C02 Bottle in Harrow or not too far away?

[BrewBoyJoe]

Dear All,
I am looking to get started with a Corny Keg system since in my poky London flat I no longer have the space to do it all in bottles. The fist place to start seems to be the CO2 bottle. Anyone know of supplier in Harrow or surrounding area? So I probably only do a few brews per year and won't get through that much. Keeping costs down would be great. Perhaps if I could pay a deposit on the bottle (3 or 6kg one) and just pay for the refills that would be ideal?

Mr Fizz in uxbridge is an option but it's looking like £90 in total £60 for the cylinder plus VAT and £20 for the gas and with the refils. If that's what it costs then I guess I'd pay it, but it just seems like a lot for someone who won't use that much CO2.

Also, perhaps could travel into London to get one. Also, do they let you on the tube with a CO2 cylinder? I'd understand if not! I understand shipping of compressed gas is expensive due to the safety concerns!

It's been too long since my last brew so hoping to get up and running with a Sierra Nevada clone perhaps....

Also, cheap / decent place to get the corny and disconectors / reg's and stuff? Any advice? People seems to be selling the full kit for £175! Isn't that crazy expensive?
Cheers

Joe

[Goulders]

If you read some of the threads under "dispensing", quite a few people are going through the same process as you having purchased cheap corney kegs that were on offer recently.

If you can't find cheap co2 nearby, a lot of people use fire extinguishers successfully.

[simon12]

I got my CO2 from my local pub £25 deposit and £8.50 refill + VAT which is far cheaper than I have seen anyone else post they paid. The £90 you have been quoted is only a little high if you have to order just a single cylinder as a 1 off, pubs just get huge discounts for ordering several refills every 2 weeks.

[BrewBoyJoe]

Chris from the website Kegtopia steered me in the direction of Hare Wine and spirits based in Walthamstow

http://www.eastendersplc.co.uk/

London- 24 Rigg Approach, Lea Bridge Road, Leyton, London E10 7QN Tel: 020 8556 7784 Fax: 020 8556 0765

These guys took a 20 deposit and 18 quid for the co2 so 37 in total! Not too bad at all and quite a workout lumping that thing home! Must have been 35kg or so!

[purpleyeti]

I'm also looking I found http://www.londongases.co.uk/view/co2-beer-gas-315kg and http://www.awsmith-calorgas.co.uk/our-shop/beer-gases/. North west London is missing a good brew shop also

[BrewBoyJoe]

I'm all set now, corny from thehomebrewshop.ie! Disconnects, taps and whathaveyou! I'm going to mash up my SNPA on Sat, test out my new wort chiller! Looking forward to it. I might write it up on the site if I get around to it! So many SNPA clone recipes, I just picked one that looked good! Yes no good homebrewshop in NW London is bizarre! I find myself in Wales every now and then and even the one horse town s***holes have homebrew shops. They've got their priorities in order / perhaps limited in what entertainment is at hand

So the next concern is chilling the beer out of the keg! Kegerator expensive and faffy / space intensive for my pokey flat! The chiller is bulky and expensive! I guess I could bottle and cap it up out of the keg (with no liquid gap for co2 leakage) for perhaps 20 mins and stick in the freezer! I wonder if people do that.

[purpleyeti]

where did you get c02 from in the end and what was the price?

[BrewBoyJoe]

http://www.eastendersplc.co.uk/
London- 24 Rigg Approach, Lea Bridge Road, Leyton, London E10 7QN Tel: 020 8556 7784 Fax: 020 8556 0765
deposit 20 quid gas 18 qid
hare wine and spirits
not sure if its food grade though consensus seems to be itll be ok
humped it back on the bus then tube! (in a bin bag cos i don't know if its legal to take compressed gas on the tube!) if i had my time again i'd try get it delivered! 35-40kg! I didnt know itd be so heavy