Force Carbonating....and co2 problem?

[Boyd]

Hi Everyone,

I just purchased a chest freezer and all of the components to turn it in to a wonderful kegerator. I got my co2 filled today and force carbonated a keg of common ale. Now my co2 tank is at 600 psi (close to the "refill tank" warning). I'm wondering if for some reason my tank could have not been filled to full, or if I have a leak (it doesn't sound like it).

I force carbonated by:
- sanitizing the keg and lines.
- rinsing the keg and lines
- filling with beer
- connecting keg to co2 @ 35 psi through "in" connector
- bleeding keg of o2 through pull tab in the top of corny
- shaking the keg vigorously

I'm going to leave it for 48 hours, then disconnect, bleed keg of all co2, reconnect @ 4 psi, drink.

Am I doing this right, or is there a better way? And Yes, I've read through the forums and never felt like I got a defined answer. Please Help

Thanks,
Boyd

 

[brettg20]

What size tank do you have? Sounds like you are doing everything correctly, you may want to try and weigh your tank to check and see how much you have left. I believe a 5lb tank weighs 7.5lb empty and 12.5 full.

 

[Boyd]

What size tank do you have? Sounds like you are doing everything correctly, you may want to try and weigh your tank to check and see how much you have left. I believe a 5lb tank weighs 7.5lb empty and 12.5 full.

It is a 5lb tank. Do you have any idea what psi it should be at when full?

 

[brettg20]

No I don't, to be honest I never really pay attention to that, I just know how long my tanks usually last and when I think they are getting low I just weigh them. I would weigh yours, if you just got it it should weigh 12.5 full (without the regulator).

 

[brettg20]

Also, I saw that you plan on serving your beer at 4 psi, that may be a little low...I usually serve around 10 psi.

Cheers

 

[Boyd]

Also, I saw that you plan on serving your beer at 4 psi, that may be a little low...I usually serve around 10 psi.

Cheers

I'll most likely see what psi is working best. It was flowing nicely at around 5 psi when i was cleaning/sanitizing earlier, but I'll see.

 

[944play]

Serve at whatever equilibrium pressure is and use line length as the variable.
Start with 10 feet of 3/16" beer line and cut it down if it flows too slow.
CO2 has a lower vapor pressure at lower temps. Think of it like an aerosol can.
I prefer to purge my kegs before racking into them. The best way to do this is to fill it with no-rinse sanitizer and push it out with CO2.
Don't agitate beer. It kills the head.

 

[jaobrien6]

I got my co2 filled today and force carbonated a keg of common ale. Now my co2 tank is at 600 psi (close to the "refill tank" warning). I'm wondering if for some reason my tank could have not been filled to full, or if I have a leak (it doesn't sound like it).

Is your CO2 tank inside the kegerator? If so, that's the problem. The gauge won't read correct when it's cold. Or rather, it is correctly reading the pressure, but the pressure inside the tank drops when you lower the temperature (ideal gas law). You won't see the needle showing in the green zone on that gauge unless you let the tank warm up to room temperature.

Short answer, don't worry about it, your gauge will read low when it's cold. Your tank was most likely filled up correctly.

 

[Boyd]

Is your CO2 tank inside the kegerator? If so, that's the problem. The gauge won't read correct when it's cold. Or rather, it is correctly reading the pressure, but the pressure inside the tank drops when you lower the temperature (ideal gas law). You won't see the needle showing in the green zone on that gauge unless you let the tank warm up to room temperature.

Short answer, don't worry about it, your gauge will read low when it's cold. Your tank was most likely filled up correctly.

Wow, Thanks! This answered everything perfectly.