Kegging

scrapsmac

Hi all,

I'm thinking of getting into kegging but I'm slightly confused by the process/ what I need to get started.

I don't have as much free time anymore for cleaning and sterilising my bottles so kegging seems like a good fit.

I've read the guide on beoir however I was under the impression that if I were to batch prime I would not need any CO2 as the beer would carb as it would in a bottle?

I've also had a look on adverts.ie for corny kegs but again I'm slightly baffled what to look out for!

Any advice would be much appreciated!! I should add that I'm looking to get into this as cheaply as possible. I understand there may be an initially high cost however

Cheers!

Davkinse

I have recently moved into kegging my beer after getting fed up washing all those bottles. I managed to get two Cornelius kegs from the UK fairly cheaply and had a gas regulator from and old Mig welder I used to have, so all I had to buy was a CO2 bottle, beer/gas line and a tap. You can batch prime but i think you may encounter some problems sealing a corny without gassing it. Force carbonation with the CO2 is the easier way to go in my opinion, it is so much easier to just run 19 litres into the corny and gas it up for a week or so to carbonate, condition for a while and then drink it.

I got my CO2 bottle from Munster CO2 for 60 euro (20 euro refill).

The beer /gas line, ball lock connectors for the corny and tap I got from Adverts.ie, a seller called Alex, he also sells corneys for 55 euro each and regulators for your gas for 35 euro and if you buy a few bits off him will do you a deal.

As you say it is a bit expensive to move over to the corneys but not washing and sterilizing all those bottles and when you pour your first pint makes it worthwhile.

oblivious

scrapsmac wrote: »

I've read the guide on beoir however I was under the impression that if I were to batch prime I would not need any CO2 as the beer would carb as it would in a bottle? !

corny lids generally need around 10 psi to seal them. Some will seal with out any gas but a lot will need it

Martyn1989

scrapsmac wrote: »

Hi all,

I'm thinking of getting into kegging but I'm slightly confused by the process/ what I need to get started.

I don't have as much free time anymore for cleaning and sterilising my bottles so kegging seems like a good fit.

I've read the guide on beoir however I was under the impression that if I were to batch prime I would not need any CO2 as the beer would carb as it would in a bottle?

I've also had a look on adverts.ie for corny kegs but again I'm slightly baffled what to look out for!

Any advice would be much appreciated!! I should add that I'm looking to get into this as cheaply as possible. I understand there may be an initially high cost however

Cheers!

The problem is you'll batch prime and carbonation will build up but as you draw beers off that pressure will decrease and your beer will start going flat again which is why you need to maintain some pressure. I've heard your beer only takes 2 days to carbonate in refrigerated corneys when pressurised which is why it's considered such a time saver, you could have a beer grain to glass in a little over 2 weeks.

mayto

Martyn1989 wrote: »

The problem is you'll batch prime and carbonation will build up but as you draw beers off that pressure will decrease and your beer will start going flat again which is why you need to maintain some pressure. I've heard your beer only takes 2 days to carbonate in refrigerated corneys when pressurised which is why it's considered such a time saver, you could have a beer grain to glass in a little over 2 weeks.

Also batch priming will generate more yeast which is not ideal. I myself would only consider it if I had no co2 to keg the beer.

scrapsmac

Cheers for the replies folks! I think it's something I'll look in to. So essentially I need a corny keg, regulator, tap, beer/gas line and some CO2? Anybody up North selling this gear?

syngindub

not to be overlooked, but vital, is a cooler. Not sure what price these come in at. There is the option of self cooling the keg in a freezer before pouring but think of the convenience when you can turn on a cooler maybe 15 minutes before first pour. A must in my opinion.

Tube

I have batch primed in cornies out of necessity. But you do need to blow some CO2 into cornies to seal the lids, so it's not really a replacement for buying a CO2 tank & reg etc.

poitinstill

i have my cornies in operation by priming as in a budget barrel. i now have gas bottle and a regulator from my beer&wine. what kind of connector do i need to attach the gas line to the regulator . i though i could just soften the tube in hot water and then attach to regulator and cool it / jubilee clip . but the tubing seems too narrow even when heated to get a good hold on the regulator. is there a fitting i can get in hardware shop or is it brewing specific ?

Saruman

Myself and many others have bought our Kegs from Normannumpa on Ebay.

I wouldn't even bother with his ebay shop. Just email him. I'll PM you his address.

It's been a while since I have had buy any keg stuff from him so I can't say for certain he is still as cheap as he was but re-conditioned kegs with disconnects and tubing used to be £35

poitinstill

i actually have the cornies working with beer line> picnic tap. I have a regulator i got off mybeerandwine. i have gas line . the problem is the gas line doesnt connect to the regulator. i tried soften in boiling water and squeeze it on. but no way. is there a specific connector i need to connect gas line onto the regulator. i have everything else in place except i cant get the gas line connected to the regulator. hope it can be got in a hw shop but my local one is poor. you have to know what your looking for going in there

Saruman

You probably need a different sized John Guest fitting but will need some pics to see what you are talking about.

poitinstill

http://www.mybeerandwine.ie/keg-starter-kit-pi-395.html?invis=2
this is the regulator..
I thought i could just attach the gas line to the regulator with a jubilee clip but the tube is far too narrow to fit over the outlet even when heated in boiling water.
is there a fitting i could get in hardware/ plumbing suppliers or is it brewing gear specific. ?

Saruman

Looks like a standard regulator. you just screw a john guest fitting on to it and the gas line goes in to that.

Spudsky

Hi, if you need kegs get in touch. We have recently found some in a property we purchased, so are looking to get rid.

BeerNut

Spudsky wrote: »

Hi, if you need kegs get in touch. We have recently found some in a property we purchased, so are looking to get rid.

Have you tried returning them to the brewery? They own them.

Saruman

Spudsky wrote: »

Hi, if you need kegs get in touch. We have recently found some in a property we purchased, so are looking to get rid.

Assuming you are talking about regular beer kegs and not cornies, it might be worthwhile reading the following.

As TBN said, Let the brewery know and they will collect them.

Spudsky

Thanks good to know, cause I moved from abroad where it's normal to sell.