I used a coney keg to “brew” some homemade rootbeer, and now it smells like rootbeer inside. I am hesitant to use it for beer again because i fear that the rootbeer flavor will get into the beer. Can this happen? How can i get the smell out? Will the smell affect the beer? Thanks guys.
Do a good soak with oxyclean or PBW. You might have to soak the posts as well. I have a small keg that needs this very same attention. Already threw out the line and soaked the QD’s and tap.
Keg is next.
Replacing the rings wouldn’t hurt either.
Good luck. Root beer is like pickle juice - damn hard to eradicate. That’s why most poeple that serve root beer do it in a dedicated keg on a dedicated serving line & tap.
Yes. But most of our used kegs have held syrups before and some of them had to have held root beer.
I would give it a long soak with oxyclean and a detergent. Start with hot water. Disassemble everything and soak the posts and dip tubes. Throw out the rubber. After soaking, scrub everything with something like a clean toilet brush. I would use a diptube brush, too.
Leave it open to dry out. I’ve found that sealing the kegs before they dry can help capture some of the lingering odors. Leave it open for a while. Smell it and repeat as needed.
Root beer and Dr Pepper. By far the worst.
This, oh yeah. I have rebuilt more than a few kegs that had residual soda syrup in them. The worst was one that had contained Mountain Dew.
+2. I’ve bought a lot of used kegs. I also had one with Mountain Dew that was a mother to clean and deodorize. Always have to change all the o-rings.