ph0ngwh0ng
Well-Known Member
So, indeed, only thing you haven't changed is the co2 supplier, co2 tank and the lines.
I think you've narrowed it down. Fingers crossed. Good luck!
I think you've narrowed it down. Fingers crossed. Good luck!
[...] What are my alternatives? Buy a brand new CO2 tank? That's a lot of $$$ that I'd rather not spend right now.
I looked for a pH meter on Amazon, and for $13 I certainly don't have any excuse not to have one. Should be here tomorrow.
It seems to work pretty well but it's only accurate to .1 as you noted. It did come with calibrating solution.
I'm not sure mash pH is the cause of the problem. I think that part of my process needs improvement, but I'm not convinced it's causing the really strong off-flavor and aroma I'm getting.
The welding shop I go to does a tank exchange.
Hopefully work will give me enough of a break for me to able to go out today and buy new QD's and gas lines.
I was also going to get my tank filled at another location, but then I started thinking I'm going to have them fill a CO2 tank that I've had problems with. Is it just going to prolong my issues and make troubleshooting more difficult? What are my alternatives? Buy a brand new CO2 tank? That's a lot of $$$ that I'd rather not spend right now.
Busy day yesterday. I went to the LHBS and bought new gas side QD's and lines. I also stopped at a different place for my CO2. This is a place that specializes in fire extinguishers. I talked with them a little bit in the front office and for $22, then will remove the valve from the tank, pressure wash it with 180* water, and replace the o-ring. Please do it, I said. The tech said that when he removed the valve, he could definitely smell something foul coming from the tank. He ran it through the washer (I forget what he called the thing) twice before he re-filled with food grade CO2. It ended up costing me about $45 for the whole thing. I have another cylinder that's going to get the same treatment pretty soon. The best part is that they refill while you wait instead of exchanging tanks. So I will be keeping this tank for a long time.
After I got home, I replaced all the QD's and lines and then kegged two beers. I should know in a day or two whether I've solved the problem or not.
You sure you're not mistaking carbonic bite as an off flavor?
BTW, did you edit that last post? I got something entirely different in my mail box.
My CO2 tank stays in the keezer. It doesn't seem to matter if I use a tank that's been in there for a week or a brand new tank that's closer to room temperature.
That's interesting though. How do you normally carbonate beers now?
I'm skeptical it's the carbonation process, because I carbonate just like a lot of people do. I set it to 30 PSI for 24 hours, then dial it back to 10 PSI for a couple of days. After 3-4 days I get a perfectly carbonated beer. If this process causes carbonic bite, then why are so many people doing it this way? And how are they doing it and getting beer that tastes good?
But there are PLENTY of homebrewers who do the burst carb method. And if it created a problem this serious, there would be warnings all over saying, "Don't carb your beer like this!" Instead, I see a lot of "I do it that way too" with a good mix of those who set and forget as well.
Am I being unreasonable in assuming that if this method were the cause of serious off-flavor problems there would be at least one person out there saying, "Don't do it that way"?
There was something hanging out in the back of my mind about the manifold that I couldn't quite remember. This morning while I was re-reading this thread, I remembered what it was.
Remember that I had the backflow sometime last year. I switched the manifold out because I had taken it apart for some reason - maybe to clean it? - and galled the threads on one of the shutoff valves. Then I bought another manifold to replace it, but the shutoff valves on that one were too large for my gas tubing.
So I removed enough of the threads on the damaged valve and swapped the valves from the old manifold to the new one and then completely forgot that I'd done so until this morning.
Could something be living up in those old shutoff valves that's causing this? A bit of mold perhaps?
I ordered three replacement shutoff valves with 1/4" barbs on them so we'll see.
Of course now I have to brew yet another batch of beer to test this out.
Having read through some of the newer posts may I suggest just replacing your co2 bottle? It looks like you have pretty much replaced everything else except the kegs which I really don't think is causing you the problem reading about your sanitization ritual.
That's a really good point. Back when I used to be able to brew some pretty excellent beers, I would use the same carb method I do now. I think the first one I kegged I shook the crap out of it and it was fine.If you were having success with your quick carb method at first, and the problem developed over time then I don't know if it would matter which carb method you use. I personally have never tried the quick carb method. I just set my regulator a little high, maybe 14 or 15 psi for a week, then down to serving pressure. No problems yet for me.
Just thought about this.
An infection would take some time to develop, definitely in an alcoholic environment, like beer. So if a persistent bug lives in your kegging/dispensing system, you wouldn't notice it right away, it would be gradual, increasing over time, particularly when it's cold stored in your keezer.
No, I'm not dumping them right away. After some time, the off-flavor lessens quite a bit. I brewed a Bell's two hearted clone a few months ago and after a couple days in the keg it was terrible. I took it out and let it sit at room temp for a couple of weeks and it went flat from a leaky poppet. When I hooked it back up, it wasn't terrible. There was no hop aroma or flavor, but the off-flavor had faded quite a bit. It tasted like a pale ale with no finishing or dry hops at all.So when you discover a keg has lost its appeal, how does that beer taste 2 weeks after that? 4 weeks? I hope you have not been dumping it right away. Maybe you're just very sensitive to carbonic acid.
I've taken it to LHBS's and pro brewers before but the flavor fades quite a bit by the time I get it to them. It's definitely strongest right out of the tap, and right after I tap the keg. The hop aroma and flavor never comes back, no matter how long I wait.It definitely would be good to get feedback from a few experienced tasters. Is there a homebrew club in your area? Other home brewers? Or a pro brewer? How about your LHBS?
Well it appears that was the problem all along. Last Thursday I kegged an amber ale and it's excellent. I purged the keg of CO2 using the method I described above and the beer still tastes great. No hint of the off-flavor that I could detect.
If I had a way to hook up my fermenter to a CO2 source that would be a great way to fill kegs but I don't.
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