siphon kits with a SANKE keg. Works fine, but I have gone with a silicone o-ring over the typical TC gasket because the o-rings seem to be more robust. Doing it as a bottom drain would require some cutting, which I was not in the mood to do. It also requires a fermentation space with more height. Since I use the SANKE as a spare fermenter and was using an old kegerator as a fermentation cooler, I couldn't afford (spacewise) to add height.

 

[MrNatural]

This might be more of what you're looking for?

https://www.brewershardware.com/Sanke-Fermenter-Kits/

 

[acidrain]

Same here...
Also, the bottom drain does not act as a conical would. It might make is slightly easier to clean, but not easy to collect yeast. If you were set on going that route, I would install a 6" TC spud at the top so you can get your arm inside.

 

[afro_lou]

MrNatural - yup! That's the top side air lock, the bottom would just have a dump valve. If I stay with the 2" keg opening, I'll probably just use a carboy cap stretched over the top with an airlock.

acid rain - good point, I like the idea of a 6" TC on top... Time to check costs! Now, if I'm not collecting yeast, would the bottom dump work for just getting rid of trub/yeast cake? Or is it a function of not enough of a cone to collect the trub?

Thanks for the responses!

 

[acidrain]

Lack of cone is going to hurt collection... the stuff on the bottom of the keg is just going to sit there.
What I did (and I studied up on cone shapes and keg fermenter success) is skip trying to gather yeast from the fermenter and make extra in the starter for freezing yeast samples.
For cleaning, I use a pressure washer with a 90 deg. tip. Fermenter is completely clean in less than 5 minutes.
I almost added a 6" TC to the top, but decided I wasn't going to be able to get a good sanitary weld without access to the inside. Soldering is a good option for this since it wouldn't heat the SS to the point of sugaring.
I made my own 2" fermenting bungs with an adjustable pressure relief, a C02 in, a SS racking cane with compression fittings using rubber o-rings (slides up and down) and thermo-wells for the STC 1000 probe. I love 'em. I have two on 1/4 bbl Sanke's, and rotate them through the fermentation chamber.

 

[afro_lou]

Sounds like a great setup, acidrain! I'm thinking this'll be a much better rig than carboys...

The only thing I worry about is pulling too much trub from the fermenter when racking to cornies. How do you get by this? I'm used to watching the racking cane through the carboy glass to keep from sucking up all that yeasty goodness.

Almost seems like if there's no real advantage to a bottom dump system, I might as well just stick with a single opening system...

Thanks!

 

[insanim8er]

I use 1/4 slims using the method I developed in my sig link

Works awesome. It's cheap, and it'll work on any keg.

 

[acidrain]

If you get a stainless racking cane and use a compression coupler to hold it in-place like described above, you can experiment with how deep to run it without drawing trub. I have mine set to about 2" off the bottom, and surprisingly, the beer was completely clear all the way to the end, and when I tried to push it in just a little further, it began sucking trub. Got lucky on the first try and found the sweet spot.

The pressure fermentation method is awesome. I have a switch on my fermentation chamber that reverts back to the stock thermostat, so with a flip of the switch, cold crashing is done. Then by connecting directly to your serving keg, transfer completed without lifting or disturbing the fermenter.

One more nice piece is the cobra tap adapter... make a tap that quick connects to the out post and take samples during fermenting.

 

[afro_lou]

Thanks for all the great info, acidrain! I think I'll forgo the bottom dump system for now, seems like too much trouble for not much return.

Now I'll have to try to put together a sweet fermentation system like yours!