BeerBorg

Deep breaths Dave, you'll get it. I don't have experience with pin locks or converted pin locks, can't help there. Are you hooked up to the liquid out post? If anything like ball locks the gas dip tube is only about an inch and a half to two inches long and shouldn't reach the beer in the keg, which could cause it not to draw.

FedoraDave wrote:Maybe I'm just being impatient, or maybe something else is going on, but the new keg won't draw. There's beer in the line; I can see it. But apparently not enough pressure to actually draw anything when I open the tap. That's as of yesterday, so I'm going to leave it sit today and see what happens when I get home from work.

If it still won't draw, the only thing I can think is that I installed the beer pin incorrectly; perhaps with the spring in backwards. I dunno; I'm getting really frustrated.

Not saying that it ever happened to me, but double check to make sure the gas is on the "In" post and tap is on the "Out" post. Probably not, but it has happened to others, not me, before. I've read about it on the interwebs...

another possibility clogged dip tube? Do you get a hiss if you open the relief valve?

braukasper wrote:another possibility clogged dip tube? Do you get a hiss if you open the relief valve?

Even if the gas connector is hooked up to the beer out side it will still push CO2 into the tank and will get the hiss. But this will tell if you are pressurizing the tank.

Don't know if these will help you are not Dave. Here a some linkys about kegging

Trouble Shooting Guide

Keg Your Homebrew

draught beer quality manual

I would make sure you have CO2 coming into the keg to push beer out. Next I would look for a clog

My initial thought is that if there is beer in the line then there is an issue with enough pressure getting INTO the keg. I would focus on the poppets on the gas in side of things. Maybe it's not getting compressed enough to allow the CO2 into the keg. Even if the beer is flat, just a little bit of pressure (2 psi) is enough to push beer out.

Also make sure your keg is sealing properly. If it is not sealing right than the pressure won't allow the beer to be pushed through the line.

Dudes, you are awesome, and I am so incredibly grateful for your input. You like me! You really like me! [/Sally Field]

Okay, final update.

I just didn't RDWHAHB. N00b impatience. My bad. I set the psi at 30 yesterday, and drew a pint when I got home from work today. Very foamy, but a decent draw. Subsequent draws were cloudy, but a lot less foamy. I expected this.

Dropped the psi to 20, and I'll check it again tomorrow evening. And then I'll probably drop the psi to around 12 or so, and wait until the weekend.

I'm adjusting to the learning curve.

Dave for me, my draws are still a bit cloudy for about a week after it's carbed properly. Then again if I don't tap any for a while. But, when tapping a few in a row, the pours are very clear.
The learning curve is a great part of the fun in a sick way. Plus you get to drink all your mistakes.

Yeah, in a sad, somewhat sick way, you're right.

I just wanted to point out what might not be obvious, that the carbing pressure and the serving pressure are not always the same. At 36F I set and forget at 12-15 psi, dial the cO2 back to 5-7psi and then purge the excess pressure before pouring to get the best pours. After having my fill I set the pressure back to 12 psi to maintain the cO2 levels until next time.

In a perfect system the line length and diameter will allow beer to be carbonated and served using the same psi setting, I'm not quite there yet.

I'm fussing with this a bit myself, Vince. I had the Irish Red at 30 for a couple of days, and then ramped it down to 20. Tonight, I set it at 10/11. Still a bit young to tell what's best for this batch, but I'm enjoying it. And I think I'm over the toughest part of the learning curve.

Just like the learning curve bell, now its on the down slope and the tinkering to make it just right is probably more frustrating then getting to the damn apex of the curve!

True, Dan, but I actually consider fine-tuning to be a welcome challenge. Like fine-tuning an AG recipe. It means I've got the basics down, and now I can begin concentrating on drawing the hair on the elephant.

Keeps getting better Dave! I thought about that yesterday evening as I was transferring a batch into a keg. Quick & easy. I never considered bottling to be a chore or discouraging, but kegging is less time consuming.