DJB1962 Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Thanks Kelsey. It certainly is a lot easier that washing and sanitising all those bottles. Having said that I do try to get at least a few bottles out of each batch as give aways etc. I think I will also dedicate a tap to soda water. Saves buying it and we seem to go though a bit here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted February 13, 2018 Author Share Posted February 13, 2018 Kelsey' date=' What pressure do you set your soda water at?[/quote']I usually carbonate it at 50PSI for a couple of days, then let it rest for a few hours before connecting the tap. During serving I give it periodic hits of gas at 30PSI for a few hours (it's probably more like 27PSI accounting for the check valves reducing the pressure a bit). I don't leave the gas on permanently to that keg though because it runs at a higher pressure than my beer kegs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted February 22, 2018 Author Share Posted February 22, 2018 Kegging day today since I have a 4h55m break in the middle of my shift. Today the red ale is going in. I didn't end up using any oak chips in it this time, but planning to next time. I'll be able to fill a 19L keg and half fill my 10L keg, with the rest of that to be filled with a pale ale in a couple of weeks time when it's ready. I'll be putting this keg and the other one with the home grown Cascade pale ale in it into the kegerator once filled, and carbonating it overnight so they're ready for tomorrow. Then we're going away for the weekend so they can sit on serving pressure and finish off for Sunday arvo/evening. I'm hoping this new schedule of only putting two kegs in at a time will make it easier to keep up production with consumption, and prevent these instances of having to buy beer for a month while I brew and ferment to fill an empty keg or two, because it gets a bit bloody expensive. Might have to buy a carton for a weekend every now and then, but that's a lot better and I'd be more inclined to buy something decent rather than cheap imported lagers. Cheers Kelsey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted March 14, 2018 Author Share Posted March 14, 2018 Kegging the pale ale today, this one done with Centennial and Chinook in the kettle and a small 30g dry hop of Chinook during the cold crash. 25L batch so will fill the rest of the little keg with the surplus and the main lot going into a 19L keg. The small keg will then go straight into the fridge on gas, as the home grown Cascade pale ale keg ran out on Monday night. Tomorrow, I'll be pitching yeast into a batch of German lager that was brewed over the weekend, and it should be kegged in a bit over 3 weeks time. Hopefully the little keg and the red ale keg which is still mostly full will be able to cover that timeframe but I'm not gonna be too worried if I have to buy a carton for one weekend. It's better than doing it for 5 or 6 weekends. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted April 10, 2018 Author Share Posted April 10, 2018 It's kegging day today which means as of tomorrow or Thursday I'll have beer on tap again. Today's batch is my German lager which ended up being partially frozen in the FV for some reason but since it's being kegged who really cares... I don't need the yeast for carbonation anyway . This one will just be slow carbed on serving pressure as I'll have a keg of pale ale sitting in front of it in the fridge that I can drink while the lager carbonates. This will also give it some extra lagering time in the keg before it is properly tapped. FG samples tasted quite good however so I'm expecting a good outcome. Better get to it, gotta go back to work in a bit over an hour and a half. Cheers Kelsey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted May 16, 2018 Author Share Posted May 16, 2018 Just kegged my recent Rakau Pale Ale earlier today which is now on 3 bar pressure CO2 to carb it up by tomorrow night (will turn off gas before I leave for work tomorrow morning), although I probably won't start drinking it until Friday. It started at an OG of 1.047 and finished at 1.0115, giving an ABV of 4.57% in the keg. I had a small mouthful of the last of the what I call "clearing glasses"* to taste test it and I reckon it's gonna be a nice brew. Probably needs a week or two to settle properly but still I'm happy with the end result. The other beer tap is occupied by the main 19L portion of the Northern English brown ale, but that keg won't really start being consumed until this pale ale is emptied (I've already tasted it anyway from the 10 or so schooners I got from the 10L keg), so it will just carbonate slowly on serving pressure. Tomorrow, another batch of German lager goes into the FV to ferment and will be kegged in 3-4 weeks time. *I always draw off 2-3 glasses before I begin filling the kegs, just to clear the tap and surrounds of gunk to prevent it getting in the kegs. If this occurs on a weekend then I usually drink the last of them but on workdays unfortunately they have to be tipped. Cheers Kelsey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekymetal Posted May 16, 2018 Share Posted May 16, 2018 Hi all Thanks for all the information here. I am just about to keg for the first time, certainly saves me asking dumb ass questions! Ive only started with 10 ltr kegs. Would the set and forget method just get halved? cheers Ek Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted May 16, 2018 Author Share Posted May 16, 2018 I have one 10 litre keg, and often carbonate it on serving pressure only because it only takes about 3-4 days to carbonate it so yes the set and forget method does get halved - but only in terms of time. You still need to use the same gas pressure as the bigger kegs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ekymetal Posted May 17, 2018 Share Posted May 17, 2018 Thank mate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerveja Posted May 21, 2018 Share Posted May 21, 2018 Just sitting here enjoying my second evening of home draught beer. A huge thanks to Kelsey (and others) for all of the ups, downs, warnings and encouragement in this thread. Approaching my 50th my family wanted to get me something a bit special. I was at the point of wanting to simplify my brewing and looking seriously at Brewart. A few weeks ago my wife (bless her) said "no, you love your brewing, we need to do it right. Get kegs". I was always unsure because of the horror stories doing the rounds - gas leaks, foamy beer, not using the system enough etc. So, over a few nights, I sat down and read the preceeding 23 pages. It convinced me to give it a go and I now have a shiny new 3 tap kegerator pouring ice cold beer made by me. For anyone doubting the move to kegs - don't! With some research and patience it is easy as. An update on pricing too. I understand your desire to do it right the first time Kelsey but I'm happy to get the system working and upgrade as I go. There are amazing deals out there right now with a battle on for market share. 3 tap kegerator $530. NEW stainless kegs $89. Full 6kg gas bottle $89. I upgraded the disconnects to stainless and still had change out of $1000 for all new gear. Kegged 2 brews Saturday and used Kelsey's "40psi for 24 hours, burp keg and sit at serving pressure for 6-7 hours" method. My times were a little shorter and, as Kelsey said, a little undercarbonated last night. But tonight? Well on the way to an awesome brew. And, about 15 mins to sanitise the kegs, fill and get on the gas. The 5 bottles left over were a PITA. The down side is we are now constructing a new deck and bar beside our bali hut and pool. This will cost more than the kegerator. Will try and post photos in the weeks to come. Anyone toying with the idea DO IT. Prices will never be cheaper and your beer will never be better. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted May 21, 2018 Author Share Posted May 21, 2018 Nice work mate! My only regret with moving to kegs was not being able to do it sooner. I bought a 10 litre keg for those "last few bottles"; I use it with 25L batches and blend two beers in the one keg for 8-10L of a "third" batch. Saves bottling anything and they usually turn out nice. Once I get my little bench capper fixed I'll do 25L lager batches and bottle the excess but otherwise it's all kegged. Cheers Kelsey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SG114 Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 16 hours ago, Cerveja said: Just sitting here enjoying my second evening of home draught beer. A huge thanks to Kelsey (and others) for all of the ups, downs, warnings and encouragement in this thread. Approaching my 50th my family wanted to get me something a bit special. I was at the point of wanting to simplify my brewing and looking seriously at Brewart. A few weeks ago my wife (bless her) said "no, you love your brewing, we need to do it right. Get kegs". I was always unsure because of the horror stories doing the rounds - gas leaks, foamy beer, not using the system enough etc. So, over a few nights, I sat down and read the preceeding 23 pages. It convinced me to give it a go and I now have a shiny new 3 tap kegerator pouring ice cold beer made by me. For anyone doubting the move to kegs - don't! With some research and patience it is easy as. An update on pricing too. I understand your desire to do it right the first time Kelsey but I'm happy to get the system working and upgrade as I go. There are amazing deals out there right now with a battle on for market share. 3 tap kegerator $530. NEW stainless kegs $89. Full 6kg gas bottle $89. I upgraded the disconnects to stainless and still had change out of $1000 for all new gear. Kegged 2 brews Saturday and used Kelsey's "40psi for 24 hours, burp keg and sit at serving pressure for 6-7 hours" method. My times were a little shorter and, as Kelsey said, a little undercarbonated last night. But tonight? Well on the way to an awesome brew. And, about 15 mins to sanitise the kegs, fill and get on the gas. The 5 bottles left over were a PITA. The down side is we are now constructing a new deck and bar beside our bali hut and pool. This will cost more than the kegerator. Will try and post photos in the weeks to come. Anyone toying with the idea DO IT. Prices will never be cheaper and your beer will never be better. Cheers Hey mate, I've recently started kegging but I've been struggling a bit to get the carbonation right. Did you carbonate at room temp or had you already chilled then hit with gas for 24 hours? Cheers Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted May 22, 2018 Author Share Posted May 22, 2018 I've done both the keg already chilled, and put the keg in at room temp and chilled it while carbonating at the high pressure. Both ways work pretty much the same. Basically you just put the keg in the fridge, set the gas pressure on it to 40PSI or so, leave it there for 22-24 hours, then turn the gas off and let it sit for 6-7 hours, then burp the keg and turn gas back on at serving pressure. At this point, it's usually a bit under full carbonation but another 24 hours sitting on serving pressure normally gets it fully carbonated. Alternatively, you can simply sit the keg on serving pressure and wait a week. I usually do this with the keg at the back of the fridge as I drink the front two first, so it doesn't matter if it takes longer to carbonate. Just don't connect the beer out disconnect (the black one) to the keg while using high pressure gas. I found out the hard way once when the pressure blew the beer line off the tap tower shank thingy and sprayed cordial all over the inside of the fridge and blew open the door. They're more secured now but I still don't trust it. I just wait until the gas is turned back on after that 6-7 hour resting period to connect the tap. You're not gonna be drinking it while it's on high pressure carbonating anyway. Cheers Kelsey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Chappies Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 Finally got my setup sorted a couple of weeks back, and pleased to say that I'm starting to get a handle on all of this. The balance between line length and gas pressure, etc. etc. First proper brew in there (hefe) started off with limited head (keg conditioned) but funny to watch as the weeks go pass the head getting bigger and bigger! Had to back off the pressure a bit just to bring it back under control Although I made up a keg of cola for the kids the other week and am surprised just how much harder it is to get that to carbonate vs plain water! Didn't expect that..... Enjoying the ability to just go and pour half a glass without worrying about opening a bottle... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerveja Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 Hey Steve, Pretty much as Kelsey said. The keg was at room temp and I went 35psi as I was a pussy first time around. About 20 hours in, disconnected the gas, burped the keg and re-connected at 11psi for about 4 hours. Was pretty good Sunday night but definitely better last night. Then again, when is a Monday night session not any good? I have to go and see what 24 hours has done actually.... Cheers Eric Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SG114 Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 4 minutes ago, Cerveja said: Hey Steve, Pretty much as Kelsey said. The keg was at room temp and I went 35psi as I was a pussy first time around. About 20 hours in, disconnected the gas, burped the keg and re-connected at 11psi for about 4 hours. Was pretty good Sunday night but definitely better last night. Then again, when is a Monday night session not any good? I have to go and see what 24 hours has done actually.... Cheers Eric Thanks Eric and Kelsey for the advice, I'll give this a go. Cheers Steve Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted May 22, 2018 Author Share Posted May 22, 2018 Don't burp the keg as soon as you disconnect the gas from high pressure, as there's still a heap of gas in the keg headspace that will absorb into the beer, that's why you just disconnect it and leave it for a few hours and then burp it before reconnecting at serving pressure. Regarding the cola, it will be harder to carbonate because its SG is higher than water (and beer for that matter), meaning it's harder for the gas to dissolve into it. I had the same problem with a cordial keg I did, it took about two weeks on high pressure to fully carbonate, so now I just carbonate the water and mix the cordial in the glass. Cheers Kelsey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cerveja Posted May 22, 2018 Share Posted May 22, 2018 Sorry Kelsey, correct. I did follow your instructions and burped just prior to reconnecting at serving pressure. Pretty much perfect in the glass tonight BTW. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Titan Posted June 8, 2018 Share Posted June 8, 2018 Just kegged my American Brown Porter and will also keg an IPA at some point today. Busy day here in the garage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted June 30, 2018 Author Share Posted June 30, 2018 Just finished putting the oaked red ale into two kegs, 4.5L or so into the 10L "little bastard" keg and the rest into a full 19L keg which went straight into the kegerator to carb up on serving pressure over the next week (got some Monteith's XPA to tide me over in the meantime). Poured a small sample glass and it was more bitter than usual which I find pretty normal until the yeast settles out properly, should be fine in a week's time. Slight influence from the oak, could use more in my opinion so I'll throw it in with the yeast next batch. Two kegs in now. Pale ale into the fv tomorrow. Having another sample of the lager, tasting better than last week. Just as good as the Spaten München I had at lunch today I reckon. Cheers Kelsey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porschemad911 Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 Is the Monteith's XPA any good Kelsey? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hairy Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 28 minutes ago, porschemad911 said: Is the Monteith's XPA any good Kelsey? Not really. It is drinkable but there was something about it that wasn’t quite right. It’s hard to explain but it was the hopping that wasn’t right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
porschemad911 Posted June 30, 2018 Share Posted June 30, 2018 Cheers Hairy, glad I gave it a miss then. I haven't really ever liked a Monteith's beer unfortunately, so was hoping the XPA night be an exception. The Doppelbock was probably the best I've tried (gift from a friend), but at 6% abv it wasn't much of a doppelbock. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted June 30, 2018 Author Share Posted June 30, 2018 I don't mind it but there's better pale ales out there. I just didn't feel like taking out a mortgage to buy a carton of one of them Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Otto Von Blotto Posted July 18, 2018 Author Share Posted July 18, 2018 Just about to keg my Waimea pale ale, tasted pretty good at FG sample time. I'll be putting 4 litres into the 10L keg to go with the 4.5L or so of red ale that's already in it from the last batch, and it will go straight on gas to be ready for the weekend. The rest obviously into a 19L keg. That will give the lager keg more time as well. I had to drink some of it last weekend because the red ale blew dry already. Can't wait to get another FV and fridge set up. This running out of beer shit is annoying, although last weekend I did drink more than usual as some folks were around Saturday evening. It started at 1.048 and finished about 1.012, giving an ABV of 4.7%. Next to go into the FV tomorrow or Friday (probably tomorrow) is a German lager. Cheers Kelsey Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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