Dodgy Keg

[KHB]

Ive got a keg at home that i noticed with the last brew it got a slight vegetable taste to it which got bad enough that i had to throw it out. I cleaned the keg like buggery before using it again and refilled it with an amber ale. Now it was tasting really nice from the tap for a few days, and today its got a slight vegetable taste to it. Not happy Jan the kegs still full. How should i clean it to stop this happening. I usually give it a napisan soak, bleach and rinse. Dont wanna put beer in it again unless its gonna stop doing this.

Cheers
Scotsman

 

[Pennywise]

Have you tried replacing all the seals?

 

[brettprevans]

have you cleaned your beer line and taps as well?

check the seals and poppets and diptube seals.

 

[KHB]

have you cleaned your beer line and taps as well?

check the seals and poppets and diptube seals.

I flush each of my lines with sanitizer every monday, when a keg emptys the lines get a caustic clean. The taps got cleaned out about 2 weeks ago. Was thinking about it might be the seals. Will pull the diptube seal out tonight to look.

Cheers
Scotsman

 

[KHB]

I just pulled the beer out post off and YUCK, had a nice brown build op. Seal looked ok. Am soaking the post in caustic for a good clean and will hit it with starsan when it goes back together. Fingers Crossed it hasnt got into this beer yet.

Cheers

 

[MaestroMatt]

I can't really speak with much knowledge here but after viewing the following on YouTube about the method one dude goes to cleaning his kegs, I know exactly how I will be doing it......there is NO WAY anything could be living after one of this guys method cycles.

See .

Cheers,

Matt

 

[technocat]

I just pulled the beer out post off and YUCK, had a nice brown build op. Seal looked ok. Am soaking the post in caustic for a good clean and will hit it with starsan when it goes back together. Fingers Crossed it hasnt got into this beer yet.

Cheers

Ah! the joy of filtering .........don't get those problems

 

[mrpolly]

I can't really speak with much knowledge here but after viewing the following on YouTube about the method one dude goes to cleaning his kegs, I know exactly how I will be doing it......there is NO WAY anything could be living after one of this guys method cycles.

See .

Cheers,

Matt

Stuff doing all that.

 

[marlow_coates]

That U-tube video on cleaning the kegs was tops.

Very thorough, and IMHO over the top, but great tutorial.

Liked the bit on removing the posts and cleaning the gaskets too, as I have never done this due to fear of not getting it all back together properly.

Worth a watch for anyone looking for a good cleaning technique.

Marlow

 

[KHB]

Ah! the joy of filtering .........don't get those problems

I filter my beers.

 

[cdbrown]

Don't forget to give the disconnect a soak if you can, that gunk will be in there as well and could very well be the source of the problem.

 

[buttersd70]

Don't forget to give the disconnect a soak if you can, that gunk will be in there as well and could very well be the source of the problem.

disassembled

fwiw, first thing I'd be doing is stripping everything down. If it can come apart, take it apart. I had a veggie beer, and due to moving house, it just got tipped out, resealed, and top pressure applied....reading this post today reminded me that keg is still in the garage...

So it's now fully stripped, soaking in hot napisan. :lol:

 

[KHB]

Ok i now have this keg and another which took on the flavour due to the disconnect soaking in napisan to the method of filling with garden hose so its under pressure. Is there a way to check this wont happen again before filling with beer as i dont want to throw out another 2 kegs of beer

Cheers
Scotsman

 

[bear09]

Once every three fills I soak my keg and all the bits with Oxyper for 48 hours. After this they are sparkling clean - just like new.

Each fill I use 1ml per litre of Iodaphor with 2.5 litres of boiling water. I put this in - seal it up and then skae the crap out of it under about 60PSI. I then leave it sit for 5 mins.

I then push this fluid out through all my lines and then purge all air with a few blasts of C02.

I then rack my beer in and seal it up.

Ive never had a keg infection or any gunk build up. It takes me about 10 minutes from start to finish - thats why I gave up bottling.

that youtube video is ok but it takes him way too long - you can tell he does not have a wife or kids. Everything has to be very efficent when you have these wonderful things in your life

 

[buttersd70]

Ben, my advice would be to pull apart everything. If it can be disasembled, then do so. Take off the posts, remove the diptubes, take out the poppets, unscrew the head of the disconnects and take them apart as well. Remove the gas lines from the system, and either soak them, or replace them. If you have non returns, remove them and soak them too. Same with the beer lines. Soak the lot in oxyper/napisan for 24 hours. Scrub everything like threads, etc, down with a nylon scourer/toothbrush. Rinse the lot. Then sanatise everything. Rinse well (even if it's no-rinse), and repeat the soak. Then resanatise, then reassemble (edit: imo it's important in this case to use the sanitiser whilst still dissasembled, so it gets everywhere). If not filling immediately, sanatise yet again prior to filling.

Overkill, maybe? Perhaps, but if anything nasty survives through this, I'll be a monkeys uncle.

btw, whatever sanatiser you're currently using: I'd suggest to change it. Not cos it's necessarily bad, per se, but bugs can form resistance, so it's a good idea to chop and change occasionally to keep them on their toes.

 

[Sammus]

lol over the top? I thought he was being slack :\

I do all that, but then I pull apart the posts, poppets valves and prv, removing whatever seals I can, and drop them all into the keg soaking in hot sodium percarb for a few hours. Then rinse it all thoroughly and lube all the seals and put it back together, then sanitize and proceed.

 

[happy benno]

How should i clean it to stop this happening. I usually give it a napisan soak, bleach and rinse. Dont wanna put beer in it again unless its gonna stop doing this.

Cheers
Scotsman

soaking in bleach is not a good idea your keg will rust

 

[KHB]

soaking in bleach is not a good idea your keg will rust

Dont soak in bleach it gets a few hours and its out, only line 200ml of bleach in there

 

[KHB]

Ben, my advice would be to pull apart everything. If it can be disasembled, then do so. Take off the posts, remove the diptubes, take out the poppets, unscrew the head of the disconnects and take them apart as well. Remove the gas lines from the system, and either soak them, or replace them. If you have non returns, remove them and soak them too. Same with the beer lines. Soak the lot in oxyper/napisan for 24 hours. Scrub everything like threads, etc, down with a nylon scourer/toothbrush. Rinse the lot. Then sanatise everything. Rinse well (even if it's no-rinse), and repeat the soak. Then resanatise, then reassemble (edit: imo it's important in this case to use the sanitiser whilst still dissasembled, so it gets everywhere). If not filling immediately, sanatise yet again prior to filling.

Overkill, maybe? Perhaps, but if anything nasty survives through this, I'll be a monkeys uncle.

btw, whatever sanatiser you're currently using: I'd suggest to change it. Not cos it's necessarily bad, per se, but bugs can form resistance, so it's a good idea to chop and change occasionally to keep them on their toes.

I have soaked the suspect keg and cleaned the ass end out of the line with the problem. Hooked up to a new keg yesterday and started drinking through it last night. The vegetable taste is gone!! Now to clean the living crap out off the keg with the problem.

Cheers

 

[davewaldo]

Gee..... I thought kegging was supposed to be easier and less cleaning than bottling.... h34r: