beer line question

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OHIOSTEVE

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Is beer line a special type of tubing or can I buy the proper size at lowes or menards and use that? The brew shop was out.
 
Beverage line has a thicker wall and resists expansion. No the line won't expand a whole lot, but as beer sits in the line, more CO2 will come out of solution as the wall flexes. This will result in your first pint being a little more foamy than if you used a thicker wall tubing
 
Beverage line is also manufactured to have a smoother wall, this also reduces the foaming in the lines. Do it right and do it once, JMO. I ordered 100' from an eBay vendor for a really good price.
 
I bought 1/4 inch ID line from LOWES.. the salesman said it was for restaurant use and it is thick walled with the woven reinforcement It was cheap enough that if it DOESN'T work I am only out a few bucks.
 
Correct, standard beer line is 3/16" ID. So the 1/4" ID will present less restriction to flow than the 3/16" It will work fine, but you will need to go with a longer line run than if you were using the 3/16" in order to balance the pressure in your system so you don't pour out to fast and create a lot of foaming in your pour.
 
At $0.49 per foot Bevlex isn't all that expensive. Not sure what you paid for the hose from Lowes...

From the description:
"...Beer Line Hose. American Made, dual layered, tasteless and oderless hose for superior beer dispensing. 3/16 hose gives you the proper restriction for beer dispensing without the foam... This is commercial quality, American Made hose. This hose is twice the thickness of some hoses offered by other companies..."

Rule of thumb is 1' of beer line per 1psi of serving pressure the keg is under/on. It's ok to go with longer lines, but you should avoid shorter lines. Many of us use 10' lines and have kegs at 8-12psi (depending on what's in the keg). At higher PSI you'll get a bit more foam with 10' (at the ~12psi range). If you went with longer lines, you'd have little (if any) excess foaming. The only down-side is the pour will take a little longer (a few seconds maybe). IMO, not a big deal in a home setting.
 
My set up is for 1/4 inch.. I have 10 foot lines at 10 psi and the pour is fine.. I think I got lucky... I haven't tried the new line yet.
 
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