Priming in Keg?

[Sublime8365]

Ok so I'm pretty new to kegging (and brewing in general, 8 months under my belt). I just tapped my first keg in my DIY kegerator and it's very foamy. I went and read that it only takes half the sugar to prime in a keg than it does to bottle. Oops! So I already have 2 brews kegged and I was planning on using 1 this weekend for a big party I'm going to. Is there something I can do about all the foam? Should I release some of the CO2 already built up in the keg or just leave it and deal with the foam? Is there a good solution to this? Thanks in advance!

 

[JonK331]

Yeah turn off the gas and release some, let set, test, then do it again if you need to. You don't need to add priming sugar to kegs at all. Some people do but it just means more sediment. There are several different methods to carbonating in the keg but basically all it takes is time and pressure.

 

[chezhed]

Sugar speeds up the process. Forced CO2 at higher pressure will do the same, especially with colder beer.

I guess I look at it as three ways to carbonate in the keg:

with sugar and ambient temperature for close to the same time as bottling

high pressure CO2 at ambient temp for about half the bottling time

high pressure CO2 in a cold keg for a couple days

So depending upon your plans for consumption and storage method, pick one
of course this is based on my experience only and your results may vary:cross:

 

[Sublime8365]

Sugar speeds up the process. Forced CO2 at higher pressure will do the same, especially with colder beer.

I guess I look at it as three ways to carbonate in the keg:

with sugar and ambient temperature for close to the same time as bottling

high pressure CO2 at ambient temp for about half the bottling time

high pressure CO2 in a cold keg for a couple days

So depending upon your plans for consumption and storage method, pick one
of course this is based on my experience only and your results may vary:cross:

Well I chose option 1 because it was my first brew and my CO2 tank wasn't filled yet. I primed with the same amount of sugar as bottling and let it sit at ambient temp for 3 weeks. Wayyy too much foam. Could be my Kegerator build but I'm assuming it's the priming. Trying to correct. Is it correct that natural priming in the keg only needs half the sugar? My serving pressure is about 9 psi. Any advise?

 

[Agentaaron]

I would purge the C02 as stated above...let sit off the gas for about 24 hours...purge again and then hook up at serving pressure and test...if its still too foamy, repeat again

As for priming...I do this if I know its going to be awhile before I tap it. Just use 1/3 cup of sugar dissolved into about 1-2 cups of water...any sediment will come out in the first pour or two as long as you didnt shake it up.

Even when hooking up a keg that has been naturally carbed in the keg, I always wait for it to cool to serving temperature off gas and purge out the c02 before hooking up to my serving pressure.

 

[944play]

Some people do but it just means more sediment.

There are some advantages to naturally carbonating your kegged beer. Active yeast will take up any oxygen picked up during racking and reduce diacetyl and acetaldehyde. Plus, you save CO2.

 

[RugerRedhawk]

How long and what diameter is your serving line? The beer could be carbonated correctly, but foamy from too short a line.

 

[Sublime8365]

How long and what diameter is your serving line? The beer could be carbonated correctly, but foamy from too short a line.

Good point. I ordered a kit off kegconnection.com, so I 4' of 5/16" tubing. I currently have the CO2 set at ~6 psi (was higher yesterday). I did purge the tank last night and it is better today but still really foamy. How do I determine the proper serving pressure? Should I purge again?

 

[944play]

Pretty sure you meant 3/16". For most American and German style beers, you want more like 8 feet of 3/16" to serve at equilibrium of ~12 psi at ~40ºF for about 2.5 volumes.

Giant .gif, sorry:

 

[Sublime8365]

Pretty sure you meant 3/16". For most American and German style beers, you want more like 8 feet of 3/16" to serve at equilibrium of ~12 psi at ~40ºF for about 2.5 volumes.

Yeah I meant 5' of 3/16.. was looking at the CO2 line dimensions. Thanks for the chart!