It's a well known fact that the cleaning, sanitizing, filling, priming and capping of beer bottles is tedious and time-consuming. Fortunately, kegging your brew is a viable option for anyone with a little disposable income.
The system recommended for homebrewers is a 5-gallon soda keg system because it's easier to clean, fill, handle, and obtain than commercial beer kegs -and it's the appropriate size. But be mindful that any kegging system, even on the homebrewing level, is going to require somewhat costly specialized equipment. Here’s a look at some of the equipment you’ll need and what you can expect to spend.
Kegging Equipment
Here is what you need to keg your beer:
- Stainless steel soda keg. A new keg can cost as much as $100, while a used one may be obtained for as little as $25. There are two types of fittings for soda kegs: ball or pin lock; either type is acceptable. These are described as “ball” or “pin” locks, due to the configuration of the valve connection. Pin lock configuration tends to run a bit more expensive.
- A carbon dioxide pressurized tank . This will run you about $75–$100. It will cost another $20-$25 each time you have it filled.
- A carbon dioxide tank regulator; a dual gauge is preferred. Again, this item isn’t cheap: It sets you back around $60–$90. Tank regulators are available in single gauge and dual gauge types. The single gauge only tells you the pressure of the gas flowing through the gas line; the dual gauge tells you the line pressure as well as the gas pressure remaining in the tank.
- Appropriate quick-disconnect fittings (for ball or pin lock). Get one fitting for the gas inflow and one for the liquid outflow. They’re reasonably priced at $6–$8 each.
- A carbon dioxide hose line (gas in-flow line). Not a bad deal at about $1.00 per foot.
- A beer dispenser line with a tap faucet (liquid out-flow line), $5–$10.
- A sanitizing agent. I recommend Iodophor or another iodine-based sanitizer, which costs $2–$10, depending on the container size. Like any other piece of equipment that comes in contact with your beer, your keg also needs to be sanitized.
- An adjustable wrench. This item you may already have lying around your house.
- A carboy brush or similar cleaning brush. Again, this is something that you may have already.
Be aware that every soda keg has five rubber gaskets that must be sanitized along with the keg –and these may need to be occasionally replaced as well. Here’s where you can find them: Each of the two plug valves has a visible gasket on it, as does the keg lid. The last two gaskets are the smallest and least visible. These can be found under the “dip tube” collars below the plug valves.
All of this equipment can be found at: www.northernbrewer.com
Carbonating Your Beer
After your keg has been sanitized and put back together, go ahead and siphon your finished beer into the keg. Once the keg is filled and sealed, the beer must be carbonated. Using the force-carbonation method can carbonate your beer in as little as 24 hours.
Start by chilling your beer down to at least 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Hook up the CO2 line from your CO2 tank to the appropriate plug valve on the keg. Open the CO2 tank and set the regulator pressure to 24 lbs. p.s.i. (this will give your beer the appropriate 2.5 “volumes” of CO2). After disconnecting the CO2 line from the keg, shake it vigorously for a few minutes. You may need to repeat these steps two or three more times over the next 24 hrs. until no more CO2 flows into the keg. This means that the beer has reached the CO2 saturation point.
Enjoying your brew
After the beer is carbonated and chilled to serving temperature:
- Open the gas cylinder and set the regulator to 5–8 psi.
- Hook up the gas and the dispense lines to the keg.
- Tap and enjoy.
When you’re done dispensing beer for the day, re-pressurize the keg to the original carbonating pressure to maintain the proper CO2 level in the beer.
