Breakthrough in beer line cleaning
by MA Reporter Beertech UK claims to have significantly improved a line-cleaning system that could mean savings for licensees of up to £2,000 each year. The company, whose customers include Belhaven's 75 managed pubs, has developed a new version of its existing electromagnetic technology that prevents build-up of contaminants and means licensees need to clean their beer pipes only once every three weeks. The new system can be easily fitted by cellar service personnel and does not have to be maintained by specialist fitters. Dennis Jolley, Beertech UK technical director, said: "By feeding a signal into the pipeline, the system creates an electromagnetic field which alters significantly the electrical behaviour of the protein molecules in beer and reduces their ability to stick to the positively-charged side of the beer pipe. "This delay to the protein build-up and subsequent bacterial degradation in the pipes means that the cleaning cycle for each beer line is effectively extended from once a week to a minimum of once every three weeks." He added that as the average line wasted about three pints of beer at every clean, hosts could make savings by dramatically reducing the number of cleans. "We estimate that each font line will save 105 pints a year. Multiply that by, say, tenfold and the saving leaps by more than £2,000 each year and that's without saving on time, labour, chemicals and water," he said. "Furthermore, if proper cellar disciplines are followed, the system will reduce fobbing problems by attacking bacteria and biofilm in the line. "Over time, this can lead to better quality beer, with improved clarity and taste." The new beer line cleaning system is launched officially at the Pub, Club Hotel & Catering Show in Ingliston, Edinburgh, on 23 to 25 March.
