Cleaning CO2 regulator

I have one of these:

http://www.beveragefactory.com/draf..._3_product_secondary_co2_beer_regulator.shtml

Or at least what looks like those -- mine is several years old (and was a lot cheaper when I got it!) It has never had a good cleaning, and I can smell some stale beer on/in it. I'd like to give it a very thorough cleaning, but I'm not sure how to do so.

Any tips?

There is an assembly diagram and replacement parts here. Click on the "replacement parts" tab.

Thanks, that's pretty useful. Judging from the diagram, it looks like I'd be OK to flush the whole thing with hot water and sanitizer, maybe disconnecting the regulators first. Any thoughts on that?

I don't think that is a good idea. I would keep moisture out of these regulators. It would be difficult to dry it out after a flush. I had one that got beer in it and sat for a while. I opened it up and was surprised at what I found. The springs rusted and all of the seals and o-rings disintegrated. However, before I opened it, it still worked. After replacement parts and shipping, it was cheaper to buy a new one. I replaced it with a taprite (they come with a check valve) and a manifold with check valves. Lesson learned. Anyway, I would take it apart, inspect everything, clean it, let it dry thoroughly and reassemble.

Thanks for the warning. I'll take it apart for inspection / cleaning before I reassemble my kegging system.

I've disassembled 3 of their "premium" single gauge regulators before, soaked all parts (except gauges) in oxyclean for an hour, and then rinsed in water, let dry slightly (but not completely) and then reassembled. In my case this was actually necessary because they were "creeping" pressure due to bits of thread sealant flaking off and gumming up the diaphragm. I chalked it up to poor manufacturing process. I didn't use any sealant of PTFE tape when putting back together, just cranked everything down REALLY tight, no leaks, no more creeping.

I've cleaned the regulator out that had beer in it (fortunately there was only one). Do you think I need to worry about saniziting it before I reassemble it?

I never have. If it is clean, I don't think you need to worry.

I never have either. Mine is approaching 20 years old. But I am getting ready to replace it.

Once the beer is at serving temp, under pressure with Co2 and very little oxygen, there is little that can grow in it anyway.

I disassembled, cleaned, and reassembled my regulator. It is holding pressure without any problems (according to quick tests). However, two of the gauges won't read anything below about 10 psi. They read anything higher without any problems, but as they drop, the stop at 10 and won't read anything less. Any thoughts?

stephelton said:

I disassembled, cleaned, and reassembled my regulator. It is holding pressure without any problems (according to quick tests). However, two of the gauges won't read anything below about 10 psi. They read anything higher without any problems, but as they drop, the stop at 10 and won't read anything less. Any thoughts?

Click to expand...

Can you verify that there is indeed still pressure coming through the valve when the diaphragm is backed all the way out? I did not have this issue when I cleaned mine.

I could verify that there was no pressure at all -- the whole thing was disassembled.

stephelton said:

I could verify that there was no pressure at all -- the whole thing was disassembled.

Click to expand...

Oh, I thought you meant after you reassembled everything now it won't read below 10 PSI. I was saying if that's the case, is there still pressure coming from the manifold output valve when you back the diaphragm all the way off? Is it the gauges that are stuck or the diaphragm wont close any more than 10PSI?

It's the gauges. I can get below 10psi (where I'd like my serving pressure) but I'm flying blind at that point.

stephelton said:

It's the gauges. I can get below 10psi (where I'd like my serving pressure) but I'm flying blind at that point.

Click to expand...

Odd. Hopefully things rectify themselves in time. I didn't have that issue. When I reassembled I blew some Co2 in bursts through the low pressure valve (with pressure turned way up) to force out any remaining liquid, as a precaution.