My first question

[j_jones84]

Hi all, new to the forums and to brewing. My first question is about my corny keg. I don't use a secondary, so I let my beer sit in the primary for 3 weeks and then rack into the corny and force carbonate (actually the only time I've ever brewed/kegged the force carbonation didn't work for me so i let it sit at 25psi for 2 days). I drank after 3weeks + 2 days for carbonation and It tasted good to me. I didn't experience anything "green" but I might not know it if I did.

My question is, if I decided to age my brew for maybe another week or two, could I just pump 5 psi into it, disconnect the couplers, and let it sit in the fridge for 1-2 weeks?

Also, force carbonation. Should the beer be cooled before attempting this? I tried it at room temp. I tuned it up to 25psi, and rolled it around on the floor for 10min while still connected to the CO2. Then I turned it down to 10psi and bled off the excess pressure. When I poured it was foamy, then more was foamy, then more was foamy and it seemed like as soon as the head disappeared it was flat. What did I do wrong? I was told to tune it to 25-30psi, roll it for 10 and then serve.

I'm used to hearing the 1-2-3 method.

Well mine is more like the 3 method I guess... not sure if it's wrong or not.

1-week in primary, 2 week in primary, then CO2 in the keg and drink.

 

[fat x nub]

ok....i can answer one of the questions. Whenyou force carbonate...just hook it up to the keg at 25 psi for 3 days in the fridge. That should do it...or you could do 12 psi for a week...whatever floats our boat. I say do it at 12psi for a week to le it condition for a little bit.

 

[Yooper]

You CAN force carbonate your beer at room temperature, as it is possible. The problem is that cold liquid absorbs co2 much better. You should chill the keg, and then hook it up to the co2. I don't do the shaking/quick method. I usually just set it at a high pressure for about 2 days (like 25 psi or so) and then bleed it off and let it sit at 12 psi for about 4 days (that's my serving pressure). You got a ton of foam because of high temperature, as well as shaking it. If you do shake it, you'll need to let it sit before attempting to pour it.

What might make better beer for you is to keg it, seal it with a shot of co2, and let it sit at room temperature for 2 weeks before chilling and force carbonating. 3 weeks is mighty young beer, and just because it's carbed doesn't mean it's ready to drink. You menioned putting it in the fridge- well, that will help it clear, but beer ages better and more efficiently at room temperature. Putting it in the fridge will slow the aging process and keep it "green" longer.

 

[j_jones84]

Thanks yooper, that helped me understand the whole temp process.

 

[roth_nj]

your supose to keep the CO2 hooked up the whole time. do not put it up to PSI then disconnet.



i usually do 3 weeks in the primary then a week in the keg for carbonation

 

[Yooper]

your supose to keep the CO2 hooked up the whole time. do not put it up to PSI then disconnet.

Why? I don't get that.

 

[carnevoodoo]

your supose to keep the CO2 hooked up the whole time. do not put it up to PSI then disconnet.

This makes no sense. Once the keg is carbonated and pressurized, there's no harm in taking it off of co2.

Additionally, for fatxnub up there... The way you're carbing surely works, but you're not adjusting for style and temperature. Search around for a force carb chart. There's a great chart that will show you volumes of co2 in relation to pressure and temperature.

 

[roth_nj]

i meant during the carbonation process...


when i first read your first post, it seemed like you were hooking it up to 25 PSI, shaking it up, then bleeding it all off.

my bad...

 

[j_jones84]

Everyone I have talked to on this forum says to leave it connected for a few days.. which is the only way I've been successful.

But my LHBS and some video's I've seen online say you should be able to carb in 30min. I guess what I was wondering is what I was doing wrong. Like yooper said, my beer might be to green to drink after 3 weeks so letting it sit for a few days wont hurt at all.

I definately did not chill the keg. I had the resources but didn't know I was supposed to.