Woohoo, I'm no longer a kegging virgin!

The ins and outs of putting your beer into kegs.

Postby Ross » Tuesday Dec 11, 2007 9:53 pm

Hip hops, A fair price for what you are getting, but no cheaper than it would have been from us. 8)
However, i'd have recommended better parts through out to be honest.
When investing good money in a kegging system, i really do suggest getting advice before deciding & not just buying a package put together from the cheapest available parts.

cheers Ross
http://www.craftbrewer.com.au
Hops, Grain, Yeast & Brewing Supplies
Ross
 
Posts: 287
Joined: Saturday Oct 28, 2006 7:32 am
Location: Carbrook - SE Qld

Postby Hip Hops » Wednesday Dec 12, 2007 3:19 pm

Thanks for the tip Ross, I guess its just a start for now :roll: . I'll probably require more gear as time goes on but I'll more than likely be talking with you soon when i get it :wink:
Cheers mate
"For a quart of Ale is a dish for a King."
Hip Hops
 
Posts: 32
Joined: Wednesday Jun 20, 2007 1:33 pm
Location: Melbourne

Postby Chris » Thursday Dec 13, 2007 7:57 am

HH, I looked around everywhere, and Ross was the best for quality and price. Come to think of it, I need more kegs.
A beer in the hand is worth two in George Bush...

"They say beer will make me dumb. It are go good with pizza"
Psychostick
Chris
 
Posts: 3716
Joined: Tuesday Oct 04, 2005 1:35 pm
Location: Northern Canberra

Postby Boonie » Monday Dec 17, 2007 11:58 am

Congrat KEG, now we can call you KEG for having Kegs and not the ol' KE Ghia monica.

Cheers

Boonie
A homebrew is like a fart, only the brewer thinks it's great.
Give me a flying headbutt.......
User avatar
Boonie
 
Posts: 1760
Joined: Friday Jul 21, 2006 6:41 pm
Location: Lake Macquarie

Postby KEG » Monday Dec 17, 2007 1:14 pm

lol boonie that was a fair while ago :lol:
Image
User avatar
KEG
 
Posts: 1682
Joined: Thursday Dec 21, 2006 9:02 am

Postby Boonie » Monday Dec 17, 2007 6:08 pm

KEG wrote:lol boonie that was a fair while ago :lol:


I have a good memory for nicknames......after that, it is all downhill.

Cheers

Boonie
A homebrew is like a fart, only the brewer thinks it's great.
Give me a flying headbutt.......
User avatar
Boonie
 
Posts: 1760
Joined: Friday Jul 21, 2006 6:41 pm
Location: Lake Macquarie

Postby KEG » Monday Dec 17, 2007 9:38 pm

:lol:

think i'm headed that way myself in my old age ( :P ). my absent-mindedness led me to try going up the down escalator at parliament station in melbourne. quite possibly the longest escalators in melbourne. got a meter or two up before i realised something was wrong, stumbled around and went up the correct one. all in front of all the other friday night party-goers and it was BEFORE i'd got to the elephant and wheelbarrow and got into the JS Amber Ale :lol:
Image
User avatar
KEG
 
Posts: 1682
Joined: Thursday Dec 21, 2006 9:02 am

Postby Boonie » Tuesday Dec 18, 2007 11:33 am

:lol: :lol: :lol: GOLD.

How's ya kegs coming along KEG?

My pouring pressure is really low compared to what I have read on here? Maybe I am reading it wrong, but mine is around 10-20, right near where the gauge starts. :?

The head was a little large compared to what I normally have, as it was still coming fairly fast, but if I do not stop the pour and tilt the glass all the way to the end, it will work perfectly and have about an inch of head.

One thing that I do when lowering the pressure to pouring, is remove the CO2 gas from the Keg, burp the keg, lower the pressure on the regulator(I only have 1) to pouring setting, and this way I avoid the ultimate trap of beer in the airlines.

Another thing I noticed is that when I first burped the keg to "remove the oxygen" from the top of the beer as instructed, a little beer went back into the CO2 tube :shock:. I then simply, removed the airline, pressed the button in the connector and the small amount of beer in the airline spat out :D . This is easy :wink: touch wood

Sorry, rattling on and this has probably been all said before.

Cheers

Boonie
A homebrew is like a fart, only the brewer thinks it's great.
Give me a flying headbutt.......
User avatar
Boonie
 
Posts: 1760
Joined: Friday Jul 21, 2006 6:41 pm
Location: Lake Macquarie

Postby rwh » Tuesday Dec 18, 2007 11:49 am

Boonie wrote:My pouring pressure is really low compared to what I have read on here? Maybe I am reading it wrong, but mine is around 10-20, right near where the gauge starts. :?

10-20 what? I'm going to assume kpa. I normally pour between 50 and 75 kpa, with a 2 meter beer line. If your pouring pressure has to be super low to get a decent pour then your beer line is probably too short. Read this article: Balancing A Draught System
The head was a little large compared to what I normally have, as it was still coming fairly fast, but if I do not stop the pour and tilt the glass all the way to the end, it will work perfectly and have about an inch of head.

The head on kegged beer is completely different to that from the bottle (cf Guinness in a bottle compared to Guinness on tap). There are several reasons you could be getting too much head... overcarbonation (too much head with flat beer underneath), warm beer lines (first beer you pour has heaps of head, subsequent pours are fine) etc etc. I personally have warm beer lines because I have a font setup but I just live with it.
One thing that I do when lowering the pressure to pouring, is remove the CO2 gas from the Keg, burp the keg, lower the pressure on the regulator(I only have 1) to pouring setting, and this way I avoid the ultimate trap of beer in the airlines.

Buy a check valve from Ross. The peace of mind alone makes it worth it.
Another thing I noticed is that when I first burped the keg to "remove the oxygen" from the top of the beer as instructed, a little beer went back into the CO2 tube :shock:. I then simply, removed the airline, pressed the button in the connector and the small amount of beer in the airline spat out :D . This is easy :wink: touch wood

:shock: See above. ;)
w00t!
User avatar
rwh
 
Posts: 2810
Joined: Friday Jun 16, 2006 1:47 pm
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Postby KEG » Tuesday Dec 18, 2007 12:49 pm

Boonie, don't stress - i pour at a similarly low pressure, i have a bronco tap :P

also, i just give the keg a quick burp with the lines all connected before the first pour of the night, otherwise it'll be half a glass of head. i don't see the point in disconnecting - the pressure in the keg will be lower so beer can't go back up the airline when you do it - and the tiny amount of CO2 wasted is - well, tiny.

i do have a check valve though.
Image
User avatar
KEG
 
Posts: 1682
Joined: Thursday Dec 21, 2006 9:02 am

Postby Boonie » Tuesday Dec 18, 2007 7:04 pm

Thanks rwh, very informative as usual :wink: .

The link was brilliant for the balancing of the draught system. I realise now I may have cut the line too short. Mine is only 1 metre :oops: . Also it is 10 kpa. You guessed correctly.....sorry, should have added that description.

Will buy some more line and the check valve from Ross or my local....one of the 2, I've registered now with Ross. I was only thinking last night, why don't they invent a non-return valve for them :lol: .....You answered my question rwh, thanks 8)

I wish I had not carbed up the kegs again overnight as it is too fizzy now. I have disconnected the CO2 and will leave for a few hours and burp.

How long should I leave rwh?

I'll try the ol' burp method before pouring KEG and see how that goes. Just wish I had put a longer beer hose on though :lol: . I had extra, but thought "She'll be right" :wink: .....bugger.

Thanks fellas for your help in this stressful time....sort of, more happy than stressful :D .

Good luck with your kegs...um, KEG, and thanks again rwh......

Cheers

Boonie
A homebrew is like a fart, only the brewer thinks it's great.
Give me a flying headbutt.......
User avatar
Boonie
 
Posts: 1760
Joined: Friday Jul 21, 2006 6:41 pm
Location: Lake Macquarie

Postby KEG » Tuesday Dec 18, 2007 10:59 pm

hehe, i worried when i got mine as well. but all is not lost with 1m of line - my bronco tap only has 600mm on it.
Image
User avatar
KEG
 
Posts: 1682
Joined: Thursday Dec 21, 2006 9:02 am

Postby Heals » Wednesday Dec 19, 2007 1:34 am

So how are you finding the bronco tap KEG?

I've got one myself - looking to carb up my first keg tomorrow and get dispensing! Anything I should know..?
Image
Explore your HOPTIONS!
240+ varieties of hops, expert descriptions, substitutes, beer styles and more. hopslist.com is the largest source of hops info on the web.
User avatar
Heals
 
Posts: 171
Joined: Thursday Jul 12, 2007 11:32 pm
Location: Melbourne

Postby Kevnlis » Wednesday Dec 19, 2007 6:39 am

Pour at a real low pressure. Use the tap sideways to the glass it pours better. If you actually rest the side of the tap inside the glass against the side of tthe glass when you pour you can let it run out rather than pour and it will work a treat!
Prost and happy brewing!

Image
O'Brien Gluten Free Beer
User avatar
Kevnlis
 
Posts: 3380
Joined: Tuesday Jul 10, 2007 5:15 pm
Location: B-Rat

Postby rwh » Wednesday Dec 19, 2007 9:07 am

Boonie wrote:I wish I had not carbed up the kegs again overnight as it is too fizzy now. I have disconnected the CO2 and will leave for a few hours and burp.

How long should I leave rwh?

You're doing well, mate. Don't worry, like anything this all becomes second natured after you've fiddled with it all for a bit and learned how your own system behaves.

Regarding overcarbed kegs, you've got a couple of options. Disconnecting the gas and burping the kegs is one. Just turning down the gas and continuing life as usual is another. Burping will work slightly faster, but turning down the gas will allow you to just keep pouring.
w00t!
User avatar
rwh
 
Posts: 2810
Joined: Friday Jun 16, 2006 1:47 pm
Location: Melbourne, Australia

Postby Boonie » Thursday Dec 20, 2007 11:31 am

Well I burped the kegs over a period of 20 hours. Dropped the pouring pressure to 5kpa after burping 1 more time....

The beer is pouring perfectly. It is slower than a pub pour at the moment by about 6 seconds :wink: , but it is bloody lovely.

I'd better get the next batch down otherwise I reckon I'll run out just after Xmas/Boxing day, all the neighbours have been checking out the set-up.

Cheers

Boonie
A homebrew is like a fart, only the brewer thinks it's great.
Give me a flying headbutt.......
User avatar
Boonie
 
Posts: 1760
Joined: Friday Jul 21, 2006 6:41 pm
Location: Lake Macquarie

Previous

Return to Kegging

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 14 guests