Loss of pressure on co2 tank.

[Bluelinebrewer]

Hey all, first time kegger here. Ordered a dual tank keg kit from Midwest Supplies. It came with a 5 lb co2 tank, with I got filled. Filled up a keg, and set the whole thing in the fridge to force carb. Last night, before putting it in the fridge, the pressure read around 800 lbs in the tank. I just checked it out, and its already down to about 500 lbs. I've checked all over for leaks and I can't find any anywhere! Any ideas??

 

[bratrules]

The drop in pressure is because you have your regulator in the fridge. Its perfectly normal. It should stay at 500 lbs till your about to run out of c02. Then it starts to drop very quick. But by the looks of it your ok!!

 

[Pratzie]

Refrigerating the tank will cause the pressure to drop. Its normal. if it keeps dropping though that would be the sign of a leak.

 

[Bluelinebrewer]

Thanks and thanks!! I had an idea that that may be the issue, just wanted to make sure!!

 

[timpoulsen]

We used to carry Nitrous Oxide on the ambulance at the Fire Dept. Similar to CO2, it is a liquid under pressure on the bottom of the tank and as the gas depletes, the liquid level will go down. Generally once the tank of gas comes to equilibrium with the ambient temperature, the tank pressure will remain fairly constant for a long period. When you see dramatic drops, that's when the liquid is being depleted, the head space of gas in the tank is getting low and you will have an empty tank quite soon.