Perlick tap gas leak

[laserghost]

Wondering if that's where my problem is ... I have a 2 tap tower kegerator with 5lb gas tank inside with a new tap rite dual regulator. Two ball lock kegs, 15 ft / tap of silver barrier line and Perlick 525.

Kegerator is at ~40 and regulator ~12.5. Kegs seem to be perfectly carbed once I clear the lines of semi-carbed beer. If it sits in the lines for a few days it loses some carb.

Can't source the leak, help!

 

[Murph2002]

This may seem obvious, but have you sprayed a solution that bubbles (starsan, or dish soap in water) on all your connection points to see if any areas bubble?

I've only dealt with fairly large leaks... like, drain a 5lb CO2 bottle overnight large... but when I took my setup to my LHBS the spraybottle of starsan was the first thing they did to check.

 

[revco]

I'd be surprised if the leak was actually on the liquid side. Reason being, pretty much every liquid side leak I've had (e.g. liquid post poppet) results in liquid being expelled and it's rather obvious.

The above method would be the correct way to diagnose a leak. Kegs and their seals are usually the biggest culprits, sometimes if it's a used ball lock keg, you might have issues with the PRV as well. If you don't all ready, use keg lube every time, it's just a good preventative measure. System leaks usually occur with poor connections, like from worm drive clamps, and so you'd be looking at places where hoses meet barbs. If you have MFL's or check valves, make sure they haven't loosened on you, too. Some leaks can be really subtle, but expensive leaks nonetheless.

 

[k1ngl1ves]

Wait. Are you losing pressure in your tank... or is your line just going flat in a few days?

Do you have a fan circulating air? Maybe the lines are warming up a bit on the way to the tower? What are your liquid lines made of? How old are the seals on the faucet? Are there any large air bubbles in the line right by the shank? Yes... than it's probably a temp issue. No... it's probably a leaky faucet then. The gas has to go somewhere. Check all fittings on the line too, especially near the shank/faucet. I'd replace or clean the forward o-ring on the 525. That little bit of off-gassing (if that's even the right term) from the line warming a bit could be pushing past the seal on the faucet if it's a bit worn.

Your issue is actually pretty common. Most people just pour that half pint and dump it. I've been lazy enough to be guilty of this as well...

 

[MagicMatt]

Yeah you don't have a CO2 leak. Otherwise your tank would be empty pretty quickly.

The reason the beer in the lines is flat is because they aren't cold enough. You need to modify your kegerator to push cold air up into the insulated tower. They are many ways to accomplish this, you should search the forums.

 

[laserghost]

Thanks for all the replies. I have done the foamy solution method before but I don't do it every time I keg a batch. I was using keg lube on the main O-ring but got lazy and stopped -- I'll start using it again.

Also have a fan to push air around, but haven't been using that either. I did install an insulated PVC sleeve in the tower, along with copper pipe that drops into the kegerator to keep the lines cold.

I'll try adding the fan back into the equation to see what that does.

 

[brewprint]

I recently found a leak by taking some Mr. Bubble and mixing it with water. It was a slow leak...around a month but it was there on the regulator. A large bubble just formed around that leak.