Kegging questions

[idtapit]

So new to kegging. My beer is about ready to keg, but didn't know if I add my priming sugar to it or not? Also when I force carbonate do I do it at room temp or cold, and how long at what psi?

 

[DonH]

dont add any priming sugar if you are force carbing it... or using c02 hah! set to 30psi, lay it in your lab and rock back and forth for about 7 minutes. unhook the c02 let it sit in a kegerator for 24 hours and let it fully saturate. Depending on how much beer line you have (resistance) and the beer style you would set the pressure accordingly. let it sit for a few days, then set to serving pressure and drink

 

[Paradingbull]

You can also do the "set and forget" carbonation. Put the regulator at 10-12 psi and wait about a week and the beer should be about right assuming it is chilled. This bit of time gives the beer some time to cold condition, settle out, and clear up. Some folks on here have the high pressure force carb method down to a science, but you can also totally overcarb your beer if you don't know what you are doing and then you have to do a post on "I way overcarbed my beer and how can I fix it?".

 

[Rev2010]

OP, you can do the set and forget method as in the post above me, but it will be more like a week and a half to two weeks before it's perfectly carbed up.

The other quicker method which I've done and works well to set the psi to 30 and let it pressurize the keg for 24 hours, don't shake or roll the keg around, just let it sit in your kegerator. After 24 hours turn off the gas to the keg and purge the gas from the keg using the release valve on top. Then reset your gas to your desired pressure and rehookup the gas and let it sit 4-5 days and it should be ready to drink.

Easiest method for a new kegger though is set and forget for 2 weeks. I personally don't recommend the rolling the keg around method at all.


Rev.

 

[bobeer]

ive done both the set-it-and-forget-it and the force carbonation methods. Both will carb the beer but the force method uses a lot more gas.

Cold crash your beer for a day or two before you carb it up. Cold beer absorbs the gas better and your carbonation will be better for it.

For what PSI just depends on what style the beer is or how carbonated you like your beer. I'd start with 20 psi for a couple days. Purge and set to serving pressure and see. If it's not as carbonated as you would like then set it back up to 30 psi and let it sit for another couple days, then purge and set to serving pressure and test it again. Repeat until you're happy.

Side note about priming your beer in the keg. You can totally do this, and people do, but personally I don't see the point when you can force carbonate with gas. I like to cold crash my beer to clear it out a little and leave sediment behind. Priming your kegs requires the beer to be at fermentation temps and you'll create more sediment in the keg. Plus it takes longer than force carb'ing.

 

[LLBeanJ]

Both will carb the beer but the force method uses a lot more gas.

Set and forget will use the same amount of gas as burst carbing, but will just take longer to get it into solution. In the end, there is no difference in the amount of gas that it takes to carbonate a keg using different methods (i.e., fast vs. slow) unless you are doing a lot of venting for some reason.

 

[Rev2010]

Set and forget will use the same amount of gas as burst carbing, but will just take longer to get it into solution. In the end, there is no difference in the amount of gas that it takes to carbonate a keg using different methods (i.e., fast vs. slow) unless you are doing a lot of venting for some reason.

May I ask since I've now seen this more than once... why is your post that comes earlier quoting a post that was made later? Did you edit your original post to remove all content and replace it with commentary toward a future post?

Just asking because as mentioned I've seen another thread in which the very first post in the thread is a quote of a later post and I'm wondering what the heck is going on lol.


Rev.

 

[Rev2010]

Set and forget will use the same amount of gas as burst carbing, but will just take longer to get it into solution. In the end, there is no difference in the amount of gas that it takes to carbonate a keg using different methods (i.e., fast vs. slow) unless you are doing a lot of venting for some reason.

Not sure that's accurate in the sense that burst carbing requires you purge the pressure before resetting the gas to the desired pressure. Set and forget doesn't require any purging. Of course, it's only a one time purge of what's left in the headspace from the initial 30psi blast, so I am in agreement that the amount of gas used is probably quite negligible, just saying it's not 100% the same amount of gas used.

So in essence I am agreeing with you... just being a nitpicky *********


Rev.

 

[LLBeanJ]

May I ask since I've now seen this more than once... why is your post that comes earlier quoting a post that was made later? Did you edit your original post to remove all content and replace it with commentary toward a future post?

Just asking because as mentioned I've seen another thread in which the very first post in the thread is a quote of a later post and I'm wondering what the heck is going on lol.


Rev.

I've perfected my time shifting powers.

Something weird is going on with the forum. Seems to be plaguing several folks. Austin is currently working on it.

Update: I think the time sych problem might be fixed now.

 

[LLBeanJ]

So in essence I am agreeing with you... just being a nitpicky *********

If burst carbing is done efficiently, there should only need to be one bleed-off, which to me would not amount to using "a lot more gas," and that is what I was attempting to set the record straight about with my post. But you are right, there will likely be some some loss of CO2 if not doing set and forget, though I would argue it would be negligible, especially if the keg is full.

 

[AnOldUR]

If burst carbing is done efficiently, there should only need to be one bleed-off, which to me would not amount to using "a lot more gas," [...]

Simple solution, don't bleed-off the keg. The half gallon or less volume of CO2 in the headspace at 30psi will come to equalibrium quick enough and will not greatly effect the volumes in suspension. 30psi for 24-36 hours then set to serving pressure with no purge is my usual method. Serve a few days later.

 

[Rev2010]

Simple solution, don't bleed-off the keg. The half gallon or less volume of CO2 in the headspace at 30psi will come to equalibrium quick enough and will not greatly effect the volumes in suspension. 30psi for 24-36 hours then set to serving pressure with no purge is my usual method. Serve a few days later.

If you don't purge the keg how do you then set the gauge to the new psi? You need to turn of the gas flow then purge the keg so the needle falls back down.


Rev.

 

[LLBeanJ]

Simple solution, don't bleed-off the keg. The half gallon or less volume of CO2 in the headspace at 30psi will come to equalibrium quick enough and will not greatly effect the volumes in suspension. 30psi for 24-36 hours then set to serving pressure with no purge is my usual method. Serve a few days later.

I've actually done this before. It does work.

You can dial down the pressure knob, say 1/2 turn and then wait. The needle will drop over time. Once it settles, dial down the knob again. Repeat until the pressure is where you want it. Alternately, you can do the same thing in one fell swoop, while only losing the gas in the hose by removing the gas disconnect and depressing the pin while reducing the regulator pressure until you get the setting where you want it, then replacing the disconnect and letting the gas pressure in the keg equalize on its own over time.

I think it's easier to dial down the reg, purge the keg slowly and watch the needle drop until it stops, then dial down some more, purge and watch the needle drop, repeat until desired pressure is achieved. This is almost always what I do. It results in more lost CO2, but I can live with that.

 

[AnOldUR]

If you don't purge the keg how do you then set the gauge to the new psi? You need to turn of the gas flow then purge the keg so the needle falls back down.

Close shut-off valve. Dial back pressure. Re-open. Check-valve prevents CO2 backflow.

 

[Rev2010]

Close shut-off valve. Dial back pressure. Re-open. Check-valve prevents CO2 backflow.

Ah ok, I don't have check valves so perhaps that's why my needles don't move unless I close the valve and purge the headspace.


Rev.

 

[AnOldUR]

Most (but not all) shut-off valves have check valves built in. On one of my regulators I have to dial it back well beyond the set pressure point before the needle will drop, and then dial it back up.

 

[bobeer]

Set and forget will use the same amount of gas as burst carbing, but will just take longer to get it into solution. In the end, there is no difference in the amount of gas that it takes to carbonate a keg using different methods (i.e., fast vs. slow) unless you are doing a lot of venting for some reason.

I guess that does make sense. It takes x amount of gas to carbonate the beer which gets pulled from the tank either way. I guess I just assumed it used more because of how it sounds when I'm burst carbing my beer. Now I don't feel bad about not having any patience to carb my beer.