Ranco is at 30 beer is at 42 and still foaming.

How do I get the Ranco to accurately regulate the temp of the beer. Right now the beer has been in the freezer for 4 Days. The Ranco is set at 32 with a 2 degree dif. The beer however is 42 degrees and foaming like crazy. Will 42 degrees make the beer foam and if so how do I get the Ranco to regulate the beer temp more accurately?

Where is the sensor located? If it is touching anything, it may be giving inaccurate readings.

Beer shouldn't foam at 42. Give us some more vitals on your setup like liquid hose diameter and length...taps you're using...etc.

As far as the thermostat setting, I never trust those things. I always place the thermostat probe next to a digital thermometer probe inside the unit and when the digital thermometer hits the temp I was shooting for, I dial off the thermostat just enough to click off the compressor.

32 is pretty cold... Most folks would say to serve around 45 degrees. If you're foaming like crazy at 32, you've got a few things to consider. What PSI are you serving at? How long are your lines? What's the ID?

I'd recommend getting longer lines, or smaller diameter lines. I use ~8-10ft of 3/16 ID hose and don't have a foaming problem. Also, if you're using a picnic faucet, make sure to open it all the way.

I serve all my beer at 42F, zero foaming issues. Your problem lies elsewhere.

BierMuncher said:

Beer shouldn't foam at 42. Give us some more vitals on your setup like liquid hose diameter and length...taps you're using...etc.

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Yeah...what he said!

I have 3/16ID Bevlex hose 12' length. I have tried to serve it from 4psi-12psi no difference in foam. The ranco probe is not touching anything. I have had it off gas with all Co2 purged from the kegs for 3 days to lower the carbonation in the event if was overcarbed. The probe is set to 32, the beer/foam poured is 42 degrees. Standard style taps out of a tower. First beer pours like all of the rest... Foam.
So there are the vitals.

rad-rabbit said:

I have 3/16ID Bevlex hose 12' length. I have tried to serve it from 4psi-12psi no difference in foam. The ranco probe is not touching anything. I have had it off gas with all Co2 purged from the kegs for 3 days to lower the carbonation in the event if was overcarbed. The probe is set to 32, the beer/foam poured is 42 degrees. Standard style taps out of a tower. First beer pours like all of the rest... Foam.
So there are the vitals.

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What were your carbing and off gassing procedures?

I carbed it at 35psi for 24 hours. It foamed so Like I said, I turned all of the gas off and purged all of the Co2 from the kegs for three days.

Is this just the first glass you are having foaming issues with?

mnadamn said:

Is this just the first glass you are having foaming issues with?

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Like I said earlier in the thread. "First beer pours like all of the rest... Foam."
This thread keeps going around in circles.

rad-rabbit said:

I carbed it at 35psi for 24 hours. It foamed so Like I said, I turned all of the gas off and purged all of the Co2 from the kegs for three days.

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There is no way it foamed after 24 hours. I carb all my beers at 30psi for 48hours before I drop the pressure down and their not fully carbed yet. There's something missing from your equation. What type of beer is it?

wildwest450 said:

There is no way it foamed after 24 hours. I carb all my beers at 30psi for 48hours before I drop the pressure down and their not fully carbed yet. There's something missing from your equation. What type of beer is it?

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It absolutely did, Both kegs. One is an amber and the other is a wit. Both the have the same problem, both carbed at the same time the same way. Nothing is missing, That is why this is the second Thread I have made and I'm getting so frustrated.
First Thread
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/nothing-but-foam-foam-foam-please-help-102129/

Really trying to figure this out. Maybe your regulator is hosed and the pressure you think you are dispensing at is wrong?

McKBrew said:

Really trying to figure this out. Maybe your regulator is hosed and the pressure you think you are dispensing at is wrong?

Click to expand...

It is New. This is the first time it has ever been used. I guess it could be defective but either way, I have tried to dispense it from just enough to push it from the taps up to 12psi. But all I get is foam. If it was over carbed I would have thought by now it would have settled down.
I just don't know what to do. I bought longer lines (12', I wanted to overkill the length to make sure that wasn't the problem. $15 later?), I took it off the Co2 for three days and purged the kegs. I checked the liquid temperature (42 Degrees). Ranco temp 32 Degrees.
I going nuts.

This is a tough one. When you say purged did you just pull off the gas, or did you release the pressure? To off gas the pressure needs to be released more than once (many times). Also do you trust your thermometers?

I'm too new to be able to help with an answer, but here is a thought.

I have a Heff and an Alt. The heff and alt have the same level of carbonation... but the heff pulls 1/2 glass of foam where the Alt barely generates a nice head (and it's not long lasting).
the Heff is set at 6 psi for pouring and the Alt at 14 for pouring.

So I'm thinking it's a beer structure thing. I'm sure there are beers that are easier to carb and generate lots of foam if not carefull, and others that just don't foam for ..... .
Maybe one of the pros here might take a look at the beer type and content.

I know how frustrating it can be.... I've given up on the two batches I have and will just drink them as is. Hopefully my next will be better.

wildwest450 said:

This is a tough one. When you say purged did you just pull off the gas, or did you release the pressure? To off gas the pressure needs to be released more than once (many times). Also do you trust your thermometers?

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I trust nothing at this point. The thermometer is a glass brewing thermometer and the Ranco is, a Ranco. I turned off the gas completely and pulled the relief valve until all Co2 was purged from the kegs.I did this to the relief a few times a day for the past Days.

rad-rabbit said:

I trust nothing at this point. The thermometer is a glass brewing thermometer and the Ranco is, a Ranco. I turned off the gas completely and pulled the relief valve until all Co2 was purged from the kegs.I did this to the relief a few times a day for the past Days.

Click to expand...

That should rule out over-carbonation. What is your kegerator setup? How far is it from the cornies to the tap?

ok, I know it's driving you crazy. But let's start again.

You say it's not overcarbed. It's been off the gas, and you've released the pressure quite a few times.

I'm wondering about this temperature thing, too, but my kegerator is at 39 or so. At 10 psi, I get a nice pour with well carbed beer.

How long has the gas been off? Or at least lowered?

Weren't the kegs shaken quite a bit, and the gas really high for a period of time? Sorry to be so repetitive, but I'm trying to be clear in my mind and to figure out WTF happened here.

How long as it been at 40 degrees?

It might be overcarbed or it might not. It was on 35PSI for 24 hours or so. I shock it once when I put it on and once before I lowered it. Then lowered it to 10psi. The beer has been at 42 for at least 24 hours. The gas has been off for 3 days, with the exception of the 2 times I opened the Co2 to check to see if it was going to pour without foam. Then it was rePugred and gas shut back off.

I know it's frustrating, with that beautiful new kegerator so we're going to help you figure this out.

If you purge the tank of co2 by pulling the release valve, then turn the psi to like 1 or just enough to push some beer, do you get all foam? If you let the glass sit for a minute, is the beer carbonated at all?

Could we get a picture of your setup so we know what your dealing with, keezer , upright freezer, etc. I had the same issues a few months ago. Yooper and other folks were really good at offering some good advice. All I can say is I have 10 ft of line and a small pc fan to keep liquid line cold or atleast same temp as the beer. Good luck.

YooperBrew said:

I know it's frustrating, with that beautiful new kegerator so we're going to help you figure this out.

If you purge the tank of co2 by pulling the release valve, then turn the psi to like 1 or just enough to push some beer, do you get all foam? If you let the glass sit for a minute, is the beer carbonated at all?

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If I set it to just enough to push some beer out I still get foam. It does settle out within a few minutes. The beer is carbonated when the foam dies down, maybe a bit light though.

JesseRC said:

Could we get a picture of your setup so we know what your dealing with, keezer , upright freezer, etc. I had the same issues a few months ago. Yooper and other folks were really good at offering some good advice. All I can say is I have 10 ft of line and a small pc fan to keep liquid line cold or at least same temp as the beer. Good luck.

Click to expand...

Here is my Keezer/Bar build. you can see what I have here.https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f51/rad-keezer-build-hotness-included-102298/

Here is my first thread looking for help also.
https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/nothing-but-foam-foam-foam-please-help-102129/

so you've got 10' of Bevlex, that's what I got and I'm pushing at 12psi. The only thing not mentioned is that your tower will be warmer than your beer. I would try to put a fan in there , even temporarily, just to see. Does it get better after 2 or more pours? Sometimes i rinse my glass briefly with cold tap water. It helps on the first pour. You're not using a frozen mug right, cuz you'll definately get foam.

No I'm not using frozen mug & no if doesn't get better with with the second glass. I could deal with a half glass of foam with the first glass of the night but that just isn't the case.

I would recommend you isolate the problem to either your lines, or your keg.

I would rig a 3' line and a picnic tap. If the problem goes away then the lines/taps are the problem.

Looking at your pictures, that is a lot of line. Air (CO2) pockets could form and drive foaming issue.

Like I said, it's either a keg issue or a line/tap issue and until you try something different you won't know which to focus on.

I know I have no business responding to this because I don't have a kegerator yet. Supplies for mine due tomorrow, just trying to learn all I can to set mine up. After reading your posts this is what comes to my mind: could it be that the "in gas disconnect" and "out beer disconnect" are switched on the keg? If you took the kegs apart could the posts have been switched?

Don't beat me up, just trying to help.

i had this problem once and it was a really grungy tap. i took it apart, cleaned it and everything worked fine. Later I bought a shirron tap, dont get any problems since shirrons moving parts are always in contact with the beer and dont stick.
Im sure you've taken apart your tap already but just in case, i thought ide mention it.

Thanks but everything is perfectly clean and new. The only used parts are the kegs from pedlebiker & they are clean also.
The lines were 5" before I received advice to extend them to at least 10'. I agree that there is a lot of line, I would have never changed it from the 5' that was on it. It was advice I received from many on this site. It didn't work so I'll shorten them after I figure out the problem.

The Taps are new units also & have never been used before this. This is the first time I have ever kegged so maybe they are over carbed. I poured starsan through the taps before I hooked up beer and had no problems. If fact I poured flat beer from the kegs without any problems through 5' lines without any problems. All the problems started after I refrigerated the kegs overnight and carbed them. I think at this point Carbonation it the problem even though they have been purged and off gas for 3 days.

what is the inside diameter of the hoses? something i havent seen answered yet. you have released pressure several times but you still have plenty of pressure to push beer. remove the gas line completely and pull a pint. keep pulling until you get a good pour. if you never do then as was suggested a picnic tap and 5 psi to start. then work your way up.

How are you determining the beer temperature? You need to make sure you are using a calibrated thermometer. Draw off a glass, chug it down and draw a second immediately. Take the temperature of this second glass.

pen25 said:

what is the inside diameter of the hoses? something i havent seen answered yet. you have released pressure several times but you still have plenty of pressure to push beer. remove the gas line completely and pull a pint. keep pulling until you get a good pour. if you never do then as was suggested a picnic tap and 5 psi to start. then work your way up.

Click to expand...

It has been answered a few times, it's bevlex 3/16. I have released the pressure and have NO pressure to pour anything at all. I have to put Co2 to it to push a glass of beer. I have started from 2psi and on, it's all foam

Baldy_Beer_Brewery said:

How are you determining the beer temperature? You need to make sure you are using a calibrated thermometer. Draw off a glass, chug it down and draw a second immediately. Take the temperature of this second glass.

Click to expand...

Once again, I'm using a glass brewing thermometer for reading the temp of the beer poured. The Ranco for air temp inside of the freezer.
I have been using the second glass poured for temp. But thanks

I was told I need no more then 5-6psi to pour from two different Local HBS. Also I was told that I should never need more them 5' of 3/16 ID Line from the one HBS. He said my beer must be over carbed or the temp is too high. But neither seem to be the problem.

They are over carbed for sure. I just took them out and rocked them, then purged some of the Co2 off and did it again and the beer is much closer to beer instead of foam. I think the mystery might be solved. I'll keep you all posted.

Finaly I know what the problem is, Now how short should I cut my lines back to?

You can cut them back if you want. Or just swap them. I like longer lines because it gives me more options as to serving pressures.

If I had to guess at what the problem is, I would say that your reg is off. I have seen gauges act like this before. They are correct at 1-15 psi, but anything over 20 psi gets out of whack in a hurry.

Ant

$34 at Harborfreight... How could it possibly be inaccurate? Haha
On second thought, Maybe I should return it. It might have been the problem with carbing the beer in the first place. Hmmm

On the plus side the beer taste great now that I can pour some in a glass without it all being foam. By the time the foam settled the beer was almost flat. That was what was confusing me into thinking the beer wasn't over carbonated. But I was losing the carb in the head settling.

So Maybe I really should return the regulator.

If you seriously have a harbor freight regulator, then you have found the problem. They are notoriously inaccurate. I prefer Micromatic, but there are lots of good ones (taprite, cornelius, etc.) I highly recommend getting a professional-grade regulator. They can be had on eBay for less than that HF reg.

alohanole said:

If you seriously have a harbor freight regulator, then you have found the problem. They are notoriously inaccurate. I prefer Micromatic, but there are lots of good ones (taprite, cornelius, etc.) I highly recommend getting a professional-grade regulator. They can be had on eBay for less than that HF reg.

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Sadly it's ture. And in all seriousness, I agree. I'm going to order a proper regulator and return the HF reg. I thought it would be fine, but I'm almost sure it is the reason the beer was over carbed. I was going to order a taprite but I was in a rush and couldn't wait, so I used one I could just go and buy from the local store. I won't make that mistake twice.
Aside from my problems, how do you know

alohanole said:

They are notoriously inaccurate.

Click to expand...

?

I can't believe I stayed up this late but I fixed the problem for sure. I can pour a pint of either beer and have real beer with just about an inch of head. Not quite perfect but at this point it's great. The weak point was definitely the Harborfreight regulator. I'm ordering a taprite and when it arrives I'll return the HF regulator. I can't believe after all of this the problem had nothing to do with anything but a POS regulator. How can anyone sell a product that's only job is to regulate that can't regulate.

Work = No fun tomorrow

KegConnection carries the taprite regulators. Wow you been troubleshooting all day, you must be a little wasted due to all the tastings. Glad to hear its better. I would still keep the lines at 10' atleast. It'll give you some room to play with if you want to carb a bit higher