Homebrew Kegging Systems Keep Your Hard Work Fresh

2009-07-05T13:17:00.000-07:00

If you are interested in home brewing or perhaps already a home brewer, you are probably concerned about a few things when it comes to making your home brew. You certainly do not want to wait around for six weeks before you can sample your brew. You also do not want to fill up your valuable storage space with empty bottles.

Fortunately, you do not have to keep storing bottles and waiting around to have a great home brew. Not only is there a most space and cost effective way to brew your own drinks at home, you may open to the methods used in kegging as well. Obviously, the major benefit of having beer on tap instead of in bottles is that you can serve your home brew out of your keg fridge instead of buying your kegs. And there is not very much to buy to get started.

Most homebrew kegging systems are similar in terms of what items they supply. You will first need a Corny keg. This is a stainless steel keg named for the Cornelius Company which first created it. These kegs have been around for decades and have served as carbonated drink dispensers for longer than any other kind of keg. They are very common and work very well for their purpose.
Typically, this is the keg you will receive with your homebrew kegging system.
In addition, you will usually get a double gauge regulator with a shutoff valve, the standard CO2 tubing and clamps, ball style disconnects standard on any pressurized unit and the tap and tubing which come with it.

While many homebrew kegging kits may come with different quality pieces, you will not see much variation in what your kit offers. You can also expect to spend fairly little on this system. Paying under $200 is to be expected, with prices rising if you homebrew kegging kit comes with any extras.

If you wish to use a secondary fermentation process, or if you are interested in laagering, you may wish to purchase a second Corny keg. This will be necessary when you transfer the brew to a second sanitary keg later on.

If you shop for specific kits, you may be able to find some which use pin lock kegs. These are kegs which lock and disconnect by twisting the collar. This can prove to be less frustrating that ball lock kegs because it is very easy to tell if your lines are locked or not. While most ball lock kegs will perform just fine, a pin lock keg gives you some personal preference options when you are shopping for a homebrew kegging system.

As you probably already know, your specific kit will come with specific directions on how to set it up, use it and clean it properly. It is very important to follow the directions for your exact kit as they may require different methods.

If you are new to homebrewing you may also want to invest in a book. There are many options which can get you started down the road to brewing your own beer, ales or laagers. And with a homebrew kegging system, you will be saving yourself headaches and storage space by going straight from the brewing to the kegging, no bottles and no waiting.