Sanke Keg

[ISUbrady]

I have recently acquired some Sanke kegs, 5 half barrel, 4 tall quarter barrels, and 1 short quarter barrel kegs.

I plan on turning 2 of the half barrels into a 3 vessel rims system with a cool HLT. I also plan on turning some of them into fermenting vessels but trying to find uses for the remainders.

I was wondering if anyone has any experience in using sanke kegs for kegging their homebrew? I did not know if this is viable option for the remainder of my kegs that I have acquired.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

I use sanke kegs for kegging and think they are way better then corney kegs.My corneys are collecting dust. The problem you may have is the size of yours.1/6 sanke is the size you want for 5 gallon batches.Any bigger and youll have to do a sh*t ton of purging and wasting co2.(Unless your brewing bigger batches).There is not a single down side to sanke kegs other then dryhopping in the keg that may be a pain getting them out with the smaller opening

 

[ISUbrady]

Thank you Jonny,

I plan on using the half barrel kegs to brew 12 gallon batches, which I figured I would be able to put into 2 quarter barrels. Well I have different plans on using the kegs for fermenting. I plan on turning them upside down, using a tri-clamp for draining and yeast catching somehow I have not figured out how I want to do that yet, then cutting what used to be the bottom all the way around and using some sort of rubber gasket seal so it is air-tight where the cut was made and mount some sort of clamps on the sides to hold it down nice and tight and lastly to drill a hole in what used to be the very bottom of the keg and that is where the air-lock will go. That way cleaning the 1/2 barrel after fermenting will not be an issue.

 

[ISUbrady]

Johnny I believe I have seen stainless steel spears essentially for dry hopping in kegs, is that only for corny kegs or is that a possibility in sanke kegs?

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

The spear is what sucks the beer up.Its the same on any size keg and has nothing to do with dryhopping. most dryhop in a bag attached to a piece of dental floss to keep it off the bottom and help get it out.You can do the same with a sanke.The difference is the hops swell up and would be more difficult to get out the smaller opening than a corny.Thats the only difference between dryhopping cornys and sankes

 

[ISUbrady]

http://shop.greatfermentations.com/product/ss-keg-dry-hopper-300-micron/keg-accessories?a=przlbrew

This is what I was referring to, I just do not know if they are made for sankes at the moment.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

http://shop.greatfermentations.com/product/ss-keg-dry-hopper-300-micron/keg-accessories?a=przlbrew

This is what I was referring to, I just do not know if they are made for sankes at the moment.

I haven't seen those before.It looks like they just float around in the keg.What happens when the beer level goes below the top of the hop basket?only half the hops down to nothing make contact with the beer?Maybe someone who uses them will chime in.The carboy one looks small enough to fit in the opening of a sanke.Could be an option

 

[ISUbrady]

Jonny,

How exactly do you clean your sanke kegs before you put your beer in them?

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

Jonny,

How exactly do you clean your sanke kegs before you put your beer in them?

Pop out the spear and rinse with water and oxiclean every 3rd beer or so..very simple..I've never used a brush or anything thing else inside the keg

 

[Squeek]

I use half barrels all the time I have the spear setup with a snap ring for easier removal of the spear and also have a spray ball setup that I clean all of my fermenters and kegs with makes it super easy

 

[Dfitz]

Jonny,

How exactly do you clean your sanke kegs before you put your beer in them?

Get a coupler, remove the internal valves and use it just for cleaning. Pump in PBW (using a cheap harbor friengt pump) I think they have a 600GPH/60psi that runs about $60.

You'll want to pump in the cleaner through the out line and let it drain through the gas line. This will wash your keg well. Rinse using the same procedure with clean water. Sanitize with idopur or starsan, same way. Purge the keg with C02 when it's drained, replace coupler with your kegging coupler add 10psi C02 for storage.

If you are going strictly sanke kegs and you go through enough beer that it would make sense to have dedicated wash station it's worth your time. Soon enough you'll get tired of removing and replacing spears.

If your going to wash a keg for the first time then yes, I would remove the spear and use good hot water/PBW for an hour or so.

 

[55x11]

Pop out the spear and rinse with water and oxiclean every 3rd beer or so..very simple..I've never used a brush or anything thing else inside the keg

You can't use the brush. You can't dry hop, add oak or use fruit additions. You can't see inside for cleaning or inspection. Couplers are expensive.

And what are the advantages over corneys that cancel all of these disadvantages?

I personally think Sankee are so, so close to perfect, I just wish they made one with a much larger opening, maybe even a separate lid, as well as separate connectors for CO2 and beer, for simplicity. That would be ideal.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

And what are the advantages over corneys that cancel all of these disadvantages

they never leak, no orings,theres no dip tubes to clog,theres no sealing the lid,theres no need for a brush oxiclean cleans everything..Im sure others have dryhopped in one,oak chips are for secondary,can swap for a commercial keg when you choose....superior in everyway.If corneys were better every bar and endless startup microbrew would use them and dont

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

And what are the advantages over corneys that cancel all of these disadvantages?
[/quote

Double post

 

[55x11]

And what are the advantages over corneys that cancel all of these disadvantages

they never leak, no orings,theres no dip tubes to clog,theres no sealing the lid,theres no need for a brush oxiclean cleans everything..Im sure others have dryhopped in one,oak chips are for secondary,can swap for a commercial keg when you choose....superior in everyway.If corneys were better every bar and endless startup microbrew would use them and dont

some of us choose to dry hop and add oak and fruit in the keg. That's our secondary.

And: NO. Sanke kegs are no different - serving spear, neck and valve, never mind adaptors and serving lines will clog/leak if you have any substantial amount of particulates in the beer. Adaptors and line connectors will leak just as much as gas/beer connectors, and honestly, if you don't have common sense to figure out how to seal a lid on a corny, you have bigger problems that Sanke will never solve.

Unless you only use your kegs for super-clean, filtered beers - which is what commercial beers are. So they may be perfect for commercial brewery distribution (as in "idiot proof"), but terrible for homebrewers like me who like to experiment and tweak and dry hop their IPAs and add fruit and oak and coco nibs to their beers - in kegs.

So bottom line - if you filter your beers, never ferment in kegs, never dryhop in kegs, never add oak or fruit, ALWAYS filter your beer and want large >10G vessel (even though they are also available in 5G size) with simple serving system for "get the keg and serve it in the bar" that nobody who works a low-wage labor in a bar can mess up too badly while hooking it up while drunk, then - YES, Sanke is just the right vessel for you.

But if you are a home brewer, and maybe you want to experiment with your beer, and maybe you don't filter and you actually don't trust Oxyclean x24 hours strategy blindly ( I own like 10 different PET fermenters and let me tell you - some dirt specks surprisingly will stick for a long, long time, but if you can't see it, you can't clean it) - I would strongly recommend corny kegs, as they have all the advantages and none of the downside in my experience.

Cheaper, easier to use, easier to clean, and far, far more versatile for home brew use. Some may need to use some common sense about sealing them but I have never had any problems and like anything else in home brewing, it's about skill, logic, common sense and maybe a little experience in being hands-on person.

Also, there really needs to be a space following a coma and a period. Just a common courtesy for other people reading your posts.

 

[Photopilot]

Thank you Jonny,

I plan on using the half barrel kegs to brew 12 gallon batches, which I figured I would be able to put into 2 quarter barrels. Well I have different plans on using the kegs for fermenting. I plan on turning them upside down, using a tri-clamp for draining and yeast catching somehow I have not figured out how I want to do that yet, then cutting what used to be the bottom all the way around and using some sort of rubber gasket seal so it is air-tight where the cut was made and mount some sort of clamps on the sides to hold it down nice and tight and lastly to drill a hole in what used to be the very bottom of the keg and that is where the air-lock will go. That way cleaning the 1/2 barrel after fermenting will not be an issue.

I had this same plan that involved a 3 or 4" triclamp welded into the bottom of the 1//2 barrel. I was going to add all kinds of valves and and things to the lids. By the time I added up all the pieces and found someone to sanitary weld up my design, I was looking at a few $100.

Unless you know how to weld it is easier to just get a racking cane and an orange carboy top to start fermenting in a sanke keg. Or you could go fancy and buy parts from https://www.brewhardware.com/default.asp
To make your Sanke a fermenter.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

You can't use the brush. You can't dry hop, add oak or use fruit additions. You can't see inside for cleaning or inspection. Couplers are expensive.

And what are the advantages over corneys that cancel all of these disadvantages?

I personally think Sankee are so, so close to perfect, I just wish they made one with a much larger opening, maybe even a separate lid, as well as separate connectors for CO2 and beer, for simplicity. That would be ideal.

some of us choose to dry hop and add oak and fruit in the keg. That's our secondary.

And: NO. Sanke kegs are no different - serving spear, neck and valve, never mind adaptors and serving lines will clog/leak if you have any substantial amount of particulates in the beer. Adaptors and line connectors will leak just as much as gas/beer connectors, and honestly, if you don't have common sense to figure out how to seal a lid on a corny, you have bigger problems that Sanke will never solve.

Unless you only use your kegs for super-clean, filtered beers - which is what commercial beers are. So they may be perfect for commercial brewery distribution (as in "idiot proof"), but terrible for homebrewers like me who like to experiment and tweak and dry hop their IPAs and add fruit and oak and coco nibs to their beers - in kegs.

So bottom line - if you filter your beers, never ferment in kegs, never dryhop in kegs, never add oak or fruit, ALWAYS filter your beer and want large >10G vessel (even though they are also available in 5G size) with simple serving system for "get the keg and serve it in the bar" that nobody who works a low-wage labor in a bar can mess up too badly while hooking it up while drunk, then - YES, Sanke is just the right vessel for you.

But if you are a home brewer, and maybe you want to experiment with your beer, and maybe you don't filter and you actually don't trust Oxyclean x24 hours strategy blindly ( I own like 10 different PET fermenters and let me tell you - some dirt specks surprisingly will stick for a long, long time, but if you can't see it, you can't clean it) - I would strongly recommend corny kegs, as they have all the advantages and none of the downside in my experience.

Cheaper, easier to use, easier to clean, and far, far more versatile for home brew use. Some may need to use some common sense about sealing them but I have never had any problems and like anything else in home brewing, it's about skill, logic, common sense and maybe a little experience in being hands-on person.

Also, there really needs to be a space following a coma and a period. Just a common courtesy for other people reading your posts.

HAHAHA you lost me at critiquing my grammer on a beer forum...do as you will

 

[Squeek]

Let's see. I've fermented beer in sanke kegs, I've dry hopped in them, I've added fruit, I've added oak, I've pretty much done everything to a sanke that you have done to a corny. Again as you stated it takes "skill" and common sense to use. But hey to each their own.

I've also put a 4" ferrule on the bottom flipped the keg over and use it as a brite tank/serving tank. All I did was cut a hole and solder the ferrule on have yet to have a single issue with an infected beer and I typically have 125-150 gallons of beer in different stages in my house.

 

[ISUbrady]

I would like to thank everyone that has given advice and knowledge on this thread. Like I stated before the reason I have entertained the thought of using sanke kegs is because I have acquired 10 kegs(5 half barrel and 5 quarter barrel) for less than $100.