I am just returning to mashing beers having been away from it for over ten years!! I gave away my old equipment after the divorce and now setting up again...Boy have prices gone through the roof!!!
I visited my local Homebrew Shop this week and saw a Cornelius Kegging System. I am very impressed but wondered if it was suitable for keeping the bitters that I tend to mash!
I can buy cheaper reconditioned Cornelius Kegs through ebay than at the Homebrew shop but wondered if the extra £30 on top of a price of a top quality Plastic Barrel was going to be worth it?
Does anyone have experience of both barrels...Is there any difference? Do beers come out with better longer lasting heads? Are they good value in the long run? How long could I keep my Bitter in the Cornelius Kegging System before it goes off?
Sorry for all the questions...I would appreciate your help.
Thanks Steve
Cornelius Kegging System
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NickL
I first should say that I know very little about pressure barrels or corny kegs, but as I am looking to move on to one of the two systems soon I have been looking around a lot for info. I have noticed lots of threads in which people have had problems with plastic kegs, king kegs in particular it seems. I remember four recent threads, but I can only find three of them:
here, here and here
There are plenty of threads proclaiming problems with other plastic kegs though and this may be a blip at the moment. On the other hand people seem to have nothing but good things to say about cornelius kegs (apart from Graham Wheeler, but his reasons seem to be his own and do not appear to relate to their quality or reliability). I am certainly convinced myself that when I have the cash cornies are the way forward, and so are most people on here it seems.
here, here and here
There are plenty of threads proclaiming problems with other plastic kegs though and this may be a blip at the moment. On the other hand people seem to have nothing but good things to say about cornelius kegs (apart from Graham Wheeler, but his reasons seem to be his own and do not appear to relate to their quality or reliability). I am certainly convinced myself that when I have the cash cornies are the way forward, and so are most people on here it seems.
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macleanb
Having just moved to cornies myself, I can for one tell you its a hell of a lot easier than bottling 40 pints. I was not a big fan of the plastic kegs I have tried; problems getting a good seal on the cap, geting the right level of carbonation with sparklets, pressure running out at inconveinient times, beer going stale,drips, leaks etc, etc.
From my limited experience cornies seem to offer cures for all these ills if you get the right setup.
They are also more shiny
From my limited experience cornies seem to offer cures for all these ills if you get the right setup.
They are also more shiny
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russt1969
On the other hand 
I got eight King kegs. Had them for ages and not had any problems with them. Only have to change the S30 Valve seals about once a year on each barrel.
Not bothered about shiney. Couldn't care less as long as the beer tastes good.
You can hold more beer in a KK. The Cornies take up less space. I recon they both have +'s & -'s.
(I used to swear that I'd never get an ATC800 controlled Fermenting Fridge too. Got 1 now and luv it so I'll probably end up going down the Cornie & Shiney route
)
I got eight King kegs. Had them for ages and not had any problems with them. Only have to change the S30 Valve seals about once a year on each barrel.
Not bothered about shiney. Couldn't care less as long as the beer tastes good.
You can hold more beer in a KK. The Cornies take up less space. I recon they both have +'s & -'s.
(I used to swear that I'd never get an ATC800 controlled Fermenting Fridge too. Got 1 now and luv it so I'll probably end up going down the Cornie & Shiney route
)
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russt1969
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BarnsleyBrewer
- Under the Table
- Posts: 1794
- Joined: Tue Mar 25, 2008 11:52 pm
- Location: Wombwell (South Yorkshire)
Re: Cornelius Kegging System
I've moved from nylon and bottles to Cornie's with a 70/30 gas mix using a pub size gas bottle with reg valve fitted, best thing I've ever done since moving from cans to AG.highwayman wrote:I am just returning to mashing beers having been away from it for over ten years!! I gave away my old equipment after the divorce and now setting up again...Boy have prices gone through the roof!!!
I visited my local Homebrew Shop this week and saw a Cornelius Kegging System. I am very impressed but wondered if it was suitable for keeping the bitters that I tend to mash!
I can buy cheaper reconditioned Cornelius Kegs through ebay than at the Homebrew shop but wondered if the extra £30 on top of a price of a top quality Plastic Barrel was going to be worth it?
Does anyone have experience of both barrels...Is there any difference? Do beers come out with better longer lasting heads? Are they good value in the long run? How long could I keep my Bitter in the Cornelius Kegging System before it goes off?
Sorry for all the questions...I would appreciate your help.
Thanks Steve
BB
"Brewing Fine Ales in Barnsley Since 1984"
- - - - - - - 40 years (1984 - 2024)- - - - - - -
Pints Brewed in 2024......... 104
Pints brewed in 2018.. 416
Pints brewed in 2017.. 416 - Pints brewed in 2016.. 208
Pints brewed in 2015.. 624 - Pints brewed in 2014.. 832
- - - - - - - 40 years (1984 - 2024)- - - - - - -
Pints Brewed in 2024......... 104
Pints brewed in 2018.. 416
Pints brewed in 2017.. 416 - Pints brewed in 2016.. 208
Pints brewed in 2015.. 624 - Pints brewed in 2014.. 832
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Trough Lolly
Same here - I have 8 kegs so I can lager my lagers, condition my strong ales and still have plenty of kegs to keep stuff on tap in the keg fridge. Setup is easy once you know what you're doing and when I only have to wash and sanitise one vessel when I rack from the fermenter, I've only had to use bottles when I want to take some of my beer to a barbie or club comp - and I can pour sediment free beer into the bottle thanks to my tru-flo tap setup in the fridge door and low pouring pressure:
