Kegerator c02 pressure

[Mcody014]

Hey guys u have a edge star kegerator and I just got my first keg of shipyard pumpkinhead ale and wanted to know what pressure to set my C02 at? I tried 4lbs first and the beer seemed to be flat so I upped it to 10 psi and it might have been a bit too carbonated not too sure. I drove it home about a mile so I'm sure it got all sloshed up and plus the beer was a little on the warm side so I couldn't really get a good taste of it. Any pointers for the pressure please

 

[SGTSparty]

Look up CO2 volumes by style, then use this chart to dial in the correct PSI based on CO2 volumes desired and temp:

X axis is PSI, Y is temp, data points are Volumes of CO2

 

[Mcody014]

Thank you ! I'm having a little hard time understanding what exactly are the data points of c02? What does that number mean

 

[Mcody014]

And I assume the temp column is for liquid temp

 

[MrHat]

Hey Mcody, nice new kegerator. If the beer came carbonated, your ideal serving pressure depends on the diameter and length of the serving hose. I would shoot for 12-14 psi and you should be in good shape.

 

[csurowiec]

The data points in the chart above are the volumes of CO2 dissolved in the beer which directly relate to its level of carbonation.
First things first establish the temp of your beer. 38 degrees is a good starting point. Fill a glass, set it aside and immediately fill a 2nd glass. Measure the temp in the second glass. The first glass will have chilled the plumbing in your tower to get you a more accurate reading on the second glass. If that kegerator can hold the beer at 38 you are off to a good start. Any warmer than that and you can start to get foam issues when you dispense depending on the style of beer you have on tap. Set the psi to 12 and walk away. Don't even think about your kegerator for at least 24 hours. It takes that long for any changes to take hold. If you keep fiddling with it you will bugger it up. A day or two later when you are at 38 and 12 psi and the second pour comes out too fast and still foams then your lines between tap and faucet are too short. 10' is a good starting point and if it's too slow with 10 cut a foot off and try it again. The line should be 3/16" I.D. The system, when balanced should pour at the rate of 2oz per second. The first beer of the day will always have too much foam because the faucet and the plumbing in the tower are not cold enough. A small fan in the fridge blowing up into the tower will help with that.

 

[enkamania]

I have one of those. I bought a tower cooler because sometimes (especially summer in the garage) I would have foaming issues

 

[Mcody014]

I used this equation and came up with 5 feet of 3/16"hose was ideal. I want to serve the beer at 38 *F with a 2.48 vol/c02

 

[rtracer]

Do yourself a favor. Swap out beer lines for ones 9-10', install a tower cooler (easy to build or buy on ebay),keep regulator at 10-12 psi. That worked great for me when I used to have commercial beer in my keezer. Make sure your beer is cold, if it was a quick trip from the refrigerated cooler at the store to your kegerator, give it at least an hour for the beer to settle from transport. If it was a longer period out of refrigeration give it a day or so to chill down.

 

[Mcody014]

10 feet really ?

 

[rtracer]

Yep, that coupled with PSI set at 10-12 perfect pour and perfect speed of pours. I know it sounds long, but worked great for me and for my buddies that were having problems and moved to the longer lines. All from 5 foot lines

 

[enkamania]

10 feet really ?

When I replaced my original lines, I went with 10 feet.

 

[Mcody014]

Hm wow ok I'll go 10 feet ... It'll be good even for a commercial keg that isn't being forced carbonated ? Like the one i have of shipyard pumpkin ?

 

[rtracer]

Hm wow ok I'll go 10 feet ... It'll be good even for a commercial keg that isn't being forced carbonated ? Like the one i have of shipyard pumpkin ?

Yes, I went through more commercial kegs like that than I feel comfortable sharing lol

 

[Mcody014]

Haha ok cool thanks for the tips