Portable Corny Options

A forum to discuss the various ways of getting beer into your glass.
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floydmeddler
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Portable Corny Options

Post by floydmeddler » Sat Jan 27, 2018 1:43 pm

Hey folks,

Have a party coming up and want to bring a corny but without the hassle of taking along my giant co2 canister.

Ideally, I'd have something like this. Bloody expensive, though! https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mini-keg-par ... Ciid%253A1

Are there cheap/hack options out there?

Cheers

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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by joe1002 » Sat Jan 27, 2018 4:39 pm

Will the whole corny go in a night?

chrisbjones202
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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by chrisbjones202 » Sat Jan 27, 2018 5:06 pm

I've got one lid that I fitted a S30 valve from an old PB to and use a Hamilton bard cyl (you could use the caplets) for topping up when not at home.

Bit tricky to fit lid but works ok. Cable tie around the blow valve for when gassing new beer.

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McMullan

Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by McMullan » Sat Jan 27, 2018 5:11 pm

Gravity is the cheapest option, if the beer is consumed over a day, or even two. IME, kegs don't travel well without a good rest period. Ideally, the keg conditioned beer would be transferred to a fresh keg, via a 'jumper' connection, before travelling, to avoid keg trub murking up the beer during transport. TBH, I wouldn't pay that much for what's listed in the link. If the style of beer demands a CO2 supply, consider a sodastream bottle (strapped to the keg) and an adaptor making it compatible with a standard, or a mini, CO2 regulator. It wouldn't cost much more and it would be a much more flexible (useful) system.

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Buckie Brewer
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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by Buckie Brewer » Sat Jan 27, 2018 11:21 pm

I used a halfords welding mini gas bottle to gas my king keg back in the day the post is here. I still use this type of bottle with my cornies to purge oxygen of them while filling from my fermenters.

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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by Fil » Sun Jan 28, 2018 1:29 pm

im pretty sure emergency cycle co2 tyre inflators sell for about a tenner, Add a tyre valve and some imaginative plumbing probably involving a jubilee clip or 2, garden hose ,gaffer tape ,and a gas in disconnect ;) and im sure you will get there but if the beer is all going then why not add pressure with an air pump and the heath robinson tyre valve plumbing job.. if a foot pump is too much work a small 12v compressor could be used..
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floydmeddler
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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by floydmeddler » Sun Jan 28, 2018 6:22 pm

Cheers folks. Some food for thought here.

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spook100
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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by spook100 » Mon Feb 19, 2018 1:32 pm

Get one of those 5l mini-kegs, they cost around £15 in the supermarkets including the beer. My LHBS sells replacement bungs for them for 90p each.

Image

Drill a 5mm hole in the plastic shive that fits into the bung and a bicycle tube valve will screw into the hole nice and tightly. Pry off the existing bung and replace with this one. Use a CO2 tyre inflator to add CO2. I have found that it won't hold pressure indefinately but fine for an evening or weekend away.

Image
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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by spook100 » Mon Feb 19, 2018 1:35 pm

BTW, once you have finished the beer, you have to push the tyre tube into the keg before you remove the bung for cleaning. Tie a piece of string around the valve before you do this or it can be a right PITA to get out again
A fine beer may be judged with only one sip, but it's better to be thoroughly sure.

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floydmeddler
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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by floydmeddler » Mon Feb 19, 2018 9:56 pm

Lovely idea!

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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by brewpete » Mon Feb 19, 2018 11:24 pm

Hi I use a sodastream co2 refill adapter you can get a used aluminium bottle of eBay for about a tenner and the adapter I about 30 quid from China the regs are not cheap but you can fit and corny in a fridge with bottle bit of a fath to refillet the bottle but after a few times you get used to it

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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by Jammers » Tue Feb 20, 2018 2:45 pm

If the whole keg is going to be drunk in one night then use a bike pump. You take a normal 3/8 beer line and push a bike inner tube valve into it (cut the valve from an old bike tyre).

Dispense wise those black plastic party taps are terrible, always over foaming as no resistance in the line + wide spouts. If you already have a beer tap on a home set up then you can mount it on the black plastic handles of the corney. Drill a hole for the shank and bolt it on as usual. Then the line from the corney to the tap can be as long as you need it to be (and best to be 3/16 too for added resistance) to control foaming. Keeping a keg cool is always tough when out of your own set up but mine have worked fine by just putting the keg in a bucket of iced water, doesn’t have to cover the whole thing just the bottom 40cms or so as the beer gets drawn from the bottom of the keg.

As someone else mentioned definitely better to have bright beer if you’re going mobile as it will get a hell of a lot of shaking around in transit no matter how hard you try to avoid it.

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wanus
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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by wanus » Mon Mar 19, 2018 8:23 pm

Hello again spook100.
Do you fill those 5l kegs with beer after fermentation and charge it at once or condition it then charge it?? :mrgreen:
Upto now i bottle and prime or use PBs.
The reason i ask and want to know is that i got a brewferm party star deluxe CO2 dispenser for my birthday.
Thanx in advance to you or anyone that explains.
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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by Manngold » Mon Mar 19, 2018 8:29 pm

Hi Wanus. With those type of 5l kegs I have always just transferred after fermentation and added a bit of sugar (20 grams) to the keg before adding the beer.

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wanus
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Re: Portable Corny Options

Post by wanus » Mon Mar 19, 2018 8:44 pm

Hello Manngold,
So priming with 20g of sugar then using CO2 to dispense won`t overdo it pressure wise?
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Maturing: Bastard builders brew
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Keep yer pecker hard and yer powder dry.

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