How to Build a Keg Home Brew System
Making your own home brew can give you the best-tasting beer you have ever tried. You can experiment with different recipes or you can buy read-to-brew kits online. Bottling your own home brew is a chore, however, and glass bottles sometimes break. Using a keg dispenser will provide you with more consistent results and will allow you to control the degree of carbonation. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Cornelius-type soda dispenser
- Carbon dioxide tank with connecting washer
- Plastic 3/8-inch ID tubing, approximately 15 feet
- Connectors that fit the soda dispenser
- Faucet dispenser
- Carbon dioxide regulator
- Four hose clamps, 1/2 inch
- Refrigerator or modified freezer
Instructions
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1
Examine the soda dispenser. Familiarize yourself with the mechanism for filling and dispensing from it. Open the dispenser and check the seals; replace as necessary.
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2
Place the soda dispenser in the refrigerator. Measure how long the plastic tubing must be in order to allow you to dispense beer comfortably without moving the keg. Cut the tubing and attach the faucet dispenser to one end. Attach the soda connector to the opposite end. Secure both ends of the tube with hose clamps.
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3
Attach the regulator to the carbon dioxide tank, ensuring that the washer is in place. Measure a length of plastic tubing that is long enough to reach from the carbon dioxide tank to the dispenser, usually at least 3 feet. Attach a connector to one end. Attach the other end of the tube to the regulator. Secure both ends of the tube with hose clamps. Open the carbon dioxide tank and check for leaks.
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4
Brew some beer. Sanitize the dispenser tank and pour in the fermented wort. Seal the tank and charge with approximately 5 psi of carbon dioxide. Chill the wort to at least 45 degrees. Charge with additional carbon dioxide, shaking the dispenser tank vigorously to ensure that the wort is sufficiently carbonated. Disconnect the carbon dioxide tank and attach the dispenser hose. Allow the wort to chill an additional 12 hours before serving.
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Tips & Warnings
A keg dispensing system must be chilled. This can be done either in a small refrigerator or a specially modified freezer. If you opt to use a freezer, you will need to purchase a special thermostat to keep the unit from freezing the beer. Chest freezers are more space-efficient and may also allow you to install a tap dispenser in the lid.
Be careful when using pressurized carbon dioxide.
References
- Photo Credit Jupiterimages/Comstock/Getty Images
