The Importance of Draft Line Cleaning

Have you ever woken up with a splitting headache the morning after you think you had too much to drink the night before?  Aside from the fact that you might have actually had too much to drink, if you were drinking draft beer there is a good chance that the restaurant/bar you went to doesn’t clean their draft beer lines; or, maybe they just don’t do it often enough.

Many restaurant managers/owners underestimate the importance of getting their draft beer lines cleaned regularly.  Depending on the length of the lines, they should be cleaned every 2-3 weeks. Not only can dirty beer lines deter the quality of draft beer, it also has a major effect on the taste as well.  Bacteria in beer is very common and easy-happening… Although it is not necessarily a significant hazard to human health, its effect is very noticeable. 

Below is a picture example of a dirty beer line:

https://www.pinterest.com/pin/126100858293097067/

Often times yeast, mold, and beer stone will build up in the lines, as you can see in the picture above.  Beer stone basically is calcium-oxalate deposits and is a by-product of brewing beer.  As stated above, if the lines aren't cleaned regularly, this beer stone will build up and eventually prevent steady flow of beer, or even end up in your guests beer glass.

Below is a picture of a well-maintained beer line that is cleaned every 2 weeks:

Photo Taken by: Scott Swartz

There are many different methods to cleaning beer lines, all of which should be done professionally by a beer line cleaning company.  One way that company's do it is pressurized cleaning-that of which a chemical is forced through the lines using CO2.  

The most popular style of cleaning is re-circulating line cleaning.  In this style of cleaning, a motorized pump is used to push water with chemicals through the beer lines.  It is then flushed with water without any chemicals in it.  If you are looking for a company, Micromatic is a good one to use-they are very well-known in the industry.  

Serving great-tasting clean beer will keep your customers coming back for more!





Disclosure: I am not being compensated for any information I post to this blog.