New kegger here...

[sondriven]

Hello,

I'm kegging my first brew and I'm going the force carb route. My five gallon batch at 40 degrees has been sitting on 30psi for a day. It's about halfway carbed so I'm going to test it out tomorrow. My question is for what to do once it's at the desired carbonation.

When it's ready for pouring psi, is it then a matter of dropping the psi by turning down to around 8-10 and leaving it at that pressure? Also, is it correct to bring it down to that pressure manually by releasing gas from the valve on the keg?

Thanks,

 

[normonster]

Yes, sounds like you got it. Just be sure to turn down the regulator before you purge the keg of excess pressure. After that purge the keg slowly until you hear the gas entering the keg from the CO2 bottle...then you know you're in balance.

You should look up one of those calculators to make sure you have the right pressure at your serving temp. If you still get foam you may need to add some length to the liquid lines (or use the trick of running some clean weedeater string into the lines to reduce overall diameter of the liquid out lines.

You'll have half that keg empty before the carbonation is right.....and that is OK. When I first started I'd have a keg almost dusted and then realize only the last day or two were at ideal carb. Who cares. Flat to fizzy Normy gettin' buzy.

 

[NorthwestBrewman2013]

Yes, sounds like you got it. Just be sure to turn down the regulator before you purge the keg of excess pressure. After that purge the keg slowly until you hear the gas entering the keg from the CO2 bottle...then you know you're in balance.

You should look up one of those calculators to make sure you have the right pressure at your serving temp. If you still get foam you may need to add some length to the liquid lines (or use the trick of running some clean weedeater string into the lines to reduce overall diameter of the liquid out lines.

You'll have half that keg empty before the carbonation is right.....and that is OK. When I first started I'd have a keg almost dusted and then realize only the last day or two were at ideal carb. Who cares. Flat to fizzy Normy gettin' buzy.

Great post. I'm actually a newbie to kegging myself and kegged my first batch on Saturday, a Red Ale. Tried that one with the forced carbonation and found it pretty simple. I kegged my English Pale and used the Set and Forget method. Wanted to see which one I preferred more. The second method is a ton less time. Thanks for the information, normonster.

 

[sondriven]

Awesome, thanks for the info!

Right now, I'm using a standard picnic tap with about 5' of hose.

 

[normonster]

@sondriven - you'll probably end up needing more line. There are online calculators for that stuff too. My chestfreezer/kegerator is a piece of %$#@ and doesn't cool evenly from top to bottom even with a computer fan inside so I had to add A LOT of beverage line to reduce foaming.

@northwestbrewman2013 - right on! Another good practice that you're probably already aware of is to purge the keg with CO2 just after filling. With open air transfer you'll get some oxidation no matter what but you can minimize it by purging the headspace.

 

[william_shakes_beer]

Hello,

I'm kegging my first brew and I'm going the force carb route. My five gallon batch at 40 degrees has been sitting on 30psi for a day. It's about halfway carbed so I'm going to test it out tomorrow. My question is for what to do once it's at the desired carbonation.

When it's ready for pouring psi, is it then a matter of dropping the psi by turning down to around 8-10 and leaving it at that pressure? Also, is it correct to bring it down to that pressure manually by releasing gas from the valve on the keg?

Thanks,

I always find it helpful to understand WHY things are done a certain way. You're on the right track. Here's why;

If you turn down the supply pressure without purging, AND you don't have a check valve in the gas line, AND the keg is filled high enough to submerge the gas inlet tube, you could push beer back to the regulator, damaging or destroying it. A lot of "IF", but something to consider.

 

[sondriven]

I always find it helpful to understand WHY things are done a certain way. You're on the right track. Here's why;

If you turn down the supply pressure without purging, AND you don't have a check valve in the gas line, AND the keg is filled high enough to submerge the gas inlet tube, you could push beer back to the regulator, damaging or destroying it. A lot of "IF", but something to consider.

Very good to know, thank you!

 

[sondriven]

So I pulled another sample last night. Still undercarbed. Is this normal for two full days at 30 psi? I would have expected much more carbonation. I'll check again tonight. At this point, no worries on foam as it barely made a head when I poured at 10 psi. But once it reaches full carbonation, I'll investigate the length of line, etc.

 

[JONNYROTTEN]

So I pulled another sample last night. Still undercarbed. Is this normal for two full days at 30 psi? I would have expected much more carbonation. I'll check again tonight. At this point, no worries on foam as it barely made a head when I poured at 10 psi. But once it reaches full carbonation, I'll investigate the length of line, etc.

30 psi for 2 days should be pretty much carbed up. Don't forget if you only pour one beer a lot of it is the beer in the line that's not carbing up. The second pour is a sign of where your at.

Some beers carb different. My lite lagers take longer than my heavier beers for whatever reason.
At 2 days I would drop to 10/12 psi anyway...you don't want to overcarb...it will continue carbing at the serving pressure and get better by the day

 

[william_shakes_beer]

I have 2 taps and 3 gas outlets in my keezer. I just put a keg on serving pressure until one of the serving kegs kicks. Usually 30-60 days. Always carbed correctly, never over carbed.