Carbonation Issue

[Redhouse Brewing]

Can anyone assist with a weird carbonation issue that I’m having. I quick carb all my beers (homebrew) by kegging cold beer (36 degrees) and setting regulator to 35 psi for 48 hours, reduce to 20 psi for 4 hours (usually) depends on the beer. Then reset to 10 psi and the beer pours perfect but only for a few hours, then its about 1/2 foam. I don’t understand why it pours perfect for about half a day and then gets foamy especially since it stays at 10 psi after the quick carb. I can see a little (very little) co2 coming out of solution just at the shank. Once I open the tap then it’s foam. I have 10 foot 3/16 beer line in home built keezer with a fan. The line is coiled on top of the keg and there is no stratification (have already had that but resolved with the fan) and the beer temperature is a perfect 38 degrees. I don’t have any leaks (checked already) and therefore am stumped. My guess is that it’s slightly out of balance but if I reduce pressure anymore then my beer will lose carbonation. Same thing happened on my other keg and to fix I turned off the gas and degassed the beer a few times over a few hours. I get great pours on that keg but the beer is slightly under carbed for my taste (only get about 1/4” head). I don’t want to degas this keg but I’m getting about 1/2 glass of foam on every pour so I have to do something...

 

[day_trippr]

Greetings, @Redhouse Brewing, and welcome to Home Brew Talk

"Burst carbonation" can be tricky, and I'm pretty sure in this case you have been consistently over-carbonating your kegs using your particular technique, and it's putting them right on that red peak shown below.

I believe you're lingering far too long with the 35psi. Next time, try 30 hours instead of 48, then dial down to chart pressure*, release the keg space pressure, and let the keg equalize the carbonation for a couple/few days.

* Chart pressure: refer to our favorite carbonation table, find your beer temperature, run across that row to your desired carbonation level (expressed in Volumes of CO2, where 2.2-2.5 is fairly typical for most ales), then run up that column to find the proper gas pressure to hit and maintain that carbonation level...


Cheers!

 

[Redhouse Brewing]

I believe you're lingering far too long with the 35psi. Next time, try 30 hours instead of 48, then dial down to chart pressure*, release the keg space pressure, and let the keg equalize the carbonation for a couple/few days.

* Chart pressure: refer to our favorite carbonation table, find your beer temperature, run across that row to your desired carbonation level (expressed in Volumes of CO2, where 2.2-2.5 is fairly typical for most ales), then run up that column to find the proper gas pressure to hit and maintain that carbonation level...

@day_trippr , thank you for your quick reply. I will try that on next keg. I kinda thought it was over carbed but was thrown off by fact that it pours great for half a day before all the foam appears. Might be because I don’t release the pressure after reducing to 10psi so there must be too much residual pressure left over

 

[bracconiere]

pours perfect but only for a few hours,

Welcome! and day_trippr's your man....just had to say "LOL" and i'm glad i got company!

 

[Redhouse Brewing]

Welcome! and day_trippr's your man....just had to say "LOL" and i'm glad i got company!

Thanks! Yes day_trippr responded quickly and with great info. I’m def glad I switched to keg vs bottling but burst carb is a pain to get right. I did try set/forget once but choose to forget that method as it’s way to slow for me. I guess it’s time to add a third or fourth keg

 

[day_trippr]

[...]I guess it’s time to add a third or fourth keg

Totally

Seriously though, having the infrastructure to support a pipeline is a wonderful thing. You only need to have one backing keg per tap to enjoy the luxury of "set and forget" carbonation while simultaneously allowing your beers to cold-condition (lager) and naturally brighten over the time before you tap them...

Cheers!

 

[Redhouse Brewing]

Totally

having the infrastructure to support a pipeline is a wonderful thing. You only need to have one backing keg per tap to enjoy the luxury of "set and forget" carbonation while simultaneously allowing your beers to cold-condition (lager) and naturally brighten over the time before you tap them...

Cheers!

so true, the kegs always get really tasty and then whoosh empty. I’m def gonna add at least a third keg soon. I find myself buying beer (gasp) in between kegs sometimes. Getting a good pipeline going is the way to go. Plus I can brew more often - win/win.

 

[doug293cz]

Can anyone assist with a weird carbonation issue that I’m having. I quick carb all my beers (homebrew) by kegging cold beer (36 degrees) and setting regulator to 35 psi for 48 hours, reduce to 20 psi for 4 hours (usually) depends on the beer. Then reset to 10 psi and the beer pours perfect but only for a few hours, then its about 1/2 foam. I don’t understand why it pours perfect for about half a day and then gets foamy especially since it stays at 10 psi after the quick carb. I can see a little (very little) co2 coming out of solution just at the shank. Once I open the tap then it’s foam. I have 10 foot 3/16 beer line in home built keezer with a fan. The line is coiled on top of the keg and there is no stratification (have already had that but resolved with the fan) and the beer temperature is a perfect 38 degrees. I don’t have any leaks (checked already) and therefore am stumped. My guess is that it’s slightly out of balance but if I reduce pressure anymore then my beer will lose carbonation. Same thing happened on my other keg and to fix I turned off the gas and degassed the beer a few times over a few hours. I get great pours on that keg but the beer is slightly under carbed for my taste (only get about 1/4” head). I don’t want to degas this keg but I’m getting about 1/2 glass of foam on every pour so I have to do something...

I agree with @day_trippr that you are probably over carbed. I use 30 psi for 36 hours when starting with cold beer. Also, not venting the headspace when lowering the pressure can lead to additional over carbonation.

Brew on

 

[bracconiere]

. I guess it’s time to add a third or fourth keg

i run six. and that's just all i can fit in my fridge!

 

[SouthBounds]

I think @day_trippr has you heading in the right direction.

My process for quick carbing: rack beer to keg at room temp, place in kegerator (38 degrees) and CO2 purge, pressure to 25psi for 48 hours. Lay keg on side and gently rock for 2 minutes (3-4 times during last 24 hours). Return to serving pressure (I use 8-10 psi depending on the beer).

I get great pours for the whole keg every time. Enjoy!