PSI Level
 

So, i have a keg in the fridge carbonating at 12psi. I don't shake it or anything, but plan to let it do this for around 3 weeks.

When I decide to tap it, do I leave it at 12psi? I have the co2 tank in the fridge with it & the psi has been stable at 12 for about 2 weeks. The tubing isn't very long - I did read some threads about using 10' tubing, but I just have the shorter one from NB.

Yes, leave it at the same pressure. If the pour is too fast, adjust the length of your tubing (longer equals slower).

Thanks, Bobby. It did seem to come out fast when I tested it, but I haven't tapped a whole glass yet.

Does 3 weeks sound about right for carbonating like this? I don't need to shake it, right? Do I need to be letting air out or anything else -- or is it just set it and forget it?

Shaking it at 12 PSI will decrease the amount of time needed to carb, and will NOT run the risk of overcarbing. Shaking it at a higher PSI, (which is what many people do), DOES run the risk of overcarbing. Shaking it at 12 PSI is not required though, it'll work just fine if you just "set and forget".

You should have purged the keg when you initially hooked it up to the CO2, (hook it up, pull the relief valve a couple times), to blast out any O2 still in the headspace from when you filled it. If you didn't do this, no worries, just do it in the future, (or hell, do it now if you want). After that initial purge though, no purging is necessary.

I actually only thought of purging the keg AS I was typing my original post, lol. I did pull the relief valve briefly a few times, for good measure and just to make sure the gas was flowing, etc. Don't know if this actually purged the headspace though -- how long would you hold open the relief valve for 5 gallons in a corny keg?

I have less than 5 gallons in there right now because, first time kegging, I found that my keg leaked from the bottom (just above the boot)!! So, I lost about 3/4 of a gallon in the ordeal. :(

Ouch on the leaky keg.

I pull mine for about 1-2 seconds, wait for the keg to refill with CO2 (for it to stop flowing), again for 1-2 seconds, etc, for a total of about 3 pulls. No real science in it, you're just trying to flush out air. Others just open the relief valve for a few seconds and call it a day.


Like I said, not a huge deal if you didn't do it. Bottlers don't purge their headspaces before capping, do they?

Good point.

I like to switch the gas and liquid posts, then carbonate through the dip tube. I like the sound of the bubbles and it makes me think its carbonating faster.

I have tried the shaking method, never really worked out all that well for me. no over carbonation but I always had what tasted like green beer( even when carbing 8 month old beer) for at least 4 days. I find with my system set at 13 psi or so that I get the sweet spot in around a week if I carbonate in the fridge, longer if i do it outside where its warm.

Carbonic acid formation is part of the reason for this. As the CO2 goes into solution, the carbonic acid level, (CO2 + Water = H2C03) spikes, then settles back down. The "bite" you get with rapidly carbonated beer, (either shaken, or burst carbed, or any of the other "carb in 48 hrs or less" methods), comes from this. Waiting two weeks allows everything to equilibrate again, and no bite.

I did use a chart to roughly determine where I wanted the levels to be. I'm not controlling the temp on the fridge, so I figured in a range. I don't know how to translate the carb volumes to my liking though, so maybe I'll just go through some trial and error to get it right. I like my beer to be well carbonated.

I never thought of switching the posts though. That sounds like it might be beneficial. Also, it sounds like my beer might already be carbonated! lol