Pouring foam

[Ingo]

Why does my Best Bitter pour like that? I've poured 3 glasses in a row now so the line should be cold already
I'm using a KegLand picnic tap on a 19L keg and the serving pressure is around 10-11psi.
There's around 15-16L in the keg now.
I originally set the pressure to 20psi, then cooled it to 2°c for two days and then now the beer has been in a 8c° fridge for a few days under 9psi.
This is my first time kegging. Only used bottles so far with good success but to much labour in bottling.

So what do you guy's think I'm doing wrong?

And those of you that have kegged a bitter with success what was your method?

Cheers!

 

[mac_1103]

Diameter and length of the beer line?

 

[Tony B]

Did you depressurize after carbonating at 20psi and then return to serving pressure?
As mac1103 said, beer line diameter and length play a huge role in dialing in your serving pressure.
You could try depressurizing it and start with like 5psi for serving.
I’m running 3/16 beer lines that are only like 5ft long, so I have to keep serving pressure at about 10psi to avoid excess foam.

 

[Velnerj]

Diameter and length of the beer line?

This exactly. I had similar issue then extended my beer line and it worked much better.

 

[SFC Rudy]

1. Piece of advice, ignore everyone’s “rules of thumb”. Unless they have the exact same system that you have what they do will not work right for you

2. Pick a carbonation method:

https://byo.com/article/3-ways-to-carbonate-your-keg-techniques/

https://byo.com/article/carbonating-options-kegging/

3. Use a keg line length calculator. I use. https://www.kegerators.com/beer-line-calculator/

4. Use this calculator to fine tune your system. https://content.kegworks.com/blog/determine-right-pressure-for-your-draft-beer-system/

Do the math to avoid problems.

 

[kevin58]

It could be a variety of reasons. The diameter or the length of the serving line can cause excess foaming as can over carbonation. So can temperature differences between the keg (cold) through the line (warm).

The most reliable way I have found to carbonate beer in a corny keg is to set the CO2 regulator to your serving pressure and leave it there for one to two weeks. Using these quick carb methods of high pressure then turning down to serving pressure often lead to excessive foaming like this. Yes, the low and slow method takes way more time but more than likely you beer will benefit from that extra time.

 

[camonick]

Yes, the low and slow method takes way more time but more than likely you beer will benefit from that extra time.

This is very true. The beer has a little more time to mature, and assuming your regulator is reasonably accurate, the set and forget method is nearly 100% foolproof.
A lot more information is needed from @Ingo before a reasonable diagnosis can be developed.

 

[Broken Crow]

Watching the video, there's nothing but foam exiting the tap so whatever the carbonation level, it is too high for the line length/diameter... I can see a duotight fitting on the picnic tap so the most likely candidate line is the 4mm ID and 5'-6' of that is usually adequate (Though I'm not sure if a picnic tap makes a difference..it shouldn't) If the line's wider or shorter than that, you need to change it.
Please come and give us the line specs and the intended CO2 level.

 

[Broken Crow]

Oh...whatever specs you come back with, a further thought that might be your easiest option;
Try one of these:
https://www.brewhardware.com/product_p/keg_ball_qd_duo_liquid_flowcon.htm
Though I don't personally trust any but classic genuine CM Becker ball lock disconnects, a number of users on this site have success with this solution (once they get past the hard to turn knob from what I've read.)

 

[Ingo]

Inner diameter of the line is 4mm and lenght is 105cm.

And I'd like 2 volumes of co2. But yeah I need to figure out how I get that
Don't really know how much is in there now.

 

[mac_1103]

Inner diameter of the line is 4mm and lenght is 105cm.

It looks like that's what Kegland supplies with the picnic tap, but that seems to be cutting it close to me. I use 5.5 feet (1.7 m) of 4mm, and it's inside the kegerator (except for the last 30 cm or so which is inside an insulated tower).

 

[camonick]

Inner diameter of the line is 4mm and lenght is 105cm.

And I'd like 2 volumes of co2. But yeah I need to figure out how I get that
Don't really know how much is in there now.

To get 2 volumes at 8°C you need to have 10 psi of co2 pressure. 105cm is only 3 1/2 feet. Personally, I would at least double that length if not more to get a nice pour.

 

[tracer bullet]

FWIW agreed to lower the psi some (I go with 12 myself) and lengthen the line too. Should solve it. If not, they are still very good things to be doing (best practices), and it means you have another issue to look into - rare but can happen.

Do the best practices stuff and report back.

 

[day_trippr]

fwiw, our favorite carbonation table should make it easy to dial in 2 volumes at 8°C/46.4°F. Set the pressure to 10 psi and you're good to go!

 

[Bobby_M]

what kind of keg is it?

 

[norrismj]

Check all your connections as you could be sucking air in from somewhere. I had a similar problem and redid all my connections and no more foam.

 

[Ingo]

I got a longer line and that solved the problem. Went from 1m to 2m and now it pours normally.
I'd kind of want to know the science behind that 'cause it makes no sense to me. I'd think if the beer had to travel through a longer line it would foam even more.

But reality is mysterious and mystical at times

 

[day_trippr]

Conveying carbonated beer held under pressure into an environment that is roughly 10~12 psi lower is a non-trivial problem to solve

Cheers!

 

[lumpher]

I got a longer line and that solved the problem. Went from 1m to 2m and now it pours normally.
I'd kind of want to know the science behind that 'cause it makes no sense to me. I'd think if the beer had to travel through a longer line it would foam even more.

But reality is mysterious and mystical at times

Beer travels slower in a longer line, as there is more resistance. Slower travel = lower turbulence in the line. Lower turbulence = less co2 being forced out of suspension. No math in my explanation... I prefer words over equations...