Polypin Management
- Dennis King
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- Location: Pitsea Essex
Polpin Management
Seen recent post about shelf life of polypins. Of course a few days is the norm, however I have made them last 2 weeks.I prime well 10 days after barreling and let it ballon out, about 3 days its like a football,start drinking.As I only drink 2-3 pints weeknights{6 o clock start} it means I have to roll it back gently and let off gas. It is a fine line between round barrel and burst barrel. Can do this without disurbing sediment. After a week no need to let off gas.These pics. show the last pint in and out of the barrel. Good real ale no added co2, still has head and condition after 2 weeks.
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I have another way of polypin management. When I rack the beer into the polypin I add a few teaspoons of sugar for conditioning. I turn the polypin on it's side, tap up, expel the air and leave it there for a week or two to condition with an airlock comprising a piece of tubing with one end attached to the open tap and the other in a bottle half full of water. After the conditioning period close the tap, turn right way up and leave for a couple of days to settle. When drawing off beer make sure that air does not bubble into the polypin, I usually put some sort of weight such as a tin of malt extract or a gas cylinder on top to stop this. If air is excluded then the beer will keep well over a month and there is no risk of catastrophic polypin explosions!
I agree with Bryggmester. I have been using polypins for years for storage and dispense. I simply add sugar solution and put it on its back until it starts to balloon. Then I expel all the gas and place it in the dispensing position for a day or so to settle. So long as it is reasonably cool then it will keep in good condition for several weeks. If it blows up too much then either drink more or gently tip it back and release gas. It helps to use a flocculant yeast or isinglass to keep it clear. I do find, however, that polypins do not make great long-term storage containers, because of the risk of oxidation. They're not too bad if the beer is strong, but no good for average-strength beers, so I'm considering investing in some cornies for storage.
- Dennis King
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Re: Polypin Management
i got one that came with 36 pints in. my beer is ready to bottle now but instead can i just stick my 36 pint brew straight into it? letting off gas from time to time as it balloons out?
- Dennis King
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- Location: Pitsea Essex
Re: Polypin Management
Thats what I do, plus add priming sugar about 5-6 days before drinking and finnings if needed.PEZ wrote:i got one that came with 36 pints in. my beer is ready to bottle now but instead can i just stick my 36 pint brew straight into it? letting off gas from time to time as it balloons out?
Re: Polypin Management
so dont add priming sugar yet as i would with bottles? i was gonna use honey instead of sugar cos it worked really well in the bottles, dont imagine itll make much difference pressure wise.. so i stick the 36 pints from the bucket into the polypin now and then leave for a couple weeks before addin honey yeah.. sorry to keep on just checkin i got it right!
- Dennis King
- Telling everyone Your My Best Mate
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- Joined: Sat Aug 11, 2007 7:52 pm
- Location: Pitsea Essex
Re: Polypin Management
I`ve always found that by adding the priming sugars those few days before the pins dont expand to early, have had barrels burst with to much pressure. It also seems the best way to keep a good level of carbonation through the life of the barrel.
Re: Polypin Management
i'm a novice but i thought them sugars needed more than a few days to turn to alcohol?
- Dennis King
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Re: Polypin Management
Priming sugers are just to give the beer natural condition. Such a small amount adds little to the alcohol level
- Dennis King
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Re: Polypin Management
Good luck. One other thing, this time of year I will bring the barrel into my kitchen after priming to warm up a bit. After 2 days back to the garage to settle for a few days. Hope this all helps, works well for me.
Re: Polypin Management
cool,thanks a lot! so would u put in your garage straight away? my kit says warm for 2 then cool for 14...
- Dennis King
- Telling everyone Your My Best Mate
- Posts: 4227
- Joined: Sat Aug 11, 2007 7:52 pm
- Location: Pitsea Essex
Re: Polypin Management
Thanks Chris, all I can say is it works well for me.