# Refilling 5l Party Kegs



## itguy1953 (12/6/08)

Has anyone tried refilling the 5 litre party kegs?

I have a few of these (empty now), and I would like to try and refill them. I have removed the top rubber plug and the plastic insert, but when I try and put the rubber plug/plastic insert assembly back into the keg, it will not fit with a gentle push. It might go back in with lubrication and a bit more effort, but I do not want to wreck the plug or the keg, so thought I would ask first.

I have seen party keg taps in the States that fit on top of the party kegs. They take a 16g CO2 cylinder, and keep the party keg pressurised. To tap the party keg, you need to push the plastic insert into the keg, then push the tap system into the keg through the rubber plug, and pressurise with CO2 from the tap system. 

If this system works, it would be a great way to take some beer to a party. Just fill the party keg with cold beer from the cornies, then put in the plug, put in the party keg tap, and keep in the fridge until ready to go to the party. 5 litres of good beer - presto. For this scenario, I do not need the plastic insert.

If however, I want to secondary ferment in the party kegs, and then later tap them, I need the plastic insert in place to hold the CO2 in the party keg.

Any help will be appreciated.

Barry


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## Andyd (12/6/08)

I do exactly this with a Beer King tap (such as you described above). So far I have no trouble getting the stopper back in. If it's really tough you could try a little food grade lubricant on the bevelled edges ot the stopper, but I find that a liberal application of force does the trick nicely.

Andy


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## barls (12/6/08)

also make sure they are completely clean i had one that got infected and almost exploded. other than that treat them as normal.


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## clarkey7 (12/6/08)

Andyd said:


> I do exactly this with a Beer King tap (such as you described above). So far I have no trouble getting the stopper back in. If it's really tough you could try a little food grade lubricant on the bevelled edges ot the stopper, but I find that a liberal application of force does the trick nicely.
> 
> Andy



Barry, 

I just soaked my rubber plugs in very hot water for 5 mins before having to push the bast$%rds in.
B4 i worked this out I was using a mallet and towel...not the best option.

Andy,

I've got one of those Beer King setups somewhere with everything but the 5L kegs (the original kegs have been discarded).

My questions are in relation to the 5L kegs that are currently in our bottle shops.

1) Are these mini-kegs really designed to be refilled over and over?
2) Do they have a plastic liner and is it durable?
3) Do the ones with the plastic tap at the bottom cause any dramas with CO2 or beer leaks once they've been used.
4) I overprimed one of those 5L kegs once..not good. How much priming sugar do you usually use?

Sorry to just assume that you are the fountain of all Beer King and mini-keg knowledge...I'd just forgotten all about the Beer King until I saw this thread. Maybe others have had some experience in this arena too.

Thanks

PB


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## Andyd (13/6/08)

Good questions PB, I'll try to do them justice.

1) Yes and no. The choice of materials indicates to me that they are indended to have a very limitted life.
2) There is a think plastic skin on the internal metal components, however it's not completely inert and will break down if left with water in the keg (i.e. if it's stored wet, it's going to rust! )
3) Personally I never break the seal on the plastic taps. My theory is that when it's shipped it must be air tight. Once you break it there's no such guarantee.
4) I don't prime in them, and I would suggest that they are certainly not up to the task in the same way that a bottle would be. I recommend that you condition your beer in a fermentor & rack it into the keg. Perhaps even condition in the keg and then transfer, but I would not use the 5L keg.

If I _did_ decide to, I'd probably go for half the priming rate of a glass bottle (i.e. for 5 litres, about 3 coopers tabs or 4 tsp sugar). But take that with a grain of salt, since I've not don this personally.


Hop that helps PB,

Andy


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## clarkey7 (13/6/08)

Andyd said:


> Good questions PB, I'll try to do them justice.
> 
> 1) Yes and no. The choice of materials indicates to me that they are indended to have a very limitted life.
> 2) There is a think plastic skin on the internal metal components, however it's not completely inert and will break down if left with water in the keg (i.e. if it's stored wet, it's going to rust! )
> ...



Thanks for your reply Andy,

1) I reckon it couldn't hurt to use them a few times..
2) I reckon it couldn't hurt to use them a few times..
3) This is what I was expecting...as soon as you use the plastic tap at the bottom, refilling is probably not really a safe option.
4) I found a low priming rate was essential as not to wreck the keg (bloating). I reckon 12 g (2 tallie doses) was enough..for 5L.

You can always boost carbonation with the CO2 bulbs...

I want to take my beer king to the QLD case swap now..... :icon_drunk: 

I reckon I could dispense 5L of pre conditioned and carbonated beer from my kegerator straight into one of those Bitburger Kegs and take that along....Easier than carting a corny.

Cheers,

PB B)


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## freezkat (10/9/11)

half the priming sugar...whoops. 

How many days till it goes boom? Could I just chill it to discourage extra carbonation?


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## dkaos (11/9/11)

freezkat said:


> half the priming sugar...whoops.
> 
> How many days till it goes boom? Could I just chill it to discourage extra carbonation?



Good dredge of a thread there freezkat 

If it's an Ale, I would say that keeping it at 10 degrees should be halting fermentation as Ale yeasts go from 18-21. If it's a lager, keep it under 9 degrees at the minimum as they ferment at 9-12. My keg fridge is about 10, and It's a nice temp to have a beer at. I guess you will get more feedback coming up soon!

Cheers,

Clint


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## freezkat (11/9/11)

Clints Gadgets said:


> Good dredge of a thread there freezkat
> 
> If it's an Ale, I would say that keeping it at 10 degrees should be halting fermentation as Ale yeasts go from 18-21. If it's a lager, keep it under 9 degrees at the minimum as they ferment at 9-12. My keg fridge is about 10, and It's a nice temp to have a beer at. I guess you will get more feedback coming up soon!
> 
> ...


I thought I was supposed to search before starting another thread....? 

This was exactly what I wanted to know. I only committed 25% of this recent batch to a mini-keg. Before I keg the whole batch I wanted to sort this out.


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