Carbing a Corny Keg through Liquid Out Valve

[Deam]

I've read some contradictory things on the interweb about carbonating your beer once you've added it to a Corny Keg. A few sites have stated that it is better to run the C02 through the liquid out fitting, because this causes the gas to enter from the bottom of the keg and pass over more of the liquid.

Does this really make that much of a difference? Or is it just like everything else seems to be in brewing - personal preference and you're hard pressed to really do anything wrong.

Thanks in advance, and I apologize if this has already been asked... I'm sure it has, but I searched for a while to no avail.

 

[Yooper]

It may work, a little. But not much. The theory is that the co2 will bubble up through the beer, instead of just being absorbed through the headspace.

However, the bubbles are pretty big. I think if you wanted to do this, you'd be better off with a diffusion stone, which would make the bubbles smaller and more easily absorbed.

Cold beer absorbs co2 better, also, so having the beer cold means the co2 would more readily dissolve.

 

[Deam]

Ok thanks. Since I'm going to use the "turn on the gas and leave it" method I'll just hook it up to the gas in line so I have less hosing to adjust later on.

 

[PA49erFan21]

I am still new, but the brews I have all kegged, I have used the forced carb method (30 psi for 2 days) using the gas valve and I have never had any problems with carbing.

 

[pcollins]

I'm normally carb this way albeit in a sankey keg. Replied as such in another thread and got this response from another member:

https://www.homebrewtalk.com/f35/kegging-sankey-keg-my-technique-269101/#post3265403

As we speak, I'm carbing a keg with 20psi and the coupling head set up as normal. If the results are the same as my previous way then I'll be sold. It means less futzing with lines, as you said.

 

[KevinM]

There's probably a tiny bit of workability in that it helps stir around the liquid which saves a shake or two, but couple in the factor that the lock sizes are different and getting the air balllock stuck and getting beer on the floor just means that it's probably not that worth doing.

I've done this both ways, and to be honest, if it wasn't for the downside of the ball lock gas vs liquid differences, I'd be doing it that way to save even a tiny bit of work, but because of the downsides, I just let it pressurize through the gas in port.

 

[terrapinj]

could you swap out the dip tubes from the gas and liquid? are they the same diameter?

i don't plan on doing so but figured that the different post size would be the biggest hang up but perhaps swapping the diptubes would resolve that hassle

 

[Yooper]

could you swap out the dip tubes from the gas and liquid? are they the same diameter?

i don't plan on doing so but figured that the different post size would be the biggest hang up but perhaps swapping the diptubes would resolve that hassle

It'd be easier to just have a gas line with a black QD (for the "out" post) if you were going to do this routinely!

 

[JRems]

I tried this and there didn't seem to be any discernable difference. If you want to carb fast get a carbonation stone. 24 hours and you are done

 

[Deam]

Follow up question: I decided to do a hybrid between the "shake the hell out of it" method and "let it sit", where I left the gas running at 30psi over night and at around the 18 hour mark I'm going to turn it down to my desired pressure for the style to finish off - 13psi. Do I purge the keg of gas before turning the pressure down, or just go ahead and lower the pressure without making any other adjustments?

 

[pcollins]

Purge. Otherwise the headspace in the keg is still at 30psi.

 

[Deam]

Thank you! Trial and error would be a lot more error if it weren't for this forum's members haha.

 

[day_trippr]

If your keg is filled to the gas dip tube and the path from CO2 regulator to keg doesn't have a check valve, dropping the gas pressure without first relieving the head space could cause beer to flow backward. Aside from then having a contaminated gas line, if the beer reaches the regulator, bad things can happen...

Cheers!

 

[pruudiddy]

I've heard that setting the psi at the desired level in your case 13 for a week is actually a better way to do it, that's at least how I've done my 1st few kegs. Does anyone know if it makes that big of a difference from cranking up the psi for a shorter period of time. Also if my beer has sat around in secondary for 3 months does it need to age in keg after carbing seem to taste fine but wondering with another month if they would taste better