Pouring foam from a keg

I had my regulator set to 15 for a week and that's been my serving pressure as well. The beer was nice and carbonated but I wanted a little more. So I turned it to 20 for the day and when I went to pour it was all foam. After reading some posts I see that you don't serve beer the same PSI that you pour with. I let some gas out of the keg and lowered the PSI back down to 15. When should it get back to normal. Also do you see something I'm missing in the process? I set it to 15, let it sit a week to carbonate, then just started drinking it. Thanks. Also once it's carbonated, if I want more carbonation do I set the gas to a higher PSI and let it sit a while (how long?) then set the PSI back down? I think what I'm missing is if there's a difference in carbonating the beer PSI and serving PSI.

I keep my carbing psi and serving psi the same. I have 10' 3/16"ID beer lines. My keezer is probably around 38 degrees. I set the regulator for 12-13 psi and leave the keg(s) alone for about 3 weeks. Always a perfect pour.

Hammy71 said:

I keep my carbing psi and serving psi the same. I have 10' 3/16"ID beer lines. My keezer is probably around 38 degrees. I set the regulator for 12-13 psi and leave the keg(s) alone for about 3 weeks. Always a perfect pour.

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I have the exact same setup and settings (10' lines, 38 degrees, 12 PSI, set and forget method for 2-3 weeks), and I seem to get a lot of foam also (often 2/3 of the glass is foam). Not sure what is up with it - maybe I'll try turning the pressure down a bit and see if that helps. I'm also going to start storing glasses in the keezer as well as that seems to help with less foam.

Does the body of the beer make a difference? The only one I have kegged and fully carbed is a CDA (Black IPA) that has quite a bit of body and a thick head that takes FOREVER to fall .

cyclonite said:

I have the exact same setup and settings (10' lines, 38 degrees, 12 PSI, set and forget method for 2-3 weeks), and I seem to get a lot of foam also (often 2/3 of the glass is foam). Not sure what is up with it - maybe I'll try turning the pressure down a bit and see if that helps. I'm also going to start storing glasses in the keezer as well as that seems to help with less foam.

Does the body of the beer make a difference? The only one I have kegged and fully carbed is a CDA (Black IPA) that has quite a bit of body and a thick head that takes FOREVER to fall .

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Any warm spots in the lines? A small fan to circulate air can do WONDERS with keeping the lines cool. That's my best bet with your problem.

shortyjacobs said:

Any warm spots in the lines? A small fan to circulate air can do WONDERS with keeping the lines cool. That's my best bet with your problem.

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Just started kegging. Kegged up my 2nd batch yesterday. So when I test the carb level I should leave my cobra tap picnic faucet in the fridge before serving?

Can not cold lines really cause that much foam?

cjever19 said:

Just started kegging. Kegged up my 2nd batch yesterday. So when I test the carb level I should leave my cobra tap picnic faucet in the fridge before serving?

Can not cold lines really cause that much foam?

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Yes to both questions.

shortyjacobs said:

Any warm spots in the lines? A small fan to circulate air can do WONDERS with keeping the lines cool. That's my best bet with your problem.

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The lines are all in the keezer with party taps on them, but they are on top of the kegs. BTW, tried a pour of the Hef today (not quite fully carbed) and have the exact same issue as the CDA.

I'll try hooking up a computer fan in there to see if that solves it - thanks for the advice!!!

The other thing to be sure to consider on picnic taps is the length of hose. Many times the hose is shorter on them then on the keggerator and you have to turn down to a lower delivery pressure. My picnic taps are 5 feet long and deliver at 5 psi. Just my $.02.

linusstick said:

After reading some posts I see that you don't serve beer the same PSI that you pour with.

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I think you mean serve and store, but either way this is incorrect. The beer should be stored at the same pressure it's served at. If you wanted just a little more carbonation you should have increased the pressure a just a little. A 5 psi increase is huge. In order to get a good pour without too much foam you need a balanced system. This basically means that the lines need to be long enough to provide proper resistance. If you increase the pressure and carbonation, you might also need to use longer lines to increase the resistance.