Worth the extra?

NorthernBrewer · Sep 4, 2013

Hi guys,

Just a quick question, I'm on a budget (student) for my homebrewing and am toying with the idea of getting a keg. Is it worth saving a bit longer to get a King Keg, or will the budget/Wilkos kegs do the job just as well?

Many Thanks,

NB

Runwell-Steve · Sep 4, 2013

The budget ones are better than the King Kegs in my opinion. You will probably want to get yourself a cap with an S30 valve on it as that works out cheaper in the long run than the little bulbs.

RobWalker · Sep 4, 2013

Personally I've not seen the benefit of a king keg yet. mine have been fiddly (floats turning upside down, tap leaking etc) whereas wilko budget have been great, you just need to replace the O rings and stuff every 2 years or so. you may need an s30 cap and a gas bottle to use one towards the end though (sorry steve, just posted as you posted)...but yeah I'd just go for budget. others may argue, but plastic kegs are a means to an end anyway, not really a luxury - you have cornies and stuff for that.

even cheaper, just use 2L pop bottles primed with sugar, get a couple of pitchers and pour the whole bottle off into them when you want to drink it. The only real downside is you have to drink 3.5 pints at a time, but if my student days were anything to go on, that shouldn't pose an issue. they will be easier to keep cool for you too :thumb:

In terms of kits, whilst you're on a budget, I would recommend spending a few quid more and getting a good quality kit (coopers, better brew etc are great compared to the low end brands.) For the price of a pint to improve your 40 pints, the quality leap is massive.

pittsy · Sep 4, 2013

If cost is an issue then why not just bottle and save Â£40 , bottles are better anyway and kegs can only hold a low carb beer ...no lagers and such like . Bottles are free from pubs , go for the brown type.

BIGJIM72 · Sep 4, 2013

The keg debate rears its head again!

Its all down to personal preference-and I can't get on with budget kegs. I agree that KKs can be awkward & problematic-the tap is particularly bad-but unless there is a manufacturers defect then I would suggest most problems that folk have with them are down to user error. Again I can see why folk complain about KKs when they are the best part of Â£50. I get on fine with my 3 KKs,but will freely admit that there was a learning curve with getting the best out of them.

Whichever keg you think about bear in mind the following:

They are buggers to chill without a dedicated fridge

You will get a much different finish than from bottles

They will save you a lot of time over bottling,but bottles are easier to store & transport

If you are hard up,stick with bottles. +1 to Rob-you will get back more from using the better kits.

Get yourself a brew buddy as well-cleaning & bottling is much quicker with an extra pair of willing hands!

NorthernBrewer · Sep 5, 2013

Thanks for the advice chaps!

My original plan was and still is to bottle, but I'm struggling to get together 40...everywhere around here seems to sell just cask ales, but I've got a couple of local pubs that are saving me Bulmers bottles :)

But, just in case I can't get enough by bottling day, I thought I better ask about kegs. If I need to get one I think I'll go for a budget keg, that way I won't have to spend too much and if it's bobbins I've got a bottling/racking bucket!

Fortunately my housemate is quite keen on trying homebrewing too, so we'll be able to help each other out when it comes to brewdays and bottling.

Thanks for all your help!

NB