Hey everyone. New to the forums and new to all grain brewing. I have a few questions about making a keggle. I just picked up a coors light keg yesterday from the scrap yard for a hell of a deal and am turning it into a keggle. So far I have cut the top off and thas that. I plan to have a 1/2" stainless steel coupling welded on and attach a stainless ball valve. I believe I have that part down but before I do that I am worried about the stain marks inside. The keg seems to have been sitting in the scrap yard for some time and someone had taken the all out of it so there was still some beer and water sitting in it. There are brownish streaks running down the side of the keg and I don’t know how to get them off. Any ideas? Also I plan to make a false bottom using a mesh stainless steel screen but I have some questions about that as well. How does the false bottom stay in place? I would think that during boiling and storing that it would get bumped around and let someone the grain under it. And one last question. Is it safe to use teflon tape inside the keggle? And if I solder some copper tubing for my pickup tube is that safe as well?
I have another idea that will save me a few $ but I’m not sure if it will work. If I took a 1/2" nipple and put it through the side of the keg, put a thick o ring on, teflon taped the threads then put a nut on would that create a seal? On the outside I would do the same thing. Put the oring then a nut to create the pressure and then the valve. Would I just be better off getting it welded for $20?
Welcome to the forum! Any idea what the brown stains are? I would try using Bar Keeper’s Friend on them. It’s a scouring powder that you can find at the supermarket next to the Comet or Babbo. It works wonders on stainless steel and copper. Your keg is probably aluminum and I’ve personally never used it on aluminum, but it’s worth a shot. As for the coupling, welding is best. Just make sure you use a competent welder, one that can do what are called sanitary welds. But you don’t need to have the coupling welded. As you alluded to you can also use a bulkhead fitting. These can be made by sourcing the parts yourself or you can buy them ready made at any homebrew store. If you source the parts yourself use silicon O-rings. I’ve been using bulkhead fittings for over ten years now and they work great. I have to replace the O-ring every now and then, but it’s no big deal.
I also have coors keg, mine is SS.Try to scratch/cut a small piece off with a knife. If you can, its more than likely aluminum. I have converted a few other kegs too, and I will use the weld -less fitting to be sure I liked what and where the port(s) where. I have now switched to silver soldiering the nipple in place. I have seen a video clip where a fellow drills the hole just a tad bit smaller, then pulls a plug through, then pulls the nipple and is very tight. From there then the soldiering can commence. I have as much fun gizmo-ing up my stuff as brewing…. Yes, bar keepers friend is a must for all things stainless and copper. I have my pick up tube in my mash tun soldiered and copper and haven’t any ill effects. I also do a boiled run of all I make before I brew with the equipment. Sneezles61 :cheers:
As much as they look like it, I don’t think any beer kegs are aluminum. For one they could not take the abuse. Ever see a delivery truck throw a pad on the ground then just drop the keg out of the door? Second the acidity of beer would eat away at the keg. Last the chemicals commercial breweries use to clean kegs would eat through aluminum. My bet is they are all 304 stainless.
For the ball valve. I have done many without welding by making a bulkhead fitting. A couple I drilled just shy of the thread size of a copper fitting, wrapped well with Teflon tape and cranked in. They might drip a little but after they are “seasoned” the drip stops or remove and use more tape for the next time.
I’m not sure why you need a false bottom for a boil kettle except to filter out hops and trub. If that is the reason consider a bazooka fitting. All that is, is a SS tube shaped screen like this one http://www.northernbrewer.com/shop/mash-boil-screen If it is for a mash-lauter tun the weight of the grain will hold down a false bottom.
There are plenty of options for weldless fittings, and isn’t a bad place to start. I slightly prefer welded fittings but weldless are much easier to make if you don’t have access to a good welder.
Some older kegs are aluminum, but they predate Coors Light. The only ones I’ve seen are Hoff-Stevens.
Since the keg was found in a scrapyard, the stain is probably rust from contact with other steel. I’ve bought cornys from a yard and it does take some work
to get them clean. Like above, BKF and elbow grease.
I welded mine on, but a weldless fitting is nice. Teflon is OK to use, I believe it’s safe up to 400*f.
