Common Draftbeer Questions

Q: How long will a keg last?

If you dispense your beer with a party pump, which uses air instead of CO2 to drive the beer, you can only expect your beer to remain fresh for 8-12 hours.
If you keep your kegs warm, and drive them with CO2 through a jockey box or other faucet, they will most likely last a couple of months.
If you keep your beer cold, use CO2 instead of air to drive the beer, keep the dispensing system clean, and buy kegs from breweries that have strict sanitizing and cleaning procedures, your keg will last 4 months or more with minimal or no noticeable flavor change.

Q: How many 12 oz. beers can you get out of a keg?

Q: What are the major components of a kegerator?

Faucet Knob/Tap Handle	Push or pull the faucet handle to start beer flowing out of the faucet.
Faucet	Dispenses beer and controls its flow into your glass. Also referred to as a tap.
Draft Beer Tower	Contains the beer lines and holds the faucets in place. Can be air or glycol cooled, comes in various styles and finishes, and can hold single or multiple faucets.
Guard Rail	Helps prevent beer glasses from falling off of the kegerator.
Drip Tray	Located under the faucet to catch any runoff beer.
Regulator	Controls the flow of gas.
CO2 Tank	Houses the CO2 gas, which is used to push beer from the keg through the beer line to the faucet.
CO2 Tank Holder	Holds the CO2 tank in place on the kegerator.
Metal Keg Floor Support	Allows the kegerator floor to support the weight of a full keg, and prevents cool air from leaking out of the bottom of the unit.
Casters	Allows you to roll the kegerator wherever you need it.
Beer Line	Beer travels through the beer line from the keg coupler to the faucet.
Keg Coupler	Taps the keg, allowing gas into the keg and beer out of the keg.
Air Line	Allows CO2 to flow from the regulator into the keg, pushing beer out of the faucet.

Q: What is the ideal beer temperature?

Q: How important a role does a clean beer glass play?

Maintain strict sanitary conditions in the glass washing area.
Never wash glassware with utensils or dishes used to serve food. Food particles and/or residue can affect the quality/taste of draught beer.
For best results, use a dedicated dishwasher for your glassware, or wash in a clean three-tub sink where you can clean the glass with hot water and detergent, rinse it in fresh cold water, and sanitize it with a mixture of hot water and the appropriate sanitizer.
Do not use regular liquid household dish washing detergents for glassware. They are fat-based and will leave a slight oily film on the glass. This causes beer to go flat quickly. Use a detergent designed specifically for beer glass cleaning. It must be low-suds, odor-free, and non-fat.
Avoid drying glassware with towels, as they tend to leave traces of lint on the surface of the glass. Instead, air-dry and store on a stainless-steel wire basket or corrugated basket or surface for maximum air circulation. Store in an odor, smoke, grease, and dust-free environment.
We recommend that you use beer glassware only for beer. Dairy and other food products leave a residue which can affect the quality/taste of the draught.

There are three ways to test if a glass is "beer clean":

To perform the "sheeting test", dip a glass in water. If it has been properly cleaned, the glass will be evenly coated with water, which it will shed evenly in unbroken "sheets". If there is still film remaining, the water will break up into droplets.
To perform the "salt test", sprinkle salt on the interior of a wet glass. The salt will adhere evenly to a clean surface, but will not adhere to any parts still containing film.
To perform the "lacing test", fill a glass with beer. In a beer clean glass, foam will adhere to the inside of the glass in parallel rings after every sip, forming a lacing pattern. In an improperly cleaned glass, any foam will adhere in a loose, random pattern, if it adheres at all. A glass that has not been properly cleaned may have loose, large bubbles that will cause the head to disappear quickly.

Q: What is the best way to pour draft beer?

Make sure that your glass is "beer clean".
Hold the glass about an inch under the faucet at a 45 degrees angle, then fully open the faucet. Make sure that the outside of the faucet does not touch the inside of the glass or the beer itself.
Once the beer has reached about a halfway point in the glass, begin to gradually tilt the glass upright.
Pour beer straight down into the glass, forming a one-inch collar of foam ("head").
Quickly close the faucet to avoid overflow.

Q: What is the best way to fill a growler?

Before filling a growler, it is always a good idea to rinse it out with cold water to cool down the growler and prevent the beer from excessively foaming.
Insert a tube (3/8" ID x 1/2" OD works for standard faucets) into the faucet that reaches to the bottom of the growler.
Open the faucet handle all the way and fill the growler from the bottom up.
When foam begins to come out of the top of the growler, close the faucet, remove the tube, and seal the growler

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