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Art’s Brewing Supplies Cleaning, filling, and carbonating a Keg A. Prepare your keg
NOTE: Chlorine corrodes stainless steel do not use it to clean or sterilize your keg. I know of brew pots and kegs that had holes put in them by chlorine. 1. First you should manually clean your kegs to get all the dirt and deposits you with elbow grease. 2. Next you should do a chemical cleaning to remove any fat or protein deposits left from previous use. I do this on all my equipment and for sure immediately after using any plastic equipment. I use Cipton, but you need a good caustic cleaner to clean your equipment. 3. If you have a new keg now is the time to rebuild it. if it had soda in it there is a good chance that your beer could taste like soda. If you are just cleaning you have to test for leaks and test on the newly rebuilt keg also. Soapy water to see where it blows bubbles is a great way. Rinse well after to get all of the soap out before proceeding. 4. Sterilize with a good sterilizer, I use Iodine (low foaming iodine sterilizer for the brewing and dairy industry) I do not think there is a better one on the market. 5. Drip dry or rinse, I use an out to an out jumper to transfer a keg full of sterilizer to another keg. Once done I have a keg clean sterilized and full of CO2 ready to be filled without oxidation (I leave about 10 psi on the keg so if it still has pressure I know it does not leak and there is no oxygen in there). 6. I put a cap on the keg so dirt does not get between the lid and the lid seat that could fall in when I open it. I use stretch wrap but I shower cap would work great.
B. Filling your Keg 1. The first step is to remove all of the air from the keg to lessen chances of oxidation. If it was not stored full of CO2 shoot CO2 into it for 30 seconds. 2. If you have it set up to start your siphon great if not get your siphon going and put a clean towel over the lid opening so nothing can fall in it, but good beer. Make sure your hose goes to the bottom of the keg. 3. Once filled put the lid on and open the pressure relief and shoot CO2 in through the quick connect to try and remove most of the oxygen. 30 seconds is more then enough. C. Removing all or most all of the air from the keg 1. There is not going to be much air in the keg but we want to make sure that the air is mostly gone. 2. Shoot the keg up to 30 psi and let it sit for an hour, after that time release all of the CO2 pressure in the keg. 1. Shoot the keg up to 30 psi and let it sit for an hour, after that time release all of the CO2 pressure in the keg. 2. Do that procedure 3 or 4 times and your beer should have most of the oxygen taken out. Store in wine cellar temp but you do not need to have the humidity. About 50 to 60 F is a great temperature to store at. D. Carbonating your keg forced and natural Cooled liquid absorbs CO2 better, but I carbonated my beers at room temp. then take them into the basement for storage. This system is so good I have been able to store a keg of light ale for 8 years with no discernable off flavors. The last one of that batch I will try at 10. I think that it will be just fine, the lack of oxygen really pays off with the aged beer. 1. Natural carbonation of your keg. After priming your keg shoot it up to 10 psi to seal the 0- rings to keep carbonation produced from escaping. I. Never use the same amount of corn sugar that you use for bottles, it will produce unsafe pressures in the keg. to prime a keg use only 1/3 cup corn sugar! II. If you use malt sugar you can use a little more then 1/3 cup, maybe round the 1/3 cup a little. 2. Forced carbonation of your keg. Do not leave your keg hooked up while shaking it or you will get beer in your CO2 line. I. You can shake the carbonation into the keg. Shoot it up to 30 psi disconnect the keg and rock the keg back and forth, lift it up and shake it vigorously 20 to 40 times, or put it on the floor and roll it. the CO2 will absorb into the beer so it will not be at 30 psi. Connect the CO2 line and shoot it back to 30 psi. Shake some more CO2 in and shake it in again. Follow that same procedure 4 or 5 times and it should be carbonated. It takes a few days to settle in and your ready to drink if you do not want to age your beer. II. Allow the keg to absorb the CO2 over time. You shoot up the keg to 30 psi disconnect it and let it sit over night. Next evening the keg will not be at 30 psi because the CO2 absorb into the beer. So we want to top it back off to 30 psi disconnect it again and let sit over night again. It will have absorbed again so top it back off to 30 psi and let it sit over night. Doing that 3 or 4 times and your beer is carbonated and ready to drink, it just needs a day or 2 to settle in and let the yeast and sediment settle. E. Drinking your keg of beer 1. To deliver your beer you want to have the keg pressure very low 5 psi or less (depending on the length of hose to your faucet. As low a pressure as you can deliver the beer with will keep the carbonation from coming out as foam. 2. If your beer is not carbonated enough we can fix it. when your done for the night shoot the keg to 30 psi and leave it over night. Lower the pressure the next day and try your beer. If it needs more do it again. 3. If your beer comes out as foam even though you have the delivery pressure real low, it means your beer is over carbonated. That is fixable to. At the end of the night let all the pressure off of it and some will come out to reach equilibrium. Try it the next night and if it is still foam release it again. It can take a week or 2 so be patient and it will pour and be a great beer soon.
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B. Filling your Keg
1. The first step is to remove all of the air from the keg to lessen chances of oxidation. If it was not stored full of CO2 shoot CO2 into it for 30 seconds. 2. If you have it set up to start your siphon great if not get your siphon going and put a clean towel over the lid opening so nothing can fall in it, but good beer. Make sure your hose goes to the bottom of the keg. 3. Once filled put the lid on and open the pressure relief and shoot CO2 in through the quick connect to try and remove most of the oxygen. 30 seconds is more then enough. C. Removing all or most all of the air from the keg 1. There is not going to be much air in the keg but we want to make sure that the air is mostly gone. 2. Shoot the keg up to 30 psi and let it sit for an hour, after that time release all of the CO2 pressure in the keg. 3. Shoot the keg up to 30 psi and let it sit for an hour, after that time release all of the CO2 pressure in the keg. 4. Do that procedure 3 or 4 times and your beer should have most of the oxygen taken out. Store in wine cellar temp but you do not need to have the humidity. About 50 to 60 F is a great temperature to store at. D. Carbonating your keg forced and natural Cooled liquid absorbs CO2 better, but I carbonated my beers at room temp. then take them into the basement for storage. This system is so good I have been able to store a keg of light ale for 8 years with no discernable off flavors. The last one of that batch I will try at 10. I think that it will be just fine, the lack of oxygen really pays off with the aged beer. 1. Natural carbonation of your keg. After priming your keg shoot it up to 10 psi to seal the 0- rings to keep carbonation produced from escaping. I. Never use the same amount of corn sugar that you use for bottles, it will produce unsafe pressures in the keg. to prime a keg use only 1/3 cup corn sugar! II. If you use malt sugar you can use a little more then 1/3 cup, maybe round the 1/3 cup a little. 2. Forced carbonation of your keg. Do not leave your keg hooked up while shaking it or you will get beer in your CO2 line. I. You can shake the carbonation into the keg. Shoot it up to 30 psi disconnect the keg and rock the keg back and forth, lift it up and shake it vigorously 20 to 40 times, or put it on t he floor and roll it. the CO2 will absorb into the beer so it will not be at 30 psi. Connect the CO2 line and shoot it back to 30 psi. Shake some more CO2 in and shake it in again. Follow that same procedure 4 or 5 times and it should be carbonated. It takes a few days to settle in and your ready to drink if you do not want to age your beer. II. Allow the keg to absorb the CO2 over time. You shoot up the keg to 30 psi disconnect it and let it sit over night. Next evening the keg will not be at 30 psi because the CO2 absorb into the beer. So we want to top it back off to 30 psi disconnect it again and let sit over night again. It will have absorbed again so top it back off to 30 psi and let it sit over night. Doing that 3 or 4 times and your beer is carbonated and ready to drink, it just needs a day or 2 to settle in and let the yeast and sediment settle. E. Drinking your keg of beer 1. To deliver your beer you want to have the keg pressure very low 5 psi or less (depending on the length of hose to your faucet. As low a pressure as you can deliver the beer with will keep the carbonation from coming out as foam. 2. If your beer is not carbonated enough we can fix it. when your done for the night shoot the keg to 30 psi and leave it over night. Lower the pressure the next day and try your beer. If it needs more do it again. 3. If your beer comes out as foam even though you have the delivery pressure real low, it means your beer is over carbonated. That is fixable to. At the end of the night let all the pressure off of it and some will come out to reach equilibrium. Try it the next night and if it is still foam release it again. It can take a week or 2 so be patient and it will pour and be a great beer soon.
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