Cornelius Keg

The Cornelius keg (also known as a Corny keg or soda keg) is an open-top stainless steel container used for storing and dispensing carbonated and nitrogenated beverages. Cornelius kegs were originally manufactured by Cornelius, Inc.

 

Just like standard cans and bottles, fully made soda is stored in kegs under pressure. In the beverage industry, premix soda is referred to as "premix" as opposed to postmix bag-in-box (BiB) packages, which contain concentrated syrup. BiB soda is more affordable, but requires a high-quality water source and a well-calibrated dispenser. However, pre-mixed soda costs more and occupies more space, but it can be used anywhere, and the equipment is simpler and less expensive.

 

Kegs were once the primary method of delivering and dispensing soda, but today they are largely obsolete in the soda industry. Homebrewed beer and other homemade beverages such as soda and nitro cold brew coffee are now commonly made in Cornelius kegs. Cornelius kegs were designed to be filled using the large central opening, which is sufficient for syrup but not ideal for beer, since oxygen degrades it. After filling a keg, homebrewers are typically advised to purge it of oxygen by repeatedly pressurizing it with carbon dioxide and releasing the pressurized gas, decreasing the concentration of oxygen in the headspace. An alternative method is to perform closed transfers by first purging the empty keg, and then transferring the liquid into the keg through the "liquid out" port using pressure or gravity.

 

 

Quick-connect fittings with pin locks (left) and ball locks (right) that attach to the ports of the keg. It is possible to attach the hoses to the threaded flare fittings located at the top of the unit. In this example, both fittings are intended for liquid lines; they are color-coded according to their connection to gas (gray) or liquid (black) ports.

 

In general, a Cornelius keg is a stainless steel cylinder with a maximum pressure of 130 PSI. A keg has three openings for cleaning and filling, as well as two ports for pressurizing and dispensing.

 

Filling and cleaning the keg are performed through the central opening, which is large enough to allow hand scrubbing to be performed. The separate metal lid for the central opening provides a clamp mechanism that closes and seals the lid against the keg with a large rubber O-ring; this design ensures that the lid can only be opened when the keg is not pressurized. The lid also provides a pressure relief valve that is typically identified by a circular pull-ring (like a key ring). The relief valve can be manually opened to release the pressure in the keg; in the event of an unsafe overpressure in the keg, the relief valve automatically opens to avoid the hazard of bursting the cylinder.

 

The two ports are used to dispense the beverage, one for "gas in", and the other for "liquid out". Two metal or plastic tubes are attached to the ports on the inside of the keg. The "gas in" port has a short tube, not reaching the fluid. The "liquid out" port has a long tube (a "dip tube") which reaches the bottom of the keg. Headspace gas pressure (usually carbon dioxide and sometimes nitrogen forced into the "gas in" port) pushes the drink from the bottom of the keg up the tube and then out of the "liquid out" port connected to a tap or other dispensing device.

 

 

Corny kegs have the advantage of being quite straightforward in terms of their construction and operation.

 

Other than the stainless steel body (shell), where the liquid is stored, the corny keg consists of:

Keg lid - provides access into the keg and contains a pressure relief valve (which opens automatically when the keg is overpressured), an O-ring for sealing, and a bail to secure the lid. It is generally the case that keg lids are interchangeable between Corny kegs. However, this is not the case in all cases.

 

There are two ports used for dispensing, one of which is the gas-in body connect (gas-side post). On this part, the quick disconnect for gas is mounted. It is typically identified by a hash mark or a pattern of stars.

The liquid-out body connection (draught-side post) is the second of the two ports used for dispensing liquids. It is normally distinguished by having a flat surface without any hash marks.

 

To conclude the description, there are two metal tubes attached to the ports inside the keg. Unlike the gas-in port, the liquid-out port consists of a long tube (aka "dip tube"), which extends all the way to the bottom of the keg. A seal must be placed on each tube prior to its attachment to the keg.

 

How to Tap a Cornelius Keg？

In terms of dispensing, Corny kegs operate on the same principle as any other type of kegs - the gas pushes the beer out of the keg and then to the draught tower faucet.

The most common size of Cornelius keg holds 5 US gallons (19 liters) which conveniently matches the size of a typical batch of home-brewed beer, and kegs can be used to carbonate the beer.This means that rather than saving, cleaning, and filling approximately fifty bottles, the brewer only needs to fill one keg.

 

What Is a Cornelius Keg?

A Cornelius keg is nothing more than a cylinder used for storing and dispensing various drinks. Originally produced by Cornelius, Inc (hence the name), these kegs were used extensively by the likes of Coca-Cola and Pepsi back in the day until another technology called Bag-in-Box came along, which rendered Corny kegs obsolete for the soft drinks industry.

 

However, the simplicity, stackability, and robust quality of Corny kegs soon earned them well-deserved recognition among the homebrewers community, where they have become go-to kegs for storing and dispensing homemade beer.

 

What Are Corny Kegs Made Of?

A typical Corny keg is made of stainless steel and can hold a maximum pressure of 60 PSI, which makes it ideal for storing almost any beverages, beer included.

 

Types of Cornelius Kegs

There are two main types of Corny kegs depending on the type of their connecting posts - ball-lock kegs and pin-lock kegs. Historically, ball-lock kegs were used primarily by Pepsi while pin locks were a Coca-Cola thing.

 

Besides looking differently, these locks also have a different locking mechanism - ball-lock style and pin-lock style.

 

1.Ball-Lock Corny Kegs

Ball locks are called that because they have a bunch of little ball bearings. When you place the fitting over the post and push it down, it snaps over the post and the ball bearings grab the post so that the fitting can't pop back off.

 

2.Pin-Lock Corny Kegs

Pin locks feature little pins on the post. Here, you have to push the fitting down and turn it to lock on to those pins.

 

Ball-Lock Vs. Pin-Lock Style Kegs - Which Ones Are Better?

There's no such thing one type is better than the other since that decision is completely arbitrary, depending on the user preferences. However, ball-lock style kegs tend to be a little bit more common.

 

How Long Does Beer Last In a Corny Keg?

In general, well-refrigerated (stored in a keg at 600 F) and properly carbonated beer can last you for about a year while retaining its fresh taste.

However, in most cases, you won’t need to keep it for so long since a typical Corny keg fits 5 gallons, which amounts roughly to fifty 12-oz bottles of beer. With moderate consumption of 1-2 bottles per day, your Corny keg will be empty long before the beer goes flat or stale.

 

How To Carbonate a Cornelius Keg?

After the beer's been racked into the keg, you need to carbonate it. Use your recipe guidelines to determine the right level of carbonation (typically measured in volumes of CO2).

Cool the keg a bit to ease the carbonation process and then hook up a CO2 cylinder to the keg via a gas-in connect port. Set the proper PSI level on the gas regulator (according to your beer recipe guideline) and let it stay for a few days till the CO2 levels hit the right mark.

 

 

 

For the delivery and dispensing of soda syrup, Cornelius style (or Corny) kegs were used by soda bottlers. The remaining kegs were used to deliver and dispensing pre-mix soda that is sold from small trailers and at remote events when the industry transitioned to BIB (Bag In Box) systems. But all used kegs sold today have been retired and are now in widespread use privately andcommercially. Pin-lock kegs, also known as Coke kegs, were used by the Coca-Cola Company. These kegs use pin-lock type disconnects to connect & disconnect the gas and liquid lines. Pin-lockdisconnects lock on with a twist of the collar. Ball Lock kegs, also known as Pepsi kegs, were used by everyone else (aka General Beverage). These kegs use ball lock type disconnects to connect & disconnect the gas and liquid lines. Ball lock disconnects lock on by raising & then releasing a collar. They connect just like an air line fitting connects. New Ball Lock kegs are being manufactured in China, India & Italy. Quality new kegs should last a lifetime of brewing and are an excellent long term investment.

 

 

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