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~1bbl Draft Pressure Pot Ideas?

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  • ~1bbl Draft Pressure Pot Ideas?

    Hey all,
    The brewpub I work at has 10 beers on tap over four towers, and the way our entire draft manifold is designed doesn't allow for recirculation cleaning our lines. I've determined I need just over 20 gallons of chemical to pack all my lines, and to date (we are still in the process of opening) I've used three corny kegs daisy-chained together, needing to be topped off once, to do this. This is rather inconvenient, and going forward these kegs will be used as brinks and won't always be available to use as such anyways. We've been looking for a single suitable vessel to do the job without any real luck, fitting the following parameters:

    1) >20 gal. capacity: As I mentioned, this is approximately what I need to clean everything at once, and could stand to hold a little extra just in case. In my searches, I've sort of defaulted to searching for 1bbl vessels as it seems like a convenient measurement, but is not itself necessary.

    2) Pressure-rated: Due to the length of our runs and the fact that they go downstairs from serving tanks, we have beer pumps in order to keep the lines sufficiently packed with liquid. Thus, the only pressure I need to apply to the vessel itself is to get the get the chemical the relatively short distance to the pumps; should take no more than 10-15 psi. Nevertheless, we've found a couple of options that seem a little too homemade for my liking, and hot, pressurized caustic is not something I want to cross my fingers on. I imagine the safety of modified vessels also varies, but am certainly open to anything legit.

    3) Dispensable and rinsable: Obviously need to get the chemical out, either with a speared, keg-like designed, or a simple valve at the bottom of the vessel, and then rinse it for storage.

    4) Reasonably inexpensive: A used 1bbl unjacketed brite easily fits the bill, but they seem to be going for a bit more than what we've looking to spend only to gain the efficiency of using one vessel. Furthermore, as we have to clean our lines once a week, we couldn't practically multipurpose the tank to hold other product in order to justify the added cost. Keeping our eyes peeled here, however.

    The last (still less elegant) iteration of the idea was daisy-chaining a half and a sixtel we already have, but as we're not generally a kegging operation and equipped as such, filling and properly rinsing them would be a bit of a challenge. Otherwise, this (https://www.gwkent.com/barrel-topping-cellar-keg.html) is pretty close in design.

    Any other ideas? Thoughts? Concerns? Thanks!

  • #2
    One issue I see here is portability. A 1bbl tank is neither small or light, especially when it is full of cleaner. Why not get a 2 or 4 head line cleaner that is 5-10 gallons. Micromatic sells a 13.2 gallon single head unit as well. While you will need to refill, that is substantially easier to move around to where you need it.

    Cleaning Bottle - 13.2 Gallon Cleaning Bottle - 13.2 Gallon - M801321KS: Cleaning bottle (large, 13.2 Gallon) to be used when cleaning draft beer lines


    Kegco's 18 Liter Keg Beer Cleaning Can allows you to choose one of five available system valves ("D," "S," "U," "G," and "M") to best fit your needs.

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    • #3
      Beer pumps.

      Cleaning the lines with very little effort is a big draw to beer pumps....
      Phillip Kelm--Palau Brewing Company Manager--

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      • #4
        I'm having some difficulty visualizing a draught system that doesn't allow for recirc cleaning. Static cleaning is very time consuming and doesn't do a great job.

        It sounds to me like you have a very poorly designed draught system. A complete rebuild might be the best answer. I rebuilt our years ago and it has paid for itself many times over.

        Oh, and another vote for beer pumps. I love beer pumps for many reasons.
        Timm Turrentine

        Brewerywright,
        Terminal Gravity Brewing,
        Enterprise. Oregon.

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        • #5
          I'm having some difficulty visualizing a draught system that doesn't allow for recirc cleaning.
          +1 on this. All I can think is there's no bypass valves on the pumps, in which case adding/reworking the pump plumbing would be way simpler than what you're contemplating, plus, as Timm said, you'll actually get your lines clean.

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          • #6
            Originally posted by TGTimm View Post
            It sounds to me like you have a very poorly designed draught system. A complete rebuild might be the best answer. I rebuilt our years ago and it has paid for itself many times over.

            Oh, and another vote for beer pumps. I love beer pumps for many reasons.
            Originally posted by MikeyB View Post
            +1 on this. All I can think is there's no bypass valves on the pumps, in which case adding/reworking the pump plumbing would be way simpler than what you're contemplating, plus, as Timm said, you'll actually get your lines clean.
            +2 on this. You can add reversing and/or bypass valves on the pumps so you can create loops. We have 21 taps and they get cleaned every two weeks. Without the reversing valves, it would be an exercise in frustration; with them, it's a piece of cake and time efficient.

            We use Flojet pumps and added these: https://www.micromatic.com/beer-pump...-valve-g56-100

            Cheers,
            --
            Don

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