Beer line cleaning service is essential for every brewer who strives to pour fresh and aromatic beer. If your draft dispensing system is dirty, the contaminants will ruin your craft beer.
Regardless of whether you are a beginner or an experienced brewer, you already know how much effort it takes to brew a good beer.
Choosing the best ingredients, using advanced technology, ensuring constant quality and brewing process control, fermentation, and proper storage – all this work can be wasted if your beer system has not been properly cleaned.
For more information on what makes beer turn bad and where to order a good beer line cleaning service keep reading our article.
The main enemies of draft beer
First, let’s figure out what contaminants in the beer line can affect the quality of your product:
Molds are usually black or brown, they grow on taps, drains, and other parts of the beer dispensing system, exposed to the air.
Mold can grow, for example, if you do not clean all the equipment for too long and stop controlling the production of your drinks.
If a person drinks such beer, it can cause poisoning, upset stomach, and even allergic reactions.
- Bacteria
Although they are not dangerous for health, they can spoil the flavor and taste of the beer.
So, if the beer has a sour, vinegar, or buttery mouthfeel, it is likely to be contaminated with bacteria.
The most prevalent beer spoilers are acetic acid and lactic acid bacteria, and anaerobic cocci bacteria.
The most common are lactic acid bacteria that cause clouding and rapid souring of the drink.
Like mold, they are usually found on the external parts of the beer line system.
As a rule, they look white or gray, and can ruin the taste and quality of your draft beer, and also reduce its shelf life.
- Beerstone
It has beige/brown color and can negatively affect beer taste (for example, if it gets into the glass of beer).
It also, like all mineral deposits, clogs the pipe, making the pressure from the tap weaker. Because of this, various bacteria or wild yeast may appear faster.
All this can be avoided if you regularly clean the beer line. There are 3 types of beer system cleaning: daily, every 2 weeks, and quarterly.
Daily cleaning includes cleaning beer taps and fittings.
Every 2 weeks and quarterly cleaning is best done by a qualified beer line cleaning service, they have spent many years looking into the line hygiene and know all the nuances of how to keep dispense systems clean.
Let us dwell on this in more detail and figure out what such services include:
Draft beer line cleaning
We recommend cleaning your draft beer line every 2 weeks with a special alkaline solution. This solution is needed to remove all the films and proteins that have not been filtered out properly. Ordinary detergents, soda, or vinegar will not work here – they can not provide good cleaning results.
- The product should circulate in the line for at least 15 minutes at a rate of up to 2 gallons per minute.
- If circulation is not possible, you should leave the cleaning solution inside the system for at least 20 minutes. Do not exceed the specified time!
In addition to alkaline cleaning, every quarter you need to make acid cleaning. It helps to remove beerstone, mineral deposits, and other inorganic contaminants.
When working with all these solutions it is important to use personal protective equipment (gloves, facial protection: respirator and glasses).
Ensure that all hoses are washed with cold clean water after the cleaning. To do this, fill the pump with water and run it through the entire system. This will remove the residue of cleaning agent.
After washing, fill the lines with beer.
Cleaning beer faucets
All faucets must also be regularly cleaned every 2 weeks.
If during such cleaning you notice damaged gaskets, they should be replaced with new ones.
Cleaning shanks, couplers and tap handles
- Rinse the beer taps thoroughly and make sure they are free of mold or yeast.
- Unplug the tap lines. To do this, first of all, turn off the carbon dioxide on the regulator and take out the barrel from the kegerator.
- Beer system cleaning also involves the disassembly and cleaning of the couplings. To do this, disconnect the coupling from the beer line and then unscrew the tap with a wrench. All the damaged couplings should be replaced. The craftsman should check the O-rings – they should be covered with a special food lubricant.
- Disassemble the faucet and put all its elements in a separate container. Clean all the parts of the faucet with a brush and cleaning solution and rinse them with cold running water.
- If everything is ready, the craftsman assembles the faucet and reinstalls it on the beer tower.
- Next, plug in the coupling to the barrel and turn on the CO2.
Replacing washers and O-rings
It is required if these components of the beer system are damaged or broken.
Recommendation list
A good beer line cleaning service should check the equipment for potential problems and, if they are detected, provide you with a list of preventive tips.
They will help to respond to all the needs of your system in time and continue to produce delicious fresh beer.
The best beer line cleaning service in Canada
Do you know where to order a beer line cleaning service? Contact the popular company Beverage Craft. This brand has more than 10 years of experience: it specializes in beer equipment and accessories.
And they know everything about how to properly clean this equipment and make it serve you as long as possible.
Top 3 reasons to order a beer line cleaning from Beverage Craft:
- Large selection of high-quality efficient equipment for waste-free dispensing;
- Like all modern companies, this brand is certified and guided only by the highest standards of this industry. This includes cleaning services for the draft beer line;
- Affordable prices for cleaning services and equipment purchase.
In addition to cleaning, here you can order kegerators, kegs, beer towers, taps, drip trays, glycol and air coolers, nitrogen and CO2 tanks, and much more.
You can also use the company’s services to install, maintain or repair your equipment. All these services will be done by experienced craftsmen specializing in craft draft beer systems.
To use the company’s service, you need:
- Submit an online application on their website, indicating which services you need. In the application, you also need to specify your location.
- Beverage Craft representatives will send you a proven service company with which the brand cooperates in your region.
- The craftsmen will do the cleaning with the highest quality and within the specified time
Beverage Craft is a company that can be trusted to clean your beer line! After trying their services at least once, you will not trade them for any other!
