24 replies to this topic

[Deerslyr]

Just a friendly reminder to install new beer-line in your kegerators on a more routine basis.

 

A week ago we were at a friends house and I took some homebrew in a 2 liter bottle with a carb cap.  A professional chef was there and I asked for his opinion.  His brutal honesty that it initially smelled like stinky feet led me to do some research and conclude that the line could be cleaned no further and needed to be replaced.  (I have a two tap tower, so it's not like its easy to see what the line looks like near the shanks)

 

Don't get down on me for not catching it earlier.  My issue is that in 1993 I broke my nose and (despite two surgeries to set and repair) my sense of smell just isn't that good.  I wasn't picking up on the smell because it has to be super strong for me.  One of the drawbacks for my deviated septum... will never be able to be a beer judge.

 

Anyways...

 

Just a friendly reminder.  I'll still do my routine cleaning, but I'll inspect on an annual basis to see if it needs replacing.  $10 for 20 feet of 3/16 is not a bad price to pay to ensure people don't say your beer stinks like feet.  

[ChicagoWaterGuy]

Great PSA. How often do you clean your lines? I try to remember to run hot pbw through with each keg change but it doesn't always happen. I use one of these. 

[Big Nake]

I run hot Oxi through each of my 4 lines followed by Starsan. I'll be very honest... I do this maybe 4 times a year. I have never heard that lines "could not be cleaned anymore" but I know they get funky after awhile. Changing my lines would not be the end of the world but it would be a good-sized job. Cheers and thanks for the reminder.

[MyaCullen]

thanks for the reminder

 

 

* needed to replace my picnic taps anyway

[neddles]

I just have 5 ft lines with picnic taps. When a keg kicks I will remove it from the fridge but leave the tap in there until its time to clean the keg. I clean the keg with hot oxi clean and pressurize it to force the oxi through both poppet assemblies. Then I siphon out the hot oxi through my open picnic tap to clean out the line. After that they get starsan and a hung up to dry. Taps/lines are about 2 yrs old with no troubles yet.

[Deerslyr]

I'll clean 2 or 3 times a year.  When I pulled out the lines, believe me they did not look pretty.  They may look fine down by the keg, but up at the top in the tower... they were looking pretty nasty.

 

I do need to modify my cleaning procedure though.  I had just been running the oxy through the line, rinsing and then star san.  The fellow at the LHBS recommended PBW/Oxy and leave it in the line for at least a day, then flush it out with clean water and then star san and leave the star san in for a day.  Although I do like the idea of keeping the star san in until the next keg.

 

Cleaning the picnic taps is another story though... but much easier.

[chadm75]

I run hot Oxi through each of my 4 lines followed by Starsan. I'll be very honest... I do this maybe 4 times a year. I have never heard that lines "could not be cleaned anymore" but I know they get funky after awhile. Changing my lines would not be the end of the world but it would be a good-sized job. Cheers and thanks for the reminder.

 

I clean my lines about every 2-3 kegs.  I usually notice some floaties in my beer and then I know it's time.  I recirc warm beer line cleaner through each for about 10 minutes and it usually does the trick.  I've looked at changing the lines completely out and for me, it would a project just because of the way my lines connect to the taps.  PITA.

[Poptop]

I follow the KISS method and clean my picnic's each keg and rinse the hoses with oxy each keg. I replace my lines each year.

[Big Nake]

I clean my lines about every 2-3 kegs.  I usually notice some floaties in my beer and then I know it's time.  I recirc warm beer line cleaner through each for about 10 minutes and it usually does the trick.  I've looked at changing the lines completely out and for me, it would a project just because of the way my lines connect to the taps.  PITA.

Do you think the floaties are from the line itself or from the keg?

[positiveContact]

just oxi + starsan after each keg seems to work fine for me.  one key is that I don't let the line sit empty after the keg kicks.  I rinse it immediately.

[Deerslyr]

just oxi + starsan after each keg seems to work fine for me.  one key is that I don't let the line sit empty after the keg kicks.  I rinse it immediately.

This is where I fail as a homebrewer.I think one of the things that was deterring me was that I didn't realize that my tower had a removable top that makes replacing the line really easy.  The tower came to me assembled with tubes, and I was too afraid to try and change them out.  I've had the tower since probably 2008/2009?

[SchwanzBrewer]

This is where I fail as a homebrewer.I think one of the things that was deterring me was that I didn't realize that my tower had a removable top that makes replacing the line really easy.  The tower came to me assembled with tubes, and I was too afraid to try and change them out.  I've had the tower since probably 2008/2009?

 

Ewww. I won't serve my beer out of old lines. I buy new line and replace the old ones if there's a hint of something in them or they've been sitting for a while connected.

[Deerslyr]

Ewww. I won't serve my beer out of old lines. I buy new line and replace the old ones if there's a hint of something in them or they've been sitting for a while connected.

 

If I could have my sense of smell back, it would be a lot easier!

 

(Also... they looked fine down at the bottom where they connect, but where I couldn't see the line is where the issue was.

 

When I visited Basser at SNBC, the only part about the tour that really bummed me out was when he took us into his lab and I couldn't identify the "bad smells" and my non-brewing buddies could.  I felt like I belonged on the short bus.  

 

The upshot to this is, now I know it is not the PITA that I thought it would be to change out my line.  And an annual $10 spent will be just fine with me.

 

Lesson learned.

Edited by Deerslyr, 08 September 2014 - 12:51 PM.

[chadm75]

Do you think the floaties are from the line itself or from the keg?

 

It's from the line.  I can see the sediment built up in the lines after running a few kegs through.  Once I run line cleaner and sanitizer through them, the sediment is gone along with the floaties.  

one key is that I don't let the line sit empty after the keg kicks.  I rinse it immediately.

 

This.

[StankDelicious]

When I clean & sanitize my kegs with PBW and Star-San, I always run them through my taps.

[chadm75]

When I clean & sanitize my kegs with PBW and Star-San, I always run them through my taps.

 

This is a great idea.

[Big Nake]

This is a great idea.

That's what I do but not every time. The kegs are filled so it's the perfect time to hook the kegs up to the lines and dispense cleanser or sanitizer. Now that DS has reminded us all, I'll probably do this over the weekend... if I have an empty keg to play with.

[Stout_fan]

I use a portable garden sprayer to pump diluted PBW though the lines about once a year. I'm amazed how much garbage collects in the lines.

I follow with a water rinse and then Star San.

 

 

 

That said, maybe I ought to do it more often.  No off flavors detected yet.

[Bklmt2000]

I use a pond pump (connected to the faucet shanks on my draft tower) to circulate hot BLC for 15-20 minutes at a time, and then run ice-cold water w/ a splash of Star-san through the lines.

 

I'm always amazed at the amount of crap that comes out of the lines.  That said, I always notice an immediate improvement in the quality of the next beers poured after cleaning.

 

If anyone is interested, I will post pics of my draft cleaning setup.

[Deerslyr]

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