Finally, My Ideal Cold Conditioning Tank.

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Bribie G

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Since giving up bottling and going all-keg I've had issues with all my cold conditioning solutions:

CC in primary fermenter. Works well but too much yeast carry over and I'd rather harvest un-shocked yeastcake.
Willow Jerry 20L. Actually holds 23-24 L . Good for bottlers. Overkill for kegging and too much headspace.
FWK size square cube. Excellent solution and cheap but hard to clean.
Bunnings etc wide-mouth 25L water carriers: good to clean but far too big for requirements.

I've finally tracked down an excellent wide-mouth from BCF. It's nominal 20L but holds 21 full to the brim (which isn't necessary, as long as there's not too much headspace to CO2 flush)

WALLET WARNING:

this product is not cheap, at around $27 plus BYO tap - however it's super robust and a joy to clean and use. Note the trub "well" at the bottom. has an O ring as well and is ideal for a single keg brew. Takes up about the same space as a Ross FWK cube.

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edit: it helps to include the photo in the post :p
 
Looks like a winner Bribie, just curious, how would you successfully CO2 flush this. I havnt ever had to yet, but I will have to soon start CO2 flushing my new vessels...
 
I'm thinking of drilling a Pluggable hole in the lid to fit a gas line. I already have a "naked" 2 metre gas line branching off a T in the kegerator, with an on-off tap which I use for flushing. Originally it was the gas line for my CPBF but still ideal as a flusher.
 
Good idea, if you have a spare air-lock grommet, you could drill out the lid and use that, then just plug it with somethng once finished.
 
looks good bribie. Quick question if you were to gradually cold condition would you be able to ease the yeast into sleep. I mean like step temp dropping or will the temps you cc at too much for the yeast all together?
 
I CC at -1 thanks to my kegmate that is designed to get down to those temps. I know yeast is a tough little bugger, but prefer to take my yeast out at ferm temperatures then drop down to just 2 or 3 degrees in my hops and misc. fridge.
 
Good idea, if you have a spare air-lock grommet, you could drill out the lid and use that, then just plug it with somethng once finished.
I drilled the hole but thought "what is that grommet of which I hear him speak?" (being a clingwrap man for many years) :p

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Then it occurred to me, you know when you assemble flat pack furniture - which I have been doing a lot of lately - you often end up with some mystery items and leftovers. Which I pop into my jar of useful things.

Came up with a little black plug of indeterminate usage - and Bingo :)

As they say, sometimes your whole process boils down to just one little piece of crap made in China. Only in the 21st Century hey.

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Is a good
Is a verra good

4 days at -1 then into keg :chug:

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Great idea BribieG,

I have been thinking of using a similar solution and wanting a reliable c02 input system. Have put some thought into it and getting some JG bulkhead fittings and some valves then I can just run a spare line of my c02 splitter and bobs your uncle a sealed c02 system with a valve. Plus it can all be disconnected and cleaned between brews with ease.

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/10-x-John-Guest...41#ht_500wt_923
http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/8mm-shut-off-va...1#ht_987wt_1163

Obviously it wouldn't be alot of pressure otherwise the container mightnt like it.
 
Wouldn't you be better off using a keg?
That's what I do. I've isolated one keg for that purpose and bent the diptube up slightly at the bottom of the keg so its above the trub thats left behind. I transfer from fermenter to cc keg, purge with co2 and condition for desired period. Then simply transfer to another keg. Works great, leaves behind all the nasties and produces really clear beer without the need to filter. I used to be an avid filterer but find that I rarely do anymore unless I need a quick turnaround due to low beer stock levels.

bah
 
I have done the keg thing before, but still got that problem of a pint or two of mucky beer till it settled out. This way I should get the full measure of 19L of bright beer into the keg and leave a litre of turbid stuff behind in the tank.
 

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