Fil wrote:i would suggest if serving from kegs under pressure to a standard tap, (nominal pressure and beer engine may be different). And you maintain the usual cold side cleaning and sanitation procedures when kegging and attaching up the keg. And the keg is left connected. Then there is little need for line cleaning between keg changes regardless of how long the keg remains on tap.
If the line tap and disconnect were clean and sanitised when connected they should instantly become part of the sealed container that is the keg,
tap spouts however do require a regular clean, i would suggest pulling after each session for a soak clean until next needed, if you have the shiny single body taps (perlick?) then its a bucket and squeezy bottle you need
I can agree with this to a point, but not having used a tap can't be certain on the matter.
I'm not sure sanitation is as important as we might think, the average cellar man isn't as diligent as virtually every homebrewer I've met, yet serves many more pints of beer that is considered clean. Pumping beer at pH 4.0 through a pipe will usually keep the little spoilers quiet until they end up in the glass or expire. The main problem I see are yeasts, which are happy in the same conditions and go about the daily task finding and consuming nutrient it finds palatable. They do stick around longer but do have limited life expectancy and when they go pop, they don't taste very nice.
I'm sure they will build up more in a beer engine than a tap and if you pull through a cask to the bottom, a lot of yeast passes into the lines, when a quick wash through with water, cleaner, water followed by the next beer can usually be phased and accomplished without too much upset.
The relatively low cost of a decent lengthed coil of beer line makes it worth considering regular replacement.
Without patience, life becomes difficult and the sooner it's finished, the better.