Empty co2 tank..

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thebeers54

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Ok so my tank was pretty low. I thought I would have enough to force carb one more keg and be good for the weekend. Unfortunately when I got home from work today I notice a bad gas smell in my keezer and the tank was completely empty. I wont be able to fill it till tuesday. I have three kegs in there all carbed up now but no new co2.

So I decided to disconnect the gas and just leave them. How long will the co2 last? Should I leave them alone or is it ok to pull a few pints off them till I run out of pressure? Any input from people who have had this problem before would be greatly appreciated!!
 
I think that you'd be ok to just leave them as-is... especially since you are going to fill it up in a couple of days.
 
You should be fine for the weekend. No air can get in so it's not like you'll harm the beer, it will just slow to a trickle eventually...
 
You can pull some pints over the weekend. I do the same thing when I run out of gas and can't fill for a couple days. If you have some that are already at peak carbonation, pull from those.
 
I figured they would be fine.. it's basically a giant carbonated bottle (or can). But I want to DRINK them haha.. I was planning on having people over to party tomorrow... oh well. I'll just drink them till they stop pouring! Thanks all :mug:
 
Run to a sporting goods store and get a 20oz. paintball CO2 tank and fill it there.I will work for the weekend and also the next time you run out of CO2 you got a back up.
 
Run to a sporting goods store and get a 20oz. paintball CO2 tank and fill it there.I will work for the weekend and also the next time you run out of CO2 you got a back up.

Great idea.. just looked at some prices.. might have to do this. Thanks!
 
You have to have an adapter to open the pin-valve on a paintball tank.

If your kegs are over half gone the pressure in the head space will serve quite a bit on it's own. If it's full you wont get much.
 
Well someone at work just told me a bait/tackle shop down the street from me fills paintball co2. Not sure if they can fill my 20lb tank or not but I'll check it out tomorrow morning. Other option will be to get a paintball tank. I'm assuming the adapter needed could be something I find at my LHBS?
 
Be careful of the 12g CO2 cartridge dispensers, I have seen threads where people have been hurt when using them, and it causes the disconnect to explode (literally).

I know it is too late, but this is why I am a big proponent of having spares (of everything). I have around a dozen CO2 tanks at this point - two 50# tanks, the rest 20# tanks except for a 5# tank that I also have. You always seem to run out of CO2 when you need it the most! If you have a spare or two, you can always make sure that you have a full tank on hand.

I would also recommend for you to pick up a spare regulator, you can use it for transfers, purging, etc. and if the main kegerator regulator ever fails, you have one you can put in its place right away.

I also keep gaskets and poppets on hand, as well as just about everything else. I hate waiting for shipping or business hours when I am trying to get something taken care of at that moment, so I try to have as much as I can on hand.

Don't do it all at once, but buy gradually, and look on craigslist or ebay for good deals - that is how I buy most of my big stuff at bargain prices, and I wait till I have a lot I need to get or resupply before ordering online to minimize the impact of shipping (in some cases free).
 

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