Grr! Kegging is great, but it has its frustrations

[FedoraDave]

Don't get me wrong, I really love having homebrew on tap. And kegging five gallons of beer is infinitely faster and easier than bottling it. But it can be frustrating sometimes, too.

I had a feeling my CO2 tank was running low this weekend, but the regulator was reading that everything was fine. And then, on Sunday, I looked, and it was at zero. I couldn't go out on Sunday, because the place where I get new CO2 tanks is closed on the weekends. We had a snowstorm on Monday, and I wasn't going to risk driving in it just to get a new tank. So I took it out this morning and got a new one on my lunch break. I even had time to install it, so I got the pressure back up. The batch of FD's American Ale was kegged ten days ago, and against my better judgment, I drew a pint when I got home from work. Still needs more time just to get properly carbed. Grrr! Well, I'll give it a few more days to make up for the lost pressure, if that makes a difference. I should probably wait a good ten more days, at least.

I'm also coming to realize that having a keg of lager in waiting is going to impede further kegs. In a couple of weeks, I'm going to keg a batch of Irish Red Ale, and I hesitate to brew another fiver for fear that when it's done, I won't have an empty keg for it. So I'll push another fiver back a week or two (although I would anyway, since we're going to Brooklyn to see my daughter's new apartment the Sunday I would have brewed it, so it kind of works out).

I'll get the hang of this eventually, and I hope to have three keg in constant rotation before long.

I've also written down the date I got the new C02 tank, so I can get a sense of my usage.

[DaYooper]

Hmmm, that tank didnt seem to last you very long Dave. My first one lasted about three days (hose twisted loose from the post and sprung a slow leak) but the others have lasted many kegs although I haven't yet kept track.

And, don't forget that if you run out of kegs you can always bottle lol. I just bottled up a Northern Brown Ale this weekend. But of course, silly me as kicked the keg last night without paying attention and the CHAO IPA will not be ready to keg for another week. I have not been able to keep up with demand since kegging although usually have one almost carbonated when the keg on tap kicks, but Peak's Pike IPA turned out to be a winner and did not last for very long.

[Rebel_B]

Don't get me wrong, I really love having homebrew on tap. And kegging five gallons of beer is infinitely faster and easier than bottling it. But it can be frustrating sometimes, too.

I had a feeling my CO2 tank was running low this weekend, but the regulator was reading that everything was fine. And then, on Sunday, I looked, and it was at zero. I couldn't go out on Sunday, because the place where I get new CO2 tanks is closed on the weekends. We had a snowstorm on Monday, and I wasn't going to risk driving in it just to get a new tank. So I took it out this morning and got a new one on my lunch break. I even had time to install it, so I got the pressure back up. The batch of FD's American Ale was kegged ten days ago, and against my better judgment, I drew a pint when I got home from work. Still needs more time just to get properly carbed. Grrr! Well, I'll give it a few more days to make up for the lost pressure, if that makes a difference. I should probably wait a good ten more days, at least.

I'm also coming to realize that having a keg of lager in waiting is going to impede further kegs. In a couple of weeks, I'm going to keg a batch of Irish Red Ale, and I hesitate to brew another fiver for fear that when it's done, I won't have an empty keg for it. So I'll push another fiver back a week or two (although I would anyway, since we're going to Brooklyn to see my daughter's new apartment the Sunday I would have brewed it, so it kind of works out).

I'll get the hang of this eventually, and I hope to have three keg in constant rotation before long.

I've also written down the date I got the new C02 tank, so I can get a sense of my usage.

Very strange... Mine usually goes to the 'red zone' on the gauge long before it actually runs out.

ImageUploadedByTapatalk1423078472.517668.jpg (212.19 KiB) Viewed 2977 times

[FedoraDave]

That's the regulator I have, and the gauge is always in the red zone. The small print on the gauge says something about the red zone "except bulk." I'm not sure what that means, but I've never been out of the red zone with any of my CO2 tanks.

As far as the tank not lasting very long, it was used on at least two kegs, and has been feeding the lager since early January. I'm sure there are no leaks, so it's either a case of the regulator being wonky (and I can ask at my LHBS, where I bought it), or the place where I get my CO2 tanks replaced skimping on filling them 100%. I'd be hard-pressed to prove that, though.

[Beerlabelman]

My thoughts. Has to be a leak somewhere Dave. My co2 tank lasted almost a year & I use it a lot. I fill mine at Crazy Paint in Mohegan Lake on Route 6. They refill my tank. No trade ins. Could be the keg that's leaking. Also you weigh the tank to see if it's full. Check the weight.
To carb 2.5 & 3 gallon kegs I use 12 to 15lbs for 4-5 days & it's always good. I have everything in a fridge. Easier to carb when cold.
When I have the co2 tank at room temp the pressure in the tank rises & it goes down in the fridge.
Get more kegs & a Blichman Beer Gun. I got one for Christmas & that's the only way I bottle or fill growlers to go. No more bottle bucket. No more priming. Just filling when I need it.
FYI Big Brew NY White Plains County Center this Saturday - Use the code LOHUD when ordering your tix for 10.00 discount. I'm serving/working in the VIP area! Great beers to be had. Free T-Shirts at DeCicco's booth. Lots of free stuff.

[Gymrat]

I think the leak is in your keg Dave. It should not have lost any carbonation at all because it is sealed. My first bottle lasted over a year and a half. You should spray starsan all over absolutely everything and find your leak.

Also your regulator is identical to mine and mine has never been in the red.

[Rebel_B]

I think the leak is in your keg Dave. It should not have lost any carbonation at all because it is sealed. My first bottle lasted over a year and a half. You should spray starsan all over absolutely everything and find your leak.

Also your regulator is identical to mine and mine has never been in the red.

I agree; gotta be a leak! I've only filled my tank twice since I've owned it (just over a year). Once when it was brand new & empty, a second time when the gauge was in the red zone for a couple.

[DaYooper]

If I am not mistaken (will need to check), mine is always about halfway in the red zone until it dumps out. I have a 5# aluminum tank and get it refilled at AIH. Seeing as I just re-certified my tank, I refuse to turn it in for an older, less shiny one. Im on my 6th or 7th keg since the refill and still going strong (well, except for the kicked keg).

[Rebel_B]

Oops!, Double post

[Rebel_B]

Weird, mine starts in the green zone, after some batches, it drops into the white zone where it stays for many months. Eventually, it ends up dropping into the red zone.

[Dawg LB Steve]

I picked up a 2.5 Lb tank the first week of September, I use it for portable keg cooler (3 kegs emptied) , pushing starsan thru the kegs when cleaning, purging new fills and have 4 kegs on gas in the keezer now, I have not had it refilled yet. Each time I'm in the keezer I check the low side and the high side,the pressure does drop when I go from room temp to 38 degrees.

[FedoraDave]

I doubt it's a leak in the keg(s). The beer within is carbed okay, although that may not mean much.

The thing that sort of clinches it for me is that I just installed this new CO2 tank, and it's in the red. A leak in the keg wouldn't cause that in a brand new tank, would it?

I'm kind of thinking it's the regulator, although it's a brand new regulator. Tomorrow, I'm going to the LHBS where I bought the thing, and I'm going to ask them about it. I hadn't been keeping any kind of records on it before now, but I made a notation on my dri-erase board as to when I installed the new tank, and I'll move forward from here.

I'm very fortunate in that my LHBS guys are top-notch, and they'll work with me and answer questions and do all sorts of stuff.

[Kealia]

Let us know what you find out.

I'm actually dealing with a bit of a mystery myself this past week. I have two kegs on the same regulator (with a splitter) and both kegs are a bit under-carbed.

Neither keg leaks but they have both on gas for quite a while so it's odd. I'm wondering if my regulator is a bit off now in terms of PSI reading. I have the same one pictured above (TapRite) and it's been set at 12 PSI since I got it without issue. I'm cranking it up to 14-16 for a few days to see if that changes anything.

I have plenty of volume in the tank, and I do have a back-up cheap regulator I can swap in as well.

We'll see....

[FedoraDave]

Well, I talked with Joe, the owner of my LHBS, about this issue, and he immediately asked me if I had the CO2 tank in the keezer itself. I replied yes, that's where it is, and he nodded and told me that when it's kept cold like that, it's going to read lower on the gauge because the cold sort of compresses the gas, almost making it more liquid, and the pressure, while still there, is not going to read the same as if it's at room temperature. Same principle which causes cold beer to carbonate faster, essentially; it's trying to find a solution to be absorbed into.

And he said if my beer is carbed, and I'm getting a decent draw, there aren't any leaks; the gauge on the regulator is just going to do that when the tank is stored cold.

I don't understand it completely, but here's the thing: when someone has the level of experience and expertise Joe has, and he immediately zeros in on something and speaks with that kind of confidence, I tend to trust that person. Same as when an anomaly showed up on an X-Ray of mine, and my GP wasn't sure what it was, and sent me to a thoracic specialist and the specialist took one glance at the X-Ray and said, "Oh, yeah, it's a pericardial cyst." Or when I see certain evidence in someone's basement and I can say, "Hey, this is a sure sign of termites." When there's no hedging, no "ums" and "ers", and that person has been doing what they do for a number of years, there's a level of confidence that can't be denied.

So I'm not going to worry about it unless some evidence to the contrary crops up. I'm keeping a record of when I installed this bottle, and I'll see how long it lasts, and if it seems like an unusually short amount of time, I'll speak to Joe again.

[Beer-lord]

He's right and my tanks do the same thing in the kegerator. Here's something I kept when I started kegging:

A CO2 tank will register 700-800psi warm, and ~500psi in the kegerator. It will not change these pressures until the last ounces of liquid CO2 are gone. Pressure is not an indicator of a CO2 fill, weight is. The empty weight of the tank and valve is stamped into the tank, so you can weigh it and see what CO2 is left. For example, a "5lb" CO2 tank that is stamped TW7.6 will be full when it weighs 12.6lbs because the weight of the tank plus 5lbs CO2 equals 12.6 pounds.