Why did my pressure change

The way my system is is I have a 7.2 cubic ft keezer that I keep three kegs, a 10lb CO2 tank and a three-way manifold. I only have the one regulator (actually I do have an addition, but I havent gotten around to attaching it yet), so for the longest time I have been carbing and serving at the same pressure. I just set the keg on 13psi and let it sit for a while. The pressure is a little on the high side for serving, but with 6ft of line and holding it over my head, 99 times out of 100 it is a perfect pour. However, over the weekend, I poured a Kolsch and it was all kinds of foamy and I noticed it seemed to be pouring faster. I checked the reg and my pressure said that it was 18psi. So I turned the screw maybe a quarter turn counter clockwise and off gassed the kegs. Then last night I went to pour a steam beer and it was even worse. I checked the reg and it was up to 22 psi!! So I gave the reg about a half turn counter clockwise, off gassed, and I have yet to check it today. I am sure that I will be able to get it dialed in again, so I am not worried about that, but what could cause the pressure to just change like that? I keep the tank in the fridge with the kegs, temp is set at 42. The tank was last filled, oh I dunno, two months ago.

This same exact thing happened to me. Set at 10 psi, noticed a week later it was up to 20....

It must have something to do with the temp. I set mine at 10psi when the reg was room temp, then put it in the fridge and it went to 20psi. I don't know how regs work but if they get cold many something contracts and then they release higher pressure....

Regulators are mechanical and temperature sensitive. It's not unusual to need 2-3 adjustments when you first put them in a kegger. Shut the CO2 tank valve & de-pressurize the kegs. Turn the regulator all the way down and reconnect to the kegs. The pressure should be close to zero. Wait 24 hours, because the beer in the kegs will out-gas. Check the pressure. Open the tank valve, the pressure should not change since you have the regulator set to zero. Adjust the regulator to half of the pressure you want, wait 24 hours. Adjust again, but no more than 1-2 psi at a time.

Yeah, that is what I had to do in the beginning, but I have had this setup for at least a couple of months now. 2+ months without having to fiddle with it, and then I have to? Seems like there should be some kind of explanation. I know I will be able to get it dialed back in, but I was just wondering why it happened. Do you think it is just a mechanical failure? The tank has been in the keezer the whole time, the temp should not have changed.

There is a needle valve in there that can cause this if it gets anything clogged in it. Be careful when the regulator is disconnected from the tank not to get anything in there. If this is the problem it can be fixed for cheap just bring it somewhere that can service it.

Well, I am not ruling that out, but it is almost never exposed. The reg is connected to the three way manifold and then connected to three kegs. I have four kegs, and the fourth one is usually full before the first one is empty. So when keg #1 taps out, all I do is pull the quick disconnects off and put them on the new one. On the rare occasion that I don't have a keg ready, I just turn the valve off at the regulator. Of course, there is some minimal exposure when switching in between kegs and whatnot...but it is pretty minimal.

Well the pressure was fine when I got home, so no need to adjust further. I still find it odd that it was fine for 2+ months and then all of a sudden I had to turn the screw almost a full turn and offgas the kegs to get it back to normal. Guess I will just chalk it up to a mechanical problem with the regulator.

When regs used to creep in paintball it usually meant they needed re-lubed. I'd imagine they're very similar. Just CO2 Regulators. What kind of maintenance you guys see on these?