Basic co2 tank and regulator tutorial?

[BrianDorry55]

I am about to keg my first beer...just got the co2 tank filled today...and here I am, pretty much without a clue on how to use my co2 tank and regulator properly and surprisingly, there isn't really any youtube tutorials or a lot of information on the web about how to use everything safely and properly...so I'm just a little cautious and frustrated because a) I want to do this safely, and b) I don't wan't to do something wrong and waste a bunch of co2.

I have a dual regulator...both of them have these big screws sticking out of them that I guess adjust the pressure? If I am only using one of my two valves does the other one need to be set a certain way? There is also little red valves close to where the tubing is connected...why would I need to close the valves? Wouldn't that just build up pressure in the co2 regulator? There are also red "bleed" valves...when would I need to use these? Finally...is there anything that I absolutely shouldn't do in terms of safety? Any help or links would be awesome...thank you.

 

[day_trippr]

[...]
I have a dual regulator...both of them have these big screws sticking out of them that I guess adjust the pressure?

Yes.

If I am only using one of my two valves does the other one need to be set a certain way?

No, the two regulators are totally independent, neither will know or care what the other is doing.

There is also little red valves close to where the tubing is connected...why would I need to close the valves? Wouldn't that just build up pressure in the co2 regulator?

A shutoff valve can be very handy when you don't have anything connected down stream. Like, if you only have one keg for now, you'll only be using one regulator, and can be assured you aren't leaking gas out of the unused regulator.

There are also red "bleed" valves...when would I need to use these?

You don't use them all that often, but if you want to check your regulator setting without it being affected by something down stream, you can use the shutoff valve to isolate the regulator, then pop the pressure relief briefly. This will drop the pressure down to whatever the regulator is set to provide, without any influence from, say, an over-carbonated keg.

Finally...is there anything that I absolutely shouldn't do in terms of safety?

"Don't cross the streams"

Any help or links would be awesome...thank you.

Check out this kegging thread compilation...

Cheers!

 

[BrianDorry55]

Thank you for your reply!

So I got everything figured out for the most part....keg was leaking from every orifice at first so I replaced the o-rings and then finally figured out how to get the top to set....

One more question...now that I have the beer in the keg, I pressurized it with 20 psi, bled out the oxygen, and put it in the fridge....I disconnected my co2 when I put it in the fridge....I plan to force carb it tomorrow after everything is cooled down, am I correct in disconnecting the co2? It should have a good blanket of 20psi co2 on it now so I should be okay I'm assuming.

 

[lousbrews]

You don't need to disconnect, you can leave it hooked up as everything will reach equilibrium eventually.

 

[day_trippr]

The keg could have been left on gas (if there was room for the tank, etc) which would get the carbonation process going that much sooner, but leaving the keg sealed up after flushing out the O2 is fine...

Cheers!

 

[BrianDorry55]

Thanks guys! I ended up hooking it back up at 10 psi overnight at 40 degrees. Then today at about 4:30 I cranked it up to 30 psi...hoping I can try it tomorrow night...one last question if anyone would be so kind...after force carbing at 30 psi, do I bleed off ALL of the pressure and then fill it back to serving pressure? Just not sure how I would know that I've brought the psi down enough without just draining it all. Thanks!

 

[day_trippr]

Shut off the gas, pull the PRV and let it all out. If you actually filled the keg, there's only a quart or so of head space, so letting all the pressure out isn't going to waste much CO2...

Cheers!

 

[mikescooling]

If I may, check ALL connections with soap bubbles (star-san), every part of that corny can start leaking (3 poppets/lots of gaskets). The regs job is to slowly feed in co2 as needed and most just set-it and forget-it. Finally don't be cheap with the co2, purge the keg ect.. it will give you a better beer.

 

[BrianDorry55]

Thank you day trippr! Exactly what I needed

 

[BrianDorry55]

Mike, I tested the keg full of sanitizer first...the keg hadnt been used in two years and the orings on the connections on the keg (forget what they're called) were shot...dry rotted onto the metal...so I cut them off and had to scrape off all the rubber and replace those...luckily all other orings and gaskets looked good and the starsan spray test showed no leaks...once I figured out how to get the damn top to seal at least. I purged quite a bit...probably more than I needed to...I'm a way overly careful person and since this is my first time kegging, I'm cutting no corners...thanks for the helpful words!

 

[BrianDorry55]

Well, just vented out the co2 and turned it back to 10psi and filled it back up...so hopefully I'll try it in a little bit here and we'll be good to go...pretty damn excited.

When I vented out the co2 it scared me a little because beer started bubbling out the top seal when the pressure got low...hooked the co2 back up and did the starsan test and no bubbling, so that's a relief.