Big head and sweaty tap

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twilbrew247

twilbrew247

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I just finished my first LME batch. 2-hearted IPA clone. If you're turned out pretty good but I seem to have quite a large head on the beer. I'm wondering if it's too hot in my garage where I have my kegerator because I seem to be getting a lot of condensation on my tap. Have I over carbonated or do I just need to pour 2 beers every time?

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My wife told me I have a big head and sweaty tap, too....:mug:

The head looks fine, to me. And yes, the heat in the garage is causing the condensation. Remember, metal conducts temperatures, and the other end of your metal faucet is inside a cold refrigerator.
 
hercher said:
My wife told me I have a big head and sweaty tap, too....:mug:

The head looks fine, to me. And yes, the heat in the garage is causing the condensation. Remember, metal conducts temperatures, and the other end of your metal faucet is inside a cold refrigerator.
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I probably should've taken a picture when the head was really big. This was after it has been sitting for a few minutes. I must say though I think i did hit my abv because after trying it a few times I have a little bit of a buzz.......
 
Make sure your beer lines are cold. You may need to install a fan in the keezer to keep the top as cold as the bottom. You can use an icepack on the tap just before pouring your first brew to eliminate some of the foaming caused by the hot faucet.

How did you carbonate? Force carb, sugar? For how long?
 
theveganbrewer said:
Make sure your beer lines are cold. You may need to install a fan in the keezer to keep the top as cold as the bottom. You can use an icepack on the tap just before pouring your first brew to eliminate some of the foaming caused by the hot faucet.

How did you carbonate? Force carb, sugar? For how long?
Click to expand...

I force carbed at 30 psi and agitated keg. Kept at 30 psi for about 3 days before i thought about turning it down to 12 psi. I currently have it set at about 10. I only conditioned in keg for a week. No priming sugar added.
 
It's over carbonated if you let it sit at 30 psi for 3 days. All you need to do is leave it at your serving pressure and turn off the gas line. Then purge the pressure from your keg a few times over the course of about a day. This will allow the beer to outgas. And next time just do 30 psi for 24-36 hours depending on how much of a hurry you're in and then turn it down to your serving pressure and let it sit for about 72 hours and you'll be good to go.

And while I'm thinking about it, how long are your liquid lines and what is the ID?
 
Double_D said:
It's over carbonated if you let it sit at 30 psi for 3 days. All you need to do is leave it at your serving pressure and turn off the gas line. Then purge the pressure from your keg a few times over the course of about a day. This will allow the beer to outgas. And next time just do 30 psi for 24-36 hours depending on how much of a hurry you're in and then turn it down to your serving pressure and let it sit for about 72 hours and you'll be good to go.
Click to expand...

So what is the remedy?
 
twilbrew247 said:
So what is the remedy?
Click to expand...

The CO2 will leave the beer if you leave it as 12psi. So you let the relief valve purge that CO2 from 30PSI down to 12PSI over a day or two. Gotta open the valve up every few hours to let the gas go. The remedy is probably force carb for 48 hours max.
 
Double_D said:
It's over carbonated if you let it sit at 30 psi for 3 days. All you need to do is leave it at your serving pressure and turn off the gas line. Then purge the pressure from your keg a few times over the course of about a day. This will allow the beer to outgas. And next time just do 30 psi for 24-36 hours depending on how much of a hurry you're in and then turn it down to your serving pressure and let it sit for about 72 hours and you'll be good to go.

And while I'm thinking about it, how long are your liquid lines and what is the ID?
Click to expand...

The liquid line is about 3 feet long and the ID is 3/16".
 
3ft lines are contributing to your issue. You need longer lines to allow enough resistance so the co2 doesn't get knocked out of suspension on the way out.
 
For wheat or berliner weisse I like to do about 14 feet with 3/16 and use 12-14 psi to condition and serve after force carbing for 24 hours @ 30psi. The rest of them I usually keep them between 10-12 with a 12 foot 1/4 inch line. I started changing everything over to 3/16 beer line on this last batch I did though, you get better resistance in the line and less foam in the glass.
 
Double_D said:
For wheat or berliner weisse I like to do about 14 feet with 3/16 and use 12-14 psi to condition and serve after force carbing for 24 hours @ 30psi. The rest of them I usually keep them between 10-12 with a 12 foot 1/4 inch line. I started changing everything over to 3/16 beer line on this last batch I did though, you get better resistance in the line and less foam in the glass.
Click to expand...

Why the longer line?
 

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