How long can i keep my beer in kegs that arent refrigerated?

[stretch69]

Hi guys,

i've been doing some work to my keezer so its out of action atm and ive got a couple of brews coming through ( one is crash cooling in a spare fridge atm).
My question is can i still keg the beers once they're ready and just purge with gas then just leave them for a week or two at room temp til when my keezer is back up and running?

thanks stretch

 

[eamonnfoley]

As long as its room temp and its not too warm, it shouldn't do much harm. But the general rule is that beer is best kept cold. Use the opportunity to prime the keg and naturally carbonate.

 

[doon]

If they will be left for a week or two naturally prime them as has been said. 60grams of dex is what I have used before

 

[jacknohe]

I've done it before without issue to the beer quality as my keg fridge can fit three fermenters and I needed to ferment three at once. So I took my kegs out for two weeks.

The only issue will be the CO2 wont dissolve as easy since the beer will be warm. But as long as the beer is under pressure with CO2 it won't stale. Then when you chill the keg later you may need to gas it up some more.

 

[Black Devil Dog]

No drama at all, I have full kegs sitting around for 2-3 months and I find there are no adverse effects whatsoever. Naturally carbonate them and they'll be good to go when you are.

 

[stretch69]

Okay thanks heaps guys!,

I've only ever bottled and gas carbed my kegs(still new to this), i've read about natural carbing, but is there a thread anyone can recommend reading about how much dextrose to put it?

thanks

 

[Bribie G]

A keg is just a giant bottle. I've got one sitting right now under the bench waiting for a turn in the kegmate. I chucked in about 10 tsp of sugar on kegging to create some carbonation, should be settled out by now.

When freshly kegged and primed, make sure you attach a gas line to the gas post and give it a good purge, then gas up hard to max to make sure the seal jams up hard against the lid and you should be fine.

I give my PRV a tweak every week to test the seal, just listen for a wee hiss, no more required.

However note that the room temp beer will continue to "mature" in a way that the chilled keg version will not - which could be a good or bad thing depending on the recipe.

Edit: the sugar (dex is no advantage) is just a token amount to fizz the beer up to maintain a sanitary seal on the keg. When you eventually put it in the kegerator you can finish off the carbing on the gas.
Too much sugar will breed excessive amounts of yeast that can cloud the first few pints, so less is more in this case.

 

[Black Devil Dog]

Okay thanks heaps guys!,

I've only ever bottled and gas carbed my kegs(still new to this), i've read about natural carbing, but is there a thread anyone can recommend reading about how much dextrose to put it?

thanks

This has been discussed quite a bit on here and just as Doon said 60g is the often recommended amount, I use 2/3 cup because I think I worked out that that is 60g.
Having said that, Bribie G, who has an entire universe more knowledge than me, uses 10 tsp. (Which I think is about 1/5 cup).


My head hurts.

 

[brentice]

ive had beer in kegs at room temp for 5+ months and they have turned out pretty good. Mind you i had alot of help to empty them

 

[Bizier]

I say it depends on the beer, and I would also suggest to absolutely purge the vessel with CO2 beforehand. Obviously a giant stout or barleywine will last longer than a light lager.

 

[Mardoo]

This has been discussed quite a bit on here and just as Doon said 60g is the often recommended amount, I use 2/3 cup because I think I worked out that that is 60g.
Having said that, Bribie G, who has an entire universe more knowledge than me, uses 10 tsp. (Which I think is about 1/5 cup).


My head hurts.

48 teaspoons per cup FWIW

 

[stretch69]

Okay thanks heaps everyone!