Which plastic barrel for a party?

[Terry_R]

Hi, I want to package a beer into a 5 gallon plastic barrel for a party. the_home_brew_shop.co.uk have cheap ones... £25.... anyone have any experience of using them? They any good, or should I splash out double the price on a King Keg? I will be priming the beer with sugar and conditioning for a month rather than force carbing with gas.

https://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/acatalog/5_Gallon_Plastic_Barrel_Vent_Cap_and_Tap.html

Any other suggestions/recommendations?

 

[marshbrewer]

That, or a bit less, is about what top tap King Kegs in good order are going for 2nd hand on ebay. Might be worth looking to see if any are on near you?

 

[-Bezza-]

Hi, I want to package a beer into a 5 gallon plastic barrel for a party. the_home_brew_shop.co.uk have cheap ones... £25.... anyone have any experience of using them? They any good, or should I splash out double the price on a King Keg? I will be priming the beer with sugar and conditioning for a month rather than force carbing with gas.

https://www.the-home-brew-shop.co.uk/acatalog/5_Gallon_Plastic_Barrel_Vent_Cap_and_Tap.html

Any other suggestions/recommendations?

I have a couple of those PBs from The Home Brew Shop and they're fine for what they are. I'd get the one a CO2 cap - presumably the bulb CO2 pin value - rather than the cheaper vent cap one. Also grab a spare set of seals whilst you're buying as they'll come in handy.

Considerations:
- The cheap PB has a 2" cap whereas the King Keg has a 4" cap. The bigger one means you can get your hands in to clean things out.
- Not sure how they compare on dimensions and whether one will fit in a fridge easier than another.
- The handle on the cheaper PB cuts into your hand quite a bit so you can't carry a full keg too far and still be able to use your fingers afterwards.

Not sure if the King Keg can support higher pressures compared to the cheaper one? Someone else will likely know the answer on that one.

 

[stevey]

wilkos new budget PB's have a 4" lid. I have king kegs and budget ones, I have always found the budget barrels much easier to use, top taps are just a pain in the arse in my opinion. I always have to faff about with mine to stop the gas leaking.

 

[terrym]

Plastic PBs can leak, and for that reason can be troublesome, and so many homebrewers won't touch them. That said I have three budget PBs and they are fine. Others appear to have more expensive PBs like the King Keg and seem to be happy with them.
If you choose to buy a budget PB you will be faced with a decision about the sort of CO2 injection device to go with, i.e. non at all and just rely on priming sugar (like wot I do which works for me), or inject with small CO2 bulbs which is more convenient, or a larger S30 type cylinder which is cheap to run, but less so if you have to exchange cylinders using the postal services and dont have a LHBS.
My personal view on some of the bits and bobs on the King Kegs like a pressure gauge is that they are are unnecessary and add to the cost, but others may disagree.
So in the end you pays your money and you makes your choice.
Finally you might find this useful before you decide to go ahead
Guide to a Standard Home Brew Pressure Barrel

 

[reddibaggie]

wilkos new budget PB's have a 4" lid. I have king kegs and budget ones, I have always found the budget barrels much easier to use, top taps are just a pain in the **** in my opinion. I always have to faff about with mine to stop the gas leaking.

I find completely the opposite, I swear by my kk top tap and hardly use the budget barrel due to leaky taps. The kk is altogether more robust, doesn’t misshape in any way and once you bear has started to clear it takes from the top so you can drink it sooner.


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[Dutto]

I find completely the opposite, I swear by my kk top tap and hardly use the budget barrel due to leaky taps. The kk is altogether more robust, doesn’t misshape in any way and once you bear has started to clear it takes from the top so you can drink it sooner.

Which, for me, makes it the perfect PB for a party! I it's moved gently the yeast doesn't get disturbed ... :wave:

... and by the time the PB is empty no-one is the least bit worried about a bit of "cloudiness"! :thumb: