Balancing help needed

[ajr2820]

I am getting ready to set up my kegerator and have been reading about balancing. This is what I have so far:
Resistance of the faucet= @2 psi
Resistance of the shank= @1 psi
Gravity resistance= 0.5 psi/ft (1.25 psi in my case)

I want to carbonate at 38F at 8 psi to get 2.2 CO2 volume and am using 3/16 line (2.7 psi/ft resistance). This is how I am doing the calculation to balance:

8psi=(2.7psi*line length)+4.25psi

This results in a line length of 1.39 ft. Everything I have read says to use around 10 ft of 3/16 line then tweak the length for the perfect pour. My calcs are way off this number. The line isn't even long enough to reach the faucet. Plus, this would be in equilibrium and theoretically, the beer would not even pour! What am I missing here?

 

[wildwest450]

Those calculators are sketchy at best. I use 6ft on both my kegerators with no problems, most advocate 10ft, over kill imo. Go with 8 and trim down if necessary.

_

 

[AnthonyC]

Yeah, I don't get those formulas that have you subtract the the resistance added by your faucet, shank, head pressure, etc. If I used that I'd have 3.5' beer lines @ 12psi. Beer would be shooting out of the faucets like a foamy firehose. If you add the resistance you get much more realistic numbers (8 + 4.25) / 2.7 = ~ 4.5'. But I would always err on the side of longer lines. You never know when you'll want to serve a wheat beer at higher volumes. With 4.5' of line you'll likely have nothing but foam. I concur with Wildwest450. Start with 8' and trim back.

The Perlick creamer faucets make it even easier. You can have long lines and get a slow, foam free pour. Then bump the faucet forward to add as much head as desired (giggity).

 

[david_42]

Another vote for 10 ft and relax. Extra line = slower pour. A slower pour is an opportunity to admire your craft.

 

[JuanMoore]

I've never understood why there are so many inflated resistance figures out there for various line balancing components. Even under the best of circumstances calculations will only give you a rough estimate since the actual resistance of the components varies between manufacturers and production runs. The 2.7psi/ft figure is way high for 3/16" line, but rather than guess at what the actual resistance is for the particular line you buy, it's easier to just do what others have suggested and buy 10' or more per tap and trim as needed.

 

[emjay]

Depending on the line you get - even some 3/16" lines - you may even need up to 20". But I guess chances are, if you're buying that kind of line, you're probably well-aware.

 

[ajr2820]

Thanks for the help. I guess I'm just trying to be a perfectionist like with the beer. Just couldn't understand how the "10' and forget it" crowd and the "perform balancing calcs like you are building an A-bomb" crowd could come up with such varying suggestions for line length. I have an English Brown Ale ready now and will follow it with a Witbier, so I do need flexibility with the lines. Just going with 10' and will trim 'n' tweak from there. Thanks.

 

[JRems]

Just use 10 ft lines. It's not a bar situation, where you need the beer to flow at a fast rate. I see them dump out half glasses of foam at bars all the time. I'll be damned if I throw half a glass of homebrew away. I would rather hold my glass under the faucet an extra 3 seconds than deal with foamy beer

 

[emjay]

Are there any issues created by too long of a line?

 

[JRems]

The only issue would be a slow pour