shoebag22

Recipes 

Tracking down a leak...my info
soaped up my regulators and gas lines/disconnects and no leaks.
I bought some kegs from midwest and they shipped them to me pressurized... had to pull the release valve for 10 seconds or so to release the pressure.
I hooked them up yesterday and my c02 tank is empty today... obviously have a leak, but if the kegs held pressure during shipping and the regulators and lines are not leaking, where do I look next?

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BlindLemonLars

Recipes 

When you close your kegs, make sure you hit them with a burst of high pressure (I use about 30 psi) to properly seat & seal the lids...often they will leak until this is done. Afterwards, spritz a little StarSan around the lid, posts and release valve and look for signs of bubbling. Do this even if the keg in question has been holding pressure fine, as each time you open or vent it there is potential for leaking when you close it back up. I prefer StarSan to soap for this purpose, simply because I don't care if a few drops of StarSan get in my beer.

When testing, don't forget to spray all gas connections, even on store bought equipment. I lost two tanks of gas before finding a leak on a pre-assembled "Y" splitter from MoreBeer.

shoebag22

Recipes 

but... my kegs still had pressure this morning, even though the co2 tank was empty... to me, that means that the leak is somewhere on the regulators.
am i right in thinking that if the leak was with the lid or a post, the keg in question would not have co2 pressure when pulling the release valve?

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shoebag22

Recipes 

another thing I have found... the pressure release valve on the regulator opens if I turn the pressure up past 17 psi on the regulator... I can turn the psi up to 40 or so on the other regulator and that release valve does not open... do I have a bad one, or am I doing something wrong?

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BierMuncher

Recipes 

How big of a CO2 tank?
How full was it?
Were your kegs full of beer or empty?

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shoebag22

Recipes 

5lb c02 tank filled on friday... filled both kegs at 8pm on friday and set both regulators to 35 psi. tank was completely empty by 11am on sat...

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BierMuncher

Recipes 

Definitely does not sound like a keg issue.

The leak would sound like it's between the tank and the regulator, otherwise, the kegs would have lost pressure as well.

Get the tank filled again, and this time hook everything up and set the PSI to about 35 and then do the soap test. If there's no sign of any leak, another possibility is that you simply got a short fill on your tank and the entire contents transfered to the kegs over night.

At 35PSI, you should be able the hear any leaks.

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BierMuncher Tried & Trues:
Tits-Up IIPA (3-Time Medalist), Black Pearl Porter, Kona Pale Ale, Outer Limits IPA, Centennial Blonde (4.0%), Nierra Sevada (SNPA), SWMBO Slayer Belgian Blonde,

shoebag22

Recipes 

just to make sure you guys saw this post... I have a 3 reg system from midwest... both kegs have their own regulator. If i turn the pressure up past 17 on one of the regulators, the pressure relief valve opens and lets co2 out... this is probably why i lost my whole c02 tank, but i don't think this is how the regulator is supposed to function...

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BierMuncher

Recipes 

That doesn't sound right. You ought to contact Midwest. They're very good about making things right.

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Check Out My Rolling Kegerator

BierMuncher Tried & Trues:
Tits-Up IIPA (3-Time Medalist), Black Pearl Porter, Kona Pale Ale, Outer Limits IPA, Centennial Blonde (4.0%), Nierra Sevada (SNPA), SWMBO Slayer Belgian Blonde,

McSwiggin'

Recipes 

that is definitely not how your regulator is supposed to be. you may have a blown diaphram, or your safety valve is bad. depending on the make and model of your regulator, you will probably have to replace the whole things.

Definitely contact Midwest and see what they can do about it.