SO How Long is it?

[Simphoto02]

I am assembling my Kegorator. I have a fridge and gonna put two (for now) cornys in it. Got all my components, just need to know how long the beer lines need to be. I know they can cause foaming if too short.

Primarily gonna run IPA's and medium to light ales (again, for now)

Thanks Oh and I am using 1/4" ID tubing.

Thanks

 

[SeamusMac]

I believe there is a beer line length calculator that factors serving pressure and temperature into an equation that tells you what your approximate line length should be. Hopefully someone has the link

 

[Yooper]

1/4" beerline? You'll need some LONG lines then. I use about 8-10 feet of 3/16" line, with my kegerator at 40 degrees and the psi at 11. http://kegman.net/balance.html is one page to help, but there are many more that are better. I'll see if I can find a better link.

 

[Homercidal]

It's never long enough...

Seriously, I am now using 3/16" line and I have 10' and I still get foamy beer at the supposed proper pressure.

 

[Simphoto02]

So with a regulator pressure of 14 psi, using 1/4" tubing, I would need about 15 feet of line PER faucet?


WOW,

Looks like I am switching to 3/16

Is this correct for beer at 36*f, and the faucerts about 1 foot above the center of the keg?

 

[Simphoto02]

So for 3/16 ID tubing at 14 psi and 36*f with the same set-up I need 7.5 feet of tubing?

Am I doing this correct?

 

[shortyjacobs]

Yeah, at least 7.5 feet. I have 10 feet of 3/16" at 12 PSI, and that's JUST about right. Buy an extra couple of feet per line....it's not that expensive, and it's a lot easier to shorten them up then lengthen them.

I had 5 feet of 3/16" before, and it was foam city.

 

[HBHoss]

I go 5 ft. for the beer line. Much easier to go shorter from there, should I want to.

 

[Bobby_M]

Using 1/4" tubing, you'll need to go with at least 15 feet.

 

[Rick500]

I use 10 feet of 3/16" line at 40 degrees, 12 PSI, keg tops at about the same level as the faucets. Generally works pretty well.

 

[Simphoto02]

I am going to switch to 3/16. Not a huge fridge.

And then I will start at 8 feet and work my way down, i guess

 

[Homercidal]

Yeah, at least 7.5 feet. I have 10 feet of 3/16" at 12 PSI, and that's JUST about right. Buy an extra couple of feet per line....it's not that expensive, and it's a lot easier to shorten them up then lengthen them.

I had 5 feet of 3/16" before, and it was foam city.

+1 I wish I had bought it too long and had to cut it down, than too short and now have to buy another length (or I *could* add some resistance with a paint mixer thingy, or add a coupler and more hose, but my point is that I shoudlnt' have to.)

 

[HBHoss]

I am going to switch to 3/16. Not a huge fridge.

And then I will start at 8 feet and work my way down, i guess

My bad. Bobby's correct. 1/4" tubing should be 10 - 25 ft. long and 3/16" is 5 ft.

 

[bendavanza]

8 foot of 3/16" ID is a good starting point. If you're still getting foam, you need to consider that co2 breaks out of solution when it hits a warm faucet. So if you have a tower you should consider installing a blower or at least a passive way to cool the lines and faucet. Without it, you may have the first pint foamy but the pints after that are fine, because the first pint chills the faucet. In this case, if you are serving a lot of beers in a row, you will find that faucet gets down to the 36-38˚ and the beers have no head.

 

[shortyjacobs]

Your mileage may vary, but for some reason I got tons of foam at 5 feet, (38 degree fridge...picnic taps IN the fridge....12 psi). 10 feet made all the difference!

 

[bendavanza]

Not all beverage tubing has the same resistance per ft., so there is no magic number unless you have experience with a particular brand and the same temp, rise, faucet, ambient temp, etc. Therefore the overwhelming recommendation is to buy 10' and trim back to fit. I find 8' works best for my system. ymmv
cheers and happy pouring