Pilsner lagering

Welcome to the BA site, Tiborkiss. The next time that you see your thread it will be in the Homebrewing forum where it will get a larger audience for replies.

My opinion on your pilsner question is that you are probably okay with the beer sitting in the garage. You did not say whether this beer is 5 gallons or is 2.5 gallons like your kolsch, but I'd think with the bulk size of 5 gallons along with the alcohol in the beer that you are at about the lowest that you want the temp to get. If you can wrap it in blankets, etc. to help moderate the temp swing from daytime to nighttime, I think that will help. If your predicted local weather will cause your garage to get any colder, then you could be looking at moving this beer inside the house. But, if this is also a 2.5 gallon batch, then I think it would lose the advantage of the bulk of 5 gallons and be more susceptible to getting frozen during the overnight period.

I'm not a kegger to be able to answer your CO2 question about the kolsch in the keg, so someone else will give you advice on that.

 

29F is right on the hairy edge for the theoretical freezing point of a 5% ABV beer. I say theoretical because I think impurities in the beer can also impact the practical freezing point, but I don't know how to quantify that.

 

29° is probably fine. It really only needs a couple of days at that temperature, then bring it inside and throw it in the kegerator. You can let it sit there for longer if you want...or don’t...
The benefits of long-term cold conditioning are debated. Some say there are none...
FWIW, I think the big guys do 21 days at 31°

As far as the keg question...maybe I’m an idiot, but...wouldn’t you use the same amount of co2 regardless of how much beer is in there? You are going to end up with a 5 gallon keg full of co2 anyway. If you are carbing too, then the smaller amount will use LESS co2 if anything, I’d think.

 

The pressure in the keg shoild be the same, but you will use more co2 to fill the dead space.

 

But...won’t the dead space get filled eventually any way? You just put it off with a full keg.
Math has never been my strong point FWIW...

 

I mostly heard cold storage or lagering is required for conditioning Pilsner/lagers. Is this wrong?

 

Ah, you mean over the time of consumption. You're absolutely correct.

 

All beers benefit from a short cold crash (as cold as possible), but the benefits of long term cold conditioning, beyond tradition, are debated.
Some prominent brewing scientists, including Dr. Bamforth of UC Davis argue that there is no benefit whatsoever.

 

VERY generally, 5% beer will freeze just above 28 F (-2 C), while 10% beer will freeze at about 25 F (-4 C). But if the beer started out warmer, it will take a 5 gallon keg some time to reach that temperature (depending on how close it was to that freezing temprature).

As for the pressure, yes it takes more to fill the "dead space", but as mentioned above, all kegs eventually reach that point where a lot of dead space must be filled with CO2. So there should be no problem adding the 2.5 gallons to the keg. Just make sure you flush out the air (oxygen) first. It will take a lot more to flush out half a keg than a full keg.