First, I bought the following from Amazon:
PonicsPump PP53006: 530 GPH Submersible Pump with 6′ Cord – 45W… for Hydroponics, Aquaponics, Fountains, Ponds, Statuary, Aquariums & more. Comes with 1 year limited warranty. – $31.99
10ft Draft Beer Line – Professional Installers Choice 3/8″ Clear Beverage Tubing – USA Made – NSF APPROVED – FDA APPROVED – ($5.94 + $1.99 Shipping) $7.93
Precision Brand M6S Micro Seal, Miniature All Stainless Worm Gear Hose Clamp, 5/16″ – 7/8″ (Pack of 10) – $3.85
Spears 407-UV Series PVC Pipe Fitting, UltraViolet Resistant, 90 Degree Elbow, Schedule 40, 3/4″ Socket x 1/2″ NPT Female – $3.07
NIBCO 4718 Series CPVC Pipe Fitting, Bushing, 3/4″ Spigot x 1/2″ Slip – $0.34
NIBCO 401 Series PVC Pipe Fitting, Tee, Schedule 40, 3/4″ Slip – $4.65
Spears 420 Series PVC Pipe Fitting, Cross, Schedule 40, 3/4″ Socket – $2.31
Anderson Metals Brass Hose Fitting, Connector, 3/8″ Barb x 1/2″ Male Pipe – $6.14
Dixon 179-0606 Brass Hose Splicer Fitting, Tee, 3/8″ Hose ID Barbed – $4.00
Ball Lock Home Brew Keg Tap Complete Set – $12.50
And the rest from Home Depot.
3/4 in. Schedule 40 PVC Cap – $0.53 x 2
3/4 in. x 10 ft. PVC Schedule 40 Plain-End Pipe – $2.54
5-gal. Homer Bucket – $2.97 x 2
The total cost of this build is $83.78
Amazon shipment arrived. I bought 10′ of tubing so I can use the leftovers in other projects.
The pump comes with three different output nozzles
I will be using the middle one (1/2″)
I then had to use my 7/8″ step bit to drill out the 13/16″ length so that the 1/2″ – 3/4″ bushing would fit snugly inside. I used the side of my hammer to make the ends flush.
I then placed this into one end of my Tee, again making it all flush. This is the side that will connect to the pump.
Cement and insert the other two lengths that were cut
Cement and add the Cross and 90 degree elbow
Tape the threads of the 3/8″ barb and use a crescent wrench to tighten into place.
The next thing I did was to trim the excess “tail” from each worm clamp.
For those keeping track, I have used 41″ of the 10′ Beer Line in this project. This gives me 6′ 7″ to use in other projects. I also have 4 worm clamps remaining.
Attach the disconnects to the posts
Invert the keg onto the cleaner and turn it on. That’s it.
Notice that we need two buckets for this. You could get away with one, especially if you are only going to wash a single keg at a time. One bucket is for the wash, the other is the rinse bucket. Fifteen minutes of a PBW wash followed by thirty seconds of a clean water rinse and you are ready to use the keg again! Spray the entire inside with Star San, Fill and Enjoy!
In this video, the water level is just above the pump. As you can see there is plenty of power in the water coming out of the keg washing tube. This will lead to a significant savings over time in PBW. Instead of 5-6 gallons per wash day, 2 gallons will get the job done. If you wash your kegs on brew day, then you can use the run-off water from your chiller to fill your buckets.
I am in no way suggesting that this bit of savings is enough to justify the cost of the keg washer. The ease of cleaning and the time saved are the motivating factors behind this build.
***NOTE***
To use this washer to also clean carboys, you need a bucket lid, 1/2″ PVC and another 3/4″ Spigot x 1/2″ Slip bushing. Replicate the picture below at the top of the cross and use a 16″ length of 1/2″ PVC. Cut a 6″ hole in the center of the lid and you can set the inverted carboy on the lid to clean it.
The 3/4″ PVC is a tight fit in carboys and will not always allow the cleaning solution or water rinse to drain while in use. 1/2″ PVC fixes this. You could make the entire assembly from 1/2″ PVC, but I feel the 3/4″ is more robust and can handle the weight of the kegs better than the 1/2″.
Do not cement the 90 degree elbow to the assembly of you will also use this for cleaning carboys. Instead, you can slip off the elbow and add another end cap to bypass the keg connections.
Now that you are spending less time cleaning kegs, you can drink more beer!
Looks like a great setup! There doesn't have to be a hard ROI on everything we do. The time savings is extremely valuable. Bookmarked to copy later. (HBT/Deprecated).
Exactly! I know that we as a community (and I in this blog) focus on keeping costs down. Sometimes saving time is more of a cost savings than saving money.
Thanks for reading!