can you arc weld a beer keg

[beesley121]

hi guys,

im new on here

i am a bit of a homebrew fanatic (beer making) and I have obtained a stainless steel beer keg from a micro brewery

i plan to drill a hole at the bottom of the keg and fit a stainless steel ball valve. now can u tell me if its possible to use an arc welder to weld a s/s nipple to the keg without making a mess of it?? the keg is quite thin so im worried it might just blow a hole in it using an arc welder but thats all i have access to

please give me your thoughts

 

[madkayaker]

stainless can be stick welded but if its thin might be hard to stop blow through. You might be able to fill with some water and lay on side to weld the water will act like a heat sink and might reduce blow through

 

[Archie]

If that's all you plan to do I'd try and find someone local with a TIG welder and a bit of know-how to do it for you. It'll probably take him (or possibly her!) ten minutes and the result will be far more satisfactory.

 

[Paul.]

Needs Tig welding, there is a hygiene issue here, any crevices will be potential breeding ground for bugs, I'd take it to some one (like me, but I'm too far away) who is used to working on food processing equipment, can you get access to the inside?.

 

[beesley121]

i was told tig would be far better but i cant seem to find anyone that will do the job for me and yes you can get access to the inside. the weld doesnt have to be perfect as its only going to be used to heat up the water needed for brewing. just need food grade welds as i cant have things like cadnium in there.

i have phoned a few places up and they wont touch it as iits just not worth enough money to them.

i live in widnes, cheshire.

do you know if anyone on this forum would be happy to do it for me. i will pay obviously

 

[scarecrow]

Needs Tig welding, there is a hygiene issue here, any crevices will be potential breeding ground for bugs, I'd take it to some one (like me, but I'm too far away) who is used to working on food processing equipment, can you get access to the inside?.

Why do I get the feeling this is going to be a beer tokens job

 

[beesley121]

can anyone help me out and weld this for me please

 

[3Rs]

Take it to your local tech/college throw the welding instructor a few pound, and some of your home made brew. He should be able to do it, well provided hes got the machine for it.

 

[kev234]

Know a couple of places that could do it in Bolton and Manchester. Not that far away but you will find someone more local. PM me if you want numbers.
Kev

 

[chunkolini]

Oi tried it on a cider barrel but was made of plastic.
Beesley, semantics; the word 'obtained' please define, is it the same as 'purloined'?
Should be easy enough to get it sorted though, could it be drilled and tapped?

Chunko.

 

[beesley121]

lol

had to look up what 'purloined' means

well, to answer your question.

no, i didnt steal it. I purchased it from a microbrewery that has closed as it was going bust

 

[3Rs]

You still on the cider, Chunkolini,

I do enjoy reading your posts there very funny.

 

[matt1978]

I would get it tig'd, on that thickness you'd need some 316 1.6mm rods and I bet you'd have to buy them so any money you was potentially going to spend on rods would be better spent on paying someone to tig it up properly, they could also purge the inside of the vat whilst welding it so no contamination inside.