tubing and co2 distribution

[debtman7]

My LHBS was out of 3/16" tubing for the beverage dispensing, do they carry it at home depot/lowes/etc or do I have to order super special beverage tubing? I have everything except the bev. tubing and some hose clamps...

Also, when it comes to co2 distribution, what would I need to be able to serve from more than one keg? I see a lot of things for sale online, including plastic/metal manifolds, t-splitters, check vavles, etc etc. What's the most effective and cheapest way to split the gas? Can I just build something similar from home depot parts cheaper?

 

[rdwj]

You need special tubing - most of the online stores carry it.

For multiple kegs, you can go with a variety of options depending on how tricky you want to get.

You can serve from multiple kegs with the same pressure with a simple splitter. Shut offs are nice, but not necessary. The manifolds start becoming practical when you get to 3 or more kegs.

If you want various pressures, you're going to need a secondary regulator for each additional pressure you hope to use. If you want more than one at each pressure, you need to split or use a manifold for each one.

 

[olllllo]

My LHBS was out of 3/16" tubing for the beverage dispensing, do they carry it at home depot/lowes/etc or do I have to order super special beverage tubing? I have everything except the bev. tubing and some hose clamps...

Make sure that it is food grade and has the same ID and OD.

Also, when it comes to co2 distribution, what would I need to be able to serve from more than one keg? I see a lot of things for sale online, including plastic/metal manifolds, t-splitters, check vavles, etc etc. What's the most effective and cheapest way to split the gas?

The most effective is not the cheapest. The cheapest is a T. The most effective is a manifold becase of the control.
http://www.northernbrewer.com/gas-handling.html

Can I just build something similar from home depot parts cheaper?

See this if you really want to do things from scratch:
http://www.ihomebrewsolutions.com/TheGreatFridgeProject.pdf
Page six gives you a part list to make your own manifold.
I can't tell you if it's cheaper. It's not if you follow his philospohy about eliminating barb fittings. Still, If had I the time and the foresite, I probably would have gone this route.

 

[debtman7]

You need special tubing - most of the online stores carry it.

Yeah but ordering it online will cost me $3 for the tubing and $7 for the shipping, plus I have to wait a week and I'm ready to keg this weekend. Granted I won't need the beverage line this weekend but it would be helpful for testing everything out.

There's got to be some local place that sells appropriate tubing...

 

[Fiery Sword]

Check the yellow pages for restaurant supply places. Or, parhaps, go bother your local bar/restaurant and make it worth their while.......they *might* have what you are looking for.

 

[gnef]

i would also say that don't just buy the tubing you need.

that's how i started, and i always kept going back to the LHBS. if i could go back, i would buy a 100 foot roll of the stuff now. (though i have six taps, picnic taps and a jockey box for portability, etc.) same with the co2 tubing, as i have had to replace tubing, cut tubing, etc. it would've helped to have a long roll of it to use. so don't be afraid of ordering a roll online.

a place i remember had a decent price was micromatic, but i could be wrong, check it out though.

 

[God Emporer BillyBrew]

Yeah but ordering it online will cost me $3 for the tubing and $7 for the shipping, plus I have to wait a week and I'm ready to keg this weekend. Granted I won't need the beverage line this weekend but it would be helpful for testing everything out.

There's got to be some local place that sells appropriate tubing...

I spent more than an hour on the phone a couple of weeks ago trying to find some locally and came up with nada. I found the quarter inch stuff at one beverage supply company and found another beverage company that used to stock it, but was out and wasn't going to order any more.

Could you just use the quarter inch stuff in the meantime?

Buy more than you think you'll need. It will help you justify paying shipping plus it's very likely that you'll need some more someday.

 

[brewmister]

Home depot/Lowes carries fda approved tubing

 

[debtman7]

Home depot/Lowes carries fda approved tubing

Yeah I looked yesterday but the only 3/16" ID tubing they had said on the box 'WARNING: do not use for ice maker' which lead me to believe it wasn't food grade...

 

[ajf]

I don't know, but I would suspect that the Icemaker warning is because the tubing cannot handle the mains water pressure.

-a.

 

[olllllo]

Yeah I looked yesterday but the only 3/16" ID tubing they had said on the box 'WARNING: do not use for ice maker' which lead me to believe it wasn't food grade...

Ice makers require a braided hose if not copper due to the water pressure. Doesn't mean you're out of the woods though. I don't know enough about Home Depot hoses.

 

[Cheesefood]

Looking to order my distributor. I'm getting the 4-way simply because I have 4 kegs and don't want to have to order a larger one at some point. Which should I get, the 1/4" or 5/16"?

 

[Cheesefood]

Looking to order my distributor. I'm getting the 4-way simply because I have 4 kegs and don't want to have to order a larger one at some point. Which should I get, the 1/4" or 5/16"?

Sorry to self-bump, but can anyone answer my question?

 

[gnef]

get the 1/4'' for homebrew. much easier/cheaper flared connectors.

are you getting a flared manifold? if not, then you could get whatever you want, really, just make sure you get tubing that is the correct size as well.

 

[Beermaker]

Ebay usually has people selling that. If your in need and it will be a bit for the LHBS.

 

[Cheesefood]

OK, I figured it out. The 5/16 is for the 1/2bbl kegs. I ordered the 1/4" regulator. Now I just need to get the CO2 tank, which a place by work sells for $90 filled (20lb tank). I looked at eBay, but the shipping is pretty high.

 

[Yuri_Rage]

$90 for a full 20 lb tank is a decent price. I leased two of them for $80, but I should probably just break down and buy them. A 20 lb tank is pretty big (roughly the size of a 5 gallon corny), so be sure you have room for it. I keep mine outside the fridge and run the gas through a bulkhead fitting in the side.