Keg Hopping

[joecast]

hey guys (and girls),

i know this has been discussed, but between searches with 0 and 30 pages of results, i cant seem to find what im after.
i couldnt quite fit all my dry hops in a hop ball, so tossed a few pellets in loose. now, as some of you could guess, my dip tube is blocked :angry:
tried depressurising and blowing back through the tap (not ideal) but still not getting flow. whats the secret, or where can i find it?? thanks
joe

 

[hockadays]

I've not had this happen but you could put a beer out QD onto your gas line then hook up the gas to your beer out and punch a few PSI back through it, maybe that would un block it.

 

[joecast]

ahh. good idea. im sure that would work. though it might not take long for it to plug up again.
hopefully i've learned my lesson. thanks!

 

[Jye]

I've not had this happen but you could put a beer out QD onto your gas line then hook up the gas to your beer out and punch a few PSI back through it, maybe that would un block it.

+1

And believe me you only make this mistake once <_< If the hop ball isnt large enough you can make a small hop bag and chuck that in.

 

[joecast]

And believe me you only make this mistake once

you have much confidence in me learning from my stuff ups it is appreciated.
after i told my wife what i did, she said she has another hop ball. for some reason she said its used for tea or something crazy??

 

[Frank]

If your keg is pretty much full, lean the keg on a 45 degree angle until you use most of it up. This way the dip tube will not have hop floaties settling around it.
Once you start blowing some CO2, stand your keg up and risk it again... or pour leftovers out into a jug and drink it with a mate.

 

[newguy]

The one time I had this happen, I had to take my keg apart and remove the dip tube to clean it. I put a sanitised (boiled) lady's nylon on the bottom of the tube, secured with a rubber band. That kept the rest of the crud from blocking the tube.

 

[clean brewer]

I've not had this happen but you could put a beer out QD onto your gas line then hook up the gas to your beer out and punch a few PSI back through it, maybe that would un block it.

If your keg is pretty much full, lean the keg on a 45 degree angle until you use most of it up. This way the dip tube will not have hop floaties settling around it.
Once you start blowing some CO2, stand your keg up and risk it again... or pour leftovers out into a jug and drink it with a mate.

Love the SEARCH function, had a dilemma, found this, problem solvered.... :beerbang:

Cheers
:icon_cheers: CB

 

[sqyre]

I did the same thing last year the night before the swap..
Me and FNQBunyip spent 2 hours trying to filter this keg..

we back pressurised it about a dosen times and it would clog straight up..
we shook the crap out of it in hope it would thin it out and pull it through but it settled out in about 30 seconds..
we tipped it on an angle but there was too much in there..
We eventually got it by letting it settle, keeping the keg still and removing and cleaning the dip tube each time it clogged untill it made a "well" where the beer could flow...

Then Mrs Sqyre walked in and said "is it finished yet?" and shook the keg.. :blink:

Both me and Ned jumped up screaming "NOOOOO!!!!!!"

(it also probably didn't help that we were both so pissed neither of us noticed we forgot to turn the Gas on... :lol: )
Sqyre..

 

[clean brewer]

I was getting very irritated, had just finished work and really needed a Beer.... :angry:

De-gassed, undid post, cleaned post and dip tube.... Blocked, again and again and again.... <_<

Did a SEARCH, problem solved, just have a whole lot of goodness floating through the beer again... :unsure:

:icon_cheers: CB

 

[MattC]

For my 2c worth and future reference, I messed around with dry hopping for a few brews in the secondary, in hop balls, in mesh bags. Now I simply sanitize a piece of stocking (good quality otherwise they deteriorate) by boiling for 15 minutes, then soak in a bucket of starsan for 15 minutes, put a hand full of sanitized marbles in the stocking along with the dry hops. I leave it in the keg for 3-7 days (depending on style) then retrieve, filter, carbonate and drink. I have experienced a bit of astringency in one of my brews, however that dissipated after a few weeks. The stocking does not sink, but remains half submerged, I find this handy as it makes it easy to retrieve as it is on the surface. I fastened the stocking onto the dip tube once and it was in there until the keg was empty, I found the taste of that beer to be far too astringent, hence the retrieve after 7 days technique. I also tried to tie some fishing line onto the stocking so I could pull it out, however the thicker fishing line affected the keg seal, and the thinner line simply snapped when I attempted to retrieve the stocking.

Cheers

 

[clean brewer]

For my 2c worth and future reference, I messed around with dry hopping for a few brews in the secondary, in hop balls, in mesh bags. Now I simply sanitize a piece of stocking (good quality otherwise they deteriorate) by boiling for 15 minutes, then soak in a bucket of starsan for 15 minutes, put a hand full of sanitized marbles in the stocking along with the dry hops. I leave it in the keg for 3-7 days (depending on style) then retrieve, filter, carbonate and drink. I have experienced a bit of astringency in one of my brews, however that dissipated after a few weeks. The stocking does not sink, but remains half submerged, I find this handy as it makes it easy to retrieve as it is on the surface. I fastened the stocking onto the dip tube once and it was in there until the keg was empty, I found the taste of that beer to be far too astringent, hence the retrieve after 7 days technique. I also tried to tie some fishing line onto the stocking so I could pull it out, however the thicker fishing line affected the keg seal, and the thinner line simply snapped when I attempted to retrieve the stocking.

Cheers

Mine just came from Hops from the fermenter going into the Keg, pain in the arse really, need to use the inline filter i have when transferring to the keg, especially when ive dry hopped the fermenter nicely and it hasnt settled yet.... :icon_drool2:

:icon_cheers: CB