12/12/2016

3LiterPopBottleMiniKegs

3LiterPopBottleMiniKegs
C.D.Pritchardrev.2/04
The"tapcap"gizmobelowscrewsontopofa3Lplasticpopbottletherebyturningitintoaminikeg.
Here'sadrawingofthething:

http://hbd.org/cdp/3lkeg/3lkeg.htm

1/8

12/12/2016

3LiterPopBottleMiniKegs

Photooftapcapthethumbscrewcoredepressorisontheright

Photoofdisassembledtapcap

It'smuchsimplertomakethantheolddesignandallowstheuseofareallygastightfitting.Theold
designusedanmetalairstem(it'snormallyusedontires)andIcouldneverfindanairfitting/chuckto
connecttoittomyCO2rigthatdidn'tleakifleftconnected.Ifyouareonlygoingtousea$9.95tire
inflatorgadget/12grammco2cartridges(details/sourcebelow),itdoesnothavealeakageproblem
andtheairstemisabetterchoice.TheinflatorusesthehighpressureoftheCO2cartridgetoforce
opentheSchradervalveintheairstem.Thedownnsideisthatthecartridgesareabitexpensive.
TherigisrealhandyfortravelingespeciallyifyourCO2sourceisotherwisea20#CO2cylinder!

Caveats
1.Don'tplanonstoringbrewintheminikegsformuchlongerthanamonthortwoassumingyou
keepthemcold.YMMVwithdelicatebrewsandwarmertemps.Longtermstorageissaidtocause
thebrewtobecomeoxidizedsincethePETplasticthebottlesaremadeofisnotagoodO2barrier.
Yes,theCO2pressureinthebottleafterfillingismuchgreaterthanatomsphericpressure,but,as
counterintutiveasitseems,oxygenwillstillpassthroughtheplastic.
2.I'veonlyusedplasticbottlecaps.Aluminumbottlecapsshouldworktho'.

TheCO2Fittings
Thefittingmountedtothebottlecapisintendedforuseinrefridgerationsystemsandisgenerally
calledan"accessfitting"byrefridgerationfolks.Theyhaveamalebusiness(nosexismintended:)
endthatacceptsa1/4"femaleflarefittingandtheyhaveaninternalSchradervalvewhichfunctions
http://hbd.org/cdp/3lkeg/3lkeg.htm

2/8

12/12/2016

3LiterPopBottleMiniKegs

likethoseinatireairstem.Theotherendhasbothtubing(forsoldering)anda1/8"MPTmaleend.
Theconnectorthatattachestoitisthecoolthing.$5getsyouaveryomminioussounding
"thumbscrewcoredepressor".Here'sadrawingofthething:

ThisfitsviahosetoyourvalvedCO2sourceviaamaleflareandthenscrewsontotheendofthe
accessvalve.Afterconnectingtotheaccessfittingatopthekeg,turningthethumbscrewdepresses
thestemoftheSchradervalvethenopeningtheCO2valveallowsgastopassthruthevalvewithno
leakageliketireairstems.TheonesIuseweremadebyC&DValveMfg.Co.andareavailableat
refridgerationsupplyhousesIgotmineatthelocalJohnstoneSupplystore(thyareachainthey
haveawebsite,butit'satrocious...):
UniversalLine
C&DValveMfg.model#CD3600,Johhnstone#B10734,$1.50
ServiceValve
each.
ThumbscrewCore
Depressor

C&DValveMfg.model#CD5050,Johhnstone#H24849,$5.00
each.

TheonlyproblemI'vehadwiththedepressorsisthesmalloringintheendthatattachestothe
accessfittingwillsomethimesfalloutafterabitofuse.Ijustkeepamaleflarefittinghandyandscrew
itintotheendwhenit'sdetachedfromtheaccessfittingthisretainstheoring..

MakingtheTop
Thetopiseasilymadeusinga7/32"and1/4"drill,hacksaw,filesandpropanetorch.Thedrawingat
thetopofthispageandthefollowingpoopshouldmakeitselfexplanatorybut,here'ssomepoopthat
mighthelp:
1.Useoneofthe"blocky"typestreetelbowstheyaffordmoresurfaceareaforsolderinginthe
beertube.Astreetelbowhasbothamaleandfemaleoutletwhilearegularelbowhastwo
femaleoutlets.Ifyoucan'tfindone,usearegularelbowandsolderaclosenippleintoafemale
outlet.Thedownsideisthatthenutwon'trunuptightagainstthewasher/cap/gasket.To
remedythis,either1)chasethethread(s)(i.e.athreadingdieturned"backwards")ontheclose
nippleor2)useadditionalwasherstotakeupslackbetweenthenut/washerandthecap.
2.Firtstdrilla7/32"holecompletelythroughtheelbowfromthe1/8"MPTendthenenlargewitha
1/4"drillBUTdon'tdrillcompletelythroughtheelbow!Thisisshowninthedrawingabove.A
drillpress/viseisgoodfordoingthissincethebitwilltendtograbandhenceincreasethe
chanceofdrillingtodeep.
3.The7/32"ODbrasstubingisavaiablein1'lenghtsatanydecenthobbystoreandatsome
hardwarestores.Cleanthejointareaofthetubingbeforesolderinganduseleadfreesolder
justtobesafe.
4.Sawoffanytubingthat'sonthe1/8"MPTendoftheaccessfittingandscrewintotheelbow
usingteflontape.
5.Ifthenutdoesn'trunupfarenoughonthemaleendofthestreetelbow,either1)chasethe
malethreads(i.e.athreadingdieturned"backwards")ontheexposedpartoftheclosenippleor
2)usemultiplewasherstotakeupslackbetweenthenut/washerandthecap.Don'ttryto
http://hbd.org/cdp/3lkeg/3lkeg.htm

3/8

12/12/2016

3LiterPopBottleMiniKegs

enlargethethreadsonthenutwhileholdingitinaviseit'lllikelydeformduringtheprocess.
Maybeholdingitinasocketratherthanavisewouldpreventthis....
6.The3/16"IDvinyldiptubinginthebottleiswhackedoffviatwo45deg.cutstheendis
shapedlike">".Asinglecutendmaycometorestagainstthebottleandcausedispensing
problems.
7.Topreventthe3/16"IDvinyldispensingtubingoutsidethekegfromgettingdetachedfromthe
cap(resultsinabeergeyser!),secureitwithacoupleofnylontiewrapsororwrapwireoverit.
8.Don'tsweatfindingawasherwiththepreciseIDholeshootfor"toosmall"andenlargethehole
witharattailsaw.AsmallerODwashersworkbetterthanalargeronesincethelessersurface
areacancompressthegasketeasierforagoodseal.
9.Cutyourowngasketratherthantryingtofind/buyonethecorrectsize.AceHardwaresellsin
6"x6"piecesof1/16"redrubbergasketingmaterial.
SurfaceLeadRemoval
Ifyouareconcernedaboutgettingleadinyoubrewfromthebrasstubing,removeanyleadonthe
surfaceofthefittingbyfollowingJohnPalmer'sleadremovalmethod:
Asolutionoftwopartswhitevinegartooneparthydrogenperoxide(common3%solution)
willremovetarnishandsurfaceleadfrombrasspartswhentheyaresoakedfor510
minutesatroomtemperature.Thebrasswillturnabutteryyellowcolorasitiscleaned.If
thesolutionstartstoturngreenandthebrassdarkens,thenthepartshavebeensoaking
toolongandthecopperinthebrassisbeginningtodissolve,exposingmorelead.The
solutionhasbecomecontaminatedandthepartshouldberecleanedinafreshsolution.
FWIW,Idon'tdeleadsinceonlyashortpieceofbrasstubingisincontactwiththebrewandusually
forashortperiodoftime.Anexpensivealternativeistousestainlesssteel.Worsestill,it'smuch
moredifficulttomachineandsolderthanbrass.
HydroTest
Afterassembly,doahydrotestontheassembliedkeg.Don'tskipthe"hydro"partandusejustairor
co2it'sasafetything.Ifsomethingrupturesduringthetestwithwaterfillingthebottle,lessenergy
willbeimpartedtotargetsintheblastzonesincewaterispracticallyimcompressibleOTHO,there's
lotsofenergyinacompressedgas.Fillthebottlewithwaterandsecurethetoptothebottle.
Pressurizewithairorco2.Iuse30psigbutoncetookaplastic3Lbottleuptomywatertap
pressure(55psig)withoutanyproblem.You'llnotethatthebottleexpandsabitandthereisabitofair
orco2atopthewaterinthebottle.Thisviolatesmyadviceonhydrotestingbutit'sonlyalittlegas
spaceandit'sactuallyagoodthingsinceairorco2willescapethroughanyleaksmorereadilythan
waterwould.Assessleakagebyapplyingasoapsolutiontothetapcap.Assessingleakagebyfilling
withCO2andnotingifthepressuredropsovertimeisnotareallygoodideathewaterwillabsorb
someco2andlowerthepressure.Airmayworktho...

Usingthe"Kegs"
Iusedtofillthebottlesfromacornykegwithacounterpressurefiller.Acautiontho':ifyour
experiencewithcounterpressurefillingislimitedtoregularglassbottles,bepreparedtouse~3times
moreforcetoholdthefilleronthelargerdiameter3Lbottletopswhenco2pressureisapplied!
Preservingthebrew'scarbonationduringthefillingoperationisn'tascriticalasitiswhenfillingbottles
sincethecarbonationcanbe"toppedoff"byapplyingco2viatheminikegcap.WhenI'mfillingmore
minikegsthanIhavekegtops,Icapthebottleswithunmodifiedplasticcapsthenreplacethiscap
withakegtopwhenI'mreadytotapit.Flatbreworpopcanalsobeforcecarbonatedin3Lusing
eitherthetapcaporacapfittedwithametalairstem..
Therearetwofasterandeasierwaysthancounterpressurefillingtogetbrewfromacorniekegintoa
minikeg.Bothareidealwhenthebrewwillbeconsumedwithoutmuchdelay:
http://hbd.org/cdp/3lkeg/3lkeg.htm

4/8

12/12/2016

3LiterPopBottleMiniKegs

FAST/EASY:Attachthesnoutofthecobrataponasanitized3literminikegtoaco2line
usingan"adapter"madefrom3/8"IDvinyltubingandahosebarb,latchthecobratap
open,opentheco2valveattheregulatorandloosenthecapontheminikegtoallowthe
co2topurgethebottleviathe"beerout"diptubefor30secondsorso,tightenthecapon
theminikegtopressurizethebottle,closethecobratapandtheco2valvetotrapthe
pressure,attachthesnoutofthecobrataptothesnoutofthecorniekegcobratapusing
another"adapter"ofmadefromvinyltubing,latchopenbothofthethetaps,barelyloosen
thecapontheminikegtoallowthebrewtoflowintotheminikegcontroltheflowby
adjustinghowmuchthecapisloosenedandfinetunebypressingdownonthecap,when
justaboutfull(leavesomeheadspaceifyouuseatireinflatorgizmofordispensing!),
tightenthecapontheminikegtostoptheflowofbrew,closebothcobrataps(thisisvery
importantdon'taskhowIknow!:)andfinallydisconnectthetaps.ThisisMUCHfaster
andeasiertodothansanitizingandconnectingupthecounterpressurefiller.Infact,Ican
fillaminikegaboutasquicklyasittookmetowriteuptheprocedure!
FASTEST/EASISTWherethebrewwillbeconsumedwithoutmuchdelay,simplyfita1'
orsolengthof3/8"IDvinyltubingtothesnoutofthecobratapfromthecorniekeg,place
a3literbottleatalowerelevationthatthecorniekeg,reducetheco2pressureabit
(includinginkegbycrackingopenthepressurereliefvalve),openthecobratapfullytofill
whileadustingtheco2pressureregulatortoadjusttheflowofbrewintothebottle.
Ifyouwanttouseuseoneofthoseco2poweredpockettireinflatorgizmosfordispensing,you'llneed
anadapter.Removetherubberfromatireairstem,That'llleaveabrasstubeexposed.Solderit
ontoaflaredpieceofcoppertubingwithfemaleflarenutattached.Thelaterattachestothe
thumbscrewcoredepressor.Goingfurther,I'vesplicedahacked060psigtirepressuregauge
betweentheinflatorandthedepressorsotheminikegpressurecanbedetermined.WARNINGif
youuseaco2inflatorgizmotopressurizethekegviaathumbscrewcoredepressor/accessvalve
withoutdepressingthecoreoftheaccessvalve,thepressuregaugewillbepeggedandruined.
Evenworst,thethegaugecouldexplode.Includingaquickactingpressurereleif"weaklink"inthe
connectionhelpsavoidthisvinyltubingattachedtointhelineattachdaIusedbetweenthe
inflator/pressuregaugeandthecoredepressor/accessvalvebelowoffa1/4"tubeI'dusedasabarb.
Thegaugewasruinedbut
Dispensingwithanco2tireinflatorwithoutapressuregaugeisprettyeasywithabitofpractice.What
Idoisaddtheco2onlyasI'mactuallydispensingbrewi.e.whenbrewflowstooslowly,giveitabrief
blastofco2.repeatif/asneeded.You''llknowwhenyou'veoverpressureizedbythebrewfoaming
toomuchasit'sbeingdispensed.
Iuseabout10'of3/16"IDvinyltubingforthedispensinglineand1012psigofco2pressurefor
dispensingales.

Aninsulatedjacketforminikegs
It'smadeprimairlyofaluminumfacedbubblewrap.Itwillkeepbrewcoolfor3hoursormoreandis
veryeasyandcheaptomake.

http://hbd.org/cdp/3lkeg/3lkeg.htm

5/8

12/12/2016

3LiterPopBottleMiniKegs

Notes:
1.Iusedaluminuntapetomakethejacket.Itcostsabitmorethanfabricducttypebutworksand
looksmuchbetter!
Thejacketextends23"pastthetopofthekeg.Thatallowsthematerialtobegatheredandtiedshut
withapieceofstringorwhateverfortransport.
2.DONOTstickthecobratapinsidethejacketit'slevercanbeeasilydepressedbythejacketwhich
willdispensebrewintothejacket!
3.Ifyouwanttousethecapwithaco2poweredtireinflatorgizmo,cutaslitintheupperportionof
thejacketsoyoucanaccesstheco2infittingeasily.
4.Coilingthebrewlineandplacingitatopthekegkeepsitcoolandreducesfoamingwhile
dispensing.

Acoolerforminikegs
Photosofthething:

http://hbd.org/cdp/3lkeg/3lkeg.htm

6/8

12/12/2016

3LiterPopBottleMiniKegs

Details:
It'smadefromaRubbermaidwatercoolerIgotatTarget.Iforgotthesize,but,it'scapacityis23gallons.The
onlyhackingrequiredistoremoveachuckfromit'slidsincetheminikegistallerthanthedepthinsidethe
cooler.Acircularpieceof3/4"styrofoamwithaluminumfacedbubblewrapgluedtoitstopsideclosesthehole
inthelid.Well,nearlysothere'saholeinthefoamtoallowthebottletoptoprotrudethrough.Noteinthe
secondphotoabovethatthebrewlineiscoiledintheannularspacebetweenthecoolerandminikeg.This
keepsitcoolandgreatlyyreducesfoamingduringdispensing.Itwillkeepaprechilledalecoolforseveral
hourswithoutaddingice.Whenthebrewstartstogettoowarm,justaddsomeice.Filledwithice,it'llkeepthe
brewcoldformorethanadayatroomtemperature.Toincreasetheinsulation,wrapthecoolerinaluminum
facedbubblewrap.ThisreallyhepledonacorniekegcoolerImadefromahacked5gallonRubbermaidcooler.

GoingFurther
Ifyouwantatapcapthatallowstheuseofbothanaccessvalveandatireairstem,usea1/8"NPT
teeandclosenippleinsteadofthestreetelbow.You'llhavetoeitherchasethethreads(i.e.a
threadingdieturned"backwards")ontheexposedpartoftheclosenippleorusemultiplewashersto
takeupslackbetweenthenut/washerandthecap.
Makeagiant6literkegusinga6literplasticbottle.Itacceptscapsfrom3literbottlessoyoucan
useyourtapcap.Theonlydownsideistheyhavearoundbottomhencewillnotstandupright
unaided.Detailsonthisandrelatedstuff:

Model
No,'02
Photo
Description
Price&
Source
Reusable6liter
(1.5gallon)blue
bottle.Thebottles
are14"fromend
http://hbd.org/cdp/3lkeg/3lkeg.htm

7/8

12/12/2016

3LiterPopBottleMiniKegs

toend,and6.25"
indiameterwitha
38mm(Standard
3literbottle)
finish.Depending
onwhatisputin
themandhow
theyarecleanedto
howlongtheywill
last.Weestimate
around810refills
fortheaverage
user
CO2InjectorOnly
Doesnotinclude
balllockor
adaptorhardware.
Usetoflushkegs
orcarboyspriorto
transferortoflush
theheadspacein
winefermenters.
Uses12g
cartridges

(nopicture)

KEG930
$6.95
(from
BeerBeer
&More
Beer)

KEG954
$9.95
fromBeer
Beer&
More
Beer)

KEG955A
$7.80
12gramCO2
fromBeer
cartridgespackof
Beer&
12
More
Beer)

More/Links
JohnSchnupp'sTapCap.(orathispage)
Myold3literminikegwhichusesametaltireairstem.It'smoredifficulttomakethantheoneonthis
pageandI'venotfoundanairchucktoattachtotheairstemthatdidn'tleakifleftconnected.
Commentsorquestionsareusuallywelcomed:cdp@chattanooga.net
Revisionlog:New,2/2002,Addedphotos12/02Updated/revisedandaddedphotosofnewkegcooler2/04.

http://hbd.org/cdp/3lkeg/3lkeg.htm

8/8