Kegged beer will not carbonate!

[DonNowlin]

I think I've tried everything and am still pulling what is left of my hair out.
I have had no luck carbonating beer. No matter what I do, I get flat tasting beer (IPAs) with lots of foam.

The fridge is at 38F (checked with two thermometers in a glass of water). Using 12 psi set and forget for over 3 weeks. Was originally using 5' of 3/16" beer line, then changed to 10' (based on reading up on resistance). Still flat tasting with mostly foam. Checked for leaks and found nothing.

At first I thought I was undercarbonated, then overcarbonated and now I'm just confounded.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated.

 

[HawksBrewer]

Might be a stupid question, but do you have any way of testing your regulator gauge accuracy? If it is reading high than you would be undercarbing, but that doesn't explain the foaming unless it is the first pour that has warmed in the lines that is foaming.

Have you tried blast carbing at 30 psi for 48 hours and then dropping down to serving psi?

 

[DonNowlin]

Was reluctant (because of fear of overcarbonating), but yep - tried that. Still same results.
No way if testing the gauges.

 

[hefehawk]

If you are getting a glass full of foam, then you have carbonation. The only problem is that the foam is the carbonation that has been released from your beer. Once the foam dies down, the beer will taste flat because of this loss of carbonation.

Try pouring a beer with nothing but foam and then pouring another glass right behind it. If that second glass is more beer than foam, then you have a warm tower or faucet. If the second glass is the same as the first, then you I don't know what to tell you since you lengthened your beer lines.

If you have a tower, you need to look into tower coolers so that the first glass isn't all foam.

 

[DonNowlin]

Haven't tried that. It is about 75 - 80 in the garage now. Using a fridge with faucets. If that's the problem, is there a product or DIY (faucet cooler)?

 

[headyyeti]

Haven't tried that. It is about 75 - 80 in the garage now. Using a fridge with faucets. If that's the problem, is there a product or DIY (faucet cooler)?

I know you can get a project box with a fan from Radio Shack and a hose that goes up to your tower. Do some searching in this forum.

 

[DonNowlin]

Not for a tower, but a faucet through the kegerator door.

 

[DonNowlin]

First glass did have more foam than second. Neither was more beer than foam though. Second glass was about half and half. So that would answer the foam problem. Is this problem and the flat tasting beer related. Would pouring multiple foamy beers eventually cool down the faucet to the point where the beer-to-head ratio is normal and the carbonation is inside the beer?

 

[terrapinj]

vent the keg and crack the lid and scoop some beer with a sanitized glass - if its carbed then your problem is in your faucet/lines somewhere

 

[Bobby_M]

If you're pouring foam through 10' of line, the beer is overcarbed. Also, just to be sure, you're opening the faucet all the way right? Is the foam coming out fast?

 

[DonNowlin]

It's coming out pretty fast. About 2-3 seconds to fill a pint glass with foam.

 

[Special Hops]

It's coming out pretty fast. About 2-3 seconds to fill a pint glass with foam.

Yeah to fast.

Longer lines to restrict the flow or back off on your carb pressure.

 

[DonNowlin]

And that's what is baffling me...if I'm using the set-it-and-forget-it method to force carb, how can it be overcarbonated (provided that my thermometers and gauges are correct)?

 

[DonNowlin]

Yeah to fast.

Longer lines to restrict the flow or back off on your carb pressure.

Longer than 10 feet?

 

[hefehawk]

I don't know what your problem is and wish I could help you, but a glass of beer should fill up in about 6 to 10 seconds. Also, I have an upright keezer with faucets through the door and I usually get an initial shot of foam followed by beer once the faucet is cooled. I usually pour the initial shot of foam and drink it down and then pour the beer into the glass.

If you have 10 feet of lines and used a set it and forget it method, I don't know what went wrong.

 

[OrangeParkPete]

Thought I saw a post on here about foamy beer and it was caused by a crack or pin hole in dip tube. The crack would allow co2 to be drawn out with the beer causing lots of foam.

 

[griz419]

Did you dry hop? Do you cover your siphon to make sure only beer made it into the keg? You may have an obstruction somewhere in the line. Last time I did a summer ale, I had the same problem and couldn't figure it out until a piece of grains of paradise finally passed, then it was fine.

 

[ShinyBuddha]

Are your lines coiled up to save space? If so, uncoil them and let them drop to the bottom of the fridge. I coiled my lines and had foam issues.

 

[DonNowlin]

Thought I saw a post on here about foamy beer and it was caused by a crack or pin hole in dip tube. The crack would allow co2 to be drawn out with the beer causing lots of foam.

I don't think I've got a cracked dip tube unless it's a crack that isn't easily noticed. I regularly change my O-rings and think I did before kegging the last beer.

Did you dry hop? Do you cover your siphon to make sure only beer made it into the keg? You may have an obstruction somewhere in the line. Last time I did a summer ale, I had the same problem and couldn't figure it out until a piece of grains of paradise finally passed, then it was fine.

I did dry hop this one and made sure to cover the auto-siphon in the secondary (and I think I put a paint filter over the end going into the keg just in case). I suppose something COULD have gotten through, but I doubt it.

Are your lines coiled up to save space? If so, uncoil them and let them drop to the bottom of the fridge. I coiled my lines and had foam issues.

Yes, my lines are coiled. When I went from 5' to 10' I coiled them to keep them out of the way. I'm willing to uncoil them and give that a shot. I'm game for just about any solutions at this point.

 

[DonNowlin]

Could a leak be a possibility? I have checked and didn't find anything, but logic tells me that if I keep 12 psi on it after 3+ weeks and it's not carbonated, then there is a leak. But OTOH, if there is a leak, then wouldn't the CO2 tank be empty (which its not)?

 

[DonNowlin]

No leak. Just checked again. Still nothing found. My best guess is overcarbonation, but I still can't figure out how. Back to the drawing board.

 

[DonNowlin]

No leak detected. Still scratching my head, but guess somehow I overcarbonated it. Back to the drawing board.

Pardon the duplicate post.

 

[Yooper]

No leak detected. Still scratching my head, but guess somehow I overcarbonated it. Back to the drawing board.

I just can't figure it out. The only thing I can think of is warm faucets that cause foaming and "knock" the co2 out of suspension.

 

[passedpawn]

No leak detected. Still scratching my head, but guess somehow I overcarbonated it. Back to the drawing board.

You might get a cheap picnic tap and 5' of hose to take your tap out of the equation. If the picnic tap is cold and you are still getting foam then it's not the tap.


Degas the beer by taking the keg out of the fridge. At room temp, much of the gas will come out of the beer. Open the pressure release valve (if you have one) and leave it for a day, then close the valve again and refrigerate. I haven't done myself but it's probably the fastest way to get the gas out.

 

[DonNowlin]

I think I figured out the problem. I believe it WAS the temperature differential between the cold beer/lines and the faucet. I tried pulling two pints - got nothing but foam leading me down the overcarbonated road. Bled, bled, bled, cooled, hit it with 30 PSI (although I will still avoid this if possible), let it sit for 2 days, relieved the pressure, hooked it to 12 PSI, pulled off 2 pints...foam on both, pulled a 3rd - foam, 4th - foam. After my 5th pint I began getting more beer than foam and a noticeable carbonation-feel to the beer. I guess the temps on the faucet were just so hot that it took 5 pints to cool them down. I'm going with the picnic faucets inside the kegerator and will let you all know how that works out.

 

[DonNowlin]

And the solution...dirty taps! The picnic faucets worked, which narrowed it down to the taps - either the temperature differential or something else. I took them apart, cleaned them, reinstalled, hooked up and bingo. Have not had a problem since. Guess you shouldn't expect them to come from the factory in perfect working order.

 

[beaksnbeer]

And the solution...dirty taps! The picnic faucets worked, which narrowed it down to the taps - either the temperature differential or something else. I took them apart, cleaned them, reinstalled, hooked up and bingo. Have not had a problem since. Guess you shouldn't expect them to come from the factory in perfect working order.

You didn't take down and clean and sanitize a new tap?

 

[DonNowlin]

Ran Starsan through it, but didn't tear it down prior to first use. Lesson learned.

 

[derekjames]

So I am having the same problem with my beers as well. All different styles, extract and all-grain, force carbonated in totally sanitized kegs at serving pressure for at least two weeks and then poured through 3' liquid lines. All my beers have consistently poured more foam than beer. I have not tried to pour more than two pints in a row to diagnose whether or not it was the tap temperature though. I will try the picnic tap inside the fridge to diagnose and let you know. Even when I manage to pour a nice pint wit gorgeous head, it is usually totally flat by the time I'm half way through it.

I have a different question related to carbonation though...Could it possibly be something about my brewing process that does not allow the beer to "accept" as much C02? To be clear, I've never had a stuck fermentation and all my beers have been generally close to my target FG's. Is it possible that something like not having properly cleared beer (i.e. lots of residual particles) cause carbonation/kegging/serving issues like foam and flat beer?