Too much foam

[ScrewyBrewer]

I'm thinking that beer got over carbonated somehow

But would overcarbonation result in foam and not be noticeable in the drinking of the beer? I mean, to me, overcarbonation means a mouthfeel like you're drinking Pepsi, and foaming from the tap doesn't necessarily indicate the carbonation level. In other words, you could have a traditionally low-carbed beer, such as a porter foam like crazy, even if the level of carbonation is correct, and you could have a highly carbonated beer, like an IPA not foam so much.

I think it may be a case of the ingredients in this particular batch, and therefore untraceable.

It happens.

The foaming beer, after hitting the glass, would have already given up a lot of carbonation on the way to the tap from the keg. I doubt there'd be foaming of uncarbonated beer, if there was that'd point to another scenario.

[Kealia]

Could your poppet be stuck a bit? Maybe it's caused by too much/not enough resistance or some additional nucleation points as a result of a sticky poppet on the beer out line?

I actually thought of that after googling some. I've not taken it apart to check yet but also would think that if the poppet was in wrong, it would leak a bit which I'm not seeing.

I'm thinking more that it just isn't opening as far as it should. If all the pressure is right but the poppet isn't allowing a normal flow rate it is going to cause a lot of foaming in the line. Just thinking out loud here.

[DaYooper]

Could it be that the keg was not completely cleaned and you are getting the equivalent of a gusher? Shouldnt happen if the keg went in the kegerator immediately after being filled, but if it sat in ambient for a tad it is possible.

[Beer-lord]

I really can't see it as a cleaning problem. I'm pretty OCD about washing, soaking for days in PBW then StarSan and with each batch, taking the keg apart and soaking all the parts.
I do have a bag of hops in it so now I'm wondering if the bag came loose and some way causing the problem.

[Gymrat]

I'm thinking that beer got over carbonated somehow

But would overcarbonation result in foam and not be noticeable in the drinking of the beer? I mean, to me, overcarbonation means a mouthfeel like you're drinking Pepsi, and foaming from the tap doesn't necessarily indicate the carbonation level. In other words, you could have a traditionally low-carbed beer, such as a porter foam like crazy, even if the level of carbonation is correct, and you could have a highly carbonated beer, like an IPA not foam so much.

I think it may be a case of the ingredients in this particular batch, and therefore untraceable.

It happens.

Yes overcarbination will result in foam and not be noticeable in drinking the beer. You have to remember he lets the beer sit for the foam to calm down before he drinks it. By that time it has released a lot of it's saturated CO2 and can be bordering on flat. And overcarbination does cause foam because the beer is coming through the line with way too much pressure. Remember the carbonation causes pressure, which is why over carbonated bottle explode. In a keg if you have too much, or not enough, pressure it creates a foamy pour.

[Beer-lord]

So I should take it off gas for a bit, maybe a few days and see what happens?????

[Gymrat]

So I should take it off gas for a bit, maybe a few days and see what happens?????

You might just have to keep pouring foamy draws until the pressure finally equals out. It is sealed air tight so taking it off of the gas won't do anything but hold all that pressure. Does beer come out if you bleed it with the valve? If not take it off the gas and let the CO2 out, let it set a day or two then bleed it again, repeat. Also check to make sure it isn't forcing beer into your gas line. If it does that you have got to clean it out or it will contaminate future kegs. With mine when I tried bleeding through the valve beer came out so I had to just keep pouring foamy draws until it evened itself out. Now it is working perfect. But it took about a 3rd of the keg to get that pressure out.

This is why I advised Dave in another thread not to do the 30lbs and shake and roll unless he was in a hurry to carb a keg. That is a very inexact and risky proceedure. If you get too much pressure in that keg it gets saturated into the beer and can be a bear to get it right.

[Beer-lord]

Nothing comes out when I bleed the valve, just air and the gas line has remained clear.
Thanks for the idea, I'll give it a try and see how it goes this weekend.

[Gymrat]

You are lucky. The idea is to bleed off what is in there, don't put more on it, wait until the pressure builds back up from what is in the beer, then bleed it again. It may take you a couple of days.

[Beer-lord]

Roger, you may be the winner! I had it off gas for 2 days and bled both days, then tonite, poured a glass which was very slow since it had no pressure. Then I put it back on gas, waited 10 minutes and did a pour. Still foamier than other beers but definitely a difference. If it's still like this by Sunday, I'll consider it as fixed as it can be.
Still learning this kegging thing.

[ScrewyBrewer]

Roger, you may be the winner! I had it off gas for 2 days and bled both days, then tonite, poured a glass which was very slow since it had no pressure. Then I put it back on gas, waited 10 minutes and did a pour. Still foamier than other beers but definitely a difference. If it's still like this by Sunday, I'll consider it as fixed as it can be.
Still learning this kegging thing.

I happy to see you've found the cure for the foaming. Do you agree that your beer was over carbonated? If so what do you think caused the over carbonation?

The reason I ask is I have the same problem with my force carbonated beers. I've used two different Co2 regulators and gauges and get the same results. I force carbonate at 37F and 12 psi but always have to serve at 5-7 psi to get a perfect pour.

[Beer-lord]

Vince, the odd thing is, the carbonation doesn't feel any different! A few months ago I switched to that hard to work with Accu Bev line and you need more than the normal amount (for me, it's almost 14'). The pours have been very, very good until this keg. Normally, if I've gone a week without drinking from one keg, then the first pour is partially foamy and the rest are perfect. Again, until this keg.
The only thing different on this keg was that I used a 10 gallon tank to carb instead of a 5 gallon. I asked here if that makes a difference and was told no, which I agree with but it's the only difference. However, I did carb my brothers' beer with the same tank and had no problems with it.
Bottom line, still stumped.

[FedoraDave]

I'll have to try this with my Amber's Amber Lager. It been kegged since early January, and I've had gas feeding into it all this time. I hooked it up to the tap today, and nearly half of the glass was foam. I just shut down the feed, and bled it off, and I'll try a draw tomorrow to see what it looks like.

But this is good to remember, especially if the keg is going to be charged for an extended time.

[Rebel_B]

I've found that carbing to 12-14psi for a week or more, then venting some & dialing back to 8psi for dispensing works really well.

[Beer-lord]

My problem went away and I now think my ball lock was bad. I replaced it and used the keg again a few weeks ago and it's working well. But, if I let a beer sit in the keg after it's carbed and go without a pour for 5-7 days, the first pour is a tad bit foamy but after that, I'm good. Can't say it wasn't always this way but I never really paid attention to that.
Rebel, for me, 8 is too low for a pour and would take forever.....10-12 is spot on for me so I guess each persons set up, hose length etc will make a difference and you have to play around with it a bit to see where your sweet spot is.