Tap system balancing?

[00Seven]

just upgraded from picnic faucets to perlicks also added a 2 way manifold. I used to serve at 8psi and the beer had a great head. But now I’m at 12 psi and there is almost no head. The beers are carbed at 2.6. Should I just keep upping the psi one at a time until I get the desired result? Serving temp is between 40-42. 2 keg system. I think my gas in total is 3’ from regulator into manifold and 2 3’ lines to the kegs. Then the liquid lines are 5’ 3/16” line from each keg into the taps. Perlick 630ss

 

[beerlover77]

I have 11' of line at about the same temp and 12PSI and the carb/head level is great. Maybe try turning the pressure down a bit, not up?

 

[00Seven]

I have 11' of line at about the same temp and 12PSI and the carb/head level is great. Maybe try turning the pressure down a bit, not up?

Well it was at 8psi and seems slightly better at 12. May try 14. Guess I just need to drink some beer and play with it to get it tweaked

 

[60acresbrewclub]

I tweaked mine a lot and eventually decided flow control faucets were a good investment when changing from different styles of beer once you get the system dialed in. I'll skip over mentioning that proper insulation of the draft line / tower was really important for me getting a good head and the way glass cleanliness/temperature plays a big part (dip & salt tests). I think the cheaper faucets create excess head through design flaws and maybe now that you have a decent faucet you fixed 'the glitch'. I deff would make your line longer and increase psi, all math would probably say your line is a good size but, I always noticed was everyone was swearing by longer then mathematically recommended lines, so i followed the herd and that resolved pretty much all of my issues.

 

[00Seven]

14 PSI seems to get it done nicely. Flowing and pouring much better. Thanks

 

[beerlover77]

14 PSI seems to get it done nicely. Flowing and pouring much better. Thanks

Even if it flows nice and has a good head, I just hope you aren't overcarbing your beer at that pressure...

 

[00Seven]

Even if it flows nice and has a good head, I just hope you aren't overcarbing your beer at that pressure...

I typically shoot for 2.5-2.6 for carb which at that temp is 16 PSI, so it stays just right for me

 

[SEndorf]

Well it was at 8psi and seems slightly better at 12. May try 14. Guess I just need to drink some beer and play with it to get it tweaked

Yeshh honee... I'm dwinkin lotsha beer to figgur out my shervin preshhur. (hic)...

Seriously... something must have changed since adding your manifolds. Increased pressure and no head suggests you may have a slight leak. Did you use nylon washers on the manifolds?

 

[00Seven]

Yeshh honee... I'm dwinkin lotsha beer to figgur out my shervin preshhur. (hic)...

Seriously... something must have changed since adding your manifolds. Increased pressure and no head suggests you may have a slight leak. Did you use nylon washers on the manifolds?

Didn't use the nylon washers. Have them on the regulator side but didn't have them on the manifold side. Thanks for the reminder.

 

[00Seven]

Yeshh honee... I'm dwinkin lotsha beer to figgur out my shervin preshhur. (hic)...

Seriously... something must have changed since adding your manifolds. Increased pressure and no head suggests you may have a slight leak. Did you use nylon washers on the manifolds?

Ordered some nylon washers as a fail safe. But I checked everything this morning with soapy water and there aren’t any leaks that I can find

 

[00Seven]

Well now a few days later and I'm turning it back down. It was perfect at 14 then it became too foamy, then it was perfect at 12 and it was too much. Now it's borderline too much at 10. Is the beer releasing more gas that's causing it? Or is my system just settling down a bit? 8 PSI with a picnic tap is where I was and it was great for several kegs

 

[SEndorf]

8-10 psi is my sweet spot.
Did you install the washers?
What's different?

 

[00Seven]

I got the washers in yesterday but haven’t installed them. I did a soap test on the connections and around the kegs and didn’t see any leaks. So I’m not sure exactly what changed

 

[beerlover77]

There is so much more to it then just plain: set it at _____ temp to get what you want. How cold are your new taps? Generally they are warmer (and the hose leading out) then the actual beer and this will cause foam. Length and diameter of line + fridge temp make a big difference too. My system likes 12 PSI but I have 11' of line per tap and circulate the air with a fan to chill everything including shanks to a uniform level. Sometimes my first pour is a bit foamy but the rest are not.

I doubt you have a leak if now your beer is too foamy

 

[00Seven]

Maybe I missed a leak? Just pulled a sample from tap 1 and it had gone totally flat. I put the nylon washers on and am recarbing now and will check tomorrow. Getting frustrated