CO2 Tank Pressure Drop

[SanPancho]

wait- you're referring to the on/off knob of the actual tank valve being the source of the leak? i was talking about the connection of the regulator assy to the tank outlet, where we used to put those little paper disks, and now there's an embedded oring.....

 

[day_trippr]

Yes, the cylinder valve "knob". Not the coupler end...

Cheers!

 

[IslandLizard]

ha! you mean dragon's breath? i'm not so proud as to deny i got sold a stick of that stuff once at berkeley. even smoked it. d'oh. no bueno.

Interesting to know!
Now I was talking plumbing... old-fashioned (reddish brown) pipe dope and hemp fiber to make a seal on threads. Life before PTFE.

 

[SanPancho]

maybe..... i feel like our super old galvanized pipes often have a kinda/sorta reddish substance on the joints. but cant say it looks like it has anything fibrous in it. maybe it was crushed when it was tightened down? its a possibility but couldnt say for sure.

we do still see pipe joints that were sealed with lead though...... yikes

 

[beeramI]

This is my first time kegging, so it's probably just lack of understanding or just being a bit paranoid.

I kegged about 3 gallons of beer and it's been sitting in the kegerator at around 13 psi for about 2 weeks. The 20lb CO2 tank sits outside the fridge, in about 65-68F ambient temperature. The high pressure gage was originally reading at 800 psi, but I just noticed today that it's now reading a little under 500 psi. I haven't checked the pressure too many times recently, but if I recall it read close to 800 psi a few days ago. CO2 usage consisted of a few oxygen purges, a few times that I disconnected the gages and everything (from not knowing what I was doing), and pouring a few pints. Checked for leaks at all connections by spraying starsan, nothing.

I know this gage is generally classified as "useless", but is this normal? It's probably fine, but I just don't want to find the gage in the red zone and be outta gas. I've read that a 20lb tank should last for dozens of kegs. I can put the tank on a scale (which is a pain since it's not a continuous reading) but being that there doesn't look like any leak, not sure how that would help.

I know this probably isn't it but.....I chased a CO2 leak in my keezer for weeks. It turned out being the air release valve on a corny keg. When I took it apart it looked like beer had built up and dried on the air release stem and couldn't create a tight seal. I always throw my keg covers in StarSan when cleaning my keg but never thought to take apart the air valve.

 

[shoengine]

I have a leak in my kegerator setup somewhere, and it is just daunting trying to track it down with two manifolds and three kegs. There are so many interfaces!

 

[beeramI]

Did you try soapy water to look for bubbles? Or, if you have homebrew kegs, try looking at the air release valve. I took mine apart and there was a miniscule build up of dried beer on the stem that wouldn't allow an airtight seal.

 

[slurms]

This thread took a turn for a bit (I think there's a pun in there...). Anyway, some good stuff in here.

I sprayed Starsan and put soapy water on all the connections that I could think of. Nothing showed signs of bubbles. Only places that I think it could be is the gas disconnect (which bubbles won't really work there) or somewhere in the regulator itself.

Unfortunately, the homebrew site I got the regulator from wants me to send it to them to check it out in their work shop, and send it back to me when they're done (huh, sounds like the Grinch). So I'm out of a regulator for a while. But I did score 2 more 20# tanks for $80. Probably excessive to have 3 big tanks on hand, but will at least keep two filled. Maybe unload the third one..

 

[bracconiere]

Nothing showed signs of bubbles.

for $27 you can get a scale for your tank. accurate to the 1/10th ounce! if you suspect a QD i'd pull it and see how the scale changes over a day.

i usually just flail wildly until the scale stays solid! it makes burst carbing great too! lol (co2 leaks suck, but as G.I. Joe says knowing is half the battle!!)