CO2 good or not? Help with an experiment?

[mackenziemicro]

Looking for a kind soul to help me test something... I brew in the tropics let's say that home brewing is semi legal but frowned upon... Hence my supplies come from far away and getting CO2 refills is hard... I found a place that does fire extinguishers and got it filled for about 3 USD!! 5 pounds... Not a word of English was spoken so asking about the grade was impossible... Got home and tried bubbling some through water and tasted immediately yuck smell and taste... Tried again same thing... Tried again and left it for 20 seconds... Tastes fine... So here's the Favour I'm looking for... Is this just normal for co2? Can some kind sole who uses food grade co2 recreate my test and see if you get the same results?

Many thanks
James

 

[ColoHox]

I get my bottle filled from at a paintball supply place, so I know that it is not food grade and it tastes fine. But, from what I understand, there is a very small difference in food-grade CO2 and commercial/industrial grade CO2, in that there can be a tiny percentage of other gases and/or oils in the tank, tubing, and gas. There is also a difference in the type of tank used to hold food-grade gas compared to industrial grade.

Really, there should be no (or very little) difference in the gas itself, but the way it is handled could affect the gas.

What kind of flavors were you tasting?

 

[mackenziemicro]

It was more of an aroma hard to describe...which may have been the gas hanging about in the glass... Like I said after about 20-30 seconds the water tasted normal... There was no residue in the glass so the gas must be clean... I have a ESB ready to keg I may just give it a whirl... My only other option is to find a tropical fish shop but I'm guessing the quality is the same...

 

[FarmerTed]

It sounds like there's not much alternative for you, but here's a good blog post on the grade of CO2 and how it relates to the amount of O2 that you introduce into your beer when force carbing. If you're getting industrial grade CO2 that is 98 or 99%, then oxygen could be a problem.

 

[bcrawfo2]

If you have a spare keg. Fill and chill it with water and crank up your co2 to 40 psi. Leave it for a week and you've got seltzer. What does that taste like?

 

[ImNoExpert]

Instead of running the risk of bad CO2 ruining my beer, I'd prime the keg with sugar and then use this to dispense. Those cartridges are probably easier to find in your tropical country with backward views on homebrewing.

 

[stpug]

co2 definitely has a smell to it. Nothing too strong but it's there. As much as it's flavor descriptor, the smell is astringent and/or lightly acidic. Again, nothing strong.

 

[Bellybuster]

All CO2 is created to "possibly" pass the highest possible standard (grade). They do not make lesser grades.
What they do though is fille lesser containers and do less testing in order to not have to certify gas as pure. The lowest grade is the same batch as the highest. Only a necessary amount is analyzed for purity.
For that blog to have several different "grades" at different purifies, they would have had to special order each one at great cost.
Oxygen is another one the same. Oxygen is created 99.5% pure. It is then graded as different grades industrial (no testing) medical (h2o added classified as a prescription drug) and aviators (99.5% pure O2)

 

[mackenziemicro]

Thanks for all the tips... I've set one keg to force carb and one with priming sugar, will taste test both through my beer engine and on draft see if there is any off flavours... Seems there are lots of varying opinions on this!! Hopefully I won't die!!

 

[sandyeggoxj]

Major draft beer supply companies sell co2 filters to filter all kinds of stuff. Might cost a few bucks but worth the peace of mind. Plus, your co2 is so cheap who cares!