Buying a sanke keg - what to look for

[Eugenio]

Hey all, I've never done any kegging, not know anything about the equipment. I am thinking that if possible I'd like to go sanke. Anyways, I found someone selling a couple of 1/6 sanke kegs he used for maple syrup storage for 35 each, they look in good condition. I'm thinking of buying them to use as fermenters and eventually as kegs. Two questions:

1. Is this a good price or typical cost?

2. What should I look for to make sure I can use them for the intended keg purpose later on?

Much thanks!


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[iijakii]

Kegs are pretty simple. See if he has some CO2 handy and if he'll do a pressure test on them. If not, just make sure the steel isn't deformed around the posts or lid. Orings are cheap and will be replaced so don't worry about those being gnarly.

 

[Eugenio]

Great, do you think 35 per keg without spears would be a good deal?


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[acidrain]

$35 ea. sounds OK... maybe get a group buy going.
Make sure the valve and dip tube are there and installed, and they hold pressure.
If he used them for syrup, they may be nasty. Ask him if they've been cleaned.

 

[Brad2287]

If they do not have spears those might be difficult to find in the future if you plan on using them as kegs. I have thrown out a couple from 1/2 barrel sankes so you might be able to find similar with 1/6 but they are less common for use as fermentors/keggles. Sankes are more difficult to disassemble and clean than cornies. It is very doable just requires a little more work.

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[acidrain]

I've got two spears you can have... 1/6th, and 1/4 talls are the same as 1/2 bbl's.

 

[bondra76]

Any 1/6 keg you can get for under 60 bucks these days is a bargain.

Really depends on what you want as far as size goes. I have a 4 keg setup with 1/6 kegs, and I have a hard time finding them. I have 3 right now and just trying to snag a 4th somehow off craigslist. 1/2's are really readily available out there. 1/2's obviously have plusses and minuses to them. They're bigger, more beer, etc but they also take up more room (so maybe that leads to less variety in your home) and also may require larger more expensive equipment. I'm at the point right now where I am making 5 gallon batches and considering making some 1-2 gallon batches just so I can test/try things out with unique recipe ideas. Nothing worse than making a huge batch of beer that you don't think is very good.

Anyways, in a nutshell I think it's a great price. Anything under 60 for 1/6 kegs is great. If you went to 1/2s I wouldn't pay anything more than 50 (and maybe even 40) for a keg. Seems backwards, but I think 1/6s are in greater demand because of the homebrewer.

 

[wilserbrewer]

I've got two spears you can have... 1/6th, and 1/4 talls are the same as 1/2 bbl's.

This makes the deal, unless shipping is pricey.

Without spears, you could use them as fermenter for smaller batches, but without a spear they would have little value to me.


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[Eugenio]

Awesome, thanks a ton guys, and thanks acidrain. I'll contact him and try to snatch them. I def want to move to kegging at some point but don't think I'll be moving too far from 5g, so I think this might be good. I'll post once I check them out.

Thanks again!


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