Tap and line cleaning

[LeeH]

I just do mine every keg. Have not noticed any off flavours.

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

Do you still do this when you're halfway through drinking a keg? Just planning my cleaning routine for my kegerator

I think I'm gonna make one of those loop things that @RoomWithABrew made.

I have a problem though - neither the black plastic nor the black rimmed stainless steel disconnects will fit on the carbonation caps.
The stainless ones have a notch that doesn't allow them to go on at all, and the plastic ones (despite dismantling and cleaning properly) refuse as well.

Yes, every two weeks I clean the lines regardless of whether they’ve been used much and regardless of how much beer might be in a keg.

I use the red plastic carbonation caps and the regular black/grey plastic ball locks. They are quite stiff and need a good press but they do go together.

 

[Tess Tickle's Brewery]

I hate them. I'm gonna get a three way John guest splitter I think.

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

I hate them. I'm gonna get a three way John guest splitter I think.

I have thought about making something like that in the past but decided to not bother. I don’t find the cleaning of my lines too much of a chore and I know a floppy spider affair to connect to multiple beer lines will irritate me like the Nukatap did.

 

[Tess Tickle's Brewery]

Understandable. I just don't have the spare time.

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

Understandable. I just don't have the spare time.

Now, that, I have.

 

[Tess Tickle's Brewery]

Going to keg my first beer this morning so I'm doing a check of my lines with the purple stuff.

Nothing in them, but better safe than sorry. Going to do it every second Saturday from now on.

 

[Alastair70]

I aim for every 2 to three weeks, but my schedule is a bit erratic. They get a clean every time I use my bottler, at keg changes and then every few weeks in between. I bought one of these on eBay for the disconnects and JG fittings.
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/124799121967?var=425834162281

 

[private4587]

I have a beer engine which is usually connected to a modified KingKeg, now I haven't used it for a while but after last use I did flush through with oxy then starsan which I do at each keg change. I have the purple liquid would this be ok to use before next keg and then flush with fresh water or should I pass Starsan through after the purple stuff

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

I have a beer engine which is usually connected to a modified KingKeg, now I haven't used it for a while but after last use I did flush through with oxy then starsan which I do at each keg change. I have the purple liquid would this be ok to use before next keg and then flush with fresh water or should I pass Starsan through after the purple stuff

Purple line cleaner and then flush through with water.

 

[private4587]

Purple line cleaner and then flush through with water.

Thanks for the quick reply

 

[JockyBrewer]

Does anyone know whether good quality beer line makes a difference here?

The Valpar stuff I use is a bit more expensive, but supposedly designed to not pick up crud, be easy to clean and very oxygen impermeable. I believe that Diageo and Heineken use it for their pub installs because the cost of beer line is insignificant compared to the cleaning and product spoilage issues it avoids.

I've had the end of a keg runnings sit in it for months and then clean out very easily with a bit of warm PBW run through it and then left to soak for a few minutes, but I guess I should try some purple beer line cleaner through it to see if it really is clean.

 

[Hazelwood Brewery]

Does anyone know whether good quality beer line makes a difference here?

The Valpar stuff I use is a bit more expensive, but supposedly designed to not pick up crud, be easy to clean and very oxygen impermeable. I believe that Diageo and Heineken use it for their pub installs because the cost of beer line is insignificant compared to the cleaning and product spoilage issues it avoids.

I've had the end of a keg runnings sit in it for months and then clean out very easily with a bit of warm PBW run through it and then left to soak for a few minutes, but I guess I should try some purple beer line cleaner through it to see if it really is clean.

I think it does. I’ve used other things previously and it was probably okay but I’m far more confident with the purple line cleaner because the colour tells you if the line is clean or not. If nothing else that fact alone makes it a better option for me.

In support of the above I think you can see in the posts in this thread that results with other products can be variable and maybe you don’t really know if you’ve done a good job regardless of the product without some kind of indicator.