2 days ago I poured off 5 galons of Widmer Hefe into my corny. It was then put under pressure and the o2 bled off. It has 10lb of co2 now. However, it seems a tad flat and is missing a head. Should I add a lb or 2 of pressure to bring it back? Any suggestions are appreciated. Thanks!
More co2?
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annasdadhockey
Well-Known Member
There's your problem right there. Let it go for a couple weeks at serving pressure, then check it. Should be fine then.
ReeseAllen
Well-Known Member
Disclaimer: I have never actually done this, I just read about it yesterday. I am still getting my first kegging system running. Being patient is probably the best advice.Couple weeks?!?!? Who can wait that long?!?!
If you really, really want to rush it, set your regulator to 30 PSI and vigorously shake the keg for 10 minutes. Then dial it down to serving pressure (venting pressure in the keg down to serving pressure as well), let it sit for a few minutes, and try pouring a glass. The worst that can happen is over-carbonating the beer, in which case you just have to keep venting it every few hours until it comes down to your desired level of carbonation.
Luciferseamus
Member
Couple weeks?!?!? Who can wait that long?!?!
I totally understand your frustration I went into my first corn keg 3 days ago and am rather surprised at the amount of carbonation level of the beer. so many people on the net have claimed that you set it at 10-15 psi and in 2 days it will be good.
well I've come to read that different beers require different levels of co2 saturation, or maybe it's the brewers/servers preference.... (at anyrate I'm sure more experienced brewers will come along and let us both know what is going on with that)
I've heard the same thing and I am VERY tempted to do this... For now I am going to "try" and be patient but if you attempt this please let me know what happens and how everything turns out. more info is always better and if it works with no downside then heck ya I'm having beer tomorrow!!
what I've read and thought sounded the best was to hook up to the "out" port (so the gas goes through the beer) and turn the co2 up to about 30 psi and let it go until the regulator shuts off the gas and then take the corny keg and put it in your lap and rock it back and forth all the while the regulator is pumping in more co2 as it is absorbed by the beer. then let stand for 2 days at 10-15 psi (or what ever desired is, can someone please recommend?) and then you should have well carbonated beer.
I just wanted to see if I could get some of the veterans to voice their opinions on the matter. thanks in advance....ROCK ON!:rockin:
annasdadhockey
Well-Known Member
If you cant wait force carb it at 30-35 lbs. I do it if I can't wait. I usually don't shake the kegs much. I just set it at 35 and leave it overnight. Usually a day or two does the trick.
Luciferseamus
Member
thanks for the info
bmbigda
Well-Known Member
Disclaimer: A lot of poeple shake their kegs with great success and no problems.
That being said I think shaking kegs introduces too much chance to ruin an entire batch of beer. There is simply no possible way of knowing how much CO2 you're forcing into the beer. A grossly overcarbonated beer tastes like WD-40. Use a nice table or brewing software to figure out the correct combination of pressure and temperature for your desried cabonation level. Then set it, and forget it
That being said I think shaking kegs introduces too much chance to ruin an entire batch of beer. There is simply no possible way of knowing how much CO2 you're forcing into the beer. A grossly overcarbonated beer tastes like WD-40. Use a nice table or brewing software to figure out the correct combination of pressure and temperature for your desried cabonation level. Then set it, and forget it
Depending on the beer temp. I leave mine at room temp (70-75 degrees) for one week on 30 psi then sore.
Yes, temperature is important I forgot to mention that. I always carb in the fridge. Force carbing rarely turns out perfect for me. I much rather set and forget. But in a pinch...
shortyjacobs
Well-Known Member
Nooooo, don't shake. I put 65 degree beer into the fridge, (38 degree fridge), at 30 PSI for 2 days. Then I back it down to 10 PSI. Works great. Every time I've tried shaking has ended in tears.
Luciferseamus
Member
are you guys storing your co2 tanks in the fridge as well or do you have something rigged up so it sits outside?
does it matter at all?
does it matter at all?
SweetSounds
Well-Known Member
Nope,
Doesn't matter if the CO2 is in the fridge or not.
Storing your CO2 in the fridge will lower the pressure in the tank. From around 600 PSI to maybe something like 400 PSI. **guessing**
Far above the 10-12 PSI you'll pass to the kegs.
FWIW, (I'm a n00b, so ignore me if you want!) I've forced at 30, and I've set it and forgot it.
Force carbing is risky, because if you overshoot your volumes, it's a PITA to get back down to proper carbonation. BUT - I'm not a patient man - I want to drink my beer. There are a TON of opinions here, for and against the practice. But in the end the reality is that force carbing at 30 PSI is nearly impossible to get right. Most of the time you'll miss your target, and sometimes you'll go past it and have to vent it back down. (Suck!)
When I force carb it's because I wanna try my beer! I shoot for less carbonation than what I really want. It's carb'd enough to pull a pint or 2 to get your fix, and still right on the money a few days to a week later at regular serving pressure.
Doesn't matter if the CO2 is in the fridge or not.
Storing your CO2 in the fridge will lower the pressure in the tank. From around 600 PSI to maybe something like 400 PSI. **guessing**
Far above the 10-12 PSI you'll pass to the kegs.
FWIW, (I'm a n00b, so ignore me if you want!) I've forced at 30, and I've set it and forgot it.
Force carbing is risky, because if you overshoot your volumes, it's a PITA to get back down to proper carbonation. BUT - I'm not a patient man - I want to drink my beer. There are a TON of opinions here, for and against the practice. But in the end the reality is that force carbing at 30 PSI is nearly impossible to get right. Most of the time you'll miss your target, and sometimes you'll go past it and have to vent it back down. (Suck!)
When I force carb it's because I wanna try my beer! I shoot for less carbonation than what I really want. It's carb'd enough to pull a pint or 2 to get your fix, and still right on the money a few days to a week later at regular serving pressure.
This is a smart noob. Shoot low, try, and realize you are tasting undercarbed beer with a bunch of carbonic acid that will fade as you wait.
Or, just set and forget for 3 weeks.
Just to clarify for the OP, he's talking about the CO2 being in the fridge or not, NOT the keg. A chilled keg will take less CO2 pressure to attain your CO2 volume than a warmer keg.
Force carbing at 30 PSI (or any pressure IMO) is indeed hard to control i.e rolling your keg back and forth 100 times while hooked to 30 psi. Setting your keg at 30 psi at 75 degrees and "forgetting it" for 7 days is a more controllable method. Has worked for me anyway for the past 6 months since I began this practice.
If I misunderstood SweetSounds, please forgive me.
wildwest450
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You've been given both options. Either blast it with 30 psi or be patient. I will say that a lack of patience is seldom rewarded in homebrewing.
SweetSounds
Well-Known Member
No worries -
Cold beer set at 30 PSI will carb faster than warm beer at 30 PSI.
You can set it to 30 PSI and carb it faster, without shaking. Just keep a very close eye on it. It won't take long at that pressure to blow right by normal carbonation, and put you in that "Crap I gotta bleed pressure every 6 hours for the next 5 days" realm. Maybe a day or so? I've never tried it that way, so I guess I don't know. I've always shaken mine, and then vented the pressure and hooked it up to serving pressure for the rest of the time. But, I always under-carb when I shake a keg - Just enough CO2 to make it drinkable, and so I can get a sense of it's personality while its carbing at serving pressure to the correct volume...
+1 Wildwest (I knew you'd be in here shortly!)
Pick one. But, if you jack the pressure, and especially if you shake, don't overshoot your volumes! It sucks.
Let us know how it turns out!
Cold beer set at 30 PSI will carb faster than warm beer at 30 PSI.
You can set it to 30 PSI and carb it faster, without shaking. Just keep a very close eye on it. It won't take long at that pressure to blow right by normal carbonation, and put you in that "Crap I gotta bleed pressure every 6 hours for the next 5 days" realm. Maybe a day or so? I've never tried it that way, so I guess I don't know. I've always shaken mine, and then vented the pressure and hooked it up to serving pressure for the rest of the time. But, I always under-carb when I shake a keg - Just enough CO2 to make it drinkable, and so I can get a sense of it's personality while its carbing at serving pressure to the correct volume...
+1 Wildwest (I knew you'd be in here shortly!)
Pick one. But, if you jack the pressure, and especially if you shake, don't overshoot your volumes! It sucks.
Let us know how it turns out!
No. You will over carb after a few days. Follow this chart and about 2.4-2.5 should be sufficient.
http://www.ebrew.com/primarynews/ct_carbonation_chart.htm
Which would be about 11-12 psi.
Luciferseamus
Member
Thanks to everyone for your responses. I think I'm going to just be patient sit at 10 psi and wait out the next week and a half.
Meanwhile I'm trying to get my hands on a mini fridge so I can set up a dual tap for my brown ale that is comin' up.
By the time I have the fridge and am ready to keg the brown ale, the IPA that is kegged now should be nice and carbed and ready to go.
Meanwhile I'm trying to get my hands on a mini fridge so I can set up a dual tap for my brown ale that is comin' up.
By the time I have the fridge and am ready to keg the brown ale, the IPA that is kegged now should be nice and carbed and ready to go.
Luciferseamus
Member
I would imagine that since it's already carbed all you should need to do is apply pressure and start enjoying.
Maybe leave it for a day to replace any lost carbon...
Experts?
Man! You are a resource and a half!! Thanks for the link to that table!! Great info!
ReeseAllen
Well-Known Member
The fact that it came out pretty flat when you first tried to draw a glass means it must have lost a lot of its carbonation during the transfer, and you'll have to re-introduce the CO2 yourself. The good news is you're probably already halfway there, and I'd wager that if you just set the regulator to the pressure the chart says, your hefe will be good to drink a lot quicker than a fresh batch of homebrew would be.
Thanks to all of you for chiming in. I will follow the chart. Great resource! I will bookmark the chart.
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