It's Kegging time 2022

[Classic Brewing Co]

5 minutes ago, Shamus O'Sean said:

That is great to hear.  Grain additions are not too difficult.  Cracking 300g of Light Crystal Malt in a zip-lock bag with a rolling pin is pretty straight forward.  I would not want to have to crack 4kg this way. 

Yes I agree, that sounds like punishment more so than an enjoyable hobby.

[Tricky Micky]

All is well in the Mickep kegging camp so far. I've noticed a slight increase in the gas psi setting though. It's moved from the initial setting of 14psi to around 16psi. Is that going to be an issue ? If it is, how would I decrease that back down to 14psi?

[Classic Brewing Co]

40 minutes ago, Mickep said:

All is well in the Mickep kegging camp so far. I've noticed a slight increase in the gas psi setting though. It's moved from the initial setting of 14psi to around 16psi. Is that going to be an issue ? If it is, how would I decrease that back down to 14psi?

Well done Mick, I guess you have to get the odd teething problem but I hope it is smooth sailing for you now.

[Pezzza]

11 hours ago, Pale Man said:

My advice to you is get your all grain up and running and keep bottling. Then when you're confident have a think about kegging.

 

11 hours ago, Classic Brewing Co said:

Yes I totally agree, I have to do it that way, slowly work my way up the ladder - I think it's meant to be down the hole ! 

I will wait until I have mastered AG & then take it from there. Cheers.

@Classic Brewing Co I would agree very much with Paleo @Pale Manon this Phil - seems you do too from your post - but just to support... you can brew beautiful AG (and with good KnK for that matter) Beer in bottles...   

This was my very first AG: ANZAC Golden Sunset Ale...  out of a Coopers Largie... very taschty and not a keg in sight 

(and a shedload less mowing back then as well )

And agree with @Shamus O'Sean and @kmar92 Kmar too on the good support on this site... I would not have got to my first All Grainer without the good Brewers here, nor in kegging where I got loadsa input and a shout-out thanks to @Red devil 44 Reddler The Gas Guru who helped numerously ; )

[Pezzza]

3 hours ago, Mickep said:

Is that going to be an issue ?

I wouldn't have thought it would be an issue @Mickep... some of us run a bit higher PSI normally... just try it and see...

If you want to drop it - just turn the Gas off at the Bottle - and pour a few beers and it will drop back down...

Edited March 11, 2022 by Itinerant Peasant

[Tricky Micky]

Is it okay to store brew in a keg at ambient temps (Ales)? I've run out of space in the fridge. TIA

[Malter White]

21 minutes ago, Mickep said:

Is it okay to store brew in a keg at ambient temps (Ales)? I've run out of space in the fridge. TIA

I'm pretty sure it's fine to do so, Mick. Many pubs don't store their kegs in the fridge. I'd be inclined to purge the oxygen first and keep them somewhere where they won't get too hot though. A cool, dark place. 

[Pezzza]

1 minute ago, MUZZY said:

I'm pretty sure it's fine to do so, Mick. Many pubs don't store their kegs in the fridge. I'd be inclined to purge the oxygen first and keep them somewhere where they won't get too hot though. A cool, dark place. 

 

26 minutes ago, Mickep said:

Is it okay to store brew in a keg at ambient temps (Ales)? I've run out of space in the fridge. TIA

 

Yeah @Mickep I agree with @MUZZY Muzzler on this one... 

Certainly would be good to not have any oxygen in there... but I think you do closed transfers maybe anyway -- and then just do some burping (pressurize-release with PRV and repeat a few times) maybe to be sure to be sure...

And then store in a cool dark place is good as Muzzy notes above... 

I reckon they will keep for a good while - but I wouldn't be storing them at 30 degrees in the back shed in summer.

Haven't got any scientific evidence to help support that... but I reckon low twenties and lower would be fine if saturated with CO2.

 

One other way to do things which supposedly has good stability - is to treat the keg 'as a big bottle' - and add Dex or Sugar or other fermentable to the finished beer filled into the keg - and probably not cold crashing prior to ensure some yeast goes through - and then keep that at 18 or warmer to ferment out... and the yeast gets rid of all of the Oxygen available before settling out - like a big bottle.

But like storing bottles... cold dark place I reckon is the better way forward.

HTH

 

[Greenyinthewestofsydney]

10 minutes ago, Itinerant Peasant said:

 

 

Yeah @Mickep I agree with @MUZZY Muzzler on this one... 

Certainly would be good to not have any oxygen in there... but I think you do closed transfers maybe anyway -- and then just do some burping (pressurize-release with PRV and repeat a few times) maybe to be sure to be sure...

And then store in a cool dark place is good as Muzzy notes above... 

I reckon they will keep for a good while - but I wouldn't be storing them at 30 degrees in the back shed in summer.

Haven't got any scientific evidence to help support that... but I reckon low twenties and lower would be fine if saturated with CO2.

 

One other way to do things which supposedly has good stability - is to treat the keg 'as a big bottle' - and add Dex or Sugar or other fermentable to the finished beer filled into the keg - and probably not cold crashing prior to ensure some yeast goes through - and then keep that at 18 or warmer to ferment out... and the yeast gets rid of all of the Oxygen available before settling out - like a big bottle.

But like storing bottles... cold dark place I reckon is the better way forward.

HTH

 

Yep. Once it's carbonated up the coolest ambient place is fine for storage. I don't think it matters if it's force carbed or naturally carbed but for safety sake if I am keeping a keg for a while to mature then I will natural carbonate it. Most of what I have read say that it will last longer that way.

[Pezzza]

1 hour ago, Greenyinthewestofsydney said:

Yep. Once it's carbonated up the coolest ambient place is fine for storage. I don't think it matters if it's force carbed or naturally carbed but for safety sake if I am keeping a keg for a while to mature then I will natural carbonate it. Most of what I have read say that it will last longer that way.

Greeny @Greenyinthewestofsydney mate just quickly and I am sure you have pointed out to me the Fermentables Calculator somewhere on the webski...

But as a general rule - for nothing overly fizzy - but ensuring that one chews up the oxygen via yeast and provides a bit of bubble to the keg contents - which could be easy topped up later if want more fizz at the time of pour - what amount e.g. cup measures or weight - of fine grained white sugar would you add to a normal Corny 18/19L Keg of Brew?  

My rule of thumb comes wayback when from @PB2 from memory which was a cup of white sugar per keg... and PB may have also been referring to a Cooopers Sparkling Cone too...  the cupfull works well but does seem to generate quite a lot of yeast mass - and from memory also I vaguely think I got comments that a whole cup might be a bit more than necessary...

Any thoughts/help/feedback would be appreciated (and other Brewers most welcome to jump in as well)

Thanks mate

Edited March 12, 2022 by Itinerant Peasant

[kmar92]

Found this calculator @Itinerant Peasant

https://www.brewersfriend.com/beer-priming-calculator/

[Pezzza]

45 minutes ago, kmar92 said:

Found this calculator

Gold haha - thanks @kmar92 Kmar - I suspect this might be the very one Greeny @Greenyinthewestofsydneyor some other smart Brewer provided me in the past... and now the big question is - how many volumes of CO2... their default is 2 -- I cranked it to 2.5 using the below web inf..

and it produced approx 120g sugar... which is about 2/3 cup... so maybe that might do.

For a Hefeweizen having the yeast was no problem - am just thinking of other styles and also blockages - and yep I could utilise a floating dip tube too... 

Anyway, I might try 125g next time...   Cheers and Good Brewing All ; )

[Greenyinthewestofsydney]

43 minutes ago, Itinerant Peasant said:

Gold haha - thanks @kmar92 Kmar - I suspect this might be the very one Greeny @Greenyinthewestofsydneyor some other smart Brewer provided me in the past... and now the big question is - how many volumes of CO2... their default is 2 -- I cranked it to 2.5 using the below web inf..

and it produced approx 120g sugar... which is about 2/3 cup... so maybe that might do.

For a Hefeweizen having the yeast was no problem - am just thinking of other styles and also blockages - and yep I could utilise a floating dip tube too... 

Anyway, I might try 125g next time...   Cheers and Good Brewing All ; )

Yup the one @kmar92 linked is the one I use. As you say though you can top it up with gas anyway once you start drinking it. If I'm naturally carbonating I usually put in 80gm of sugar in the keg. That's enough to eat anything in there then I let the forced carb at serving pressure add the rest of the carbonation.

[Pezzza]

1 hour ago, Greenyinthewestofsydney said:

usually put in 80gm of sugar in the keg.

Beautiful - thanks @Greenyinthewestofsydney Greeny - am looking at the possibility of ambient-storing a few kegglers if I can keep my production running, and would be happy with a bit less yeast in the bottom but rid the Oxy... so 80gm sounds good - Thanks muchly mate most appreciated

[Tricky Micky]

14 hours ago, Greenyinthewestofsydney said:

Yup the one @kmar92 linked is the one I use. As you say though you can top it up with gas anyway once you start drinking it. If I'm naturally carbonating I usually put in 80gm of sugar in the keg. That's enough to eat anything in there then I let the forced carb at serving pressure add the rest of the carbonation.

Greeny, @Greenyinthewestofsydney, could you explain the process a little further here. Once I've carbed the keg to the desired level naturally (added sugar to the keg) and let's say the thing has been stored at 20 degrees c, when it comes time to hook it up to the lines in the kegerator/keezer/whatever, am I just hooking up the gas as normal and setting to serving pressure? TIA mate

Edited March 12, 2022 by Mickep

[Liambeer]

7 minutes ago, Mickep said:

Greeny, @Greenyinthewestofsydney, could you explain the process a little further here. Once I've carbed the keg to the desired level naturally (added sugar to the keg) and let's say the thing has been stored at 20 degrees c, when it comes time to hook it up to the lines in the kegerator/keezer/whatever, am I just hooking up the gas as normal and setting to serving pressure? TIA mate

Yeah mate, that’s the go

[Tricky Micky]

7 minutes ago, Liambeer said:

15 minutes ago, Mickep said:

Greeny, @Greenyinthewestofsydney, could you explain the process a little further here. Once I've carbed the keg to the desired level naturally (added sugar to the keg) and let's say the thing has been stored at 20 degrees c, when it comes time to hook it up to the lines in the kegerator/keezer/whatever, am I just hooking up the gas as normal and setting to serving pressure? TIA mate

Yeah mate, that’s the go

And, would the beer then be ready for immediate drinking (because it's been carbed naturally)? Especially an Ale brew?

[ozdevil]

i honestly dont see the point in carbing a keg  with priming sugar,  i dont knock people for doing  it .

i suppose if you had spare kegs waiting in the wings  it would be the way to go saving time waiting for the next keg to carb up

[Greenyinthewestofsydney]

4 hours ago, Mickep said:

And, would the beer then be ready for immediate drinking (because it's been carbed naturally)? Especially an Ale brew?

Yeah Mick. As others have said once your ready to drink it put it into the fridge and get it cold and drink away. If it is a little under or over carbed in a few days it will equalise to that serving psi. 

[Greenyinthewestofsydney]

55 minutes ago, ozdevil said:

i honestly dont see the point in carbing a keg  with priming sugar,  i dont knock people for doing  it .

i suppose if you had spare kegs waiting in the wings  it would be the way to go saving time waiting for the next keg to carb up

Yeah its a convenience thing but with yeast driven styles I think it makes a small difference to the overall taste but not much. Saying this i mostly bottle them except for some saisons in summer. 

[Aussiekraut]

How long does it take for CO2 to be absorbed back into the beer? I filled a keg recently and fast carbed it overnight in a fridge at about 2c. Once done, I put it aside and kept it at room temp for about 2 weeks. It went into the kegerator yesterday morning and is now nice and cold again but only pours mainly froth (sitting at 10 PSI). When I tried yesterday, it was froth only, this morning, when I poured another test, it was still about 90% froth with just a small amount of beer at the bottom of the glass.

I take it that until the "excess" CO2 has gone back into solution, it is the equivalent to serving pressure and way too high for a decent pour. Or is it?

Also, whilst I'm here asking silly questions, I will go overseas in a couple of months. Should I disconnect and clean the beer lines and taps while I am away, so nothing nasty can grow in them and the taps? There won't be any beer poured in my absence. I intend on turning off the gas but am not sure about the beer lines.

 

[Shamus O'Sean]

Hi @Aussiekraut, if you fast carbed at 30-40psi and left it at that when you disconnected the keg, the CO2 would keep absorbing into the beer.  I am not sure whether doing this at ambient means the CO2 absorbs less or just slower. Warming up to ambient will also increase the internal pressure by a few psi.  Certainly sounds like it is over-carbonated now. It might have been better to burp the keg and drop it back to serving pressure for ambient storage.

I do not know about cleaning your beer lines before going away.  It sounds like good practice though. 

[ozdevil]

4 hours ago, Aussiekraut said:

How long does it take for CO2 to be absorbed back into the beer? I filled a keg recently and fast carbed it overnight in a fridge at about 2c. Once done, I put it aside and kept it at room temp for about 2 weeks. It went into the kegerator yesterday morning and is now nice and cold again but only pours mainly froth (sitting at 10 PSI). When I tried yesterday, it was froth only, this morning, when I poured another test, it was still about 90% froth with just a small amount of beer at the bottom of the glass.

I take it that until the "excess" CO2 has gone back into solution, it is the equivalent to serving pressure and way too high for a decent pour. Or is it?

Also, whilst I'm here asking silly questions, I will go overseas in a couple of months. Should I disconnect and clean the beer lines and taps while I am away, so nothing nasty can grow in them and the taps? There won't be any beer poured in my absence. I intend on turning off the gas but am not sure about the beer lines.

 

This why i hate fast carbing  , you run into issues,  lucky it can be fixed by burping the keg  but to me  its far to much double handling and thats why i go set and forget method

[stquinto]

14 hours ago, Aussiekraut said:

Should I disconnect and clean the beer lines and taps while I am away, so nothing nasty can grow in them and the taps?

Personally I would run sanitiser through them. I’ve had a mouthful of sour beer and it’s not great, unless maybe it’s a Belgian sour - not entirely dissimilar TBH

 

[stquinto]

I kegged my first Grainfather brew that I had messed up the OG. I mentioned elsewhere that I’d had to chuck in some LME to bring it up to 1.042. The FG was 1.010 after 3 weeks, and already clear. I had upped the hop count to what the recipe suggested for 25 litres (Timothy Taylor Landlord). I think  this one might be right for the hops. So 4.2 degrees. I had wanted to add sugar to the keg but didn’t in the end. As it was clear I’ll get stuck in soon.