47 replies to this topic

[Bklmt2000]

So I want to give one of these a go.  would it make sense to make one of these with a ball lock post on it?  is there a good reason to push the cleaner through in the opposite direction that the beer flows?

 

You could, but it's not necessary IMHO.  The main point is to be continually circulating the cleaner through the lines, which I think is where the garden sprayer setups fall a bit short.

 

I kinda prefer what I posted in the OP (natch ), as it requires that I remove the QD and clean it out, while the cleaner runs through the lines.  With the ball-lock setups, I could see a possibility (which is probably small to non-existent) of gunk hiding in the QD that doesn't get cleaned out.

 

I think it's a good thing that I have to manually remove the QD, which ensures that it gets cleaned and another potential spoilage vector is addressed.

[positiveContact]

I don't think I've ever taken a ball lock QD apart.  is that necessary?  I figured if I was running cleaner and sanitzer through it I was good

[positiveContact]

https://www.homebrew...ning-build.html

 

I was thinking doing something like this.

[djinkc]

I don't think I've ever taken a ball lock QD apart.  is that necessary?  I figured if I was running cleaner and sanitzer through it I was good

 

I don't remember the last time I took any apart.  The keg cleaner I built runs through both posts and has a wand through the lid opening.

[Bklmt2000]

I don't think I've ever taken a ball lock QD apart.  is that necessary?  I figured if I was running cleaner and sanitzer through it I was good

 

I've never taken the QD itself apart either.

 

Truth be told, I scrub the QD out as best i can, and rinse it well, and call it good.

[HVB]

Huh, I take my qd's apart a lot. Guess I am in the minority.

[positiveContact]

Huh, I take my qd's apart a lot. Guess I am in the minority.

 

do you ever find any gunk in there?

[neddles]

Huh, I take my qd's apart a lot. Guess I am in the minority.

Me too.

[HVB]

do you ever find any gunk in there?

I do especially on beers with a big dry hop.

[positiveContact]

I do especially on beers with a big dry hop.

 

[positiveContact]

so is BLC still the beer line cleaner of choice?  should I be using something else?

[Bklmt2000]

BLC is what i use.

[positiveContact]

so when I get this thing set up how many lines can I clean with a single batch of BLC?  I was going to clean both of my tap tower lines and then run through all of my hand taps (4-5 I think) as well.

 

how much BLC should I make per cleaning?

[Bklmt2000]

I have 3 tap lines, and I clean all 3 in one sitting.  I also mix up about 2 quarts of BLC.

 

I also use hot water to make the BLC solution, so after each keg, if it feels a little cool, just zap it in the microwave for a couple of minutes, then continue line cleaning.

 

If the solution looks cruddy after cleaning a few lines, just dump it and make fresh.

[positiveContact]

cool.  I need to find a container to use.

[ZYMFUL]

Nice. I'm going to have to do this. Was going to get a pump like this anyway (cheapo harbor freight, curious how long it will last..) for other purposes. I just manually recirc with solution in the keg. Then take the faucets off and soak in BLC as well. Your method which I need to adopt is essentially what I did that the brewery, but with a lot more taps (nice homemade manifold to connect to all shanks, and then one shank was the output) and a bigger pump. I bought some BLC because no one sells anything else it seems - granted I was looking at homebrew store and keg places where I needed specific other items as well. Penetrate and DAC both work very well, but BLC is fine for our short run lines. I collect the initial dirtiest runnings in a plastic pitcher and just toss those, then keep the rest to recirc. Rinse with warm water. Run beer through. Enjoy beer as it should taste.

[gnef]

so is BLC still the beer line cleaner of choice?  should I be using something else?

I found Penetrate on amazon, I believe. It is just double the concentration of BLC, so you only use half as much. I really wanted DAC, but I couldn't find a cheap shipping option to make it worthwhile.

 

The setup I use is with a manifold now on the inside of the walk-in cooler. I heat about 1-1.5 gallons of solution in my pot on top of the camping stove with a thermometer. I then use my chugger pump to pump into one of the faucets, and have the line from that faucet go into a manifold, which is connected to other lines, and those faucets drain back into the stainless pot. I much prefer this parallel cleaning setup over the daisy chaining series setups I've seen.

 

The next time I do a cycle, I should do as ZYMFUL posted, and collect the initial dirtiest runnings into a separate pitcher. My solution typically clouds immediately, and then I just recirculate for 15 minutes or so at 130-140F (close to the max temp of the tubing).

[positiveContact]

I already ordered some BLC but maybe next time I'll try out this other product.

 

how hot do you guys get the solution?  I was figuring the hottest water my faucet puts out (130-140F) would be good.

[Bklmt2000]

my water heater is set at 120°F, and that seems to work well.

[ZYMFUL]

Yea i'd say no more than hot tap. ~120*F is good.