Replacing REALLY old gauges on a regulator...

Hey guys,

Quick question, so I was given a regulator that is probably about 30-40 years old, and I have found that the tank pressure as well as the outlet pressure have become somewhat old and inaccurate. I tried unscrewing one of the gauges, but I think that over time, it has become frozen. I even took it to Home Depot where we put the regulator in a vice, and used the biggest wrench they had to try to get one of the gauges off. But alas, no avail.

It's not critical that they come off, but it would be really nice to replace them and get a more accurate reading without having to drop the 50-80$ on a new regulator.

If all else fails, will de-carbonating the beer and re-carbing it give it off flavors, (I accidentially over carbed it, and when I pour I get a half a glass of foam). What I was thinking to do was just pull the relief valve until all the co2 came out then shake it up a little bit so that some of the bubbles came out and then hook it up again and set it on very low. The problem occurred because the numbers on the inline pressure gauge are really close together, because I believe it was at one point a gauge for compressed air. I just wanted to make sure that it wouldn't affect the flavor of the beer

Thanks guys

"Give me a lever long enough and a fulcrum on which to place it, and I shall move the world."
- Archimedes

You just need more leverage...

No off flavors as long as you dont oxidize it. You may pull the release but don't shake, just warm it up to room temp and let it sit and release the valve every few hours.

they do come off. they are a royal b*tch to remove, however.

Would it be ok to use like WD40 or liquid wrench? Or will they some how get into the CO2 track and make the gas have a grease smell?

Don't use oil on your co2, even the gauge ports - compressed oxidizers and oil don't mix. I don't think it is as dangerous as oiling o2 threads, but i wouldn't try it.

Another possibility is that the threads are lefthand on the gauges - not hugely common, but not unheard of.

Tyson

oltruckag said:

Don't use oil on your co2, even the gauge ports - compressed oxidizers and oil don't mix. I don't think it is as dangerous as oiling o2 threads, but i wouldn't try it.

Another possibility is that the threads are lefthand on the gauges - not hugely common, but not unheard of.

Tyson

Click to expand...

wise advice. Don't use any oil or heat. lefthand gauges certainly do exist, I have one. altho I bet they're just on really, really tight. as they usually are.

Put it back in the vise, get a wrench on it, then slip a length of pipe over the wrench and you'll have all the leverage you need.

Good call on the pipe, they did the trick, there were threads exposed so I was able to make sure I wasn't accidentally tightening. Thanks for the help guys

After you replace your gauge, make sure to leak check your regulator. I may or may not have had some experience leaking out an entire tank of gas after not leak checking my regulator.

How do you leak check it?
Just by spraying it with soap water while its on?

Yes, just put some soapy water around all the joints and connections with the gas on. You shouldn't see any bubbles. Starsan works pretty well too..

-Matt

You can also open the valve on the tank, set about 30psi on the regulator, without kegs hooked up, close the tank valve again, then look at the gauge the next day. If its still at 30psi, you don't have a leak.