Hey guys, I'm new to kegging and am working through most of my set up problems. Right now I've got 3 pin locks connected to picnic taps with 5 ft lines, in a dedicated beer fridge and a 20lb co2 tank.I tend to like my beers heavily carbed, around 3-3.25. I've got a keg full of cider and its great.. My latest brew however is giving me grief. I initially set it up at 30lbs for 3 days in the fridge at 37-37f. Then bled some of the extra pressure and re set the reg to 15lbs. I'm using 5' of line but i have 2 of those mixing tubes inserted into the pick up tube. I find it helps with the shorter line length and stops the co2 from escaping. So now when I pour a beer its great , no excessive foaming, great carb and good head. The second pour maybe 20-30 minutes later tho , is much less carbed than the first pour. Its nor totally flat, but definitely lacking the bubbles. Any idea's as to what is causing this ?
Second pour always less carbed
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MagicMatt
Brewmathemagician
How are the subsequent (#3, 4, 5, etc) pours? Do they more resemble the 1st pour or 2nd?
If all subsequent pours are the same and it's the first pour that's different, I would say that it's actually the first pour that is not pouring correctly even though it seems like a perfect pour to you.
The reason I say this is because there might be enough of a temperature difference in your lines/tap to cause the first few ounces to lose their carbonation (it comes out in the lines), and thus when you pour the first pint you get a lot of foam. The following pours are pouring at the correctly carbed level, which may be slightly undercarbed if you think it's not getting good enough head.
If all subsequent pours are the same and it's the first pour that's different, I would say that it's actually the first pour that is not pouring correctly even though it seems like a perfect pour to you.
The reason I say this is because there might be enough of a temperature difference in your lines/tap to cause the first few ounces to lose their carbonation (it comes out in the lines), and thus when you pour the first pint you get a lot of foam. The following pours are pouring at the correctly carbed level, which may be slightly undercarbed if you think it's not getting good enough head.
Gameface
Well-Known Member
My first pour usually comes out more foamy. I assume it's because the taps are warmer and I think if there's a little escaped CO2 it causes a little turbulence as the bubble passes through everything.
I generally pour about 4oz and drink that then fill my first glass. I figure the 4oz is mostly what was in the beer lines and the first little pickup from the keg that might have any sediment that settled since my last session.
I generally pour about 4oz and drink that then fill my first glass. I figure the 4oz is mostly what was in the beer lines and the first little pickup from the keg that might have any sediment that settled since my last session.
Thanks for taking the time, yes subsequent pours are like the second and not the first. Just to be clear tho, the first pour is not extra foamy like from an unbalanced system. It's got a good head and the glass is full of bubbles rising. Second and subsequent glasses have a smaller head and far few bubbles in the glass, its not flat but under carbed to me.
Gameface
Well-Known Member
Get a nucleated pint glass. Your first pour is rinsing all the nucleation sites off your glass.
MagicMatt
Brewmathemagician
I highly doubt this, but an easy way to test is to just use a fresh glass on the 2nd/3rd pour.
But I don't have this problem (nor have I heard of anyone else), so I doubt that is it. You can't just "rinse" nucleation sites - they're small imperfections in the glass itself.
If this were true, then none of the good bars that use a glass washer just before filling would ever get a lasting head either.
Gameface
Well-Known Member
I was trying not to be rude. I was suggesting that the nucleation sites were particles that hadn't been cleaned off properly.
william_shakes_beer
Well-Known Member
How long do you have to wait before you can again draw a good "first pour"?
I don't usually pour more than 1 or 2 a night , typically, I notice the next night that once again the first our has strong carbonation and the next pour has less.
hifidelity
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Do you mean strong carbonation on the first pour as in there is a good head on the beer, or because there's plenty of CO2 dissolved and coming out of solution as it sits and as you drink it?
If it's the former, it's likely that the beer is undercarbed and the good head on the first pour is likely the "foamy first pour" that people with beer lines that are too short complain about. 5' lines are too short. Trade out the lines for 12' lines and let us know if there's still a problem. You'll more than likely find that every pour is undercarbed until the beer has enough time to carbonate fully.
If it's the former, it's likely that the beer is undercarbed and the good head on the first pour is likely the "foamy first pour" that people with beer lines that are too short complain about. 5' lines are too short. Trade out the lines for 12' lines and let us know if there's still a problem. You'll more than likely find that every pour is undercarbed until the beer has enough time to carbonate fully.
Both glasses have a decent head, but I'm referring to co2 bubbling and coming out of solution. First pour has lots of co2 bubbling and rising to the top of the glass and second pours seem to have less and finer bubbles coming out of solution.
Thats because the beer in the line isnt as cool as the beer in the keg. So the first 4oz or so comes out all foam since its warmer. You can get a tower cooler to minimize this or just deal with it like I do
PapaO
Well-Known Member
It could be the glass. The first pour in a room temperature glass causes more co2 to coming out of solution. On the next pour the glass is cooled down so less co2 comes out of solution.
