Space issues= No Kegging

[billf2112]

Just doing a little research.

How many do not keg simply because you fo not have the room to store the kegs or have the space for a kegerator?

Would you keg your beer if there was a smaller alternative that allowed you to force carb and have atleast two choices on tap?

Thanks for your answers.

 

[mikeysab]

There are smaller alternatives. Not sure about force carbing, but tap a draft works well naturally carbing. Party star is another smaller alternative. You could also use a carbonator cap and co2 tank with 2 liter bottles, but not sure thats a viable alternative to kegging. You could look into a mini fridge kegerator and use 3 gallon kegs. I'm limited on space as well, but I had to put my foot down and stake claim to a corner of my storage closet.

 

[ArcLight]

I would be interested in an alternative to bottling.

Are kegerators noisy ? My wife wouldn't be unhappy with that, so I'd have to keep it in the basement.
By noisy I mean the fridge is loud when it recycles. I've seen this complaint with some kegerators.

>>Would you keg your beer if there was a smaller alternative that allowed you to force carb and have atleast two choices on tap?

OK - I'm interested, please tell us more.

 

[BrewerinBR]

I bottle all my brews for 3 reasons:
1. I like bottles/bottling.
2. I have no place/space to put kegerator.
3. I would prefer not to force carbonate.

I may possibly be interested in kegging if smaller systems were reasonable and I could use natural carbonation.

 

[BronxBrew]

In the same boat. Condo in the Bronx and there just isn't any room. I didn't find using 22oz bottles to be all that bad though.

 

[rico567]

Just doing a little research.

How many do not keg simply because you fo not have the room to store the kegs or have the space for a kegerator?

Would you keg your beer if there was a smaller alternative that allowed you to force carb and have atleast two choices on tap?

Thanks for your answers.

1. I have plenty of room for all of the above; kegerator, kegs, lines taps, etc.

2. No, I would not. I don't regard bottling with the abhorrence that some in the forums display. And I want nothing to do with the extra expense and complexity of all that kegging would require. And since I enjoy having a minimum of five or six different beers on the shelf, kegging alone would be out of control....or else I'd have to bottle in addition to kegging, which further complicates matters.

I guess I'm just a confirmed K.I.S.S. brewer.......

 

[Slipgate]

I would be interested in an alternative to bottling.

Are kegerators noisy? My wife wouldn't be unhappy with that, so I'd have to keep it in the basement.

>>Would you keg your beer if there was a smaller alternative that allowed you to force carb and have atleast two choices on tap?

OK - I'm interested, please tell us more.

Noisy? No. All you can hear is the frig cycle on when it needs it and that is not really noticeable. The frig portion is all that makes any noise.

 

[duboman]

Just doing a little research.

How many do not keg simply because you fo not have the room to store the kegs or have the space for a kegerator?

Would you keg your beer if there was a smaller alternative that allowed you to force carb and have atleast two choices on tap?

Thanks for your answers.

I do not keg and have no desire to do so for the following reasons:

I prefer bottle conditioned beer
Cannot justify the overall expense associated with kegging and on going maintenance costs
Cannot fit another refrigerator anywhere
Enjoy having a huge variety of available beer stocked and cold
My process and assistant can knock out 60 bottles from start to finish in about an hour

 

[mikeysab]

I bottle all my brews for 3 reasons:
1. I like bottles/bottling.
2. I have no place/space to put kegerator.
3. I would prefer not to force carbonate.

I may possibly be interested in kegging if smaller systems were reasonable and I could use natural carbonation.

Tap a draft. You can naturallly carbonate the bottles, then use cartridges to push. Works great, small footprint, and fairly cheap alternative to kegging. And if you can choke down coors light or miller, you can re use those bottles

 

[DrunkleJon]

Bottling is only as much of a hassle as you make it. I am getting into kegging now that I have the space, but think that some brews I will bottle anyway. The thing I really like about bottling, though is that I still have a 2 of all my brews all the way back to my second brew. I threw one of each into the fridge to taste again and see how they aged and taste the progression of my brewing skills. I think now that I am kegging I may bottle a 6 of each just for the sake of a later taste.

 

[dinnerstick]

i have a very small space for my brewing stuff, which is all stacked up and overflowing its corner, trying not to piss off the ladyfriend TOO much, but i snuck in a small fridge for a 2 tap kegerator and i'm exceedingly happy i did so. aside from the obvious perks, i use it to carb up stuff that are dangerous to bottle condition, like semi-sweet wines and ciders. about half of the time i carb beer naturally in the keg and half i force carb. i still bottle condition some batches, and bottle from the keg a lot, and bottle a few before kegging the rest, just cuz you have kegs doesn't mean you have to stop bottling or that you have to force carb. i know the op already said there's no space, but if you can find just a tiny bit of space for a dorm fridge.... you'll love it... empty kegs or ones that are conditioning stack up next to the frige and the footprint is pretty small. sorry if that's annoying, whenever i talk about making a low footprint fermentation chamber someone always says 'get a chest freezer', real helpful, if i had space for a chest freezer i'd have a chest freezer, let them eat cake and all that...

 

[billf2112]

My idea is a mini kegerator it would use either a 1.7 or 2 5 cubic foot mini fridge and mini kegs. I have found plans online to make force carbing work, just working out plans and putting diy kits together.

The idea is to have kits with all the fittings, taps and tubing pre-made, you just get the co2 tank and fridge.

A 5 gallon batch can be racked into 4 mini kegs. This will allow for frequent changes to what is on tap but still give you two maybe three choiced at a time.

My plan for a 5 gallon batch is 3 mini kegs and a 12 pack for samples/gifts bottles. Plus the mini kegs are perfect for smaller batches or experimental brews.

 

[kh54s10]

I don't keg, but it is because of the $$ required.

For me the space would only be where. My bottles, filled and empty, take up about as much space as a kegerator would. The only difference is the bottles are on a shelf, in the corner of the basement and in the second refrigerator in the basement.

 

[Nightshade]

I don't see kegging as really taking up any more or less space than bottling, there is a slight increase in initial investment for kegging but not enough to deter anyone who puts pen to paper and does the math. The only real difference is the electricity and CO2 as added expenses which may mean one small bottle CO2 a month (thats a lot of beer) and maybe an extra $5 or so on electric.

I like both myself and they both have their pros and cons, at home I bottle currently but the empties take a lot of extra space I could easily use for the kegorator and two kegs in rotation.

 

[billf2112]

I have looked into the commercial made mini keg dispensers, most have bad reviews, don't carb well and only do 1 brew at a time. The better ones are about $250 - $300 and still are limited to only 1 brew. If you gave limited space like an apartment, you are kinda screwed out of enjoying a good kegged home brew.

After 2 years of brewing, I for one am sick of bottling. Tired of storing, cleaning and collecting bottles. I just don't have a pkace for a full sized kegerator. A small counter top unit woil be perfect. Something about 2ft squared.

 

[ntalkers]

For those who "prefer bottle conditioning." Why? Carbonation is carbonation.

I used to bottle and sometimes even bottle conditioned a few gallons and kegged the rest. Now I keg everything and counter pressure fill the bottles off the keg. It's so much easier to get perfect, fast carbonation in every bottle. Will it last as long as a bottle conditioned beer? If stored properly, yes. I have not noticed any differences in any of my beers.

 

[duboman]

For those who "prefer bottle conditioning." Why? Carbonation is carbonation.

I used to bottle and sometimes even bottle conditioned a few gallons and kegged the rest. Now I keg everything and counter pressure fill the bottles off the keg. It's so much easier to get perfect, fast carbonation in every bottle. Will it last as long as a bottle conditioned beer? If stored properly, yes. I have not noticed any differences in any of my beers.

Yes, carbonation is carbonation but bottle conditioning, IMO still provides an additional flavor profile because it is the yeast doing the carbonating, not just pure CO2. Hence the reason I believe some commercial brewers opt to bottle condition some of their products as well.

 

[DonMagee]

If I was short on space, I'm sure I could fit a 2 keg kegerator somewhere. I would simply batch prime the keg and let them naturally condition. This is going to take up the same space as bottles for the kegs that are conditioning and only slightly more space for the kegerator to serve. I have a 4 tap kezer and I only keep 1-2 beers on tap at anytime. Simply because we don't drink enough to justify that much beer.

 

[billf2112]

This thread really wasn't designed to be about force carbing, it was simply about who was interested in a mini kegerator. Just trying to see if there is a market for mini kegerator kits.