How to convert a beer keg into a bulk aging vessel

[tingo]

Hi everyone,
I have put this together to show anyone wanting to know how to go about converting a 15.5 gallon beer keg into a storage vessel for secondary fermentation or aging of wine.

Step one: Acquire a beer keg. This becomes easy if you buy a used one from a beer distributor. Most require you pay the $30 deposit fee and will have a selection of ones they wish to get rid of. Please let them know you are buying it and have no plans on returning it.


Step two: Locate the retaining ring which will be located inside the upper lip of the mouth opening. Using a flat head screwdriver, pry the ring out of place on one side. Then using a pair of pliers, grab ahold of the ring and pull it from the keg opening.



Step three: Rotate the stem of the keg inside of the collar until the two lock pins line up with the two openings of the collar. Then lift the whole assembly out of the keg.




Step four: Wash out the keg using a cleaner (I use sal soda) as it will most likely have some old beer still inside of it. Since the keg is made of stainless steel rinse away any meta solution you use for sanitizing as it will cause pitting in the metal. Examine the inside of the keg using a flashlight. You should see bright, clean, metal, free of any stains or residue.

Step four: Once the keg is clean you can fill it with wine. I fit it with a #11 bung and airlock, wrapped in sandwich wrap for an added seal.


Racking: The keg offers three major benefits; large storage volume, stainless steel food grade material, and the absence of light. The latter puts us at a disadvantage for racking however. If you can't see the sediment how can you rack successfully? I constructed a device that will prevent this from being a problem.

Materials needed:
One piece of 1" pvc roughly 3' long
A pvc cap to plug the end of the pipe
A 7/8 hole saw

Instructions: Drill a 7/8" hole 2-3" from the end of the pipe. place the cap over the end. It should look like this one when it is completed.


Place the pipe into the keg when you are ready to rack. You must do this slowly so that the wine does not spill out of the keg. It needs time to flow into the 7/8" hole and fill up the pipe as it is lowered for displacement. Slide your racking tube down into the pvc pipe until it hits bottom. Since the sediment should be below the 7/8" hole only clean wine should flow into the pipe and thus into the racking tube. Most kegs will have a punt in the bottom which will also help in removing sediment but will result in some wine loss as well. I have racked this into a one gallon jug before, allowed it to settle again, and racked it into a container to use for topping up later on.

 

[Wade E]

Nice job, Ill make this a sticky!

 

[Brew and Wine Supply]

A note to step one, relieve any pressure in the keg. You can do this by taking a rag and cover the top and take a screwdriver and press on the ball in the center. the rag is to keep any beer from spraying around if there is any in the keg.

 

[tingo]

Yes thank you, that is an excellent point. The ones I bought have maybe a cup of beer in them but for those that have a 1/2 gallon or so, a good car ride home could prime them back up to where you get soaked lol.

 

[vacuumpumpman]

Very nice job !! I like all the photos as well !!
Do you really think that the center tube you made up is necessary ?
I only mention this is because it is designed for bulk aging and you really should not have much sediment at all, that the normal racking cane with the sediment tip should be able to handle.

 

[tingo]

Thank you vpm. Yes I agree with you. The tube I made up is more for secondary fermentations when sediment is still forming. One problem I found however is that the racking tube pushes right into any sediment because of the large punt on the bottom of the keg. Im not sure how anti sediment tips work because I dont own one but any small amount of sediment will seem like a lot because it stacks up in the crease instead of laying flat.

 

[vacuumpumpman]

Tingo - here is a link to a racking cane with a sediment tip - the black tip at the end of the racking cane is removable and once installed it pulls wine from the top rather than the bottom of the cane. The sediment tip is actually 3/4 '' so technically it can be in that much sediment prior to sucking in ant sediment at all. I have also lowered my racking cane as I am vacuum siphoning until I could actually see the difference thru the racking cane.

http://brewandwinesupply.com/index....lter_name=racking cane &page=2&product_id=298

 

[jswordy]

Very cool how-to on keg conversion. Thanks! Do you live up North, as prices on used kegs are $15-$30 higher down here in the Southland.

I have seen a PVC racking tube used with three 3/8-inch holes equally spaced around it. This one was 1/2-inch pipe. The holes were drilled just above the joint line for the cap. The user then threaded his plastic tubing down the pipe and it was ready to go.

It may be possible to start the siphon with the cane mostly out of the keg (say, halfway in) and then gently lower it as you go. This way, you are getting the clearest wine first. When you see a hint of cloudiness in the tube, you can stop there and rack/settle the remainder in a smaller container. I usually rack this way as a general rule.

On the racking cane tips, ain't it a shame they made them black instead of orange or some other easily recognized color? You'll be asking that one day if you lose one or it comes off the end then drops and rolls. Months ago I lost one off a cane in my kitchen and have yet to find it.

 

[Brew and Wine Supply]

Months ago I lost one off a cane in my kitchen and have yet to find it.

Dog ate it