Newb kegging question

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lxxenigmaxxl

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Kegged my first beer and was not sure if about a few things
1. If I'm not dispensing beer can I turn the c02 tank off after I reached the desired carbonation?
2. How much does it take to carb a keg? I did two 5 gallon kegs and almost half my c02 is gone from a 5 pound bottle
 
Kegged my first beer and was not sure if about a few things
1. If I'm not dispensing beer can I turn the c02 tank off after I reached the desired carbonation?
2. How much does it take to carb a keg? I did two 5 gallon kegs and almost half my c02 is gone from a 5 pound bottle

Wow. Good questions.
1. If your beer has equalized to the set pressure, yes, provided there are no leaks in the system.
2. Difficult to answer for me, but that sounds rather excessive. Check your system for leaks. Normally you would carbonate at 2.5 volumes, so a 5 lb bottle should do 2 kegs hardly showing it. Good luck...
 
If that's true you have a leak somewhere. I get at least 7 kegs from a 5# Tank.

How do you know half the tank is gone? If your tank is in the kegerator you can't trust your gauge.
 
Depending on carb level, temp, and how much you purge the kegs with before filling, one pound of CO2 should carbonate and serve 1-2 5 gal kegs of beer, so a 5# tank should carb and serve 5-10 corny kegs. I'm betting you have a tiny leak somewhere in the gas system.
 
I just got 14 kegs off of a 5lb tank. I bet you've got a leak. Check your keg lids.
 
Also, if you are keeping your C02 bottle in your kegerator, the pressure will go down significantly and appear like the bottle has lost gas. If you warm it up again, it will come back up to pressure. I'd watch the pressure for a few days and see if it changes.
 
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