Scored two corny kegs....help assessing condition.

[arnobg]

Was able to get two Coke pin lock corny kegs for free at my local recycling center after asking for them for free when they said they couldn't sell them. I've been waiting for a good opportunity like this to get into kegging.

What do I need to look for to assess the condition and what needs replaced?

The manual pressure relief valve that only one kid has is broke so that needs replaced. Can I easily covert these to ball lock?

View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1457733093.022454.jpg

View attachment ImageUploadedByHome Brew1457733102.403860.jpg

 

[Citizen86]

The first thing you'd probably want to try and do is clean them, fill em up with CO2 and make sure there's no leaks.

 

[TX_Brewing]

Conversion kits can be bought at adventures in homebrewing. If you don't have co2 yet you can use a bicycle pump on a gray coupler to pump up the keg and check. I use the bicycle pump when pushing cleaner through my tap lines so i don't waste co2.

 

[arnobg]

I can probably get some help at the LHBS with some CO2. What is the proper way to test for leaks, use soapy water at all possible leak spots?

 

[arnobg]

I think it may be a good indication that they're going to leak if water drops out of the lid when I turn them upside down....is a new lid gasket the answer to this?

 

[BeardedBrews]

I think it may be a good indication that they're going to leak if water drops out of the lid when I turn them upside down....is a new lid gasket the answer to this?

These types of lids have a hard time sealing if they are not slightly pressurized. A new seal might help it not leak water, but the older seal may have been able to hold gas.

Spraying it down with soapy water or star-san can show a leak. A more true test would be to pressurize the keg then hook up a pressure gauge so you can see if it's dropping.

You could also use my approach: Fill it with beer and hook it to the kegerator. If the CO2 tank is empty in the morning, it's got a leak.

 

[Citizen86]

You could also use my approach: Fill it with beer and hook it to the kegerator. If the CO2 tank is empty in the morning, it's got a leak.

:rockin:

However, it's a bit of a bummer if you want a beer and you have to run to the store for some more CO2....

 

[Elkobrewer]

Yes you should replace all the o rings. About 4 dollars at adventure in home brewing. And just because water will leak out when turned over doesn't mean they will leak. The only true way to know for sure is to pressure them up with co2

 

[RedlegEd]

Great find! O-ring kits are relatively cheap, as is keg lube. First, give them a thorough cleaning (dip tube brush is not a bad investment.) I use both ball and pin lock kegs. I actually prefer the pin locks b/c you can't screw up the connections! If you use quick disconnects on your tubing, you can swap them out pretty easily. As for testing, once they're cleaned, I put some water/Starsan and add some pressure, then turn upside down looking for drips. If you keep them upright, they should hold pressure. Finally, if you're the least bit handy, don't spend big $ on a "special" pin lock socket. Go to Lowe's and get a cheap 13/16" deep well socket and grind out your own. The CO2 pins are 180⁰, and the liquid pins are 120⁰. You can use one pin slot as common. Hope this helps.

 

[tnorman93638]

I use an air compressor to push pressure past the valve. Add some star-san pressurize it 10-30 psi. Turn it upside down see if anything is leaking if not leave it for a day and come back pull relief valve or push down on one of the ball valve to see if air comes out. If it's still under pressure you'll here air.

 

[bigken462]

What he said......Another hobby of mine is modeling railroads so I put my pancake compressor to use with equipment I already had on hand.

Before I purchased a pump to recirculate water, I've found the lil regulator to be indispensable as I could use it to push cleaning solution through my kegs without wasting C02. Set it and forget it till the keg runs dry.

 

[arnobg]

This has been helpful. I have a smaller airbrush compressor. Could this help me do this at all?

 

[TX_Brewing]

This has been helpful. I have a smaller airbrush compressor. Could this help me do this at all?

Yes you can

 

[-CHRIS-]

Don't over think it. Clean them with a PBW soak using a plastic scrubby if necessary. You received other good advice to replace all the gaskets. Don't worry about the broken check valve, it is purely cosmetic. I wouldn't bother spending the money on converting to ball lock, the pin lock adapters are easy to swap out.

http://www.beveragefactory.com/draf...DRN3Rm1S1Z-cdMel56pSqtMbvE1lRSnaPMaAquA8P8HAQ

Finally, lightly coat all the gaskets with keg lube and I am sure they will work perfectly.

Chris

 

[augiedoggy]

Was able to get two Coke pin lock corny kegs for free at my local recycling center after asking for them for free when they said they couldn't sell them. I've been waiting for a good opportunity like this to get into kegging.

What do I need to look for to assess the condition and what needs replaced?

The manual pressure relief valve that only one kid has is broke so that needs replaced. Can I easily covert these to ball lock?

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Why convert them to ball lock at all if you have no other ball lock kegs? I have both and pin lock isnt that bad...

 

[Jwin]

Pin lock is fine. Save your $. All good advice here, but use caution with PBW/oxyclean cleaners and stainless. It is an oxidizer and can expedite rust. Ask me how i know. I have a corny that now has a pinhole in the botton, straight to the rubber, where a light rust spot once sat. I now use TSP only on my kegs. Its half of the active chemical in PBW.
If you use pbw, dont overuse it and you only need it in there for a half hour. I would recommend cleaning any rust spot well with bar keepers friend first as well.

 

[The_Bishop]

PBW will *not* rust out your stainless keg. If your keg developed a pinhole at the bottom, it had a manufacturing flaw. It was not caused by PBW.

 

[mxstar21]

I just bought some Coke pin locks from a local brewery and had some ball lock posts on hand that fit. They are posted in the link below, but I don't think I paid that much.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/pin-l...ion-post-kit?gclid=CKijq9fjwssCFZA2gQod7cYDYw

The keg on left you can change the pressure relief valve for about $6-$7, and a full oring kit for less than $5. The one on the right you may have to change the lid. That relief valve is different. The brewery I just got my Coke kegs had a bunch with that type of relief valve, but I passed on those.

 

[Jwin]

PBW will *not* rust out your stainless keg. If your keg developed a pinhole at the bottom, it had a manufacturing flaw. It was not caused by PBW.

The 30 year old keg had a orange rust surface circle on the bottom when I purchased it and was solid.
Post oxyclean, it has a hole. It has been discussed that oxygen cleaners can speed up an existing rust process. Look around. There's photos.

 

[Jwin]

As far as PRVs go, just get a plastic poppet valve depressor. They work great for pin locks and will ensure you never spray yourself with beer.

 

[jrcrilly]

As far as PRVs go, just get a plastic poppet valve depressor. They work great for pin locks and will ensure you never spray yourself with beer.

...unless you depress the wrong one!

 

[arnobg]

Can someone link me to the poppet valve depressor you are talking about.

I was really only considering converting the kegs because I plan on buying a couple ball lock kegs in the future, for now I'll save my money.

I plan on buying new seals for both, kg lube, a new lid for one, and a new PRV for one. Still trying to figure out the best way to pressure test them with what I have....

I would like to polish out the shells too.

The thing driving me crazy the most is that the rubber is leaving black "dirt" everywhere. Can't sit the things anywhere or touch them without having black hands.

 

[m00ps]

After cleaning with somethign like PBW and rinsing, I would jsut put some starsan in there to both sanitize and check for leaks. I keep 1L or so in all ym empty kegs. You really only know if its truly leakproof until you pressurize it to 30psi or so. The good thing about starsan is that it works just as well as soapy water to show leaks with bubbles. Plus, you dont have to deal with the whole soap flavor thing. Keg lube is definitely a good idea. If re-seating the lid once or twice doesnt do the job, keg lube will 99% of the time

Also a good idea to keep spare parts on hand. I have a new lid, pressure valve, and some sets of o-rings on hand for piece of mind. Havent had to use them yet though, and most of my kegs are reconditioned

 

[Jwin]

Kegconnection.com has everything you need and flat rate shipping. $35 pin locks right now as well.
In my opinion, the biggest reason anyone would want ball locks is because the need shorter kegs.

 

[Citizen86]

Kegconnection.com has everything you need and flat rate shipping. $35 pin locks right now as well.
In my opinion, the biggest reason anyone would want ball locks is because the need shorter kegs.

I suppose you could simply have different CO2 connections off a distributor for ball or pin lock kegs eh.

 

[The_Bishop]

The 30 year old keg had a orange rust surface circle on the bottom when I purchased it

That's the problem, right there. Not PBW/Oxyclean.

Believe what you will.

 

[RedlegEd]

The thing driving me crazy the most is that the rubber is leaving black "dirt" everywhere. Can't sit the things anywhere or touch them without having black hands.

@arnobg. I had the same problem with mine. I went to W-mart and bought some Mothers VLR (Vinyl/Leather/Rubber Cleaner/restorer.) It took a few generous coats and some rubbing, but most of the oxidation finally came off, and it soaked into the rubber to make it a little softer and less brittle. If you're planning on polishing the body, you might as well condition the rubber to look good too, no?

Also, just so you know, the main difference in the two types (besides the obvious pin v. ball connection,) is the ball lock kegs are about an 1" narrower and 3" taller than the pin lock kegs.

 

[k1ngl1ves]

Lol!


Those free kegs are about to cost you a ton of money!



Kegging is addictive, and gets pricey quickly! My wife will attest to that notion. Lol!

 

[Jwin]

That's the problem, right there. Not PBW/Oxyclean.

Believe what you will.

It's chemisty. It's been documented. Don't use oxygen based cleaners on rusted metal. Stainless doesn't care how old it is. Most cornies out there are 20+ years old.

Any material made with iron that is exposed to both oxygen and water will rust. Because steel is made almost entirely of iron, it is the most highly manufactured man made material that is subject to rust. To understand why steel rusts, you have to know a little bit about chemistry and the periodic table. After the element Helium, elements like having 8 electrons in their outer shell, and will borrow electrons from other elements to achieve that level. Water, for example is made of an oxygen atom with 6 outer electrons and 2 hydrogen atoms that have 1 electron each. Through the borrowing and sharing of electrons in a reduction reaction, FeO(OH) (the most common form of rust) is created.

The very bottom of the keg had a small rust stain that mostly wiped off before the oxy+ clorinated tap water went in. After, it developed into a pin hole. Why would I make this up?

 

[Strucker]

What you are most likely seeing are the long term effects of someone using a Chlorine based cleaner on the stainless steel. Chlorine based cleaners will cause pitting which then allows for oxidation.

Stainless steels are corrosion resistant because there is a high percentage (16 to 36%)
of chromium (Cr) is present in these steels. This element is present in sufficient
quantity, that, when exposed to oxidizing media (acids, caustics, water, air, etc.), it
forms a thin, tightly-adhering and impervious oxide layer (predominantly CrO) that
stops further corrosion. While austenitic stainless steels also contain considerable nickel (8 to 25%), it is the
chromium that is responsible for formation of the oxide layer that prevents corrosion.
The chromium must be dissolved uniformly in the steel’s matrix of iron in order for
the steel to become “stainless.” Rust is formed on the surface of stainless steel when a condition develops in which the
metal molecules at the surface are not sufficiently alloyed with chromium to create or maintain the required oxide layer. The most common stainless steels are Type 316—the second most common grade (after Type 304); for food and surgical stainless steel uses; alloy addition of molybdenum prevents specific forms of corrosion. It is also known as marine grade stainless steel due to its increased resistance to chloride corrosion compared to type 304.