Perfect world carbing/kegging questions

[Grinder12000]

I'm preparing to carb and keg for the 1st time and have a couple questions.

in a perfect world where I have all the time I need here is what I would do - please set me straight on a few things.

Let's say I have a beer that wants 2.4 volumes at 40 degrees so I set my regulator to 11.2 psi and wait 7-10 days for the beer to carb.

After that time - what should I set my regulator to serve. Keep it the same IF I have a 6 foot 3/16 beer line? (because of line restriction).

What if my beer line is less - lets say 3 feet! Serve at something like 6psi?

I know there is a learning curve but I figure get the basics down for the 1st time.

Comments? opinions? Suggestions?

 

[NeoBrew]

IMHO, the best thing to do is to set it to the pressure (volumes) you want the beer at. Then just leave it at that pressure until the keg is empty.

If you lower the pressure to serve, the beer will gradually loose carbonation until it reaches equilibrium with your new lower pressure.

Of course, you need to get your draft lines in balance with pressure. Which I gather you have figured out from your description.

 

[ba-brewer]

What NeoBrew said.

Buy longer beer lines than what the calculator says and base the length on slightly higher pressure/volume in case you want to bump the carb level up a little, you can always cut them back it if it pours too slow.

Some of my kegs seem to loose their seal or do not hold pressure if I drop below 10PSI, not sure if this is a generic problem or just something with mine.

 

[doug293cz]

Use this line length calculator: http://www.mikesoltys.com/2012/09/17/determining-proper-hose-length-for-your-kegerator/. Other calculators often get the line length too short, and then you have foamy pour problems. Browse around for all the foamy pour problem threads, there are lots of them. Do yourself a favor and follow the advice of the linked calculator. Otherwise you might just have to start another "why do I have foamy pours?" thread.

Also as said previously, serve at the equilibrium pressure for your desired carb level and temperature. Otherwise carb level will change over time.

Brew on

 

[jmcquesten]

Use this line length calculator: http://www.mikesoltys.com/2012/09/17/determining-proper-hose-length-for-your-kegerator/. Other calculators often get the line length too short, and then you have foamy pour problems. Browse around for all the foamy pour problem threads, there are lots of them. Do yourself a favor and follow the advice of the linked calculator. Otherwise you might just have to start another "why do I have foamy pours?" thread.

Also as said previously, serve at the equilibrium pressure for your desired carb level and temperature. Otherwise carb level will change over time.

Brew on

Yes, please use the calculator that's linked. It will get you exactly where you need to be with your line length. Don't be surprised if it tells you that you need 14, 15, or even 20 ft of (3/16) beer line. Trust the length it tells you, even if you think it's wrong and could never need 18 ft of line. Some people get away with 6 ft or the "standard" 10 ft recommendation, but your results can vary.

Use the mikesoltys.com calculator and get it right the first time. Pressure should not be adjusted to pour beer.

 

[Grinder12000]

Awesome link. Thanks. Will use it Flow rate? I'll have to play around with that calculator tomorrow. At a wedding drinking the grooms beer from Mob Craft.

 

[Rev2010]

Yeah I'd also recommend using the calc and going with a longer line length to avoid foaming issues. Keep your kegs set at the PSI you are carbing to as it's been mentioned that if you set it lower for serving and keep it there the beer will loose carbonation eventually equilibrating to the serving pressure over time. I use 12' lines and that length works great for me for every different CO2 volume beer I serve with the only one still getting some foaming being my hefeweizen which I use 18psi I believe. The foaming on that one is still completely tolerable. Just coil up and twist tie or zip tie the coils together. I then just rest the coils on the top of the kegs.


Rev.

 

[Grinder12000]

Thanks all - makes sense - after watching a number of youtube videos with conflicting information I had to come to the real source of knowledge.

All makes sense!