Keggerator Problems?

[ChefyTim]

Hey,
I have a two tap keggerator made with a Sanyo frig. I have had it in place for 8-12 months and have had different results per keg.

Now it seems it doesn't matter which keg of brew I put in there the beer comes out with a 4-6 head. The lines are about 24" and the temp is kept around 40F or lower. The pressure is kept at about 3-5lbs.

Any ideas what might be cause the large heads?

Cheers

 

[Donasay]

are you over carbing your beer before you put it in the fridge? What are your carb pressures and how are you carbonating.

 

[Baldy_Beer_Brewery]

Are you regularly cleaning your lines, couplers and faucets?

 

[MoRoToRiUm]

24 FEET!? That sounds a little excessive. At least your first pint, probably more but not going to do the math, is all beer that has been sitting in your lines where CO2 tends ti separate easier. Do you have a lot of bubbles/air in your lines when you look at them?

I would do a search on line balancing- I have 10 ft 3/16 lines in my sanyo, and am finally getting it balanced around 8-10 PSI. Hope this helps!

 

[cdanprice]

24 FEET!? That sounds a little excessive.

24" = 24 inches. not feet.

 

[caskconditioned]

I think he said 24 inches? What diameter tubing?

As MoRoToRiUm said, I would start by replacing your beer lines w/ 3/16 tubing. I use 7ft lines w/o any issues but I do get some foam (at 10 psi) from time to time. I just ordered some new tubing (it's been a couple years so time to replace them) and I'm going to use 8.5 ft. Keeping things clean also helps but it is usually a resistance vs. head pressure problem.

 

[GreenwoodRover]

I've got a converted sanyo with dual tap as well. My tower is a 2foot tall piece of pvc, the taps are about 18" off the top of the fridge.
To carb i put a filled and sealed keg in the fridge for 24hours to get it to temp then connect the gas at 10-12psi depenging on style.
I have 6feet of line coming off each keg.
I get a pretty decent pour...

I'd say you might need longer lines.

 

[golfnmotorcycles]

If you previously were drawing with good results (minimal foam, appropriate head) and this just suddenly started, I'd look at the system (cleanliness) and check the temperature (of the BEER, in the GLASS). Anything over 38 will usually result in foam, especially as the temp gets higher and higher.

As others have said, the 24" line length does seem a bit undersized. I use 3/16" ID bonified beer line (run of the mill vynil from a hardware store is not always acceptable) and while I had some success with 5' lengths, the 8' lengths I'm now using have always offered excellent results.

 

[ChefyTim]

Cleaning: Yes, this is very likely something I do need to look at doing. However, the system has only had like 3 sets of kegs run through it but it is out on the back deck outside so the summer months are likely to produce a need to clean more often. Since its 14F outside right now I'd say there's no critters multiplying now but a cleaning is no doubt the next step. So, what's the best way to clean these? Do I need to take the entire system apart to clean or can I get away with just hooking up a keg full of sanitizer up to it?

Lines: The lines are 3/16" which came with the tower kits I bought from www.brewersdiscount.com so the lines should be suitable. I did however cut them shorter from the orginal size. I didn't really want to have 6' of lines in the keggerator as the kegs are right at the top of the frig. If need longer lines I can cetainly do that if that's the issue though.

I'll start by cleaning everything first but need some advice on the best way to clean the system as I haven't done that before.

Thanks

 

[BierMuncher]

Lines: The lines are 3/16" which came with the tower kits I bought from www.brewersdiscount.com so the lines should be suitable. I did however cut them shorter from the orginal size. I didn't really want to have 6' of lines in the keggerator as the kegs are right at the top of the frig. If need longer lines I can cetainly do that if that's the issue though.

Thanks

Your lines are too short. Part of a balanced system is having enough resistance in your lines to avoid gushing. The longer the lines, the more resistance you have and the more contained the CO2 is on delivery.

You will almost always have to draw off an ounce or two on your first pint of the evening and discard. Beer sitting in the lines will form CO2 pockets that will cause foam. Plus, your lines in the tower and the tap itself are warm and that causes foaming. Once you have drawn off 2-3 ounces, thing should be fine...but only if you get enough line back in there.

I use 7' of 3/16th on my Sanyo.

Also...maybe this is obvious. But never try to partially open your tap. That just causes foaming. Make sure your glass is right up against the tap at the sharpest angle you can hold it without the beer spilling over.