Beer - liquid line cleaning

[Rob Martin]

How often do you clean your beer lines? After so many gallons? After a certain amount of time? Do you completely disassemble, or do you run cleaner through it?

I have a one keg system. One gas line, one liquid line, one faucet in the door. Frequently I will have more than one keg ready. When I want a different style, I just switch the gas & liquid disconnects. For me, it is no big deal.

I used to completely disassemble the liquid line after every keg which would be about 4-6 weeks. With my old faucet, it would get really nasty if I went longer than that, and that included spraying diluted Star San up the faucet. With my Perlick, I started to go every other keg which would be 2-3 months. This last time it was a few weeks before Brewfest (about 4 months ago) and have ran five kegs through the lines. While the lines were not sparkling, the Perlick was a lot cleaner than with the old regular faucet.

Also, how often do you change your liquid line?

Thanks

[brick]

Every time I switch a keg all the lines get cleaner and sanitizer ran though them. I dissaemble and clean the taps every other month.

[Rob Martin]

Wow, I guess I'm kind of gross.

How do you run cleaner through them? What process do you use?

[brick]

I use a 2.5 gal corny fill with line cleaner and connect to each beer line and push cleaner though the tap. Then repeat with hot water rinse. Next is sanitizer, after that Co2 to blow it all out. Hook up new keg and reconnect the other kegs and pull a beer though each line. The co2 you can skip it you put a beer on and flush out the sanitizer with beer just make sure you pull a few pints before drinking.

[bike2brew]

Does anybody replace their beer lines on a regular basis, like once a year? I clean my lines every time I change a keg, but they still seem to get a little more discolored with every keg. It seems like that may become an issue at some point.

[Greenblood]

Sean has a pretty nifty little line cleaner that he built out of a small chemical sprayer and a liquid ball lock post screwed onto the output. I've been meaning to build one.

[Jdl973]

I have a dedicated keg filled with cleaner and Star San. After the keg comes off, flush with cleaner, leave it for a day, flush with StarSan. When the new keg is added, flush the StarSan and the little bit of yeast/sediment out of the keg, pitch the first 2 glasses and off to the races.

I also try to keep "like" beers on the same lines so if i have any residual flavor (has not happened yet) it is going to be less noticeable.

Jason