Expert: Dave Nyce - 12/5/2009

Question
My son been brewing beer for 2 years and I might add that he is very good at it .
I want to buy him kegging equipment for Christmas. He is a Chemical engineer by trade .
Question is after craft beer is brewed and kegged do these kegs need to be refridgerated  or can they sit for a couple weeks or so? He has no extra refridgerator available . What do you suggest?

Answer
Since he is a chemical engineer, I'll assume that he knows how to keep the process sterile. Kegging will keep equally as well as bottling, and bottles can be stored without refrigeration if they are around 70F or less.  So, the keg can be stored without refrigeration.  

But, it is easiest to store your kegs in a refrigerator. That's because most people like their beer cold, and if you want to carbonate your beer at room temperature, you'll need to store it at much higher pressure (and put a long dispensing line on it to compensate).  While beer will carbonate at 10-12 psi at 42 F, you will need 27-30 psi to accomplish the same at room temperature.  Dispensing at that pressure requires a very long dispensing line to bleed off the extra pressure.  Most people use an extra used refrigerator or converted freezer to store and dispense their beer.

Hope this helps!

Dave