Where did you get your kegs from and how happy you are with them?
I got my first round from PKA.
I am looking to buy more kegs in foreseeable future and feedback would be great.
Thank you guys.
I bought two of these
http://www.beveragefactory.com/draftbeer/home_brew/kegs/KEG-5GAL-NSH_ball_lock_keg.html
And I love them. The opening on top is big enough for me to reach my arm in to scrub them down with a rag instead of using a brush.
Thank you gymrat. Not to be disrespectful but I am looking got Sankey kegs.
Nothing disrespectful about that.
We used PKA for the first few hundred then we started leasing stainless. Leasing sucks and after 3 years of dealing with issues of PKA kegs I have decided they aren’t really too terribly bad. They aren’t meant to last forever and you will get some that leak and PKA has terrible customer service. But the kegs are fairly durable and they are cheap.
That said, I may have a source for inexpensive stainless kegs from china @ about $60/piece! If that pans out I’ll let you know.
We have leased from Keg Logistics, they are Franke kegs. Last batch we bought from C&C+ kegs, these were Schafer Sudex made in the Czech Republic. Ordered them on a Thursday they were here on the following Tuesday (no painting or embossing). We have some scrap Chinese kegs that have pin hole leaks that can’t be found.
Mark,
How are you going to mark/brand your new kegs.
PKA raise the prices, they moved to TX and freight is about double for me even thou TX is about 1/2 of distance than CA.
I do like that PKA is stackable and I can moved full two high stacked kegs without putting top one down.
We bought heavy duty stickers. 1000 stickers cost about as much as painting 50 kegs and paying for the screens, and now we can sell the stickers to customers to help defray the cost. C&C+ is in Green Bay so freight is a little easier on the pocket book.
We’ll be going through Keg Logistics for our kegs.
Ayone ever use microstar?
Micro star has high minimums.
Is Micro star the one who doesn’t allow you to have any of your own kegs?
Might be. The guys who started Keg Logistics were previously with Microstar and left to start their own thing. From what I’ve heard, Keg Logistics is much more flexible.
The guys at Keg Logistics are great to work with. Plus they are nice looking kegs that you get.
On the right is the Franke from Keg Logistis, on the Left Shafer Sudex.
What’s a good price for new kegs? This seems reasonable but not great, though I have no reference point. Plus, these are Chinese made but it seems like one of the more reputable companies.
The range for German- or American-made 1/2BBL kegs that I’ve seen is between $130-$160.
That is what I have found also.
The last couple of days the BA Forum has led with these messages:
From: Brewers Association Member
Sent: Monday, October 07, 2013 9:59 AM
Subject: Plastic Keg Explosive Failure
Moderator’s Note:
Under most circumstance, the Brewers Association does not allow anonymous posts to the BA Forum. In the interest of keeping our members informed regarding a very serious safety situation, we have allowed the following communication to be posted on the BA Forum anonymously.
Our brewery recently experienced an explosive failure of a 2008 model plastic keg from Plastic Kegs of America. The failure occurred during the keg cleaning process. A room temperature keg was placed on the cleaning line. The keg almost immediately failed. Our employee had stepped away from the cleaning line and was standing approximately 10 to 12 feet away when explosion occurred. The employee sustained a cut leg from a fragmented piece of the keg. Another piece of the keg severed a nearby glycol line. The sound of explosion was described as a “grenade”, and was heard by others throughout the brewery. All systems were operating normally with inbound pressure of compressed air regulated at or below 35 psi.
Brewers Association Member
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From: Brewers Association Staff
Sent: Monday, October 07, 2013 10:15 AM
Subject: Explosive Keg Failures
The Brewers Association has received reports of explosive failures involving kegs manufactured by Plastic Kegs of America. These kegs did not “fail safe” but rather created dangerous situations due to fragmentation of the kegs.
While the BA does not have first-hand knowledge of these incidents, or similar incidents in the past, we have been told of explosions involving brand new kegs, kegs being cleaned at pressure levels below the maximum recommended by their manufacturer or kegs that simply exploded while in storage, apparently due to continued fermentation of beer that had been inadvertently left in the keg
While we have not arrived at any final conclusions regarding plastic keg safety, the reports we have received have raised serious questions about the safety of these products. Accordingly, the BA has retained expert assistance to help us, with broad industry input, to create and promulgate appropriate keg performance and safety guidelines. Significant progress is being made on this project.
In addition, we continue to collect relevant information from brewers, manufacturers, and others, and we urge you to provide us with any further information you may have.
Please note, keg explosion incidents may be reported to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
Bob Pease - Chief Operating Officer
Paul Gatza - Brewers Association Director
Chris Swersey - Technical Brewing Projects Coordinator
Chuck Skypeck - Technical Brewing Projects Assistant
Brewers Association
It might be best to try to dispose of any of your PKA kegs before any accidents happen in your plant.
I have worked with a brewery that is using the ECO line of kegs from Schaefer… These have polypropylene chimes with a stainless liner that will be in contact the beer. They are about half the weight of a standard all stainless keg. They are also a bit less expensive. Check them out: http://www.schaeferkegs.com/eco_kegs.php
Wow…scary stuff. Good to know.
Thanks!
Stout tanks does Kegs and will stamp them for a 1 time setup charge. I havent really looked into keg prices yet but they seem reasonable, and if you buy enough could probably setup a freight pickup to offset some of their high shipping costs.