32 replies to this topic

[tag]

No matter how sanitary we are, none of our beer is without some bacterial contamination.I fill my cornies with hot PBW and take off the posts and hang them in the keg in a hop bag.

[BarelyBrews]

This must be one of my lazier areas. I do completely break down my kegs when I get them... but between batches I clean it out with hot water and EasyClean (a soak of about an hour) and then it gets filled with Starsan solution. When the keg has EasyClean in it, it comes up into the liquid-out tube and I'll use a small, thin brush to clean it further. I will also run the EasyClean & StarSan through my tap lines. If I had to break down the kegs between each use, I'd probably have to find another hobby... I don't have that kind of time.

This about sums it up for me also.Have not had any problems.

[realbeerguy]

Clean when needed. & usually when I have 3-4 kegs to do at a time

[Stout_fan]

I've so many kegs, some will sit empty for years. That is why I totally disassemble and store dry & purged.When one kicks I generally wait till I have two or three more to clean, then I get in a clean-up mode and go to town.That's the only way I can get the parts mixed up between the kegs.

[Thirsty]

That's the only way I can get the parts mixed up between the kegs.

It is always good to have a goal!I break down every time, but I just scrub the posts and poppets in hot water, rinse out the dip tube, scrub the lid, rinse the keg with hot water and a carboy brush, a couple hot rinses, reassemble, pour about a quart of starsan solution in, cap it and roll it, 5 minutes later dump the starsan, purge and fill.

[3rd party JKor]

Once I get a sink and countertop in my basement and put together my automatic keg washer, I'll probably clean them right away. For now I put it off as long as possible because it's such a PITA. I cleaned out two kegs to transfer my mild out of the fermenter, from the time a grabbed the kegs until I had the beer transferred was like 5 hours...and I went up and down the stairs at least 50 times. Ugh, so annoying.

Edited by JKoravos, 23 November 2009 - 11:45 AM.

[Stout_fan]

The point of my actual posting was item #2.Before putting my recycled PWB into the keg, a tablespoon of new PBW cuts the foaming action way down.That I still don't fully understand.I think it's like the tannins and small particles in beer that rupture the bubbles and lead to early head collapse in your freshly poured pint. Lagering it for a while (read: cold storage) will greatly increase head persistence.

[Kremer]

I made a cornie cleaner/rinser that works really well. It's just a gas and liquid disconnect with 6" of hose on each side of a tee to a 2' piece of hose to a garden hose conector. I hook it up the my utility sink faucet, put the gas and liquid connectors on the keg, and invert the keg in the sink without the lid. 30-60 seconds of hot water blast gets the kegs almost completely clean to eye. I'll put some homemade PBW in and scrub/shake/soak it a bit then hit it with another 30 seconds with the rinse rig to get it all out. It's not a full recirculating keg washer, but just this $15 rinsing deal has cut my keg cleaning time in half.

[gnef]

For those of you tearing down the kegs every time, have you found a good way to take out the poppets from firestone kegs without destroying them? I have tried with a small flat head screwdriver, and sometimes I can get it out, but I think I may be bending the legs of the poppets because the legs sit in a groove inside the post. Cornelius poppets just fall out, so that's not a problem, but the firestone kegs I've had issues with.

[ThroatwobblerMangrove]

For those of you tearing down the kegs every time, have you found a good way to take out the poppets from firestone kegs without destroying them? I have tried with a small flat head screwdriver, and sometimes I can get it out, but I think I may be bending the legs of the poppets because the legs sit in a groove inside the post. Cornelius poppets just fall out, so that's not a problem, but the firestone kegs I've had issues with.

If they don't easily come out I just tweak them a tiny bit with something like a screwdriver. It usually doesn't take much to dislodge them in my experience.

[Stout_fan]

For those of you tearing down the kegs every time, have you found a good way to take out the poppets from firestone kegs without destroying them? ...

I just use a 1/8" drift pin punch. Center it on the poppet, grab a small chunk of 2x4 I have sitting around, and give it a tap. However. if you overdo it you will slam the poppet into the countertop and flatten the legs. If you're worried about that, get a chunk of hardwood, although another 2x4 will also work. Drill a hole with a forstner bit to match the od of the poppet. Then get a 5/8" forstner and drill the center through to allow a place for the poppet to hide when you accidentally smack the snot out of the poppet with the punch.

[ChicagoWaterGuy]

For those of you tearing down the kegs every time, have you found a good way to take out the poppets from firestone kegs without destroying them? I have tried with a small flat head screwdriver, and sometimes I can get it out, but I think I may be bending the legs of the poppets because the legs sit in a groove inside the post. Cornelius poppets just fall out, so that's not a problem, but the firestone kegs I've had issues with.

I use a corkscrew.

[Spoon]

I don't clean my kegs right away. I get thme when I get to them. I do keep them under gas though.