Do I have a broken regulator?

I am brand new to kegging and just got the system I got for Christmas set up. I am worried though that my regulator may not be functioning correctly. I am using the 'set and forget' method to carbonate my beer and have the regulator set to 12.

I check on it throughout the day and notice that it will lose a few psi every few hours. Also, when I pour a sample glass the pressure drops down and doesn't come back up. Should it shoot back up to 12 right away or does it take some time?

THanks

I know this sounds very simple, but are all your connections open? I.E. Cylinder valve, shutoff after the regulator? Just something to check.

Joe

Is the beer at temperature yet? Pressure will drop as it gets colder.

or have you checked for leaks with StarSan or soapy solution?

jtd_1 said:

I know this sounds very simple, but are all your connections open? I.E. Cylinder valve, shutoff after the regulator? Just something to check.

Joe

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I will double check but I am pretty sure. What's weird is that if I pull the relief valve on top to release all the pressure from the keg, the regulator will kick on and bring it back up to pressure. But if I pour a beer, pressure will drop from 12 to 9 or so and then not raise back up.

samc said:

Is the beer at temperature yet? Pressure will drop as it gets colder.

or have you checked for leaks with StarSan or soapy solution?

Click to expand...

Yes, it's been in the fridge for 3 days now and yes, I sprayed all connections with Star San and didn't see any bubbles.

The reason I thought it might be the regulator is because even if I had a leak, if the regulator is working correctly it should just keep pumping in gas to keep it where I have it set, right? So I would run out of gas quicker but should still maintain a steady pressure.

sounds like the diaphragm is kicking in after a certain drop in pressure (like 3 or 4 psi diff.) that you don't reach that often. turn it up a few psi, and "test" the system again.

brewmonk said:

sounds like the diaphragm is kicking in after a certain drop in pressure (like 3 or 4 psi diff.) that you don't reach that often. turn it up a few psi, and "test" the system again.

Click to expand...

That could make sense. So you are saying that it won't add co2 until a certain amount of pressure has been lost?

So you are saying that it won't add co2 until a certain amount of pressure has been lost?

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That's the way regulators work, but the decrease in pressure to activate should be a fraction of a psi, not 3-4 psi. Something is definitely wrong with the regulator.

I know the 1st time I put a tank and reg in the fridge , the setting take a few days to adjust. If you've only set it to 12psi once before you put it in the fridge, I would adjust it again (now that its cold) to 12 psi and see if that fixes your problem.

I've noticed the same problem with mine. I have a brand new regulator and am carbing my first keg. I've had it set to 30 psi for the last 27 hours or so, in a fridge at 38 degrees. I checked it about three hours ago and it was still at 30 psi. I just went out again to check it and the psi was at 20. For some reason, it dropped 10 psi in about 3 hours. I checked the keg for leaks when I first hooked it up and saw nothing. I've turned it back up to 30 and hopefully it will hold. Any idea's on why it may have dropped so drastically in the last 3 hours?

Thanks!

I get the opposite.

If I set the regulator at, say 10PSI, (carbonated, or not carbonated, it doesnt matter) in a few hours it will be up to 15-17PSI.

If I turn it down to 10 after that, then in a few hours it will be like 5 or 6.

Its like the regulator has a 10PSI hysteresis.

I just thought it was the cheap (micromatic economy dual regulator) reg I bought, but Im beginning to think thats not the case.

-Jason