Priming Kegs

[Jake]

Anyone ever prime kegs for a couple weeks with corn sugar and they're ready to serve once you put them on gas?

I have a lot of beer coming down the pipeline and not enough gas lines.

[Richard]

Think JQ etc do something like this with spunding, just without adding sugar.

[Dave Savoie]

yes some beers taste better when bottle/keg conditioned

[JohnQ]

Think JQ etc do something like this with spunding, just without adding sugar.

Correct, the last 3-5 points of gravity will pressurize a keg up to 25-30 psi (and higher), enough to naturally carb up anything.
I haven't used any CO2 for carbing in several months now.
It's really just the same as adding sugar, right?
The Yeasties are munching on the final bits of sugar from the wort, or they're munching on the sugar you added.
JQ

[Chris Craig]

I've primed with sugar in the keg before.  It works just like bottling except you want to use about half the sugar. Dissolve 1/3 cup of corn sugar in warm water, add it to the keg, rack the beer on to it, hit the keg with about 10 psi to seal the lid, put it away in a room at 70ºF and wait 2 weeks.

[Jake]

Would it need to be dissolved into boiling water to sterilize or warm water fine? I've never used bulk priming even for bottling so I have no idea. I'm thinking about letting some kegs age in the basement and thought it would be nice to have them drinkable on demand over the summer. Rather than have to plan 48 hrs in advance and put them on co2.

Not to mention I'd imagine I'd be saving a lot of gas in my tank. First beers will likely be chunky but after that should be fine.

[Kyle]

I used to use boiling water, add sugar, let it cool, keg.

[fakr]

Hey Jake,

Want me to pick you up a 4 port manifold and some fittings from princess auto?  I'm coming up on saturday and can drop them off.  I can even pick you up some gas line...

the manifold runs about $6
barbed fittings run about $1.99 for 2, I'd pick you up a few packs
gas line good for 160psi is $0.29 a foot...coupld pick you up 20 feet or so.

Actually, I think I have 3 spare ball valves for the manifold if you want those...$1 each or something.

Otherwise, you can definintely throw priming surgar in the kegs and treat them like bottle conditioning.  you could probably speed up the process a bit by shaking up the keg after 4-5 days of conditioning.

[Chris Craig]

I've never bothered boiling water for beer, but I know some people insist on it.  It won't hurt anything if you do.

You definitely need to keep them primed at 70sih for a couple of weeks, or they won't carb though.

[Jake]

Thanks for the offer Fakr but I'm going to pass. I just dont have the space for them in the keezer at the time. Thanks for offering though.

[DandyMason]

I like this idea Jake... Been using too much gas force carbing... so 1/3 cup, warm/hot water, keg, seal... 2 weeks its good to go...?

[fakr]

I don't understand the concept of using a 1/3 of the required priming sugar for a keg...doesn't make sense... if you need a cup of priming sugar for 20L of beer, it shouldn't matter if you put it in a keg or bottles...that's how much priming sugar you need for a certain volume of CO2.

[JohnQ]

I don't understand it either, but I've read it lots of places, and seems to be standard wisdom.

[Jake]

Yea it'd be nice to have the kegs ready to go in my basement and not having to think about it. Saving CO2 is a plus

I saw the use less sugar thing too

[fakr]

maybe it's a headspace pressure thing....that much sugar would create too much head pressure in the keg?