Thank You! Keg system on the way...

[Steve16823]

Hey everyone, my first post here.

I brewed a half-dozen or so batches a few years ago, but recently decided to start brewing again after I recieved a "turkey fryer" cooker and a gift certificate for homebrew supplies. I started off easy, cooking up two five-gallon IPA extract brews last saturday.

I immediatly started to dread collecting, washing, sanitizing, and filling bottles. I had a couple of party pigs from when I brewed years ago but was never really excited about them. So, i started to consider the "tap-a-draft" or the "party keg" systems but I knew that wasn't what I really wanted.

Thanks to reading many of the threads in this forum, i've decided to go "hard core" and buy myself a cornelius keg setup! I saved myself a few bucks by buying used (unrefurbished) kegs along with sets of gaskets to refurb them myself. I think I got a fantastic deal: 5 lb aluminum CO2 tank, dual gauge regulator, gas and beverage disconnects, hoses, and picnic-style tap, and three ball-lock kegs (plus new gaskets) for $165+ shipping. I added to that a couple of extra disconnects plus a manifold so I can hook up more than one keg. I'll let everyone know what it looks like when it arrives.

Thanks for the help!

-Steve

[Jughead]

Welcome Steve (just what we needed, another Steve ;) )

Post some pics if you can.

Cheers

[YamahaXS]

congrats and welcome

Last night I actually bottled a batch for the first time in a long time. WHAT A PAIN IN THE ASS!

Of course I had forgotten my bottling routine, and that only made the process more tedious.

Worst part was when I had about 24 bottles filled (but not capped) and I realized I forgot to prime the beer! Ack!!!!! I resolved the issue by preparing 2 cups of water with 1 cup of DME and adding 1/2 tablespoon of the solution to each of hte beers, the rest went into the beer remaining in the bucket.

Keggings systems are proof that god loves us.

[Steve16823]

The system arrived yesterday!! I didn't have much time to play around with it but overall it looks really good. I ordered it from alternativebeverage.com and am very pleased so far.

The three kegs look to be in great shape. They need a cleaning to remove remnants of pepsi syrup but that was expected (and it even looks better than I thought it would). I did rinse one out with soap and water but haven't taken apart the fittings yet to give it a thorough cleaning and replace the o-rings. Maybe tonight. My only (minor) complaint is they shipped me 2 Cornelius brand kegs and one Firestone brand keg, but they look identical so maybe the parts are interchangeable? Minor issue anyhow.

All of the other components (CO2 tank, regulator, fittings, hoses) were brand new of course and seem to be good quality. I asked my wife to fill the tank -- there's a fire safety equipment dealer 50 yards from my house.

The best news is I think I can fit 1 keg and the CO2 tank in our extra 'fridge and still leave half of the shelves in for other cold-storage purposes. Negotiations are underway to take over the entire fridge, but I think i'm losing -- So I may be looking for a chest freezer soon.