Mini Keg Discussion / Mods / Show Off - Dedicated Thread

[peteru]

Oh, the weld line is also magnetic.

 

[Liam_snorkel]

Got my kegs from beerkat. Only used one so far, but it has developed a metallic taste after beer being in it for two weeks (at 3.7deg). It's a dark beer so can't comment on colour.
It's also a commercial beer that I paid a silly amount for to fill the 5L so it's pretty disappointing.

Did nothing other than a hot sodium perc wash (can't remember dosage but it was one I found as recommended for stainless) followed by multiple water rinses prior to use. No starsan.

 

[Zorco]

Beerkat kegs are in the spreadsheet. I'll invite you in

 

[gezzanet]

Beerkat kegs are in the spreadsheet. I'll invite you in

pls add me to the list. See post 513. I have at least one dud

 

[Mardoo]

Me too. Hooray. Damn, I should have bought that new mill with the tax return. I know I have one that goes metallic. Now to figure out whether it's one or both. I also need to get the regulators sorted.

Is visual inspection going to be best? Rice test? I certainly don't feel like potentially wasting 10L of beer to find out. I guess I could waste 10L of VB without too much damage to my conscience. I'd have to taste it though. How would I tell if it was off?

 

[Coalminer]

Add me into the spreadsheet please Zorco

 

[wide eyed and legless]

Sigh - we need a clear way forward with this issue.
If feels like we are going around in circles with, many opinions.
I tend to agree with Bones, there is obviously something wrong with a significant percentage of these units (too many to ignore), and the onus is NOT on us to democratically arrive at some conclusion.
These units (with heads) cost more than a new full size Corny keg, and are too costly to sit on a shelf looking pretty.

Though only an observer and while it was interesting looking into the cause, under consumer laws a purchase has to be of merchantable quality, and a right to return if not, Good Duck and Bones raise the point that it is not up to the buyer to fix the problem but up to the retailer to fix the problem.
It is not negotiable.

 

[Zorco]

Edit: Grumpy Zorco said cranky words - corrected with a coffee

 

[Zorco]

Crew added to PM.

 

[Bones99]

Don't get me wrong here either guys, I was not taking aim at Mark in any way as I've had dealings with him privately in the past and he's been awesome, I was just pointing out the fact that there is clearly something wrong with these that needs to be rectified

 

[Zorco]

Yeah, any talk of consumer law in this matter is out of place..... never at one moment was it said that Mark would not help with this. In fact the opposite all the time.

WEAL's lynch mob instincts are felt by others I'm sure. I hope he does move over to his plastic keg thread, run a bulk buy with a new product and see how it goes - I do hope it goes well, but commitment must be there when something goes wrong.

I've thought that the AHB community comes before us as AHB consumers.... I'll bring Mark into the PM so he can have all the details and evidence we've accumulated. What that actually does is support our retailer when he discusses with his supplier.

 

[Grott]

I guess I could waste 10L of VB without too much damage to my conscience. I'd have to taste it though. How would I tell if it was off?

If the keg is ok then it will taste off, if the keg is faulty would suspect a VB improvement.

 

[Jack of all biers]

The paragraph in the linked article he says he leaves them dry and open for a couple of weeks for natural repassivation, maybe that or a chemical repassivation should be tried first before warranty claims are put in.

Though only an observer and while it was interesting looking into the cause, under consumer laws a purchase has to be of merchantable quality, and a right to return if not, Good Duck and Bones raise the point that it is not up to the buyer to fix the problem but up to the retailer to fix the problem.
It is not negotiable.

I'm glad you agree. It's good to see opinions can be changed in the 4 days of discussion so far. It maybe the case that the current reference to Australian consumer law has already been intimated by Zorco and explicitly stated by me over 200 posts ago, but it is good to remind those who haven't read the multiple pages since then.

See Zorco, no cranky words needed.

EDIT - I see that in the time it took me to make this post there have been a flurry of other posts. To be fair, reference to Australian consumer law does not imply that the retailer has or will do anything wrong, but it gives all parties confidence in their standing on where they sit (stand/sit in the same sentence in that context. I see what I have done here h34r. It should ALWAYS begin and end in polite negotiation. Whether it be ATHB (clearly he has offered to replace any defect kegs 100's of posts ago) or Beerkat (who have been one of the best customer focused retailers I have dealt with in years) or another retailer, the law is just a clear statement of where all parties stand, not a large stick approach that some feel the law is (ie people should not begin with "I have rights and I demand compensation", but rather "I have a problem with a product I bought, how can we best resolve this"). Any other approach would be just rude of the customer (ie us)

 

[wide eyed and legless]

Yeah, any talk of consumer law in this matter is out of place..... never at one moment was it said that Mark would not help with this. In fact the opposite all the time.

WEAL's lynch mob instincts are felt by others I'm sure. I hope he does move over to his plastic keg thread, run a bulk buy with a new product and see how it goes - I do hope it goes well, but commitment must be there when something goes wrong.

I've thought that the AHB community comes before us as AHB consumers.... I'll bring Mark into the PM so he can have all the details and evidence we've accumulated. What that actually does is support our retailer when he discusses with his supplier.

Its not a lynch mob instinct zorco, plainly there are problems, you led an admirable charge in a bulk buy, but there are now issues which do need to be addressed by the retailer not a fix by the purchaser.

I never said I would be running any bulk buy of the plastic kegs just that I almost pulled the trigger on 2 x 4litre S/S kegs with double ball lock regulator etc but with no gas direct from a supplier in China, but all the problems the bulk buyers have had have turned me back to the plastic kegs even though I have had assurances from the supplier I contacted in China that there would be no problem with their kegs.

 

[Zorco]

That's nice. Glad you're here to help direct this wayward ship WEAL. We wouldn't have known what to do next!

By all means revert to your role as observer

 

[goatchop41]

Hey Zorco, can you add me in to the PM please! I had metallic flavours (but no discolouration) in one of my mini kegs

 

[SBOB]

FYI Magnets after a night in the grey murky depths

Looking at the glass it seems that the vast majority of dark sediment is either attached to the magnet or settled on the bottom.. So the simple solution is just to throw a bunch of magnets into any brew you put in, let it settle for ~24 hours and you're good to go (though you might want to shorten the dip tube )

 

[Jack of all biers]

This probably will pick up the larger pieces of iron oxide, but not really a solution. The metal flavours will still be in the beer, so any unpleasant taste will remain. Good thinking outside the square, but probably not an effective solution to the core problems.

 

[GoodDuck]

Out of curiosity, how many magnets are there SBOB?

 

[SBOB]

This probably will pick up the larger pieces of iron oxide, but not really a solution. The metal flavours will still be in the beer, so any unpleasant taste will remain. Good thinking outside the square, but probably not an effective solution to the core problems.

was about 0.0001% serious.. mostly sarcastic

 

[SBOB]

Out of curiosity, how many magnets are there SBOB?

about 13x 2mm (i think) thick magnets

 

[Jack of all biers]

was about 0.0001% serious.. mostly sarcastic

Thank F**k for that. :lol: I was starting to worry. Some on this thread are taking some information and running in directions that are a little OT, so I just wanted to temper any one that took your statement seriously (I did and thought you were rockers )

I have now tested my 2 mini kegs from Beerkat because of the welding heat marks that I can see on the outside spot welds of one of them (photos posted earlier) I was a little worried. Each keg was soaked in 10gm/L Sodium Percarbonate for a couple of hours, rinsed thoroughly, then treated with starsan (1.5ml/L) before being filled with beer.

The brew has been naturally carbonating for 2 weeks in each of these and the only difference is that each keg holds the same recipe from two different fermenters with one being cloudier going into the kegs (as per this experiment). The results are no blackness in the beer and only one had a slight metallic taste, though it reminds me of Carlton Draught or West End type taste, so not necessarily good, but not shockingly over powering. That keg is the one with heat marks and one divot on the outside that appears to contain some oxide residue. I got the wife to compare the two without telling her which I thought tasted different and she also picked up a slight metallic taste. I will keep an eye on it, but all appears relatively quiet on the Western Front re my Beerkat kegs. I will still be physically looking inside these, when they are empty.

Left is the clearer, but slightly metallic tasting one.


Left is the clearer, but slight metallic tasting one.


EDIT - It came to me what the taste is like. A lager beer stored in a can, drunk from the can. That kind of metallic taste.

 

[malt junkie]

was about 0.0001% serious.. mostly sarcastic

And note after so many site upgrades the sarcasm font still isn't working!

 

[Batz]

Talking of magnets

Magnets stick to my 1.89L keg but not any of my 4x5L kegs. Must be a different grade of stainless on the 1.89L.

Anyone else besides Brad (http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/93914-beerkat-kegs-growlers/page-10#entry1446736)
tried this?

 

[peekaboo_jones]

Alrighty,

I've just knocked up a spreadsheet to track this issue, A good idea from earlier.

A five second memory dump has about 5 people which I've invited. If you have an issue with your keg regarding metal taste, darkening of your beer etc. let me know and I'll add you to the PM.

Try and fill in all the fields as it may help with tracking a bad batch.

Hey Zorco, I've just got to the end of one of my kegs and a metallic taste seems to be present. I'll do the rice test tonight and post results

 

[Jack of all biers]

Talking of magnets

Magnets stick to my 1.89L keg but not any of my 4x5L kegs. Must be a different grade of stainless on the 1.89L.

Anyone else besides Brad (http://aussiehomebrewer.com/topic/93914-beerkat-kegs-growlers/page-10#entry1446736)
tried this?

I think LC may have explained this in post #789 (page 40). 300 SS can appear magnetic or not depending on how it is worked (or that is my take of what he said)

 

[malt and barley blues]

Just because it's stainless doesn't indicate it is not magnetic as LBC said, as a retired welder I could say that a lower grade stainless filler rod could have been used but I very much doubt it, why manufacture an item then skimp a few dollars on the filler.
http://www.australwright.com.au/stainless-steel-magnetism-corrosion-resistance/

 

[SBOB]

why manufacture an item then skimp a few dollars on the filler.

because these things are made to a price in China

 

[peekaboo_jones]

Hey Zorco, I've just got to the end of one of my kegs and a metallic taste seems to be present. I'll do the rice test tonight and post results

Rice test done and result is CLEAR. Just yeasty beer residue from nat carbing. Hmm it was a Saison that was quite clean flavour, not sure maybe it just was mentally 'tinny'

 

[malt and barley blues]

Sorry didn't see that post from Joab. SBOB, hard to believe that a couple of cents in our money would influence them to forfeit what should be a prestige product to a piece of rubbish.