First time kegging problem

[Clanchief]

OK HBT, I need some help, and pretty badly.

I just kegged beers for the first time on Sunday. I had a full, brand new CO2 tank connected to a Governor regulator, which was going to a 4 way distributor. Two ball lock kegs which were connected to that via quick connects.

Here's the setup:

Now, when I took that picture, note that the shut off on the governor was all the way left. I later turned it straight down. I also had the 4-day all the way to the right, which I thought might be all the way open, and I later switched those to straight down.

Fast forward about 24 hours from when I took that picture. I came home from work yesterday and found that the beer was not carbed at all (I had it set to 10 PSI). I tried closing and reopening the shut offs and things seemed to be alright. I came down to check things a few hours later, and something funny has happened. The CO2 tank has gone from totally full to feeling like it's totally empty, and no beer is flowing, carbed or otherwise, through the lines. I did notice a slight hiss from the blow off valve on the regulator, which I released briefly, and it seemed to stop.

I checked for leaks with Star San and found none. I'm sure that I'm doing something wrong with my setup here. Now I have a problem as I have friends coming to town this weekend that I planned on serving this glorious first beer from the keg to, and it's not carbed. I'm going to get my tank re-filled today, but I need help to figure out what I'm going wrong and how I can get this carbed up properly without damaging things between now and Friday.

Thanks.

 

[TitanJimi]

Looks like the 3rd valve is open?...could be the problem

 

[Clanchief]

It was actually closed by that point. Should have mentioned that too.

Sorry.

 

[LandoLincoln]

I also had the 4-day all the way to the right, which I thought might be all the way open, and I later switched those to straight down.

They don't work that way. If they're pointing towards the gas line then they're fully open. If they're pointing to the full left OR right then they're fully closed.

 

[Clanchief]

They don't work that way. If they're pointing towards the gas line then they're fully open. If they're pointing to the full left OR right then they're fully closed.

I thought so, which is why I switched everything to straight down towards the lines. Then I ended up with beer that isn't carbed and an empty tank.

 

[brew_ny]

how I can get this carbed up properly without damaging things between now and Friday.

Thanks.

get your beer cold I like 33 F put it on gas for 36 hours at 30 psi purge you kegs and set at severing pressure for 12 psi and drink

it gets really good about 24 at the 12 psi

after 3 or 4 days perfect

all the best

S_M

 

[hezagenius]

I thought so, which is why I switched everything to straight down towards the lines. Then I ended up with beer that isn't carbed and an empty tank.

If all the levers are pointed down, doesn't that let gas through all the valves?
Then you would end up with an empty tank and uncarbed beer.

 

[Clanchief]

If all the levers are pointed down, doesn't that let gas through all the valves?
Then you would end up with an empty tank and uncarbed beer.

Sorry, I should have been more precise. The two that had kegs were put straight down, to open, the other two, straight left, for closed.

 

[LandoLincoln]

I thought so, which is why I switched everything to straight down towards the lines. Then I ended up with beer that isn't carbed and an empty tank.

Then that means you have a leak somewhere.

 

[Clanchief]

get your beer cold I like 33 F put it on gas for 36 hours at 30 psi purge you kegs and set at severing pressure for 12 psi and drink

it gets really good about 24 at the 12 psi

after 3 or 4 days perfect

all the best

S_M

Do I need to purge whatever got in there now before I do that?

Temperature right now is around 38 F, but I can move it down lower for carbing if that will help.

 

[m00ps]

Yeah, if your tank is empty there's a leak somewhere. When you first turn the valve to let air flow into the keg you should hear a whoosh as it pressurizes which will slowly die down. Stick you head near any connections and any other noise is most likely a leak. Use some starsan to spray the connections if you cant find exactly where it is

As for carbing, even at like 30psi (and room temp) it can still take a while to carb beer. And as others stated, beer needs to be cold to carb correctly. (takes like 10 psi cold for equivalent carb as roughly 30psi at room temp). I usually leave it at 30 for a day, then go down to serving pressure and wait a few more days

 

[brew_ny]

Do I need to purge whatever got in there now before I do that?

Temperature right now is around 38 F, but I can move it down lower for carbing if that will help.

when I keg beer I will set the lid with 30 psi the purge 2 or 3 time to purge out any oxygen

then let it sit at 30 psi for the first 36 hour

when you kegged and purged an have not lost all the CO2 from the kegs your good

if not I would set the lid again and purge

all the best

S_M

 

[hezagenius]

Lots of things to check once you get your CO2 refilled.

Turn off all the valves to the kegs and open the valve on the tank. Check to make sure the closed system can hold pressure. Use a starsan/water mix to see if there are any leaks basically anywhere there is a connection. Then check each keg individually. When you open up the valve to the keg, you will hear the gas moving in. It will start loud and then quiet down. Usually within maybe 10 seconds, you should hear a single metallic click. That should tell you the keg is sealed. Also make sure your pressure relief valve seals. Sometimes those get stuck slightly open.

For better results, use keg lube on all O-rings. It gives you a better seal and is less wear-and-tear on the O-rings.

 

[Clanchief]

So it took a lot of trial and error, but it turned out several leaks started up quite a bit after I had started the gas system up in the first place. One on each keg, and one off of the distributor itself. It's weird, because when I opened everything up originally and checked it, there were no issues. But then a day later, it went crazy. I don't know why or how, but it's fixed now.

In the meantime I'm not setting it at 20 PSI and carbing like that, planning to release and give it a shake later tonight to make sure it's fully carbed up. Thanks for the help all.