HELP! - Homemade Carbonator Cap for Cornelius Keg Charger

[DonWheelio]

So I bought a Cornelius Keg Charger under the thinking I could buy a valve somewhere and modify a bunch of coke-bottle caps rather than paying $20 per carbonator cap.

Has anyone done this before? Have I screwed myself into using some proprietary valve here?



(http://www.beveragefactory.com/draftbeer/couplers/homebrew/cornelius_home_brew_keg_co2_charger.shtml)

 

[barnaclebob]

This thing is designed to screw onto the MFL part of a corny keg fitting. You will need a MFL fitting that you can screw onto your soda caps if you want to do it that way.

You will not be able to control your carbonation level other than just feeling to see if the bottle is hard. You will also end up spending a lot in C02 cartridges if you plan to actually carbonate with these vs keep something carbonated.

 

[DonWheelio]

Yeah I know it's not ideal, but the idea is to have a system in place to quickly carb a couple of litres (at most) on the odd occasion I haven't left myself enough time to let the beer naturally carbonate before going to club meeting or a mate's place to share some home brew.

I only brew 1 gallon batches at the moment, so until I scaled up my equipment I don't need a keg and equivalent size co2 system.

 

[fuzzy2133]

People have done other things to use soda bottles without a carbonation cap however I think they still had a regulator for the CO2 tank (I know one definitely used something similar to what you got).
Just remember too little carbonation is better than the bottle bursting and sending some one to the ER.

 

[day_trippr]

This thing is designed to screw onto the MFL part of a corny keg fitting. You will need a MFL fitting that you can screw onto your soda caps if you want to do it that way.[...]

If only it was that simple

With a 1/4" MFL to 1/4" MPT fitting and an o-ring for the MPT side you could come up with a gas-tight way to connect the charger to the bottle cap.

The problem is you'd have to leave the charger connected. Any reasonable solution would need to include a valve of some kind.

An effective way would be to adapt a corny keg post to the bottle cap and put a gas QD on the charger. I don't know that it would be a huge cost advantage over plastic carbonator [stupid autocorrect!] caps and a gas QD...

Cheers!

 

[barnaclebob]

If only it was that simple

With a 1/4" MFL to 1/4" MPT fitting and an o-ring for the MPT side you could come up with a gas-tight way to connect the charger to the bottle cap.

The problem is you'd have to leave the charger connected. Any reasonable solution would need to include a valve of some kind.

An effective way would be to adapt a corny keg post to the bottle cap and put a gas QD on the charger. I don't know that it would be a huge cost advantage over plastic carburetor caps and a gas QD...

Cheers!

Ah you could add a FFL to MFL check valve like the one that AIH sells. But then you are back up to the cost of a carbonator cap...

OP your best bet is to just buy a carbonator cap and gas disconnect. If you carbonate by shaking you will get beer back up into the device.