Any preferred method while the keg is empty? Lid on/off, under pressure, etc. Cheers!
Purged of sanitizer with CO2 to seat the lid where they rest like soldiers waiting for their call…
what do you mean “to seat the lid”?
Is this necessary for a week or two storage, or is this for longer term?
Applying just enough pressure to make sure the lid has a good seal.
Can’t I just seat the lid by simply shutting the lid?
If you’re not storing it purged of CO2, then yes. And frankly, with good-quality new kegs you don’t really need to store them under pressure to seat the lid. All my kegs that I’ve gotten new from AiH over the past year or so will hold a seal even if they aren’t pressurized.
What’s the benefit of storing it purged of CO2? Perhaps I’m slowly losing my mind tonight, but how would you even purge it of CO2 if you’re using CO2 gas to push?
Can’t I just clean it with PBW, rinse out and leave it be until I sanitize just prior to beer addition?
Right now all of mine are sitting like this, simply cleaned and dried. I usually have them cleaned, sanitized and pressurized, that way when the keg is need I simply depressurize, pop the top and fill.
I don’t understand the need to keep them pressurized just to have to depressurize prior to filling with beer.
I usually clean and sanitize and leave the keg full of star San mix pressurized. When I’m ready to swap a keg, I’ll clean the next one, and then dump the star San mix from one to the other and repeat. If the previous keg isn’t pressurized when I go to use it, I know I have a leak to deal with before racking beer into it as well.
This is my usual as well. I keep a spare keg full of Star San that has been purged with CO2 and pressurized. When I’m ready to fill it, I jump the Star San to an empty keg under pressure, leaving only CO2 behind.
Couple of reasons. Pressurized means nothing is getting in there. It will remain sanitary. Also, since I’m sealing the keg while wet with Star San I want to avoid oxygen.
That’s right, plus I have some kegs that leak a little and I can check to see if it held pressure since the last use.
Purged of O2 with CO2. I think there was a typo.
Cleaned and sanitized, dry with a few pounds of CO2 to seat the lid. Stacked and stored waiting for the next batch in my shop.
All of our kegs are old used ones. Many of them are finicky. I have to make sure they hold pressure before I put brand new beer in there. They all get a little blue tape tag that says “S + P” for “sanitized and pressurized”.
+1. I like knowing before filling with beer that the keg still holds pressure, too.
I clean/sanitize/dry my kegs, and then store dry with the lid on (with painter tape labeled “clean/sanitized”), and quickly re-sanitize and drip dry before filling. I normally add keg lube to post o-rings when still wet with sanitizer prior to drying/storing them, but wait to lube the lid o-ring until immediately prior to filling the keg with beer. I don’t feel the need to purge corny kegs of o2 prior to filling them (from the bottom with an auto-siphon), but immediately purge and then pressurize kegs as soon as filled.
Doesn’t mean it will be holding pressure just fine that when you pop the lid, fill it, and close it up again…
Since I do a closed transfer from keg fermenter to serving keg, I don’t have to worry much about that. Just make sure it’s still holding pressure from when I cleaned and sanitized it.
My keg fermenters I usually clean, and leave the lid sitting halfway in the keg and let it dry out. Then I’ll rinse it out and run starsan through it on brewday. Regular kegs get cleaned, sanitized, and pressurized until I’m ready to put beer in them.
No, it’s no guarantee but it’s a good indication for me. I always leak check with a starsan spray bottle regardless. Don’t like bad surprises.