Corney Keg Carbonation Time

I was just surfing and read this, "by force-carbonating the beer with CO2, you can be enjoying the fruits of your labor after one or two days, versus an average of ten to fourteen days for bottle conditioned beer."
I was planning on kegging my beer instead of bottling it anyways. Is this information accurate/what do I need to know to force-carbonate?

Check out https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/keg-force-carbing-methods-illustrated-73328/

Yes, technically it can be carbed that fast, but I use the "set-it-and-forget-it" method, and it still takes 3-4 week before the beer is "aged" enough. You can drink it in about a week with the "set-it-and-forget-it" method, but mine usually need the extra conditioning to settle down.

appreciated

Thundercougarfalconbird,
Your read correctly. It is possible to carbonate with CO2 in the corny keg. There are two methods, force-carbonating and set-it-and-forget-it method. Force-carbing will get you to your carbed beer fastest. It's best to start this process with a pre-chilled keg so that you getter faster absorption of the gas into the beer. There are some good youtube videos on the subject that I suggest you check out. In a nutshell you attached your CO2 line to your keg and lay it on its side with the gas diptube up and beer out post on the bottom. Turn your CO2 on and load with about 20-30psi. Next gentle rock your keg back and forth (people do this with their feet). You will hear the gas enter the keg and when you stop hearing the gas enter into the keg you are finished. There are other methods to this so this is not the only way.
I prefer the set-it-and-forget-it method. You attached your CO2 to your keg and set at 10-12 psi and leave it for a week. I then usually turn down to serving pressure when I am ready to enjoy.
Again I by no means am an expert but heck if I can get a keg or two of my homebrew carbonated then anyone can. Enjoy and please do check out the youtube of force kegging.

wow, far too complex since Im using one of those little co2 guns =P I got no regulator yet
set and forget it is

With the right pressure setting I can have beers ready to go in 2-3 days by setting the CO2 tank to a high pressure (I never go over 30 PSI). Basically I'll set the pressure and try the beer after a day or two to see how it's doing.

Obviously the carbonation amount depends on the style of beer you're carbonating. English styles are generally on the lower end, while German beers are usually higher.

However I usually set it to serving pressure and let it sit for a week or two.

Thundercougarfalconbird said:

wow, far too complex since Im using one of those little co2 guns =P I got no regulator yet
set and forget it is

Click to expand...

You might want to carb it with priming sugar if you are using the little cartridges. Not sure how long those last and the beer absorbes quite a bit of Co2.

yea, I was gonna prime it, Ill just use the co2 to serve since my propulsion method is so elementary.

I have a gun also, they work great. You will need to use it to pressurize it and make sure the seals are sealed up good while it carbs.

yea, I hear a very slight gas leak on my lid,I have a new O ring, but Im waiting on my food-grade lube to arrive in the mail to see if thatll fix it. If not Im gonna throw a brick through my local shops window(I already had to exchange one keg because they sold me one with a leak on the out valve)

You can try to turn the lid around the other direction to see if it seals better. Use some soapy water or starsan to check for leaks.

would Vaseline work for a food grade lube?

yea, I got a suds leak when I put some oxyclean solution under pressure.
I turned the lid around with success actually... kinda odd, the lip of the keg is a little bent and Im sure thats the problem but Ill just be sure to put a fresh seal of lube when I prime it, hopefully itll dry up somewhat and from a nice airtight seal.

I'm not sure about vaseline, but I heard kY (cause it is sterile) works fine

Thundercougarfalconbird said:

yea, I hear a very slight gas leak on my lid,I have a new O ring, but Im waiting on my food-grade lube to arrive in the mail to see if thatll fix it. If not Im gonna throw a brick through my local shops window(I already had to exchange one keg because they sold me one with a leak on the out valve)

Click to expand...

You can also boil the lid for a few minutes. This not only will sterilize the lid but also soften the o-ring for a nice tight seal. I do this while I'm racking and it works everytime.

And yes, I learned that tip here on HBT! :rockin:

Thundercougarfalconbird said:

wow, far too complex since Im using one of those little co2 guns =P I got no regulator yet
set and forget it is

Click to expand...

there is no way you can carb beer with those little co2 cartriges. I have a set and its not up to the job. You can only dispense already carbed beer with them. I found that out the hard way. You can either prime it with sugar and leave it for couple of weeks or shell out for c02 tank and regulator. These are the most important things in keg set up, you will evenually need them

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