My kegged beer is flat, but has a head.

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djinn88

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I know this has been answered a million times, but I can't get the right results when searching. I've been force carbing (no shaking) at 36-38F with 12psi for 1 1/2 weeks now and have no real carbonation to speak of. I know this isn't long enough for a finished product but is long enough to show improvement. Some very small bubbles are present for the first 5 minutes after a pour, and a decent looking head is there too.

I have a guess that my beer line is way too short at 3 feet. My faucet, when pouring, is about at the middle of the keg also. My LHBS said this would be fine and that 3 feet is "the norm." The line is 3/8 OD vinyl.

What should I change here? I'm sure there are multiple problems, I suspect line length and tap height as the main ones. There are no leaks and the o-rings are brand new with keg lube applied, etc.

EDIT: Also, with the beer being poured at 12psi, it really shoots out and fills a glass within a second or two. Could this be disturbing the carbonation?
 
If you have the regulator set at 36-38 psi (whoa!) and don't bleed the pressure before setting it at 12, it's still at 36-38, which is going to cause the beer to shoot out and any carbonation it has will turn to foam. The co2 also comes out of solution a lot faster if the beer is warm or if the co2 hasn't had enough time to really age into the beer.

As for your setup with the taps and the lines, there's a calculator or table somewhere which takes the tap height and serving pressure and gives the line ID and length you should be using. It'd be worth a search for that.
 
If I lower the serving pressure would I be letting the rest of it go flat? In other words... would I lower the pressure to serve and raise it back to 12psi when not in use?
 
If you have the regulator set at 36-38 psi (whoa!) and don't bleed the pressure before setting it at 12, it's still at 36-38, which is going to cause the beer to shoot out and any carbonation it has will turn to foam. The co2 also comes out of solution a lot faster if the beer is warm or if the co2 hasn't had enough time to really age into the beer.


No way, the temp is 36-38 Fahrenheit. Not 38psi.
 
I know this has been answered a million times, but I can't get the right results when searching. I've been force carbing (no shaking) at 36-38F with 12psi for 1 1/2 weeks now and have no real carbonation to speak of. I know this isn't long enough for a finished product but is long enough to show improvement. Some very small bubbles are present for the first 5 minutes after a pour, and a decent looking head is there too.

I have a guess that my beer line is way too short at 3 feet. My faucet, when pouring, is about at the middle of the keg also. My LHBS said this would be fine and that 3 feet is "the norm." The line is 3/8 OD vinyl.

What should I change here? I'm sure there are multiple problems, I suspect line length and tap height as the main ones. There are no leaks and the o-rings are brand new with keg lube applied, etc.

EDIT: Also, with the beer being poured at 12psi, it really shoots out and fills a glass within a second or two. Could this be disturbing the carbonation?


You're correct- with a "balanced system", you'd have about 8 feet of line with 12 psi at 38 degrees. You want the 3/16" ID tubing.
 
If I lower the serving pressure would I be letting the rest of it go flat? In other words... would I lower the pressure to serve and raise it back to 12psi when not in use?

Some people do that, in order to avoid buying longer lines and balancing their system. If you just get longer lines, you will be all set. Until then, you'd have to set a lower pressure for serving, purge the co2, then pour. And after you're done, turn it back up to 12 psi to keep it carbonated.
 
Some people do that, in order to avoid buying longer lines and balancing their system. If you just get longer lines, you will be all set. Until then, you'd have to set a lower pressure for serving, purge the co2, then pour. And after you're done, turn it back up to 12 psi to keep it carbonated.

Yeah, don't want to do that. I would much rather balance the system and set and forget.

I'm still trying to find this really handy calculator I saw a while back. I think the 8ft 3/8ID (or is it really 3/16? that seems really small) line is the answer though. I guess I'll get 10ft and cut it down from there if need be.
 
No way, the temp is 36-38 Fahrenheit. Not 38psi.

Haha my mistake. Yeah - a week and a half at 12 psi isn't enough, and it sound like the lines are too short.

Here's one calculator: http://www.iancrockett.com/brewing/info/kegbalance.shtml

More info: http://www.brewersfriend.com/2009/0...our-kegged-beer-co2-line-length-and-pressure/

http://www.franklinbrew.org/brewinfo/balance.html

I'm not sure if the one I used was the first I listed, or if there's another one somewhere.
 
Haha my mistake. Yeah - a week and a half at 12 psi isn't enough, and it sound like the lines are too short.

Here's one calculator: http://www.iancrockett.com/brewing/info/kegbalance.shtml

More info: http://www.brewersfriend.com/2009/0...our-kegged-beer-co2-line-length-and-pressure/

http://www.franklinbrew.org/brewinfo/balance.html

I'm not sure if the one I used was the first I listed, or if there's another one somewhere.

YES, the iancrockett one is the one I was looking for. Thanks a bunch.

It is saying 16ft of 1/4"ID. I want to stick with 1/4"ID because that is what the system supports as is.
 
YES, the iancrockett one is the one I was looking for. Thanks a bunch.

It is saying 16ft of 1/4"ID. I want to stick with 1/4"ID because that is what the system supports as is.

Usually only commercial operations use 1/4" ID. That's pretty big- homebrewers use 3/16" as a rule. If you want to use 1/4", I'd be surprised if you could get by with 16', but it's definitely better than the 3' you're currently using.
 
Usually only commercial operations use 1/4" ID. That's pretty big- homebrewers use 3/16" as a rule. If you want to use 1/4", I'd be surprised if you could get by with 16', but it's definitely better than the 3' you're currently using.

The hose that was previously attached to the shank of my faucet was 1/4" ID, perhaps that was why it was so hard to squeeze my current line onto it. I will know tomorrow when I'm back at my LHBS getting more line.
 
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