im new to the homebrewing scene so sorry for the possibly stupid question in advance. i have two brews going at the moment; a rye ale and an irsih red. havent bottled anything and am not set up for kegging at all, but im thinking kegging could be so much easier, better, quicker etc as compared to bottling. i am a part of a 2 man mobile welding outfit, and i have several C02 cylinders at home all the time. my question is this; is there a food grade c02 used for kegging? or is it just your run of the mill c02 cylinder? i worked at a fast food place when i was a kid and im pretty sure they had just a common c02 cylinder for the soda machine…
Pretty sure there is only one kind of Co2. I trade my tanks in at a place the primarily supplies welding and construction activities.
i thought so, thanks dude.
:twisted: I bought mine from Airgas, the only difference was the size.
Several people, including myself, have our co2 tanks filled at fire extinguisher shops.
co2 is co2.
I’m building a 4-5 tap keezer, what is the best size of CO2 tank?
Are you planning to put the tank inside or outside. I have a kegerator that hold 4 kegs and I have a 20 lb tank outside that has been in continuous use since I started using it in April or May. I have not had to refill it yet, but I confess that I have two 5 lb tanks that I use for the heavy lifting of force carbonating a lot of my beers before they hit the kegerator. I have refilled them a few times.
Get the biggest one that you can fit.
[quote=“Nighthawk”]Several people, including myself, have our co2 tanks filled at fire extinguisher shops.
co2 is co2.[/quote]
thats the answer i was looking for.
my thoughts exactly. now just finding room for a spare refrigerator…
+1 I have both 5lb and 20lb tanks and gotta love the 20lb tanks.
lol, for sure, my tanks are the full size, 5 ft high probably 12 inches in diameter…i dont know how many lbs of co2 are in there but i tell you those bitches weight about 200 lbs full…probably not feasible for kegging, unless its possible to keep the tank outside of the fridge.
i have even more oxygen, was wondering if any of you ever oxygenate your wort with compressed o2 rather than just shaking the fermentor around? any pros/cons to either approach?
Yeah, you can use them. Alot of people keep their bottles outside the fridge/freezer, how you get the line inside depends on your model. Leaves room for another keg. :cheers:
well dont make me feel bad about it, hahaha. :cheers:
i dont know what the disposable o2 bottles from duxx are,but cool, let me know how it works out.
any input on whether to get these cornelius kegs new/used? big difference in price… about $30-$40 used, and $100-$130 new… i read a few reviews of people having major issues with the second hand kegs…still trying to figure out the best approach.
If you can get used ones at a good price they are worth picking up. Just look for ones that have been pressure tested. Do a good job of cleaning them and replace all of the o-rings.
I have about 14 used kegs that I got from a friend that I am sure bought them used. I had a leak at a gasket with one of them, but he sent along a bunch of spare parts and gaskets. Unless they have a hole in the stainless, not much can go wrong that cannot be fixed.
Uh, be very careful. Some of these big tanks have the dip tube the runs to the bottom and brings up the liquid co2 (I think). I know the guy that uses the type of tank you describe to refill mine by going to the bottom liquid. I am guessing the liquid would not be good for pushing and carbing beer.
Agreed. You do not want to use it if it is a siphon tank. The liquid can create a very dangerous situation and ruin equipment.
The benefit of oxygenating over aerating is that it’s faster, and that you can reach higher DO levels, which may be desirable for lagers and/or big beers. The risk that comes with using oxygen is that without a DO meter you can never be sure exactly how much you’ve added, and it is possible to over-oxygenate and do damage. At a minimum, you’ll need a flow rate meter so that you can at least make an educated guess as to how much O2 is in the wort.
Personally, I feel like the saturation levels reached with aeration (9 ppm for ales, 12 ppm for lagers) are sufficient, and that leaving an air pump plugged in for 15-20 minutes isn’t a major inconvenience.
