Help Me Choose a Draft Set up

[rjthomas21]

So I am looking to get into kegging finally after a year of bottling and I want to make sure I get the right set up. I'd like to have 2-3 kegs on rotation but am not concerned this point at being able to serve them at different PSIs. So I was thinking I would just need a dual gauge regulator but not a double body regulator. I would also need a 3-Way Distributor for each of the kegs.

But I would like the ability to quickly carb a keg up to 30 PSI to get it carbed in a short amount of time. I can still do this without a Dual Body regulator, right? Just shut off the valves to the two kegs already primed and let the 3rd one sit at a higher PSI for a day or two (the amount of time obviously dependent on other variables).

Am I understanding the equipment I should get correctly? Any other advice is greatly welcomed.

 

[Puddlethumper]

So I am looking to get into kegging finally after a year of bottling and I want to make sure I get the right set up. I'd like to have 2-3 kegs on rotation but am not concerned this point at being able to serve them at different PSIs. So I was thinking I would just need a dual gauge regulator but not a double body regulator. I would also need a 3-Way Distributor for each of the kegs.

But I would like the ability to quickly carb a keg up to 30 PSI to get it carbed in a short amount of time. I can still do this without a Dual Body regulator, right? Just shut off the valves to the two kegs already primed and let the 3rd one sit at a higher PSI for a day or two (the amount of time obviously dependent on other variables).

Am I understanding the equipment I should get correctly? Any other advice is greatly welcomed.

I'm in exactly the same situation. I can see that there is a difference in size between pin-lock and ball-lock systems, but what other advantages/disadvantages are there between the two?

 

[WTWjr]

So I am looking to get into kegging finally after a year of bottling and I want to make sure I get the right set up. I'd like to have 2-3 kegs on rotation but am not concerned this point at being able to serve them at different PSIs. So I was thinking I would just need a dual gauge regulator but not a double body regulator. I would also need a 3-Way Distributor for each of the kegs.

But I would like the ability to quickly carb a keg up to 30 PSI to get it carbed in a short amount of time. I can still do this without a Dual Body regulator, right? Just shut off the valves to the two kegs already primed and let the 3rd one sit at a higher PSI for a day or two (the amount of time obviously dependent on other variables).

Am I understanding the equipment I should get correctly? Any other advice is greatly welcomed.

Check out the Kegconnection.com I was looking for the same set up and found that it was only $35 to upgrade a kit to a dual body regulator.

 

[Puddlethumper]

Check out the Kegconnection.com I was looking for the same set up and found that it was only $35 to upgrade a kit to a dual body regulator.

Great site!

I see there are a lot of options for upgrades. Is there an advantage to the Taprite brand regulator over the Chudnow? And what about faucets? They offer a number of choices. Do you have a suggestion as to the best choice?

 

[brewmcq]

I've done all my taps and kegging business with kegconnection.com.

They have outstanding customer service and everything they ship is preassembled. And $7.95 flat shipping is always useful.

As for the pinlock vs. ball lock... size is the only difference. Doesn't matter to me because I have a 15cuft beer cooler. So I get whatever's cheap...

 

[zeekage]

Pinlock kegs often do not have a pressure release valve in the lid, whereas most ball lock kegs do. This isn't always true though as lids get replaced over time.

 

[brewmcq]

Pinlock kegs often do not have a pressure release valve in the lid, whereas most ball lock kegs do. This isn't always true though as lids get replaced over time.

It's still easy enough to vent pressure in a pinklock... just push in the gas poppet with a chopstick.

Chopsticks = free

A pressure release valve isn't worth the extra $20-$40 a keg. At least to me it's not.

 

[brew_ny]

It's still easy enough to vent pressure in a pinklock...

Keg Connection gives you a free poppet depressor

they also have pin-lock kegs on sale for 39.95

S_M

 

[NickTheGreat]

I bought my stuff from my LHBS, but did just the dual gauge regulator and 4-way manifold. If I'm trying to carb something at 30psi, I just shut off the valves to the other ones. You can still pour beer for a long time with the pressure in the keg, so it isn't a big deal.

 

[NickTheGreat]

It's still easy enough to vent pressure in a pinklock... just push in the gas poppet with a chopstick.

Chopsticks = free

A pressure release valve isn't worth the extra $20-$40 a keg. At least to me it's not.

I went ball lock because that's all I could find locally at the time. Now I constantly see pin lock for sale cheap online.

 

[zeekage]

But I would like the ability to quickly carb a keg up to 30 PSI to get it carbed in a short amount of time. I can still do this without a Dual Body regulator, right? Just shut off the valves to the two kegs already primed and let the 3rd one sit at a higher PSI for a day or two (the amount of time obviously dependent on other variables).

If you cold crash your beer, you can quickly carbonate a keg at serving pressure and have no risk of over-carbonating it. At 30PSI you never know what level you're at so if you forget about it too long or life gets in the way you could end up with very over-carbed beer.

If you hook up your gas to the keg at serving pressure, and if your beer is already at serving temperature, just lay the keg on its side on your knees and rock it back forth for a few minutes while sitting down. You'll hear the regulator releasing gas the whole time. When it stops/slows down you'll have beer that's close to fully carbonated, but it's guaranteed to not be over-carbonated. Let it sit for another day or two to let the rest of the trub/yeast drop out.

You will also notice the flavor of the beer change over the week while it sits, and the flavors meld.

If you don't cold crash your beer this method doesn't work as well since your beer is at like 70F when you keg it so it wont hold the same amount of carbonation that it will at 40F. You can still do it, you just won't get as close to fully carbonated.

 

[brewmcq]

The most important thing when it comes to good beer vs. great beer: don't rush anything.

 

[JuanMoore]

I see there are a lot of options for upgrades. Is there an advantage to the Taprite brand regulator over the Chudnow? And what about faucets? They offer a number of choices. Do you have a suggestion as to the best choice?

I don't know enough about the differences between regulators to give any advice there, but I strongly suggest going with a forward sealing faucet design. This would limit you to Perlicks and Ventmatics. Standard rear sealing faucets are ok for commercial use, but unless you're pouring significant quantities of beer every day, the beer residue will dry and build up inside, causing them to get stuck in the closed position. It's a PITA to pull them off, soak them in hot water to loosen them up, clean them, and re-install them constantly. The forward sealing faucets are more expensive, but they're a lot cheaper than buying cheap ones now and upgrading to the better ones after you get sick of them.

 

[WTWjr]

Great site!

I see there are a lot of options for upgrades. Is there an advantage to the Taprite brand regulator over the Chudnow? And what about faucets? They offer a number of choices. Do you have a suggestion as to the best choice?

I went with the Taprite and I think it's worth the extra money. I also have a Chudnow and it seems the pressure seems to wander around when I first set it up, and it takes a while to get it steady. The Taprite stays right where I set it and doesn't creep.

I went with stainless steel Perlick faucets and shanks based on advice from other threads on this forum. The consensus was that the longevity of stainless made it worth the extra $$

 

[Puddlethumper]

Great advice guys! Thanks! That's what is great about this forum. A newbie has a chance to learn from what others have done. I really appreciate your input.