I’ve followed the design and great info that SiouxerBrewer has shared here (http://goo.gl/rlgZk), and I’ve posted my earlier alternate ‘rubber stopper’ design (http://goo.gl/vbqE5) which has been working well for me. But I wanted to get away from the hold-down hardware, maintain the low profile, and keep it easy/cheap to build.
Sorry if these posts are long, I wanted to give as much detail as possible. The actual construction and use is really simple. The pictures tell the story. Basic steps are simply:
- CO2 side:
Insert washer and hose onto hose barb splicer,
cut end of hose barb off,
slide on re-usable bung, and
connect gas hardware to other end.
Liquid side: same except instead of cutting the hose barb, you add ~ 6” of hose to form a dip tube, and connect the other end to a tap. That’s it. In the variation that I use, you pull 1/8” ID hose through the barb for the liquid side, and terminate the CO2 and liquid ends with a Luer connector for added flexibility.
Two things led to this design. One - I found it is easy to remove the built in tap that comes with the mini-keg, and that port is the same dimension as the top vent port. This simplifies everything, as we don’t need to get gas and beer through the same port, plus it makes it far easier to clean and dry, with no worries of that spigot trapping any nasties (see this POST for spigot removal tips - http://goo.gl/hihP2 ). Second - I saw in this post ( http://goo.gl/VSWZw ), that the thick-walled BevLex tubing fits fairly tight in the removable bung. I found that the 3/16” ID thick-walled BevLex tubing pushed over a 1/4” hose barb connector expands enough to seal very tightly in the bung (it is slightly larger than the plugs that come with the bungs), and can be bent over to keep the height to less than 1-1/2” above the mini-keg. The shoulder and washer will retain the assembly in the bung.
First I’ll show a design with 3/16” ID hose that can be connected to standard kegging hardware, then I’ll show the variation that I use on the tap side, which reduces the tap line length to ~ 2 feet for a good pour. I keep the lines closed/looped while conditioning/storing, and just add a tap and air stem (or other gas source connection) when I put them on for serving. This keeps total system costs very low if you keep multiple mini-kegs waiting to be put on tap.
This pic shows the low profile of the CO2 side (shown here with the Luer connectors, 1/4” barb-1/8” MPT, 1/8” FPT coupler, and 1/8” MPT air stem for the CO2 side, and Luer connectors to the Cobra Tap).
[attachment=1]CIMG1493&96s.JPG[/attachment]
The key to the short line length is the line resistance provided by the 1/8” ID x 3/16” OD vinyl tubing I’m using - this tubing can be pulled through the PL200 hose barb splicer, and it seals tight. Two feet of 1/8” ID tubing takes up much less space, and saves about $5 over the usual ~ 10’ of 3/16” ID beverage tubing. I’ve been testing this to 45# with no issues at all.
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If you want to try a SS hose barb (http://www.mcmaster.com/5670K11), note that it has a thinner wall with ~ 3/16” ID - so try 1/8” x 1/4” vinyl hose in place of the 1/8” x 3/16” - that should
provide a good seal. I have not tested this particular part, but I have tested and used 1/4” x 1/8” vinyl tubing pulled through 3/16” holes with no problems.
Optional, but I like to use these cheap Luer connectors for flexibility ( ~ $0.40 per piece). I buy Male and Female Luers with 1/4” barbs and some with 1/8” barbs so I can easily interconnect 3/16”, 1/4” and 1/8” ID tubing. I use these to go from the 1/8” ID tubing to the 3/16” tubing on the Cobra Tap, and I can easily pinch clamp the 1/8” tubing and remove the tap for cleaning/storage, or connect a longer line section if needed for highly carbonated beverages.
Assembly details next…
-kenc