Seltzer/Carbed H2O on tap? Anyone know?

I just built a keezer and want to dedicate 1 of my 4 lines to carbonated water. I have to imagine someone here has tried this before.

-Is there any special equipment I need?
-Would I carb it up the same way I would beer?
-What pressure would I need to set to keep it Carbonated? I was told by someone in the soda industry 80lbs?!? That just doesn't sound right to me. If so, I think new lines would be in order.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

80lbs?!?! No way in hell that dude knows what he's talking about

Here you go:

1. Fill keg with water (filtered)
2. Attach CO2 line to keg and put 30psi on it
3. Shake the hell out of the keg for 10 minutes
4. Remove CO2 connection and keep pressure in keg for 24 hours
5. Purge CO2, connect gas, serve at 12-15 PSI (if you have beer on as well, you might consider buying a secondary regulator, they allow you to serve different kegs at different pressures... otherwise, just serve your sparkling water at your regular pressure, no big deal)

If you let the water sit for a few days, the carbonic acid will subside and the water will eventually taste a little less... CO2-y. Cheers!

I just did this myself, but what Brulosopher has said probably sums it up well. I have a picnic tap for mine, and since I don't have the strength to shake my keg, I "sloshed" it around for a couple of minutes every hour for about 4-6 hours. Then I left it alone for the next 24 with the gas still hooked up. Have gotten great carbonation so far and serving pressure is about 18-20 psi. I didn't have to adjust my regulator from when I was using it with a carbonator cap. So far it has come out like a fountain drink and my family loves it.

I keep a keg of carbed water on tap to mix with syrups. I set the pressure at 30psi and leave it for a few days. I also serve at that pressure because I like the water highly carbed. To serve at such a high pressure I had to go with 25' of line.

flyte74 said:

I keep a keg of carbed water on tap to mix with syrups. I set the pressure at 30psi and leave it for a few days. I also serve at that pressure because I like the water highly carbed. To serve at such a high pressure I had to go with 25' of line.

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Why so much line? Is it a long draw? What does the extra line do?

Longer line slows the flow rate. 30 psi through 5-10 feet of line would shoot out like a rocket and much of the water would be degassed. More important in beer where the foam created lasts and fills the glass but the degassing will happen still.

I keep mine at 40psi. I like it spicy. Even with a lot of shaking (5min on lap when warm to dissolve minerals, +5min on lap when cold for more carbing), it still takes a week to get to where I like it. I add 10g each of CaCl2, CaSO4, MgSO4, and NaHCO3 to 5gal RO water. Get some nice stalactites on the tap after a few batches.... I leave the mineral buildup because it looks cool and is a reminder to which tap is the water.

frenchtoasted said:

Why so much line? Is it a long draw? What does the extra line do?

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Yep, what elleric said two posts above. With 5 ft of line it would dispense with a lot of force. This caused a number of issues. It would splash and lose a lot of carbonation. I used to turn down the pressure every time I wanted a soda, but I got tired of doing that so I just bought more line.

I just pulled the first glass from mine. I set it 30 3 days ago and left it there. Pulled fine and didn't degas with 10 feet of line. Going to wait and see but I think it's going to be good where it is. Got to make up a few syrups now