Learn from my mistake

[EdWort]

My chest freezer in the garage has been my chilling/carbonating box for a while. It's great, I have room for 3 cornies, a bottle of CO2, and a bucket fermentor for crash cooling before kegging.

Anyway, I carb 3 cornies at a time using a stainless cross. Anyway, I ended up with a perfect storm last weekend. It started with what I guess was filling a keg of Apfelwein up too high and it covered the gas in post.

I thought my bottle was empty so I pull on the safetly valve on my haus ale. The next thing I see is fluid flowing through all my clear gas lines.

I pulled off the grey gas lines ASAP, but not before my gas hoses were contaminated and fluid flowed into my regulator.

What did I learn from this?

Never fill a keg over the gas in post.
spend 9 bucks and install a check valve turn off on my next regulator.

I'm starting over with my carbing system and tossing the clear sections of gas line. The red main line is silicone based which I will clean and let dry till my new regulator arrives from Micromatic (which is on sale for $44.70)

I have this puppy on my 20# bottle and I love it. I also ordered a check valve turn off for all my regulators now.

They are much cheaper than replacing a regulator.

 

[ajf]

If only you'd posted this a couple of weeks ago.

I only ended up with beer in the gas line. It didn't make it to the regulator, but it was still a PITA to clean out.

-a.

 

[user 4295]

Just a heads up on those valves from Northern Brewer. Be very careful when wrapping the teflon tape on the threads, being sure to keep it away from the end by about a thread or two. This will keep the tape from getting into the ball check when tightening down. Ask me how I know!

Also, do not attempt to tighten, loosen or otherwise place a wrench of any kind on the barb fitting installed from the factory into the valve body. The threads ARE NOT pipe threads. The barb fitting is secured in place with the 'Red' Loctite. This cures into a crystalline structure in the threads, and if you move the fitting, even in the slightest, the Loctite will fracture and it will leak. Ask me how I know that!

I also installed these inline check valves from US Plastics into all of my gas lines for some added, cheap insurance just in case one of the shutoff/checks installed into my regulators fails.

 

[EdWort]

Thanks John, I'm going to see if I can cancel the $9 check valves. That's just what the doctor ordered for $1.47 each. sweet!

 

[user 4295]

As you can see in this photo, I have those valves on all of my gas lines. They work great as shutoff/check valves, and because I went with 1/4" flare fittings instead of barbed, they were the only ones I could find that had everything I was looking for, 1/4" flare, shutoff/check, and small physical size. The plastic inline checks were for added insurance, but I still needed shutoff's so I kept the ones from Northern Brewer.

 

[BierMuncher]

Anyway, I carb 3 cornies at a time using a stainless cross. Anyway, I ended up with a perfect storm last weekend. It started with what I guess was filling a keg of Apfelwein up too high and it covered the gas in post.

I thought my bottle was empty so I pull on the safetly valve on my haus ale. The next thing I see is fluid flowing through all my clear gas lines.

I pulled off the grey gas lines ASAP, but not before my gas hoses were contaminated and fluid flowed into my regulator.

What did I learn from this?

Never fill a keg over the gas in post.
spend 9 bucks and install a check valve turn off on my next regulator.

I'm starting over with my carbing system and tossing the clear sections of gas line. The red main line is silicone based which I will clean and let dry till my new regulator arrives from Micromatic (which is on sale for $44.70)
I have this puppy on my 20# bottle and I love it. I also ordered a check valve turn off for all my regulators now.


They are much cheaper than replacing a regulator.

Okay Edwort. Help me out. I modeled my chest gas system after your "T" system.

When you say you thought your bottle was empty, are you referring to your gas bottle?

THe safety valve on your Haus Ale...do you mean the corny gas relief valve?

I have one of these regulators on my chest system:



I'm just trying to avoid doing what you did but I'm a little gray on what you did exaclty.

I'm assuming that the gas pressure in the apfelwien keg ended up pushing liquid through the gas tube when you oepnned one of the other corny valves?

 

[EdWort]

Yep. With my stainless cross, when I pulled on the relief valve on my Haus Pale, it let the pressure in my Apfelwein push out since my bottle was empty.

On of those plastic check valves on each line will take care of you. It's one thing to mess up a regulator, but it's another to contaminate the other two kegs. I think I caught it in time.

 

[vasie]

Man.. I wish that I read your post 10 minutes ago.. I JUST did that.. beer drowned my regulator.. I already have it pulled apart and I am trying to assess the damage. Looks like a cleaning with do it.

 

[BierMuncher]

I think I'll post a few rules for myself on the freezer, until I get some backflow valves.

1) Do not fill kegs any closer than 1" from bottom of gas-in tube.
2) Do not pull pressure relief valves without first disconnecting gas line from keg.
3) If keg appears to be running dry, disconnect gas line and let residual pressure push remaining beer.
4) If residual pressure is too low to push remaining beer, do not attempt to recharge the keg without first disconnecting other kegs (gas lines).
[edit thanks to gnef]
5) Do not introduce a new keg to the system without first disconnecting the other kegs...to prevent exisitng kegs from bleeding back to new keg.

 

[gnef]

just as a caution to those using the shut-offs with integrated ball check valves. i've read of people having problems with theirs. the issue is that the cracking pressure on those is fairly high, so if you have a slow backflow, it will allow it, and won't shut off the flow. i remember reading a thread a while ago where a brewer had just this problem.

i also use the usplastic inline check valves. i recommend using oetiker clamps with them though. i've had leaking issues when using the worm clamps. actually, i've just had issues with worm clamps in general, and have moved everything to the stepless oetiker clamps. i'm a big fan of them now. they are single use though.

ed, you may want to look in to getting a manifold with individual shut-offs for each keg. this way you can isolate each keg if you need to. for example, lets say you are carbonating two kegs, and want to introduce a third. with just the cross, you will get the other two kegs venting to the new keg (unless you have the check valves installed, of course). with a manifold, you can isolate the new keg first by shutting off the other two kegs at the manifold, and pressurize the new keg. once it is fully pressurized, you can turn on the manifold to the other two kegs, and everything should be fine as the pressures should all be approximately the same now.

 

[BierMuncher]

i recommend using oetiker clamps with them though. i've had leaking issues when using the worm clamps. actually, i've just had issues with worm clamps in general, and have moved everything to the stepless oetiker clamps. i'm a big fan of them now. they are single use though.

gnef, where do you get these clamps?

I'm intrigued....

 

[gnef]

i bought mine from mcmaster. they are called 'gap-free pinch hose and tube clamps'

this is the item number i use for 1/4'' gas tubing: 52545K27
this is the number i use for 7/16'' OD beerline is: 52545K51

you may want to check the values though for yourself.

if you are getting these at mcmaster, you may also want to get bulk o-rings for your kegs.

hope this helps!