Who qualifies to be a customer of Micro Matic Packaging Division?

Only licensed, commercial beverage producers* who own or lease kegs; keg manufacturers and importers/resellers; plus limited other wholesale businesses and service providers – a few qualified 3rd party distributors, no retailers, and no private individuals.

*breweries, cideries, meaderies, wineries, kombucha-makers, hard seltzer-makers, cold coffee producers; other similar

Why can’t I find keg spears, tools or parts on your website or online store?

We keep all keg spears, tools and parts in a secure area online, since we restrict sales to businesses as described above. After we qualify a customer, we send our product catalog, technical data sheets, user manuals for tools, and provide a high level of technical support.

When should I replace the metal circlip that secures my spears into the kegs?

The circlip that holds the spear in place is a critical safety component and should never be used a second time. A new circlip should be used every time it is removed or if there is any evidence of damage or tampering. This is an industry-wide safety standard and should not be considered as optional under any circumstances. Failure to do so can lead to a catastrophic failure resulting in damage, injury, or death.

I’m a home brewer who wants to use American Sankey (D System) kegs for my home brew – how can I clean and fill these kegs?

At Micro Matic, we discourage the use of commercial kegs fitted with D System valves as home brew containers because they are not designed for manual filling and cleaning. There are numerous other draft beverage containers available which are designed for manual cleaning and filling. These are far more suitable for home brew.

I’m a bartender and I want to mix cocktails in kegs for serving at my bar – how can I clean and fill these kegs?

Beer kegs fitted with D System valves are not well-suited for this purpose unless you have access to a professional-grade keg washing machine to clean and sanitize these kegs between uses, and a means to fill the kegs without removing the spear.

I own a home brew store and want to offer tools and parts for Sankey (D System) keg spears to my customers – can I buy them from you?

As mentioned above, we sell keg spears, tools or parts only to end users who are licensed, commercial beverage producers who own kegs, and discourage use of kegs fitted with D System valves as home brew containers.

I am a pro brewer and need to open and inspect kegs, repair kegs and maybe replace some keg spears – can you help me?

Yes! Please contact the Sales Manager listed as responsible for the State where your brewery is located, or click here to send us a message and one of us will get back to you within a day or two.

What is the best method to manually clean Sankey (D System) kegs?

There is no best (or good, or adequate) method to manually clean kegs fitted with D System keg spears. They are designed specifically for clean-in-place (CIP) wash systems.

I’ve seen videos on YouTube showing how to open a Sankey (D System) keg, but I need circlips – can I get those from you?

Yes, but only if you qualify as a customer – see above. And DO NOT trust videos you see on YouTube for keg spear removal/repair/replacement; most (maybe all?) demonstrate wrong and potentially dangerous techniques. Please let us help you with the correct tools and techniques, for your safety and the safety of your staff and customers.

At my brewery, I have one keg with a damaged valve – should I buy tools and parts to repair it? what are my options?

Generally if you have 25 or fewer kegs needing repair (leaker, foamer kegs), you should just buy new, replacement spears and tools to remove/replace the spear in the keg neck, rather than also spending money on tools needed to rebuild the spear. You may choose to send damaged/aged spears out for refurbishment by a 3rd party Micro Matic Certified Keg Spear Refurbisher (contact us for the listing.)