Sanitisation And Kegging

[BeerSwiller]

Hi all,

Sorry I hadn't got back to this post earlier, thanks for all the info guys, I am going to order some starsan and go back to sanitising kegs/filter/lines... just a final question... with starsan does it matter if you get a bit of this (because of filter) solution in the keg? its supposed to be tasteless correct?

Its a bit of a pain when i forget to sanitise and let air dry the day before kegging (currently using iodophor)

 

[Liam_snorkel]

Hi all,

Sorry I hadn't got back to this post earlier, thanks for all the info guys, I am going to order some starsan and go back to sanitising kegs/filter/lines... just a final question... with starsan does it matter if you get a bit of this (because of filter) solution in the keg? its supposed to be tasteless correct?

starsan is a weak acid so would taste a bit sour (try it ) & the small amount of residue left on your filter cartridge will be diluted by the beer to the point of no noticeable impact on flavour.
If you purge your filter with CO2, some will be blown out then too.

 

[razz]

Hi all,

Sorry I hadn't got back to this post earlier, thanks for all the info guys, I am going to order some starsan and go back to sanitising kegs/filter/lines... just a final question... with starsan does it matter if you get a bit of this (because of filter) solution in the keg? its supposed to be tasteless correct?

Its a bit of a pain when i forget to sanitise and let air dry the day before kegging (currently using iodophor)

Hi Beerswiller, I stopped using Starsan through my filter as I think it was causing my beer to go cloudy in the kegs. There was some discussion on AHB on it a while back. I had three successive batches filtered very clear into the kegs and with in two weeks they turned cloudy.

 

[sim]

so i'll have a look out for any signs of degradation.

For what its worth, said keg looked fine, no signs of pitting or what not. Anyway, I wont be storing starsan in the keg anymore.

 

[eamonnfoley]

Hi All,

I've probably kegged about 60 brews so and have always sanitised the filter and keg with iodophor prior to filling, however due to laziness recently I have just filtered straight into the keg without sanitising and seems to be fine (taste wise).
Since the beer is chilled to about 2c in the fridge I assume that bacteria growth would be very minimal and that a keg only lasts about a month tops i shouldn't have a problem with any off flavours etc.

Just thought id check out what other peoples thoughts or experiences were.

Thanks

edit: I tried not sanitising because it was a bit of a pain trying to make sure all the iodophor was drained from the filter as that stuff tastes horrid... will be buying some starsan soon as its tasteless and won't matter if it ends up in the beer.

Yes you are likely to not have any problems because the beer has a low pH (below the growth pH for a lot of bacteria) and alcohol present. This takes care of most nasties that can be introduced post fermentation. But, how hard is it to rinse your keg with no rinse sanitser!??! Better to have no bacteria than a unnoticable amount (which could increase with time). Dont worry about the iodophor smell. Make sure you use the right dilution every time. Its a very good sanitiser, no need to upgrade to starsan (its no better).

This bad practice could extend to your postboil/preferment activities, where you could have real problems.....

 

[Thefatdoghead]

Hi Beerswiller, I stopped using Starsan through my filter as I think it was causing my beer to go cloudy in the kegs. There was some discussion on AHB on it a while back. I had three successive batches filtered very clear into the kegs and with in two weeks they turned cloudy.

Just filtered an Alt to keg and it's cloudy. 1st time ever and 1st time I pushed starsan through the filter after 90 degree water. Just waiting for a sample to heat up to see if it's just protein haze....****!

 

[Thefatdoghead]

Sample still hazy. Either I need a new filter or it's the starsan. Only filtered 400L or so of beer with the craftbrewer filter.

 

[bluejed]

I clean with dishwasher detergent (powder) approximately 2 TBS and add 1 kettle of boiling water, the boiling water adds pressure and then I flush through the beer tap until no pressure. disconnect keg shake and empty.

I fill the keg 1/3 and flush twice. on the 2nd time reconnect the tap and pressurize with a little C02 and flush lines.

Removes all sediment and cleans the beer tap (taste to check flush). had no affect on beer quality, quite fast and cheep.

Dave

 

[Thefatdoghead]

I clean with dishwasher detergent (powder) approximately 2 TBS and add 1 kettle of boiling water, the boiling water adds pressure and then I flush through the beer tap until no pressure. disconnect keg shake and empty.

I fill the keg 1/3 and flush twice. on the 2nd time reconnect the tap and pressurize with a little C02 and flush lines.

Removes all sediment and cleans the beer tap (taste to check flush). had no affect on beer quality, quite fast and cheep.

Dave

Nothing to do with starsan and filtering? I was of topic but just replying to an older pst about cloudy beer after filtering and using starsan. Kegs, ill flush them all with the hose then shake pbw in them and blow through beer out with the pbw then wash with cold water and then flush hot water through. Spray starsan through in and out and around keg and shes ready to go.

 

[stux]

i pour in a kettle of boiling water after rinsing
Steams and adds a bit of pressure

After doing this to my last two blown kegs I must say I'm a convert!

Rinse the keg out, then pour in 1.5L of boiling water, seal, shake, invert and attach a gas disconnect, blow boiling water through the gas post. Remove disconnect and place back on the ground and attach a beer disconnect + hose. Spray boiling water up the liquid post for a bit.

Disconnect, release pressure, remove lid and dump water.

One clean and sanitized keg, and barely a measurable amount of work!

 

[stux]

Just filtered an Alt to keg and it's cloudy. 1st time ever and 1st time I pushed starsan through the filter after 90 degree water. Just waiting for a sample to heat up to see if it's just protein haze....****!

If you get too much starsan in your beer it goes cloudy. Most common after not flushing your filter after soaking it in starsan.

 

[Brewman_]

Sample still hazy. Either I need a new filter or it's the starsan. Only filtered 400L or so of beer with the craftbrewer filter.

Do you chill the fermenter before filtering? I mean at 1 Deg.C for a couple of days at least.

If No, then that is your problem.

If yes, then keep searching.

Fear

 

[Thefatdoghead]

Do you chill the fermenter before filtering? I mean at 1 Deg.C for a couple of days at least.

If No, then that is your problem.

If yes, then keep searching.

Fear

Beer sat at 0 degrees for a week or so. Never had this problem and I did dump the first 2 litters through the filter.

 

[razz]

I've had two consecutive batches Gav, both times I pushed starsan through the filter with CO2. Cloudy as!

 

[mikec]

To all the guys who get cloudy beer after filtering - maybe you have the filter back to front?

 

[Nick JD]

I flush the starsan out of my filter with cold tap water.

 

[Steve@PMF82]

The first few times i filtered soaking the filter in starsan beforehand i got the haze mentioned.

I soak in starsan, flick as much of the excess out as possible, fill the housing with cooled boiled water ( a kettle full, boiled 5 or so times over 2days)
Put filter in and push that out wih CO2 and shes good to go, beer stays very clear.

 

[Thefatdoghead]

The first few times i filtered soaking the filter in starsan beforehand i got the haze mentioned.

I soak in starsan, flick as much of the excess out as possible, fill the housing with cooled boiled water ( a kettle full, boiled 5 or so times over 2days)
Put filter in and push that out wih CO2 and shes good to go, beer stays very clear.

Yeah I reckon i'll just put boiled cooled water through next time. Thought a couple of litters of beer would do the job but apparently not. Oh well hazy Alt. As long as it tastes the part I won't be to disappointed.

 

[Thefatdoghead]

This was the Alt beer my filter was split. It wasn't starsan it was my slit filter.

 

[slcmorro]

Sanitation*

Sorry. OCD habit of mine, correcting spelling, grammar etc.