bought a keg, wife says no to co2 tank

[Lozootmaniac]

OK so I got a keg used with gasline and serving tap to put my APA into. Found my welding tank was missing the pressure relief valve and nobody would fill it or fix it. I priced out a cheap tank and was told there wasn't enough money for the new tank right after I kegged the APA. Now I'm drinking it as pressure builds in the keg.

If I don't let air in will it still spoil?

I'm drinking it at 50F and just serve it over ice. It tastes a lot better than a 40 of malt liquor that sat all night. Its foamy but kinda flat tasting yet very enjoyable. I drank three 16oz glasses before it wouldn't serve very fast anymore. There is nothing connected to the gas in line, will the keg breath there if I keep serving?

 

[treacheroustexan]

As long as the headspace was purged out of the keg and sealed with co2 your keg will be fine. You should be fine to keep serving without the gas connected until you need to hook it back up again. I'm not expert though

 

[Yooper]

OK so I got a keg used with gasline and serving tap to put my APA into. Found my welding tank was missing the pressure relief valve and nobody would fill it or fix it. I priced out a cheap tank and was told there wasn't enough money for the new tank right after I kegged the APA. Now I'm drinking it as pressure builds in the keg.

If I don't let air in will it still spoil?

I'm drinking it at 50F and just serve it over ice. It tastes a lot better than a 40 of malt liquor that sat all night. Its foamy but kinda flat tasting yet very enjoyable. I drank three 16oz glasses before it wouldn't serve very fast anymore. There is nothing connected to the gas in line, will the keg breath there if I keep serving?

You got a keg that previously held gasoline to serve your beer in?

 

[Psylocide]

You got a keg that previously held gasoline to serve your beer in?

Gas line?

 

[Lozootmaniac]

Gas line... and I sealed it by finding the "sweet spot" then checking later for leaks

 

[IslandLizard]

Most gas places that do tank swaps will take any tank, old or new, without asking questions or demanding extra money for hydro tests etc. Google or use Yellow Pages (yeah!) and call around.

Depending on how full you filled the keg, since the headspace wasn't purged with CO2, there will be some inevitable oxidation over time, otherwise your beer will be fine. Not sure it will carbonate enough to serve the whole keg.

If it peters out before empty, you could drop a suitably small (yes, small!) piece of dry ice in the keg and close up ASAP.

 

[alphaomega]

The obvious solution would be to hose clamp a condom the gas dip tube and pump air or water into it to displace the beer.
Just in case anyone thinks this is a good idea for real, this post was fully intended as a joke

 

[passedpawn]

Most gas places that do tank swaps will take any tank, old or new, without asking questions or demanding extra money for hydro tests etc. Google or use Yellow Pages (yeah!) and call around.

Depending on how full you filled the keg, since the headspace wasn't purged with CO2, there will be some inevitable oxidation over time, otherwise your beer will be fine. Not sure it will carbonate enough to serve the whole keg.

If it peters out before empty, you could drop a suitably small (yes, small!) piece of dry ice in the keg and close up ASAP.

I wouldn't add dry ice to a tank that is missing the PRV.

@Yooper, LOL!

 

[BlkWater_brewer]

If money was the issue, use a small charger type dispenser that uses the small CO2 cartridges. Hard to regulate but will solve your problem. About $19.

 

[Lozootmaniac]

I think they will swap it at another place. I'll post if they swap it broken.

 

[IslandLizard]

I wouldn't add dry ice to a tank that is missing the PRV.

Excellent point, some keg lids don't have PRVs.

I did provide a link to a site with the formulas to calculate the volume of gas produced by 1 ml (1x1x1 cm) (or 1.5 gr) of dry ice, which is 0.83 liters (at regular room pressure and temp).

There are other calculators, perhaps with direct conversions.

Let me add this advice for the OP. Unless your wife doesn't like beer at all, your next brew should be one she loves, and not too complicated to make (e.g., no Raspberry Lambic and those kinds).

A simple 20# tank swap at a gas dealer or welder's place should run you under $30. Small investment for a lot of gas, that can serve beer for years, provided you don't have leaks and stuff.

 

[IslandLizard]

I think they will swap it at another place. I'll post if they swap it broken.

Don't tell them, even if you think it's broken. Some places really don't care. They may even give you a nice shiny aluminum one, just for the asking. It's sometimes even better if your wife exchanged it. Most dudes tend to be nicer to women and more helpful.

 

[IslandLizard]

If money was the issue, use a small charger type dispenser that uses the small CO2 cartridges. Hard to regulate but will solve your problem. About $19.

Yup, but false economy!
You can swap a whole 20# tank for a few bucks more.

 

[gnef]

A fun method could be this:

If you have a spare keg, brew up a small batch, 1-2 gallons, and ferment it in the spare keg.

From the spare keg, make a gas jumper line, and as the new small batch ferments, it will produce enough CO2 to be able to push your current beer, as well as help it carbonate.

The only issue I can think of, is the gas that is produced by fermentation is not only CO2, and can contain some other chemicals, which could potentially cause flavor issues.

If you try this method out, let us know!

 

[IslandLizard]

A fun method could be this:

If you have a spare keg, brew up a small batch, 1-2 gallons, and ferment it in the spare keg.

From the spare keg, make a gas jumper line, and as the new small batch ferments, it will produce enough CO2 to be able to push your current beer, as well as help it carbonate.

The only issue I can think of, is the gas that is produced by fermentation is not only CO2, and can contain some other chemicals, which could potentially cause flavor issues.

If you try this method out, let us know!

+1 What an excellent idea!

You could run the gas through a filter made up of a tube filled with cotton wool and dampened with Starsan, a la John Palmer's air filter illustration.

 

[douglasbarbin]

That seems like a hell of a lot of trouble when you could just get a CO2 tank and regulator.

 

[passedpawn]

I have one of those little CO2 guns that takes a paintball or bicycle tire CO2 cartridge. It will push most of a keg of beer. I use it on a 3g travel keg. Maybe you could get one of these?

 

[k1ngl1ves]

I have one of those little CO2 guns that takes a paintball or bicycle tire CO2 cartridge. It will push most of a keg of beer. I use it on a 3g travel keg. Maybe you could get one of these?

A perfect example of how to inform people you have an in the ground pool without coming off as snooty.

 

[passedpawn]

A perfect example of how to inform people you have an in the ground pool without coming off as snooty.

Inground pools in florida are like basements up north, nearly everyone has one. It makes a great background for pics I think.

We don't have basements though, ugh!

 

[IslandLizard]

That seems like a hell of a lot of trouble when you could just get a CO2 tank and regulator.

Absolutely, Cat in the Hat kinda thinking. Desperate times warrant equal measures...

 

[dyqik]

Yup, but false economy!
You can swap a whole 20# tank for a few bucks more.

Sure, but you do then have portable serving option for your keg (with a picnic tap), and spare CO2 source when you need to go and get your tank refilled.

Also, it's a handy tire inflator for your bike, with the right adapter - I actually keep 16g CO2 cartridges around for my tubeless mountain bike tires. I just seem to end up using half of them on kegs...

 

[TallDan]

OK so I got a keg used with gasline and serving tap to put my APA into. Found my welding tank was missing the pressure relief valve and nobody would fill it or fix it. I priced out a cheap tank and was told there wasn't enough money for the new tank right after I kegged the APA. Now I'm drinking it as pressure builds in the keg.

If I don't let air in will it still spoil?

I'm drinking it at 50F and just serve it over ice. It tastes a lot better than a 40 of malt liquor that sat all night. Its foamy but kinda flat tasting yet very enjoyable. I drank three 16oz glasses before it wouldn't serve very fast anymore. There is nothing connected to the gas in line, will the keg breath there if I keep serving?

A lot of kegs don't stay sealed without pressure. You may start letting in O2 if you let the pressure get low enough.

You got a keg that previously held gasoline to serve your beer in?

I read that a few times before i figured that out too.

Don't tell them, even if you think it's broken. Some places really don't care. They may even give you a nice shiny aluminum one, just for the asking. It's sometimes even better if your wife exchanged it. Most dudes tend to be nicer to women and more helpful.

The guy i usually see at the welding supply shop where I swap mine is also a homebrewer and we usually chat a little about what we're brewing. He's given me a free co2 swap (20lb!) when i was there for co2 and o2, then another time gave me a 5lb aluminum tank when I was swapping a 5lb steel tank. So, that's another angle to take.

A fun method could be this:

If you have a spare keg, brew up a small batch, 1-2 gallons, and ferment it in the spare keg.

From the spare keg, make a gas jumper line, and as the new small batch ferments, it will produce enough CO2 to be able to push your current beer, as well as help it carbonate.

The only issue I can think of, is the gas that is produced by fermentation is not only CO2, and can contain some other chemicals, which could potentially cause flavor issues.

If you try this method out, let us know!

The issue i see is that the head space of this fermentation keg is going to be full of regular air when you start, so you'll be pushing mixed air into the beer keg for a while before it fills with co2. Enough oxygen to ruin the batch, I'd bet.

 

[beernutz]

You can make a reasonably cheap jockey box for cooling your beer before serving. I used an old plastic beer tap, a six pack cooler I already owned, and a small cold plate I bought used for years to serve cold beer before I finally built a keezer. I still use it now when I take a keg on the road or when I want to serve more taps than my keezer has and it still does a great job. I didn't pay more than $50 total for all the parts including the keg fitting.

 

[Cider123]

OP, if you are having issues getting a CO2 tank, wait till she finds out all the other things you'll want/need to buy. This hobby is all about upgrades and lots of stuff.

Good luck

 

[Smellyglove]

Prime it with sugar in the tank and use one of those miniature cartridges to keep pressure as you emty the tank?

 

[Yooper]

I wouldn't add dry ice to a tank that is missing the PRV.

@Yooper, LOL!

I thought it was funny, too.

I know it meant "used keg with gas line", but I just had to be a smarty pants.

C02 tanks aren't cheap, nor are regulators, but I think they are necessary to serve kegged beer without problems.

Otherwise, I recommend just bottling.

 

[BlkWater_brewer]

Yup, but false economy!
You can swap a whole 20# tank for a few bucks more.

Sure you can do that in certain places. Around here you can swap a tank as well as long as you already have one to swap. Then there is the cost of a regulator. So no it's not false economy for him. Unless someone gives him a tank and regulator you're talking a minimum $70 for tank and reg and then filling. I have found when the wife says no - she usually means spend no money.

 

[Dr_Jeff]

scour CraigsList & be patient

 

[jrgtr42]

If money was the issue, use a small charger type dispenser that uses the small CO2 cartridges. Hard to regulate but will solve your problem. About $19.

Good way to do it, IMO. You'll be able to drink this keg, and you'll have the charger later on for if you want to bring a keg to a friend's house. You'd just need more of the little cartridges.
You won't get enough pressure from carbonating the beer to push it all out, and what you do get will be flat less than a gallon in.

 

[Lozootmaniac]

My update may surprise some but I Never did acquire co2. I just drank it as it built pressure from added corn sugar. Once it got low just blew in my gas line with a bike pump to get out the last two gallons. Going to probably grab a co2 cartridge bike thing to dispense. I'm going to pour the one gal batch I made with wine yeas into it for the added sugar this time instead of corn sugar. Once it is naturally carbed I'll get paid and just buy one. I can take the wife's heat over 30 bucks for it and cartridges vs the tank and fill. My old tank was damaged and It was too obvious to trade out. I feel woosy from drinking cask ale (almost flat) beer over ice for the past two hours. Its tasty just doesn't agree with my tummy.

 

[douglasbarbin]

It was probably extremely oxidized if you used a bicycle pump.

 

[dyqik]

It was probably extremely oxidized if you used a bicycle pump.

Depends on how long it was exposed to the oxygen. Cask beer is served by allowing air into the cask, but it has to be drunk in 3-4 days after being exposed to air before the oxidation ruins it. For a couple of days, English style beer improves, if anything. Oxidation doesn't happen instantly, for much the same reason as set and forget carbing takes time - it takes time for gases to diffuse into the beer.

 

[Yooper]

Depends on how long it was exposed to the oxygen. Cask beer is served by allowing air into the cask, but it has to be drunk in 3-4 days after being exposed to air before the oxidation ruins it. For a couple of days, English style beer improves, if anything. Oxidation doesn't happen instantly, for much the same reason as set and forget carbing takes time - it takes time for gases to diffuse into the beer.

But in a party keg, when a bicycle pump is pumped into the beer, it happens very quickly.

I used to go to "keg parties" when I was a youngster and even by the next day the leftover beer was horribly ruined by pumping air into it the night before.

 

[dyqik]

Do Sanke's put the gas in at the bottom or top? If the air is bubbled through oxidation will happen much much quicker. In any case, air under pressure will dissolve and oxidize beer quicker than air at atmospheric pressure in a cask, so yeah, that doesn't surprise me.

Also, lager and light lager styles would be much more susceptible to becoming undrinkable due to oxidation than English style ales - there's nothing to hide the oxidation taste behind.

 

[mattd2]

...My old tank was damaged and It was too obvious to trade out...

Did you try? As a few have said the guy swapping it out may not care.

 

[jtratcliff]

might be easier to just swap out the wife....


I keed! I keed!

 

[thelastleroy]

If you were to prime the keg with dextrose (which is what you have been doing, I gather) and wait 2 weeks, your beer would be mostly carbonated. 3 weeks and it would be brilliantly carbonated (eg. bottle priming). This would save you from trying to carbonate from those little airgun cylinders. Once the beer is ready, connect the airgun cylinder to dispense only, you shouldn't need much gas to push out the beer and maintain the carbonation level.

 

[dyqik]

What I have found is that the little push in 16g co2 trigger things leak a little from the cylinder, so you only get one days use out of each cylinder. The screw in types are probably better though.

 

[Lozootmaniac]

Ok to clear a few things up, I only used the bicycle pump for two gallons. That was gone instantly as my friends were over and we ended up drinking a case of hurricane fourties after that.

I did carbonate it I'd say maybe to one volume by priming the keg. I hung my keg by the lids handle to put the weight of the beer on the gasket, sealed fine. I'm probably never going to buy co2 now cause the beer was so enjoyable "nearly flat" on ice. Thanks wife for postponing my $100 adventure with gas.

Another side note is most of the beer came out as I needed it over a three day period just on priming gas.

I also hooked my gas side to the hose that came with it to vent for about 12 hours after adding priming sugar to let oxygen out.

I know this is very disagreeable but I blew smoke into the keg right before I closed the keg.

So in order, siphoned beer into keg, blew in a bit of co (smoke), capped it and found sweet spot(seated oring), hung it up by lid handle, hooked only the gas in line, put line into bowl of vodka (about 8 fl oz),waited until late the next morning to unhook the gas line, drank vodka, waited four days while trying to find a guy that would trade the tank and no one would take it, ended up having a last minute idea to have a party, bought fourties, drank about 3 gal of hb with wife and some chicks she brought home from bar at about one volume dispensed by built up pressure, my friends came over for fourties and wanted hb, found a air pump in one friends car, dispensed remaining 2 gal in less than three hours with said pump, got wasted on hurricanes and passed out. I woke up at work. I don't remember going to work but apparently I was on time so it all worked out in the end and no stinky beer.