CO2 regulator - can I use my MIG welder?

[petert1401]

Hi guys,

I've been brewing for a little while and have decided to take the plunge from bottling to a corny keg - bottling just gets so tedious after a while...

Anyway, having ordered myself a corny keg, I'm thinking about the best/cheapest way to pressurise it. I have a Mig welder with a big bottle of distiller's grade CO2 attached to it. It has a twin-gauge, single-stage regulator on it. The guage on the cylinder side reads 0-6000psi or 0-400bar. The guage on the output side though, is calibrated as a flow, not a pressure (0-47 litres/min or 0-100 cu ft/hr).

The regulator itself though, is labelled 0-4bar.
My question is - can I assume that full-scale on the output guage is approx 4 bar and I can scale accordingly?
Or should I replace the output flow guage with a 0-4bar pressure guage?
Or do I need to replace the whole regulator?

Thanks for any feedback...
Peter

 

[Golddiggie]

Everything for carbonating beer is in pressure (psi) not flow (LpM). So you'll either need to modify that regulator or simply get one made to do the job. I would NOT try to go cheap on the carbonation regulator. There are plenty of threads where people post up about issues with old, or cheap, regulators. IMO you're better off spending ~$55 for a single body Taprite regulator and not worry about it.

BTW you'll also need to make sure the port on the regulator body is ready for beer gas hose.

 

[petert1401]

Ok,thanks for the advice Golddiggie - I think a new regulator is probably safest as 'modifying the one I have' sounds like a possible recipe for disaster. Messing about with 1000psi+ isn't something to be done lightly - I have a sneaking feeling that it may be $55 spent needlessly, but better safe than sorry I guess...

 

[JRems]

Doesn't mig gas have sone argon in it too? I would also recommend the proper regulator. You can get a new one for under $50

 

[Misplaced_Canuck]

Doesn't mig gas have sone argon in it too? I would also recommend the proper regulator. You can get a new one for under $50

MIG gas is generally an Argon + CO2 mix. I've welded MIG with CO2 only (I did the opposite as the OP) and it works OK, but you really have to bury the nozzle in the puddle.

MC

 

[petert1401]

Nope, this is pure food-grade CO2. I got the cylinder from a supplier to the drinks industry.
An argon mix does make welding a lot easier, but is much pricier than CO2...

 

[YulebeHoppin]

Welding with CO2 is often referred to as MAG welding, (Metal Active Gas) instead of MIG welding, as CO2 is not truly inactive. It is definitely less reactive than not using gas at all though...