CO2 tank empty, not sure what happened.

Hi--

New to kegging and I've got a 2 keg kegerator system with perlick forward sealing taps. About a week ago, I finished the beer from one of the kegs. Being in a hurry at the time, I did not even think to turn off the valve to that keg, nor did I remove the CO2 hose or beer hose from the keg.

I came back to my other beer this week, and noticed teh CO2 tank is completely out. Although my other beer is still carbonated fine, and I poured one beer OK from the tap, the CO2 tank is completely out, and had been full before hooked up to these 2 kegs.

I'm assuming that perhaps the CO2 was able to go up through the empty beer hose and leak out at the tap... In that case I wouldnt have to worry about any other kind of leak, which I wouldn't suspect because I never opened the kegerator or messed with anything.. Any ideas??

I'm planning to fill growlers to finish off the 2nd keg tonight so the beer doesn't lose carbonation. Should I be able to pull the rest of the beer off the keg without trouble?? (Probably about 1.5 to 2 gallons left.) ..

Thanks.

Don't worry about losing carbonation. If you don't serve from that keg until you replace the co2, it won't go flat (unless that keg is where the leak is). Even if it does lose some carbonation, it can be recarbed.

I'd checck for leaks regardless of what you decide to do.

If the leak was in the tap, you would have been leaking beer when the keg was full. I would focus on gas connections.

Tank to regulator, regulator fittings, hose fittings, keg disconnects, keg seals.

I just don't see how it could be leaking with the liquid parts .. as you would have noticed that when there was beer in the keg, unless someone was opening the tap and closing it again.

Is it likely that the CO2 leaked out of the empty keg through the beer hose?? I mean technically speaking-- should that happen if I leave an empty keg for a week? Or should the seal on the tap be good enough to keep the CO2 from leaking??


If the tap isn't the problem... Do leaks just sort of spontaneously arise sometimes?? I didn't touch anything inside the kegerator and had not had any trouble before....

The fact that the keg was empty is not an issue, it still should not have leaked. I'd suspect though that once the first keg kicked, the tap may not have been left fully closed causing you to have lost your co2.

Get a refill, then check EVERY connection of the gas lines with some soapy water.

Also check your keg pressure relief valves. (I had a leaky one and lost 5# over a weekend)

Next time, once the keg is kicked, disconnect the gas going in, and shut off the valve!

B