KevinM

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Yeah, if you're going for full food source then don't. But check the other shopping, because the one you posted does not include a keg at all. Which is surprisingly expensive to me.

http://stores.kegconnection.com/Cart.bok?searchpath=110288444 comes with a keg and is about the same price, but only a 2.5 pound tank that you'd need to upgrade. Probably a 5 pound at least, if not more. There should be some info about how many kegs a 5 pound tank would carbonate and push. (Maybe even a 5 or 20 pound tank for carbonating beforehand and a 2.5 pound tank to do the pushing, since it's easier to carry.)

Most places will let you upgrade the tank and ask for a different hose length.

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AfternoonReview

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So I can carbonate with one CO2 tank, disconnect it when the carbonation process is finished, then connect a different CO2 tank to serve with? That would be handy.

I'll definitely do some shopping around.

Thanks again

JuanMoore

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Yes. And FWIW you'll likely need lines longer than 15'. The resistance of beverage lines varies a bit between manufacturers and most of the 3/16" line has less than the often quoted 2psi/ft. From my experience and what I've read others on here using, I'd say 20'-30' is probably closer. The easy way to balance a system is to buy longer lines than you need and then cut small lengths until you get a good pour.

AfternoonReview

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I appreciate the advice- maybe I'll start with about 35' and cut my way down until it's right.

Chenping

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Hi Guys

Thanks for u all, I have learned a lot. I am planning to run a mobile soda cart. My question is, do I need to keep the carbonated water in the refrigerator all time?

Thanks

TomSD

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You'll probably want to keep it cold all the time as that will impact how well it absorbs/holds CO2.

I got that homemade soda book and it has lots of great ideas. I'm switching from concentrates to making my own syrups and I am surprised at how easy it is to do and how well they turn out.

As for serving and line length... I keep my lengths the same as my beer lines (around ten feet) and use bayonets in the kegs themselves (2 per keg) to slow the flow down. I set it and forget it at 30 PSI and it is generally ready in about a week.

I think an old school soda fountain with a variety of homemade syrups would be a great attraction. The ability to mix and match flavors combined with the charm of an actual soda bar would be a big hit I think. It is also much easier to maintain since you don't have to deal with flavors being imparted to the O rings and tubing or cleaning up gunked up taps/lines or any of that. Less taps that have to be maintained too which will make things a lot easier.

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Don't be afraid to ask dumb questions they're easier to handle than dumb mistakes!

AfternoonReview

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I finally got a couple of kegs. One for beer and one for water. The water's been carbing at 30 PSI for a few days now. I only have a 4 ft picnic tap though, so I'll have to go through the trouble of lowering the keg pressure when I serve for now. Can't wait to make some syrups and give it a shot. Thanks for all the input everyone.

MrFoodScientist

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Lowering your pressure to serve only works if you purge the headspace first, and even then I've had mixed results. Plus you blast through a lot of CO2 that way.

Consider this, keg pressurized to 30psi and left to carbonate will have a headspace of 30 psi. If you purge and then serve at 12psi, CO2 is going to come out of solution and fill that headspace until it's at equilibrium somewhere between 12 and 30psi, which will be dependent on the amount of headspace it has to pressurize.

I'm not saying it can't be done, it's just the less effective way of doing things.

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MrAdamDuke

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I'm gathering together the equipment to just this and had a question... I'm wanting to bottle my soda in glass after carbonating it, if I carbonated water in a keg and added syrup to the bottles, dispensed the soda water in and capped them would this hold the carbonation sufficiently? Or is there a better method?

Brewnanza

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I also wanted to run a homemade soda business. I started making my fresh fruits juice soda with spices from the siphon, It turn out very good. I wanted to sales my soda at farmer's market but when I try in 5 gal I have no luck. I have problem with my pineapple soda. At 45 psi in the fridge for 2 weeks, it still not fizz enough. It turn out with soft fizz. There's a lot of bubbles and very foamy. I've 30' of 3/16. I'd end up dumped it out. I've orange with mint ready to go in the keg but so worry if I would face the same problem. Please need lots of advices.