natural carb in a 7.75 commercial keg

[bittering-unit]

It only has a 5 gallon batch in it. I carbed with 4 oz of corn sugar boiled in water. Does that leave too much headspace? what problems did I just cause here? I just read some threads that had some prophecies of doom for guys that used the whole amount of priming sugar. Input with experience would be appreciated.

 

[TopherM]

I naturally carb in a keg at room temp. It takes about 1/2 of the normal priming sugar that you'd use for bottles, so for a typical batch, you'd want closer to 2.5 oz of priming sugar to get a typical 2.3-2.6 atmospheres of CO2.

At 4.0 oz, you aren't going to ruin anything, but you are going to have highly carbonated beer that is probably going to be pretty foamy coming out of the keg.

I've overcarbed before. I just pour the beer from the keg into a pitcher and throw it in the fridge to settle down for about 5 minutes. That's about your worst case senerio. It's still good beer!!

 

[bittering-unit]

so the additional headspace won't act in my advantage with regards to the over carbing issue?

 

[brewingmeister]

so the additional headspace won't act in my advantage with regards to the over carbing issue?

Nope, the extra headspace won't really change anything. To get the carb you want faster you might try venting and pouring off a few before hooking it up to the gas.

 

[dukesbb37]

If you think you overcarbed couldn't you just press the release and let the some of the co2 out a few days in before it really starting being "backed up" into the beer?

 

[bittering-unit]

on a commercial keg I don't think I can release pressure without making a bit of a mess. Turning it upside down would help, but there will still be some beer in the spear. any other ideas?

 

[brewingmeister]

Sankey couplers have a pressure relief vent on the side. There is a little key ring style pull attached to it.

 

[bittering-unit]

I see. Are talking about a Sankey brand coupler or are you talking about a sankey style coupler? I don't think my coupler is sankey brand.

 

[TopherM]

Sankey is the style. If you have a "commercial keg," then that is a most likely a sankey keg (unless it's european) that would take a sankey coupler like this one with the pressure release valve on the side (the little ring):

 

[bittering-unit]

Sankey is the style. If you have a "commercial keg," then that is a most likely a sankey keg (unless it's european) that would take a sankey coupler like this one with the pressure release valve on the side (the little ring):

Thanks for the info, this is the first time I have natural carbed in a commercial keg. I know if can be done because the brewery that I got the keg from did it. ( I had to clean out a crapload of sediment in the bottom) I will be revealing my ignorance on the use of commercial kegs here everytime I open my mouth. I am going to them because I have it on good authority that the price of pin locks is about to double and I wanted larger capacity so I could enjoy more and brew a little less. Now to figure a few 1.5X5gallon recipes.....

 

[TopherM]

I have it on good authority that the price of pin locks is about to double

Who's your good authority? The majority of pin lock and ball lock kegs out there are second hand used from the soda industry, so their pricing would be based on market conditions, not manufacturer MSRPs. Coke and Pepsi aren't going to stop using them anytime soon, so why would the price double?

There are hundreds of scrap metal yards throughout the country with tens of thousands of pin lock and ball lock kegs just sitting around. My LHBS has hundreds of them that they source from a scrap metal yard contracted with our local Pepsi distributorship, and the supply seems almost endless!

The price of stainless steel is holding pretty steady, why would corny kegs double? I've heard this before on this forum going back a few years, but it has never materialized....might be a proverbial conspriacy boogeyman...

 

[bittering-unit]

Well its nothing ex-cathedra or anything, my lhbs told me that it was coming and he advised me not to sell mine after I go full commercial. I am inclined to believe him. Hopefully I am wrong.

 

[WortMonger]

You can always relieve excess pressure with a spunding valve. I do this while doing my primary fermentation. Check out my signature link on closed-system pressurized fermentation.