Lube

[Budron]

Hi guys,

Almost ready to keg my first beer for a party on the weekend!
Got all my equipment together, except for 1 thing.................food grade lube.
I wont have time to order it online for it to be here before the weekend.

My questions are:
1. Can I keg and pour beer without it?
2. If not, are there any "common" shops that would stock this?
3. One of my new kegs wont hold pressure, it's leaking around the lid o-ring. Could no lube be the problem, or is it just a faulty keg? My other keg seems to be fine.

Cheers!

Budron.

P.S. All my seals were supposedly new, if it makes a difference.

 

[Pennywise]

mmmm, that's one place I don't think they should ever leak, I've been told by a bloke at G&G that lube around the lid o-ring isn't nessesary. Have a look around the lip of the lid to make sure that it doesn't have a ding in it or something, one of mine came like that and wouldn't seal, so I just put it in a vice and bashed it back down with a hammer, worked a treat

 

[QldKev]

Yep, ok to pour without it. If the connector is a bit tight to get on just wet it.
Alternative = K Y Jelly

Which o-ring is it leaking from?

QldKev

 

[Supra-Jim]

If it is leaking through the lid, try mounting the lid 180deg rotated. One of my kegs is a bit 'sensitive' regarding the position of the lid. Rotating the lid 180deg did the trick, so i got out the sharpie marker and made some marks on the lid and keg body, that way i always know how it needs to line up.

Cheers SJ

 

[olde]

One of my kegs leaks around the lid o ring too.. turning the lid around 180 degrees seems to cure it in my case, worth a try for you too..

 

[alowen474]

Yep, ok to pour without it. If the connector is a bit tight to get on just wet it.
Alternative = K Y Jelly

Which o-ring is it leaking from?

QldKev

You do need a lot of lube around the o ring to get the post in and out.
:lol:

 

[Budron]

It's leaking around where the lid sits. I've tried the lid from the keg that is holding pressure and it's doing the same thing, so i've narrowed it down to the keg itself and not the lid.
There is signs of welding around the keg edge where the lid sits. I can feel underneath where the big lid o-ring would make contact and it's not smooth, it's bumpy. i've tried to take a pic, but the keg doesn't seem to photogenic, so apologies for the quality.
Basically, just showing where the welding work has been done.

 

[olde]

Looks pretty dodgy to me. If you can get a sanding wheel or stone in there and knock off the high spots you might get it to seal.. I'd be concerned though that you'll weaken the weld, so don't take too much material out of there.
I can't imagine what whoever did that weld was thinking really.

 

[brettprevans]

i cant see the pic but if the lid is shot buy a new one. your looking at about $25.

if the actualy top of the keg is shot...well your in a bit of trouble. im sure some bright spark can help you out.

 

[QldKev]

You mentioned it's your first brew, so I assume you have just purchased the kegs. I would be talking with the supplier as that does not look to be a servicable product. I wouldn't be angy at them as it would be hard to pick up

QldKev

 

[Budron]

Yeah it is definitely the keg itself and not the lid I reckon.

Kegs were just bought off ebay, seller "the_kegging_company"
They were advertised as "Fully Reconditioned" and "Pressure Tested"

 

[fcmcg]

Yeah it is definitely the keg itself and not the lid I reckon.

Kegs were just bought off ebay, seller "the_kegging_company"
They were advertised as "Fully Reconditioned" and "Pressure Tested"

None of my kegs have "welds" around the area where yours are...so i'd also say it's actually the keg...not sure what you can do in such a short time (that is for your party) to fix it...maybe bottle what you can so it doesn't go off/get an infection....

You can pour no prob without food grade lube btw but it does help removing your keg posts etc....
cheers FTB

 

[Budron]

I've come to the conclusion that I'll only have 1 keg for the weekend.

The problem is I already left feedback for the seller (stupid I know) and it's been 2 days and still no reply.
So dont know if i'll get a replacement.

 

[drsmurto]

Almost on topic.....

For the lube users (snicker), do you apply it to the keg posts so that the quick disconnects come off easier or is it to make removing the actual posts themselves easier?

 

[gregs]

I'm not trying to take anything away from the sites sponsors, but you can get food grade lube from bearing supply shops like SKF, CBC ect. The brand I have is Inox-mx6

 

[brettprevans]

Edit: Budron - just keep emailing them. send 1 per day and if still no answer send one saying you will refer the matter to ebay and Consumer Affairs by the end of the week if no action. that will get them moving

Almost on topic.....

For the lube users (snicker), do you apply it to the keg posts so that the quick disconnects come off easier or is it to make removing the actual posts themselves easier?

i use lube on the o-rings (snicker back) so the QD comes off easier. i thought that was what it was for. my QD were becoming a bitch to get on and off.

 

[Mitternacht Brauer]

Yeah it is definitely the keg itself and not the lid I reckon.

Kegs were just bought off ebay, seller "the_kegging_company"
They were advertised as "Fully Reconditioned" and "Pressure Tested"

I have bought about 12 kegs from that guy and they have all been good . Some of the ones I picked up had original "O" rings but he gave me new ones that I popped in , No drama .I know its no good for the weekend but I'm sure he'll come good once he knows . I have bought other stuff from him with no complaints .

Buster

 

[brendo]

I put food grade lube on all seals when I rebuild my kegs after cleaning - poppet valves, disconnect o-rings, pressure relief valve and lid seal.

I figure it can only do more good than harm and should extend the life of the seals by keeping them supple.

Cheers,

Brendo

 

[Mitternacht Brauer]

I put food grade lube on all seals when I rebuild my kegs after cleaning - poppet valves, disconnect o-rings, pressure relief valve and lid seal.

I figure it can only do more good than harm and should extend the life of the seals by keeping them supple.

Cheers,

Brendo

Hi Brendo ,

How often do you do the poppet valves with lube ? Every clean ?

Buster

 

[brendo]

Hi Brendo ,

How often do you do the poppet valves with lube ? Every clean ?

Buster

yeah pretty much.

My routine is to break EVERYTHING down - and give it a good hot PBW soak, hot water rinse and drain.

I then rebuild the kegs, giving all the seals a touch of lube, sanitise and then purge the keg with CO2. Also handy for checking for any leaks before I end up with it full of beer.

Then all I need to do is open it up, resantise if it has been sitting for a while and fill the keg - which already has a nice layer of CO2 in it.

Cheers,

Brendo