Force carbing 2 kegs at same time

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paraordnance

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Only have 1 regulator, 1 gas line and 5# bottle of CO2 but have 2 beers already kegged and one more coming up in a week :( Almost too much beer at once (if there is such a thing). Can I give a shot of 30 psi in one keg, disconect from CO2 bottle and leave it for 36 hours while other keg is hooked up @ 12 psi for a week or so?
I'm planning on getting T or X connector evenually to add more lines, I just have not sourced parts yet and beer is waiting
 
You have to keep the CO2 connected until the beer is carbonated, one shot at 30 psi won't do the trick. You could shake force the first one. Takes about 15 minutes.
 
force 2 kegs with 5# all the time.........fill the kegs.....pressure them to 30psi to seal them...........then choose one, put it on 30 psi, shake it for 60-90 seconds and let sit under 30psi for an hour......then relieve pressure to about 10-15 psi........

then switch the gas line to the other keg and repeat the process........once carbed, keep under 15psi pressure until serving, then drop it to your pouring pressure.....i have done this process everytime, and it works perfectly every time......

worst case is if i get to tapping keg #2 and its a little light on CO2, i hook it up and let it sit at 30 psi for an hour or so then bring it back down, works great.......
 
why not just get a splitter and hit both of them with 30 for a day or two. then drop down and serve them both when they are both equally carbed?
 
lostboysbrew said:
force 2 kegs with 5# all the time.........fill the kegs.....pressure them to 30psi to seal them...........then choose one, put it on 30 psi, shake it for 60-90 seconds and let sit under 30psi for an hour......then relieve pressure to about 10-15 psi........

then switch the gas line to the other keg and repeat the process........once carbed, keep under 15psi pressure until serving, then drop it to your pouring pressure.....i have done this process everytime, and it works perfectly every time......

worst case is if i get to tapping keg #2 and its a little light on CO2, i hook it up and let it sit at 30 psi for an hour or so then bring it back down, works great.......
Click to expand...

Great, I just on the way to pick up my first CO2 fill and will do "shake-and-bake" cheating method :D for one of the kegs. Actually one batch of Pilsner I have in a keg is somewhat naturally carbed with priming sugar, its just not carbonated enough. I will shake the sh@t out of it tonight and carb my Kolsch at 12 psi for a week
 
lostboysbrew said:
force 2 kegs with 5# all the time.........fill the kegs.....pressure them to 30psi to seal them...........then choose one, put it on 30 psi, shake it for 60-90 seconds and let sit under 30psi for an hour......then relieve pressure to about 10-15 psi........

then switch the gas line to the other keg and repeat the process........once carbed, keep under 15psi pressure until serving, then drop it to your pouring pressure.....i have done this process everytime, and it works perfectly every time......

worst case is if i get to tapping keg #2 and its a little light on CO2, i hook it up and let it sit at 30 psi for an hour or so then bring it back down, works great.......
Click to expand...

Do you shake it with gas connected? How about beer getting in line?
 
I only have two taps but I have no problems getting my extra two kegs carb'ed using the same line per your original post.

If you try to slow-carb them using c02 they have to be on constant supply. But if you are going to force carb either by shaking or high pressure (30-45 psi on a cold keg in the fridge), it works fine. Reapply pressure or double-check often.
 
paraordnance said:
Do you shake it with gas connected? How about beer getting in line?
Click to expand...

Shake with the gas connected, get a QD and another Force carbonating line so when you do get beer in the line, and you will eventually, you can just rinse it right out and your primary line does not have beer juice in it. Well worth the $30
 
Run to the hardware store or lowes you can make a cheap easy splitter for under $10 to get you by until you buy a real one with check valves.

Lowes I know for sure has PVC 1/4 barb T's for like $3 or so.
 
paraordnance said:
Do you shake it with gas connected? How about beer getting in line?
Click to expand...

If you have enough pressure on it, beer doesn't get in the gas line..........if you have 30psi pushing while your shaking, beer can't back up into the line.......occasionally we break down the line and clean it out if something gets in there, but haven't had any problems in recent past......
 
you can get by without leaving the co2 hooked up no problem. I switch my tank between various kegs, I can pour a whole buncha pints from a keg before giving it another shot of co2, I just insure that after the drinking is done that there is around 10psi when left to sit.... if you have no leaks it will hold the pressure without being hooked to the tank.

Aside from conditioning factors, carbonation is carbonation whether it is done with force or over time at lower pressure, it is just a matter of dissolving an amount of co2 in the beer. Cold temp and pressure helps the co2 dissolve quicker, as well as agitating the keg. Lately I've been doing it out in 30 to 35 deg temps overnight in my garage. I kegged a stout yesterday and just had a glass for lunch, it is wonderful. The day before I did a black IPA and was drinking that yesterday.

I've only been kegging for a few weeks, once you play around with force carbing a bit the mystery disappears.... just keep it as cold as possible and after about 36 hours take a sample every day, be sure to release the pressure first.
 
snowman said:
you can get by without leaving the co2 hooked up no problem. I switch my tank between various kegs, I can pour a whole buncha pints from a keg before giving it another shot of co2, I just insure that after the drinking is done that there is around 10psi when left to sit.... if you have no leaks it will hold the pressure without being hooked to the tank.

Aside from conditioning factors, carbonation is carbonation whether it is done with force or over time at lower pressure, it is just a matter of dissolving an amount of co2 in the beer. Cold temp and pressure helps the co2 dissolve quicker, as well as agitating the keg. Lately I've been doing it out in 30 to 35 deg temps overnight in my garage. I kegged a stout yesterday and just had a glass for lunch, it is wonderful. The day before I did a black IPA and was drinking that yesterday.

I've only been kegging for a few weeks, once you play around with force carbing a bit the mystery disappears.... just keep it as cold as possible and after about 36 hours take a sample every day, be sure to release the pressure first.
Click to expand...

agreed with all said.........if you really agitate it, at 30-35psi........then let it sit for a hour or so you can drink it a few hours after kegging.........
 
You can hit them once or twice a day with 30 psi. I do this with mine at 33F and they are usually carbed where I like them in 4-5 days. No shaking necessary. I do this because my keezer has no collar yet and my co2 is external.
 
The high pressure "shaking trick" will work well to boost the first part of the carbonation, you will always have to stabilize to 12psi or around. The other way yo can do it is far more simple but takes time. Just plug your uncarbed keg to your CO2 line at 12psi, you will be able to pour the actually carbonated beer and the uncarbed one will carbonate with time, it will take about 10 days to stabilize. Note that the beer in contact of pressure cannot do otherwise than stabilize the only factor is time, and the beer temp will affect the time factor. A beer forced carb the slow way will be more stable and consistent on the first pours. For my experience, I prefer my beers to rest a minimum of one week at pouring temp after secondary, it stabilize the hops flavors and esters it also clear the beer a little more.
 

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