quiet_dissent
Active Member
- Joined
- Jun 24, 2013
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Hi everyone,
A new kegging issue:
On Sunday, I kegged an amber ale. I cleaned the tap lines, cleaned and sanitized the keg, transferred the brew, attached the lid, sealed with Co2 and kept it on as I had just kicked the other keg. I am using the "set it and forget it" method and set the regulator at approximately 12 psi.
Today I checked the regulator and noticed that the other gauge (the one reporting the amount of Co2 left before I need to swap out tanks) had dropped dramatically. So that is one issue: I likely have a small leak.
I used soapy water to help identify possible leaks. I checked the lid, ball valves, all connections, including tank and regulator connections. I did not notice anything suspicious (e.g., no bubbling or small hiss). So if there is indeed a leak, it is very small and likely going to be tricky to find.
The bigger issue is that I was brave and decided to just check on the beer to see that everything was ok. I was not expecting anything but relatively flat beer. Quite the opposite: the glass was all foam! How is this possible with only 2 days on Co2 set at 12 psi?
My first instinct is a problem with the regulator. However, this is a brand new regulator and I had no problems with the other keg I just kicked and took off.
The other possibility I've considered is temperature. However, again, I have not altered the temperature at all from the last keg, which I had just taken off that same day. This leads me to have some confidence that there isn't a huge discrepancy in temperature.
As an aside, the last keg was pouring beautifully. Perfect head and perfect carbonation. I was very pleased and actually proud of myself after the debacle I had with the hefeweizen gone awry (i.e., possible over carbonation).
Which leads me to the keg itself. Is it possible that there is something wrong with the poppets or other components of the in and out connections? The last time I had problems with kegging was with this SAME KEG; my hefeweizen ended up being a mess (although I am partially guilty in that case of possibly over carbonating). When I connect the other keg I have, I do not have any kegging issues. (I own two kegs; both have been used twice. I bought them brand new from The Beverage Factory.)
Could poppet, valve, etc. issues lead to foamy pours? Is this problem possibly also linked to the rapid loss of Co2? Should I take it off the Co2, bleed the keg, and transfer to the other keg that seems to not have this issues? Is this reasonable to do or do folks not suggest this? Or am I missing something more fundamental? Any insights or suggestions are appreciated.
A new kegging issue:
On Sunday, I kegged an amber ale. I cleaned the tap lines, cleaned and sanitized the keg, transferred the brew, attached the lid, sealed with Co2 and kept it on as I had just kicked the other keg. I am using the "set it and forget it" method and set the regulator at approximately 12 psi.
Today I checked the regulator and noticed that the other gauge (the one reporting the amount of Co2 left before I need to swap out tanks) had dropped dramatically. So that is one issue: I likely have a small leak.
I used soapy water to help identify possible leaks. I checked the lid, ball valves, all connections, including tank and regulator connections. I did not notice anything suspicious (e.g., no bubbling or small hiss). So if there is indeed a leak, it is very small and likely going to be tricky to find.
The bigger issue is that I was brave and decided to just check on the beer to see that everything was ok. I was not expecting anything but relatively flat beer. Quite the opposite: the glass was all foam! How is this possible with only 2 days on Co2 set at 12 psi?
My first instinct is a problem with the regulator. However, this is a brand new regulator and I had no problems with the other keg I just kicked and took off.
The other possibility I've considered is temperature. However, again, I have not altered the temperature at all from the last keg, which I had just taken off that same day. This leads me to have some confidence that there isn't a huge discrepancy in temperature.
As an aside, the last keg was pouring beautifully. Perfect head and perfect carbonation. I was very pleased and actually proud of myself after the debacle I had with the hefeweizen gone awry (i.e., possible over carbonation).
Which leads me to the keg itself. Is it possible that there is something wrong with the poppets or other components of the in and out connections? The last time I had problems with kegging was with this SAME KEG; my hefeweizen ended up being a mess (although I am partially guilty in that case of possibly over carbonating). When I connect the other keg I have, I do not have any kegging issues. (I own two kegs; both have been used twice. I bought them brand new from The Beverage Factory.)
Could poppet, valve, etc. issues lead to foamy pours? Is this problem possibly also linked to the rapid loss of Co2? Should I take it off the Co2, bleed the keg, and transfer to the other keg that seems to not have this issues? Is this reasonable to do or do folks not suggest this? Or am I missing something more fundamental? Any insights or suggestions are appreciated.