OK, I posted this on another forum but thought I would ask here. My latest keg of Single hop Pale ale is done. I have a Pale Ale similar to RR Row 2 Hill 56 which I just read is also a single hop pale. I was thinking of just closed transferring my new beer right into my serving keg without opening it or cleaning it. I have come to the conclusion that it is probably best to clean and sanitize the keg first. But, do any of you do the back to back beers in a keg without opening it up and cleaning it? Just curious as to what the thoughts are on this. Like I said I posted this in the HBT forum already, so if that is a no no, please feel free to delete this post.
Since I always find trub in the bottom of my kegs after they’ve run dry, I wouldn’t want to put a new batch of beer on top of it. There’s also the concern about the dip tube, the liquid line, and the taps. They’ve got old, stale stuff in them, too. I’ve always held to the advice that anything coming in contact with your beer should be washed and sanitized. And honestly, it only takes a few minutes. Think of how long you’ve waited for this beer to be ready, and how long you’d like to be able to enjoy it. Now factor in the relatively short amount of time and effort it takes to ensure that it’s as good and clean as you want every pint to be. Worth cleaning and sanitizing, in my opinion.
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I have done that without any problems.
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I’ve cut corners and only rinsed and sanitized, but never close transfer without a clean. The sludge on the bottom just wouldn’t be great, in my opinion. I’m sure it would likely taste fine without opening/cleaning, but I bet it would taste better with that done.
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Thanks for the info, appreciate the input. I think the consensus is, and I agree, to go thru the cleaning and sanitizing process so that is what I shall do.
In my case, there was virtually no sludge.
Probably very beer / style / brewing techniques dependent, and sludge is a relative term. I wouldn’t transfer a delicate pilsner into an uncleaned keg that had housed a weissbier…
Denny says this has worked for him. Couldn’t one push a little StarSan into the receiving keg, slosh it around, and then dispense it? I would think that would do a decent job of removing settled trub and stale beer.
I admit that I’ve always cleaned and sanitized kegs before filling, but this seems like an interesting shortcut. If I were to try it, I’d probably clean the keg next time around, and not push my luck with never cleaning. 
However, if everything is working properly, the inside of the keg shouldn’t be “contaminated” or anything.
In Homebrewing, cleanliness isn’t next to Godliness, it IS Godliness!
Although you might get away with it, do you really want to take a beer you worked hard to brew over weeks and throw it to chance over a few minutes cleaning and sanitizing a keg?
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Something I definitely considered, but I wanted to find out. After all, it’s only beer. You can always make more.
Thanks for the replies all. I ended up going thru my full clean and sanitation process. It too me a couple of hours but best to be safe than sorry. I had to clean a couple of kegs that will be used to do fermentation and dry hopping in kegs with the hope of keeping O2 at bay and trying something different. We will see how it goes.
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I find the cleaning process also gives me time to look over everything, replace o-rings if they look iffy, etc. It’s still a worthwhile tradeoff for the mess and time bottling takes!
Geez! Clean the keg!
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I always clean the kegs after they are empty. Full disclosure however, I have enough clean kegs on hand that just need sanitized before putting new beer in them. Once I clean a keg, it gets pressurized with CO2 and stored until needed. Then it is sanitized and I am ready to go.
I only have 3 kegs that I rotate. When I empty one, I clean AND sanitize it, close it up and refill when I’ve finished brewing my next batch.
I figure that the keg is sealed, there is nothing in it but air and sanitizer solution, so it should be good to go without sanitizing again. Anyone think this is a bad idea?
My process is similar. I clean, then fill the keg with sanitizer, and then purge the sanitizer with CO2. I don’t think anything is going to grow in the sanitizer inside a keg of CO2. When I have beer ready, I fill the keg via the beer post for a low oxygen transfer.
Unless it’s totally dry, I’d be concerned.
If it is dry but sealed is that a problem? I cleaned up three of them using PBW and then pumped some air into them to see if they are holding pressure. Was going to leave them that way until I am ready to use them. Is that not good?
I’d guess it’s OK. You’ll have to tell us.