Leaking O2 (Oxygenation Kit 2.0)

[JayDubWill]

My O2 regulator seems to have developed a leak in the past six months. When I first got it, last April, It worked great. I was getting 4-5 batches per bottle of BenzOmatic O2 (45-60 seconds each), and I was ok with that. Now i'm only getting 1 batch and when I come back to it the tank is dead. The obvious answer is to disconnect the regulator after each use but I cannot, for the life of me, disconnect it once it's connected and opened up. It's like there's some sort of interlock preventing it from unscrewing. And, yes, i'm aware it's reverse threaded. I'm not cross threading the bottle. It twists on easy enough, and when the bottle is empty it disconnects just as easily. Any thoughts?

 

[Rev2010]

I have no problem unscrewing mine and do so after every use. Try putting a little more muscle into it. You are fully closing the valve to the off position before trying to unscrew it yes? Also, I'm fairly sure I know exactly where your leak is coming from as I briefly encountered a leak one time when connecting the canister. The little pin in the center of that brass screw on valve comes loose. You simply need to retighten it back up with a small wrench.

The little pin there in the center than goes into the oxygen tank is what I'm referring to.

Rev.

 

[LLBeanJ]

Definitely a leak somewhere. You should get 20 batches or more (@ 60 seconds each) from a bottle.

 

[JayDubWill]

I have no problem unscrewing mine and do so after every use. Try putting a little more muscle into it. You are fully closing the valve to the off position before trying to unscrew it yes? Also, I'm fairly sure I know exactly where your leak is coming from as I briefly encountered a leak one time when connecting the canister. The little pin in the center of that brass screw on valve comes loose. You simply need to retighten it back up with a small wrench.

The little pin there in the center than goes into the oxygen tank is what I'm referring to.

Rev.

I tried to unscrew the bottle the last couple of times (different bottles) after using it, and it was impossible. I was worried I would break off the barb, even though I was trying to not put pressure on it. I'm thinking the leak is causing some sort of pressure bind.

Thanks for the tip on the pin. I was able to unscrew it with an 8mm socket and inspect it. I noticed there wasn't any plumbers tape on the threads so I added some. I'm not sure if tape is even used on threads for gas lines, but I figured it couldn't hurt. I also re-taped the barb connection threads and tightened everything very well. We'll see in a week or two when I brew again.

 

[JayDubWill]

I have no problem unscrewing mine and do so after every use. Try putting a little more muscle into it. You are fully closing the valve to the off position before trying to unscrew it yes? Also, I'm fairly sure I know exactly where your leak is coming from as I briefly encountered a leak one time when connecting the canister. The little pin in the center of that brass screw on valve comes loose. You simply need to retighten it back up with a small wrench.

The little pin there in the center than goes into the oxygen tank is what I'm referring to.

Rev.

I just wanted to give you a quick update, I brewed yesterday and bought another oxygen cylinder. After using it, I was able to unscrew the regulator without any problem! Thanks again for the help.

 

[Rev2010]

I just wanted to give you a quick update, I brewed yesterday and bought another oxygen cylinder. After using it, I was able to unscrew the regulator without any problem! Thanks again for the help.

My pleasure man!


Rev.