Minimal Carbonation in Kegs

[dancingfetus]

Hey guys,

Ive had my kegs sitting at 15 PSI at 4C for just over two weeks. They both have very minimal carbonation to them, and Ive checked and rechecked my lines for leaks. I cant find anything, and my regulator high pressure gauge seems to be staying at the same level (450)

The carbonation that I do get is very small bubbles, that seem to dissipate after a short time, unless I shake the beer, creating a bit of foam, and it tastes flat. I have also bottled a bit of the beer to test for carbonation, and very minimal co2 is released.

I have been following the forms since I set the kegs up, and nothing like this seems to have come on. I'm at a loss.

I'm running the two tanks off of the same regulator, beer lines are 6 & 7' 3/16x7/17, through Perlick S650 taps, fully open.

Any input would be appreciated! thanks in advance!

 

[barnaclebob]

How full are the kegs? If they are filled up so high that the beer is touching the top then there will be less contact area between the beer and CO2.

Twice now I have had the CO2 shut off somewhere downstream of the regulator.

The beer in the lines will carbonate extremely slow because there isn't much mixing of the beer once it gets up into the dip tube. So if you are just pulling small samples every week then you could be tasting beer that's been in the lines for the whole time.

Finally just quick carbonate it by rolling it around while hooked up at 30PSI. If you hear bubbles going in then its being carbonated. Be careful if the beer is cold though because you could overcarb it.

Your regulator high pressure gage only changes pressure based on temperature while there is liquid C02 in the tank.

 

[dancingfetus]

Thank you for your reply bob. They are probably about 3/4 full and almost full. But still just under the air tube.

Both kegs have co2 in them. And they are both replenished when burped. So I don't think supply is the issue.

I pour 2-4 ounces when I check. And have been checking daily. I also filled a pop top bottle and it seems as though it lets off minimal co2.

I tried to roll initially and the advice on here was to set it to 13 psi and leave 7-10 days.

I think it should be carbonated. But just not working.

 

[barnaclebob]

The one time I tried to just set it and forget it on my first kegged product it took over two weeks to carbonate. No reason to wait that long. I don't know why so many people on here push the set it and forget it method, maybe they have a longer backlog of beer.

If you pop the relief valve and you hear co2 coming back in immediately then your system is working correctly.

 

[day_trippr]

I do have a deep pipeline, and infrastructure that easily supports it (a separate cold-carbing fridge).
But I "push" the set and forget method because it produces the best quality beer...

Cheers!

 

[barnaclebob]

I do have a deep pipeline, and infrastructure that easily supports it (a separate cold-carbing fridge).
But I "push" the set and forget method because it produces the best quality beer...

Cheers!

How does it make better beer?

 

[chessking]

My pipeline is also quite deep.

And that is on purpose. Why do you think that the last beer from the keg is the best? Certainly better than the first. That is because it has had time to settle, age, condition. Time for yeast, hop bits, and fine particular matter to drop out. Time for proteins that aid in the head formation and stability to do their thing.
In the end, better beer. If I am going to wait all that time for my beer to peak, whats the rush to carbonate it?

 

[day_trippr]

Couldn't have said it better...

Cheers!

 

[dancingfetus]

Thank you everyone for your replies.

I think I may have found the culprit. Looks like one of my ball lock connectors is leaking a bit of air, but not all the time? I guess Ill have to replace the seal and give that a try.

Cheers

 

[thumpersk_a]

One thing i do is hook a pressure gauge to the keg post to check pressure before i walk away, just to be sure that the regulator is accurate. Might be worth checking into. Go get a low pressure gauge for accuracy. I use a 30psi gauge and sometimes a digital tire pressure gauge to check manifold pressure on my carbonation station in the basement.

 

[barnaclebob]

Thank you everyone for your replies.

I think I may have found the culprit. Looks like one of my ball lock connectors is leaking a bit of air, but not all the time? I guess Ill have to replace the seal and give that a try.

Cheers

This wouldn't be a cause of low carbonation unless it ran your tank empty because the beer would still be under the same pressure. Is it a CMB ball lock connector? I've had problems with no name off brands leaking.

 

[kh54s10]

The one time I tried to just set it and forget it on my first kegged product it took over two weeks to carbonate. No reason to wait that long. I don't know why so many people on here push the set it and forget it method, maybe they have a longer backlog of beer.

If you pop the relief valve and you hear co2 coming back in immediately then your system is working correctly.

Because it is so easy and you will not overcarbonate!

 

[dancingfetus]

Don`t know the manufacturer, but logo is an S surrounded by a gear. Link to kegworks with pic.

Seems like since I have replaced the seal, beer is still flat. However, I`m confused as when there's typically carbonation issues, the first go to is check for leaks, but a leak at the ball lock wont effect carbonation?

 

[Subdivisions]

Don`t know the manufacturer, but logo is an S surrounded by a gear. Link to kegworks with pic.

Seems like since I have replaced the seal, beer is still flat. However, I`m confused as when there's typically carbonation issues, the first go to is check for leaks, but a leak at the ball lock wont effect carbonation?

If your regulator says 15 lbs (and is accurate) then there will be 15lbs of pressure on the beer even if it's leaking. Therefore your carbonation issue isn't from a leak since that 15 lbs of pressure should have carbonated your beer in 2 weeks. If it was leaking you probably should have run out of gas in a few days at most unless you have a really slow leak and even then you still should have carbonated beer.

I'm thinking your gauge is off. Try cranking it up to 20 lbs and see if the carbonation gets better. If so then there's your problem.

 

[dancingfetus]

Ok. Thanks subdivisions. I'll give it a try.

 

[Bellybuster]

I ran into this ( drove me nuts the whole keg of beer) after replacing a poppet with a universal. Unless you cut the spring a bit they are too strong and don't allow co2 in.
Just thought I'd add that in for others.

 

[VegasBrew1]

Interesting. Certainly seems to fit his symptoms. Gauge is accurate, just no way for the co2 to get to the beer. And the tank will stay full.

 

[barnaclebob]

Interesting. Certainly seems to fit his symptoms. Gauge is accurate, just no way for the co2 to get to the beer. And the tank will stay full.

If he pulls the PRV while its hooked up and hears co2 coming in then thats not the problem.

 

[dancingfetus]

When I pull PRV I hear gas, same as when I turn up PSI, I can hear the immediate hiss going into tanks, and the incremental sound of bubbling.

I put my PSI up to 20 and turned town my fridge a bit (3C), hoping for more carbonation, It worked, but then froze the beer setting me back a bit. Looks like the higher PSI is working somewhat, I have a bit of head, along with temporary carbonation in the drink, lasting about 10 mins. I Just turned PSI to 25, and will see how that works. If it works, then it must be the regulator and Ill have to get a new one, along with a low pressure gauge as recommended on here.

Thanks again for everyone's input

Cheers!

 

[Bellybuster]

When I pull PRV I hear gas, same as when I turn up PSI, I can hear the immediate hiss going into tanks, and the incremental sound of bubbling.

Cheers!

if you hear bubbling your keg is too full, up past the gas in post.

 

[dancingfetus]

Cant be too full, Ive been drawing a bit out of them through this process. And my lines are connected properly for gas in and beer out.

 

[barnaclebob]

if you hear bubbling your keg is too full, up past the gas in post.

There is nothing wrong with filling past the gas post, I do it all the time. If you fill completely full to the point of where there is little contact area then it will slow down carbonation.

 

[dancingfetus]

I think I have found the issue. I replaced the regulator today, and so far it seems like my beer is able to hold some carbonation. Thank you everyone for all of your replies!

 

[dancingfetus]

Hey guys,

Still having the same issue. I think Ive tried everything I can. I think the best I can do is restate and clarify everything and hope for the best. When I pour my beer out of my kegerator, there is minimal carbonation. there is bubbles on the side of the glass, but once they rise, there is the occasional small bubble rising, with a few larger CO2 bubbles forming on the sides, but few and far between. This leads me to think my kegs are under carbonated.

My system is a double corny keg set up, I have my (replaced)regulator set to 14 PSI, split between two kegs off of it, both are run from a full tank of CO2, no leaks that I can detect, and CO@ pressure is holding. The beer lines are bexlex 200 (3/16 X 7/16) - one 10' ( fills 11.5oz in about 10 secs) one 6'6" ( fills 11.5oz in 8 seconds). I also tried shorter lines(5') before putting the 10' on, got more head, but the same issue. The beer pours at 44 degrees, however I have found frozen lines ( I'm guessing too close to the cold source) and some freezing in one of the kegs ( I set the temp down a fair bit one night and froze the kegs, since then I brought them back to room temp, burped kegs until flat, and then chilled, then re-added pressure for a week) Beer seems to shoot out of both lines somewhat quickly, pour times above per line.

I have read that bevlex may have a lower flow resistance, which may account for longer lines, but I think that I would have more foam if longer lines were needed. One last note is I pour out of perlick 650SS, but the valve is wide open.

Any help is (re)-appreciated. Cheers!

Robbie

 

[dancingfetus]

Ok, Ive read into it a lot more, and looks like I may just be an newbie idiot, almost tempted not to post to save face, but I figure its the least I can do after everyone's help.. Looks like I was using beer gas, not CO2. the nitrogen / CO2 mix was leading to low carbonation, and without the proper regulator or tap. Ill update if I'm wrong, but I doubt it.

cheers

 

[barnaclebob]

Its always good to post the solution to any problem you have. Thanks.

 

[afss]

i was reading through this and thinking damn, i wonder if they have co2 or beer gas. i had the same problem. i thought i was doing a good thing spending the extra on beer gas. problem is nitrogen is insoluble so doesnt carbonate your beer. Yes you can force carb with it but you need huge pressures and as c02 is absorbed the ratio of nitrogen in the keg increases meaning less co2 lol.

get CO2 on there and you will notice a huge difference FAST! solved my problems and was such and easy fix once i figured it out. good luck, hopefully htis will fix you up