Secondary Fermentation in Cory Kegs

I'm using a conical fermentation, and after my primary reaches around F.G. 1.014-, I would like to move the secondary fermentation into a Cory Keg.  The good news is that a conical fermentation leaves behind most of the the dead yeast cells and other settling matter, when I rack in to the Cory Keg. I was thinking of injecting a small dose of CO2 to remove the oxygen in the head space. Has anyone ever done this, my reason is I want to start in the conical fermentator another batch and I didn't want to rack into a carboy. My thinking was the less I expose my brew to the elements the better changes I have of not contaminating it with a third racking from the carboy into the Cory Keg. Appreciate your thoughts and experience, Ken

I haven't done it myself because my corny kegs usually have finished beer in them, but I don't see any reason you couldn't do what you described.  1.014 gravity is pertty near to final gravity for most beers and a secondary fermentation is not really needed for most beers anyway.  If you transfer much earlier than that you are going to get a fair amount of trub in your corny keg and maybe get an off taste if your beer is in the keg for a month or more.  Of course you can always transfer to another corny keg using CO2 pressure to move the beer if you need to.  Just rig it to put liquid in through the liquid-out side and unscrew the gas-in fitting to let the gas in the head space out.  I have an extra down tube for my corny kegs that is cut about an inch shorter than normal so I can pull liquid out of my kegs without pulling off the bottom (I mostly use it when I dry hop in the keg) that would be handy for doing this.

Thank you for your suggestions, I agree ,why not .I like your transfer idea .

They addressed this issue in Brewstrong a while back. Look for the Brewstrong Podcast on Fermenters. You can find them on the Brewing Network Website or on ITUNES and they are free. I know some guys do use kegs for ferm vessels. BUT...(he said but lol) Apparently corny kegs are not suitable fermentation vessels. Something about its harder for the yeast to stay in suspension in a taller skinny vessel. I would listen to the podcast before trying it. Good Luck!

Maddspoiler - Good tip on the podcast; it was well worth listening to.  I think most of their concerns about using corny kegs had to do with primary fermentation, where ester production could be a problem from poor circulation within the keg - they theorized most of the active yeast might end up in the bottom of the keg.  They didn't discuss it but yeasts that don't flocculate may not have this problem since they tend to stay suspended.

In this case, since 1.014 is nearly fully fermented it doesn't seem like it would be much of a problem.  At this point the aging process is really kicking into gear and I've always gotten a prononced aging effect in my kegs.

Thank you for sharing your experience and thoughts .

I've been fermenting in a cheap plastic conical and using kegs for secondary fermentation for many years. With a long primary I get very little sediment; with a shorter primary I get more sediment - which is a simple way to harvest yeast for a future batch. I rarely transfer to a second keg, but if you're after super-clear beer, use star san, then purge the second keg with CO2 a couple of times and you have little risk of infection or oxidation.

Dan