Mini Kegs

[Covrich]

sorry.. i can see it on my laptop

https://www.geterbrewed.com/?subcat...match=all&q=mini+keg&dispatch=products.search
the tap despenser and the 5l keg.

I am looking into this too

 

[colm89]

I got an ikegger 5 litre keg in december and had a lot of the same questions you guys have prior to receiving it so hopefully I can impart some knowledge here.

carbonating with co2: I put it in the fridge and hit it with max pressure in the regulator as soon as I fill the keg for 24 hours, and then lower to serving pressure for a week before starting to drink it. This uses 2 co2 bulbs from start to finish usually but it probably depends how long you take to drink your way through it. You could probably remove the regulator if you needed to, but I don’t. Tap can come off and go on just for serving

priming with sugar: same as bottles; fill the keg, put your ball lock lid on and put it in the same place you condition your bottles for 2-3 weeks. When it comes to serving, chill it, pop your regulator and tap on, and serve. Again I usually leave the regulator on, but you can probably take it off

 

[Galena]

sorry.. i can see it on my laptop

https://www.geterbrewed.com/?subcat...match=all&q=mini+keg&dispatch=products.search
the tap despenser and the 5l keg.

I am looking into this too

All seems to be out of stock with Geterbrewed as well.
I can't tell if you can use a 16oz CO2 with that, the regulator doesn't appear to have a guage or am I missing something?

 

[Galena]

priming with sugar: same as bottles; fill the keg, put your ball lock lid on and put it in the same place you condition your bottles for 2-3 weeks. When it comes to serving, chill it, pop your regulator and tap on, and serve. Again I usually leave the regulator on, but you can probably take it off

Thanks for the info. When priming with sugar, what pressure do you use for serving? Also do you flush with CO2 before kegging?

 

[Pavros]

Be careful when buying a keg on Amazon. I bought a 3.5 litre one with tap and regulator and it really is cheap and nasty compared to the Dark Farm 5 litre kegs. I am not convinced the keg is stainless steel and the tap is chrome plated rather than stainless but you get what you pay for.

I think Dark Farm said they are looking to get the single walled kegs back in stock to offer a slightly cheaper option. Mine are single wall and are really good quality.

 

[StoutWolf]

Just read this thread with great interest. I currently have a few dark farm 5l kegs. @Fireside Ales Homebrewery - maybe you can help answer a question that I've been wondering about recently; are the spearheads interchangeable between dark farm and Mangrove Jacks (and malt miller/others) and between 5 and 10l?

 

[colm89]

Thanks for the info. When priming with sugar, what pressure do you use for serving? Also do you flush with CO2 before kegging?

If priming with sugar I don’t, but if carbonating with co2 I do. I fill it with starsan and force it through the tap with co2, but that’ll use another bulb and is quite wasteful. I’m hoping to pick up a sodastream canister as I bought the adapter for my regulator.

 

[Galena]

If priming with sugar I don’t, but if carbonating with co2 I do. I fill it with starsan and force it through the tap with co2, but that’ll use another bulb and is quite wasteful. I’m hoping to pick up a sodastream canister as I bought the adapter for my regulator.

Not sure I totally understand, if primed with sugar there will be initial pressure, but surely not enough to force all of the beer out to the glass?

 

[Galena]

I think Dark Farm said they are looking to get the single walled kegs back in stock to offer a slightly cheaper option. Mine are single wall and are really good quality.

I like the look of Dark Farms 5 litre kegs but not sure I understand the differences between the different options

 

[Pavros]

Dark Farm have only started selling the double walled kegs in the last year or so. They are about £10 more for the 5 litre kegs. I think the double wall helps with insulation. I have 4 of the original single wall kegs and have never had a problem keeping them cool.

You could email Gareth at Dark Farm with questions about the different kegs. I have always found him helpful.

 

[colm89]

Not sure I totally understand, if primed with sugar there will be initial pressure, but surely not enough to force all of the beer out to the glass?

Sorry, I was responding to your question around co2 flushing. I serve at 7-15 psi depending on the beer.

 

[Galena]

Sorry, I was responding to your question around co2 flushing. I serve at 7-15 psi depending on the beer.

Ahh, gotcha, my misunderstanding. Thanks

 

[Galena]

You could email Gareth at Dark Farm with questions about the different kegs. I have always found him helpful.

Will do and thanks

 

[Fireside Ales Homebrewery]

Just read this thread with great interest. I currently have a few dark farm 5l kegs. @Fireside Ales Homebrewery - maybe you can help answer a question that I've been wondering about recently; are the spearheads interchangeable between dark farm and Mangrove Jacks (and malt miller/others) and between 5 and 10l?

Hi,
The simple answer is yes. I am currently using the spear that I received with my 10litre dark farms keg on my 5litre MJ keg. The only thing I have changed is the dip tube from the spear. That obviously needs to be shorter for the 5litre keg. All the parts, spears, disconnects etc for the kegs are universal between the brands

 

[Fireside Ales Homebrewery]

Will do and thanks

Hi, me again.
To clarify, there is no difference between the kegs in the style of the dark farms and mangrove Jacks kegs. Dark farms simply slap a logo on them and sell them for more than you need to pay. The only difference are the double walled kegs. Though I am not sure why you would pay more for these?? Your fridge can do a perfectly good job of keeping a keg cool without the keg having extra insulation. The dark farms website makes things a little confusing I think because they sell different packages of what is essentially the same thing and call one premium.

Corney kegs are different because there lid set up is different However, All the disconnects, tubes, regulators etc are universal. So they can work on either the Corney or the Dark farms style keg.
If you want to use the 16 bulbs of Co2 you will need the universal regulator. These are special regulators that can be adapted to be used with different gas bottles. However, you do need the correct adapter attachments set up on the regulator to be able to use each gas bottle type.
Here is an article by Malt Miller that you may find useful. It explains what you need in a step by step format that is easy to understand.
https://www.themaltmiller.co.uk/blog/so-you-want-to-start-kegging-your-home-brew/

 

[Galena]

Hi, me again.

https://www.themaltmiller.co.uk/blog/so-you-want-to-start-kegging-your-home-brew/

Great explanation again, that goes a way to my understanding, and thanks for the link

 

[muppix]

I think the catalyst that got me started with kegs was the purchase of a Fermzilla, primarily so that I could keep oxygen at bay during fermentation and bottling. Then I wanted to have a go at fermenting under pressure, hence came the spunding valve and the start of a very slippery slope. Pressure-fermented beer is partially carbonated, why not finish the job off with some gas, a small keg, and a closed transfer? And thus my initial setup:

• 5 litre Mangrove Jacks Mini keg,
• Mangrove Jacks portable gas kit - connectors for every type of bottle you can imagine,
• Picnic beer tap - cheap & cheerful,
• Some 16g CO2 cartridges

Turns out kegging is utterly fantastic but one is never enough, and I was going through CO2 cartridges like the clappers. In my naivety I had assumed that you need to be a pub in order to get proper CO2 cylinders, or at least show some kind of competence / evidence of a registered business. Nope. Turns out I could just wander down to the local brewery, pick up a cylinder, and pay for it. There's no deposit and you don't have to bring back an empty one in order to get a full one, though I expect most people do. Well, if it was that easy ...

• 14 lb CO2 bottle - about 4' tall,
• Full-size CO2 regulator,
• 19 litre Cornelius keg - aka Corny,
• Stainless beer gun dispenser,
• Another 5 litre mini keg,
• More disconnects, pipe, and John Guest fittings than I ever knew existed

I'm now well and truly on the slippery slope, looking at setting up a dedicated kegerator since opening up my brew fridge and fiddling with the mobile dispenser each time I want a pint is a pain, and I no longer use disposable CO2 cartridges at home since getting a full-size bottle. This will be the second larder fridge I've bought in as many months, which isn't something I had foreseen when I was standing at the edge of this abyss a few short weeks ago.

Be warned my friend.

 

[Fireside Ales Homebrewery]

I think the catalyst that got me started with kegs was the purchase of a Fermzilla, primarily so that I could keep oxygen at bay during fermentation and bottling. Then I wanted to have a go at fermenting under pressure, hence came the spunding valve and the start of a very slippery slope. Pressure-fermented beer is partially carbonated, why not finish the job off with some gas, a small keg, and a closed transfer? And thus my initial setup:

• 5 litre Mangrove Jacks Mini keg,
• Mangrove Jacks portable gas kit - connectors for every type of bottle you can imagine,
• Picnic beer tap - cheap & cheerful,
• Some 16g CO2 cartridges

Turns out kegging is utterly fantastic but one is never enough, and I was going through CO2 cartridges like the clappers. In my naivety I had assumed that you need to be a pub in order to get proper CO2 cylinders, or at least show some kind of competence / evidence of a registered business. Nope. Turns out I could just wander down to the local brewery, pick up a cylinder, and pay for it. There's no deposit and you don't have to bring back an empty one in order to get a full one, though I expect most people do. Well, if it was that easy ...

• 14 lb CO2 bottle - about 4' tall,
• Full-size CO2 regulator,
• 19 litre Cornelius keg - aka Corny,
• Stainless beer gun dispenser,
• Another 5 litre mini keg,
• More disconnects, pipe, and John Guest fittings than I ever knew existed

I'm now well and truly on the slippery slope, looking at setting up a dedicated kegerator since opening up my brew fridge and fiddling with the mobile dispenser each time I want a pint is a pain, and I no longer use disposable CO2 cartridges at home since getting a full-size bottle. This will be the second larder fridge I've bought in as many months, which isn't something I had foreseen when I was standing at the edge of this abyss a few short weeks ago.

Be warned my friend.

It truly is one foot down the rabbit hole. Worth every penny though. Firstly they bring you great joy when you pull that perfect pint. Secondly they are so easy to use and maintain.
A quick question, who do you get your full size gas bottles with?
I was looking at BOC gas. But for some irritating reason they don’t deliver to private house holds. It has to be commercial.

 

[muppix]

A quick question, who do you get your full size gas bottles with?
I was looking at BOC gas. But for some irritating reason they don’t deliver to private house holds. It has to be commercial.

I literally drive a couple of miles down the road to the local brewery and pick one up, no account needed. But I accept things are probably a bit different in my neck of the woods.

The cylinders ultimately belong to BOC, whom I contacted when I found out that the brewery doesn't stock oxygen. The local BOC agent does deliver to private households, but went to a welding supplies shop because it's easier. Oxygen is another story though...

 

[Galena]

Some great info on this thread.
I was/am looking at getting a 5 litre keg because I can get it in the fridge, they are of course pretty expensive, but I was thinking that if I only have one, well if I make a 21 litre batch and stick 5 in the keg and bottle the rest, well that would probably mean my keg would be empty more than it is full.
So I was wondering, how practical is it to use a larger keg like maybe 20 litres, I think I prefer the idea of natural carbonation, and then transfer over to the 5 litre, if no oxygen gets into the larger keg, would this be a viable option?