CO2 Regulator keeps increasing??

I just got a new CO2 regulator, I'll set it to a certain pressure (5psi) to dispense, but if I leave the gas on the pressure keeps increasing, after an hour it'll get up to 30psi.
Did I buy a lemon or is there a fix for this, I tried de-pressurizing the keg, but the pressure just keeps creeping up.

Mine is touchy, but not that touchy. Maybe a lemon.

ol' rummie said:

I just got a new CO2 regulator, I'll set it to a certain pressure (5psi) to dispense, but if I leave the gas on the pressure keeps increasing, after an hour it'll get up to 30psi.
Did I buy a lemon or is there a fix for this, I tried de-pressurizing the keg, but the pressure just keeps creeping up.

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How did you carb up your keg? It sounds like you carbed it up at 30 psi, and the gauge is just going up to where it's carbed up. If you carbed it at 5 psi, there is no way it'll creep up like that. I have a feeling you "burst carbed" and you have been that is carbed higher than your dispensing pressure. Once it sits, it creeps up.

I force carbed @ around 30psi, then relieved the keg of all the pressure.
I have another regulator (different brand) that I tried on the same keg and once it is set, it does not fluccuate.

some regulators have a combined chec/shutoff valve on their outlet, cheap regulators have a shutoff only. if your regulator doesn't have a check valve, the pressure from the keg can make the regulator gauge climb if the keg is overcarbonated.

best way to test the regulator is to connect it to the co2 bottle but don't connect it to a keg. set the pressure to, say, 12psi and let it sit awhile. if the pressure creeps up, you have an internal leak, probably between the diaphragm and pressure spring chamber.

It doesn't sounds likely that the pressure is raising to 30PSI because of the co2 dissolved in the beer.
Are you sure what you got is a pressure regulator and not a flow regulator?

It sounds to me like Yooper was right, and the dissolved CO2 is coming out of solution creating backpressure which causes the gauge to rise. The regulator that's rising likely doesn't have a check valve, or the one it has isn't sensitive enough to stop the very slow backflow of gas. The regulator that doesn't change when connected to the keg likely has a sensitive check valve that stops the backflow. What temperature do you keep your kegerator at, and what level of carbonation are you shooting for? 5psi is on the low side, and if you're going for a low level of carbonation, it's very easy to overcarb by setting it to 30psi even for a short time. My bet is that the regulator is fine, and your beer is overcarbed.

Just tried it without being hooked up to the keg, backed the dial all the way out, and it climbed to 30psi in seconds.
--It's definatly a dud, my buddy has the exact same one, and took it over, his works and once it's set, it doesn't climb or decrease.