Noob Keezer Questions

Hello guys, I'm a new member here. I am building a keezer and just had a couple of quick questions. I crawled through the equipment discussions and found answers to almost everything, just had a couple I couldn't find.

1. I got the 4 way manifold from kegconnection.com (Air Distributer - 4 Way, 5/16" Check Valves!). I was wondering if any of you had any ideas on attaching this to the collar, since there are no mounting holes on it, but I would like to keep it out of the way.

2. My regulator has a 1/4" barb, but the gas hose they sent is 5/16". I used a worm clamp to attach the hose to the regulator, and it seems solid, but I was just wondering if anybody has done this before and if you had any problems.

Thanks for any help.

 

1. Look for pipe hangers in the plumbing section. Can either get a rigid curved bracket that fits around the center nut, or more flexible metal straps to go around the manifold body. Either way, can screw them directly to the wooden collar.

2. I'd pick up a new barb for your regulator, or a short length of 1/4" gas hose for the section joining the manifold to your tank, especially if you plan on quick carbing at higher pressures. Connections that seem fine at serving pressure of 8-10psi can let you down when you crank it to 30psi. Whether you use the gear you have or pick up new parts, make sure to leak test all your joints at the highest pressure you plan to use, either with soapy water, or with actual leak detection solution from a plumbing supplier.

3. Welcome to the forums, and congrats on the keezer. Make sure to post pictures

 

Thanks so much, your answer to number 1 is exactly what I was looking for.

On the second question, the 5/16 hose fits very snugly onto the manifold barb. Do you think I can squeeze the 1/4 hose onto 5/16 barb on the manifold? I am thinking if that is possible I can wrap some teflon tape around the regulator barb and clamp it down tight.

Thanks again.

 

Yep, 1/4" line can fit. I actually prefer to use hose a size too small for gas lines, since it makes a very strong seal once it's in place.

Boil some water in a small pan, and let the end of your tubing sit in the hot water for a couple minutes. Once it's nice and soft, it will stretch over the 5/16" barb fairly easily. Then as it cools, it will shrink a bit and grab the barbs securely - probably won't even need a clamp to hold it in place.

Only downside is that you have to cut the line if you need to swap something around - you won't be able to pull the line off the barb once it's re-formed.

 

+1 I do this for my beer lines to, and don't use clamps- I did at first, but I have seen clamps not clamp in a perfect O before, causing a pinch where under high pressure, it can leak. Just some near boiling/boiling water from the microwave, 30 second soak and shove'er on!