How Often Should You Clean Your Kegerator Beer Lines? (And Why It Matters)

You've got the kegerator dialed in, the CO2 is perfectly balanced, and you've just tapped a fresh keg of your favorite IPA. You pour a glass, take a sip, and… wait. Is that a hint of movie theater popcorn? Or maybe a weird, sour tang that definitely wasn't there last time? If your beer tastes "off," the culprit is rarely the brewery-it's almost always your beer lines. Maintaining a kegerator is about more than just keeping the CO2 tank full; it's about hygiene. Here is everything you need to know about how often to clean your lines and what happens if you don't.

The Golden Rule: How Often is Enough?

For most home setups, the industry standard is to clean your beer lines every two weeks, or at the very least, every time you switch out a keg. If you leave a keg on for a month or two, don't wait for it to kick. The yeast and proteins in the beer will begin to settle and solidify in the lines regardless of whether the beer is flowing. A bi-weekly flush ensures that your system stays pristine.

Ignoring your lines doesn't just result in "old" tasting beer; it creates a playground for biological spoilers.

1. The Diacetyl "Butter" Bomb Have you ever tasted a beer that had a slick, oily mouthfeel and tasted like artificial butter? That's Diacetyl. While some styles have a tiny bit of it, in a kegerator, it's usually a sign of a Pediococcus or Lactobacillus infection in your lines. These bacteria produce diacetyl as a byproduct, and once it's in your lines, it will ruin every pour.

2. Bacterial Growth and Biofilms Beer is organic. Over time, bacteria and wild yeast can form a biofilm inside your tubing-a stubborn, slimy layer that protects the microorganisms living underneath it. This can lead to cloudy beer, "vinegary" sourness, or a "locker room" aroma. If a line gets bad enough, the infection can actually travel back up the coupler and infect your entire keg, turning $150 of craft beer into drain cleaner.

3. Residual Flavors (Ghosting) If you just finished a heavy, spicy Stout and immediately tap a delicate Pilsner without cleaning the lines, your Pilsner is going to taste like a ghost of that Stout. Beer lines (especially standard vinyl) are porous and soak up flavors.

How to Clean Your Lines (The Quick Version)

To keep things fresh, you'll need a Beer Line Cleaning Kit. This usually consists of a hand-pump bottle, a cleaning solution (like Alkaline Brewery Wash), and a faucet wrench. 1. Flush with Water: Disconnect the keg and flush the remaining beer out with warm water. 2. Chemical Soak: Mix your cleaning solution and pump it into the lines. Let it sit for 15-20 minutes to break down the proteins and mineral deposits (beer stone). 3. Scrub the Faucet: While the lines soak, take your faucet apart and scrub it with a small brush. This is where the most mold tends to grow! 4. Final Rinse: Flush the lines with plenty of fresh water until no chemical residue remains.

If you would like a more comprehensive guide to cleaning you lines, check out our full article on the topic here!

When to Throw the Towel In Sometimes, cleaning isn't enough. If you've neglected your kegerator for a few months, or if you bought a used unit that looks like it has "swamp water" in the tubes, replace them. Beer line is cheap. If your lines are:

* Deeply discolored (brown or yellow tint).

* Stiff and brittle.

* Still smelling like old beer after a heavy chemical soak.

...then it's time to head to the hardware store or homebrew shop. We recommend using 3/16" ID (Inside Diameter) vinyl tubing. Most home setups need about 5 to 8 feet of line per tap to maintain proper pressure and prevent foam. Simply cut the old zip ties or clamps, pull the old line off the barbs, and slide the new ones on (dipping the ends of the new tubing in hot water makes this much easier!).

Again, if you need a more detailed walkthrough on replacing your lines, check out our article here.

Clean lines equal delicious beer. It takes 20 minutes of work, but it saves you from the heartbreak of a buttery, sour pint. Treat your kegerator like a kitchen appliance-keep it sanitary, and it will reward you with the perfect pour every time. Cheers!