What do I need to make a Double CO2 regulator

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

cubbies

Tastes like butterdirt
HBT Supporter
Joined
Nov 13, 2006
Messages
1,916
Reaction score
13
Location
St Louis MO
I am getting to the point where I dont want to have just one pressure coming out of my tank. It takes too long to carb under 10 psi, and it is too much of a pain to serve over 10. So, I need a double CO2 regulator. Of course, I could go to NB or somewhere and buy one for $150, but I know some folks have made them in the past, and they sure dont look that complicated, but I dont know what parts I would need and/or where I would get them.

Any tips or advice would be great. Thanks.
 
Depends on which way you want to go. If you don't mind having two regulators hanging off your tank, you just buy a second regulator (single-gauge, if your existing reg is already dual-gauge) and the threaded pipe nipple that connects the two together - most likely a 1/4" NPT, but you need to make sure if you need right-handed or left-handed threads. Here's an example of such a piece, in longer or shorter versions depending on how your regulator is sized/shaped:
http://www.beveragefactory.com/draftbeer/regulator/component/618BL.shtml
http://www.beveragefactory.com/draftbeer/regulator/component/618B.shtml

If you want to run just one regulator on the tank and then use two secondary regulators for the two keg pressures, just buy a dual secondary regulator like this:
http://www.micromatic.com/draft-keg-beer/regulators-pid-3022.html
 
Hmmm. I didnt know I had those options. So, (forgive my ignorance) for the first option, I already have the dual gauge regulator, if I unscrewed the gauge that tells me how much gas I have left, and then added another piece, and then attached the gauge that tells me how much gas is left, then I would essentially have a dual output regulator? What is the piece that I would attach to it, would it be one of these.

This is the regulator that I have now.

I appreciate your help on this. As I am sure you can tell, I have never done anything like this.
 
I'm a n00b on this kegging business, but you also have the option of selling your single regulator on craigslist/eBay/etc. and purchasing a new dual reg. It would certainly be cleaner and simpler than the roundabout way discussed above and might be cheaper depending on how much you get for your regulator on the secondary market.

You don't need to spend $150, either. I got this one from kegconnection.com for $99. It should arrive Thursday.
 
I got my double regulator from http://www.micromatic.com/

They seem to make a quality, rebuildable regulator, and they sell double regulators as well.

Very helpful on the phone, reasonable prices, excellent hand-adjustable and lockable knob on the front. And they are pretty. :)



Gedvondur
 
cubbies said:
Hmmm. I didnt know I had those options. So, (forgive my ignorance) for the first option, I already have the dual gauge regulator, if I unscrewed the gauge that tells me how much gas I have left, and then added another piece, and then attached the gauge that tells me how much gas is left, then I would essentially have a dual output regulator? What is the piece that I would attach to it, would it be one of these.

This is the regulator that I have now.

I appreciate your help on this. As I am sure you can tell, I have never done anything like this.

Yes, you would attach another primary regulator body to with with a piece of NIP piping, then in the empty port you would add your CO2 tank gauge to it. Then you would end up with a two different pressures.

Or, like someone else mentioned, you could have a secondary regulator body. Purchase secondary regulator bodies, low pressure gauges, connecting piping and out-valves and you'll have an infinitely expandable secondary regulators. If, perhaps you have 6 kegs, you can purchase additional bodies for each of them and theoretically carb/dispense 6 different kegs at 6 different pressures.

American Science Surplus has secondary regulator bodies for sale for $5.75 a piece. Additional low-pressure gauges cost about $6-$8 apiece and the valves cost about $6-$8 apiece. You could build a 4 body secondary regulator for under $100.
 
Evan! said:
It would certainly be cleaner and simpler than the roundabout way discussed above
I guess if you're really averse to DIY, then sure, but the "roundabout" way is exactly how the typical commercial dual regulators are made, so it's really not any less clean or simple, aside from the simple matter of assembling it - for example, looking at the one you linked to, it's obvious that it's the same as the single regulators sold at the same site, connected with a 1/4" pipe nipple - and judging by the use of teflon tape instead of liquid thread sealant (like loctite) I'd hazard a guess that they assemble them that way themselves. You may also notice that kegconnection.com also sells a "CO2 regulator, add a body" which is what I described (single-gauge reg with pipe nipple) which allows you to add an additional reg to an existing setup.

For a cost comparison, you could buy two nice dual-gauge regs with knobs, plus the pipe nipple, for $81 from beveragefactory.com - and you could save even more if you went with cheaper 'economy' regulators - which makes it cheaper than the pre-made dual regulators I've seen.

Literally, all you do is unscrew a gauge, screw the regs together with the pipe nipple, and screw the gauge back in. Done in just a minute or two with nothing more complicated than a wrench and some teflon tape (or preferably, loctite).

IMHO, a dual secondary regulator is a smarter way to go in most cases, albeit not the cheapest of options... You'll have the convenience of being able to mount your secondary regs anywhere you want, so you can easily access them to view and change pressures.
 
If I was to buy this

a) which connector nipple would I require?
b) just so I understand the process, I would remove the brass barb on the left, and the brass nut on the right. I would also remove the pressure gauge on the left side of my existing regulator (all disconnected from the gas obviously). Then, on my existing regulator, I would attach one end of the nipple with teflon tape. On the other end of the nipple connector would be the secondary regulator, connected on the right side where the brass nut used to be; also with teflon tape. Then, on the left side of the secondary regulator I would attach the pressure gauge with teflon tape, then hook to gas and check for leaks. Does that sound correct?

I looked at the CO2 Regulator, add a a body, but it is $5 more than buying the pieces and putting them together. Not that $5 is that big of a deal, but if it is as easy as I have described above, why not do it myself?

Thanks for your advice, and if you could answer those two questions I promise you I wont bug you anymore. ;)

Thanks.
 
Funkenjaeger said:
I guess if you're really averse to DIY, then sure, but the "roundabout" way is exactly how the typical commercial dual regulators are made, so it's really not any less clean or simple, aside from the simple matter of assembling it - for example, looking at the one you linked to, it's obvious that it's the same as the single regulators sold at the same site, connected with a 1/4" pipe nipple - and judging by the use of teflon tape instead of liquid thread sealant (like loctite) I'd hazard a guess that they assemble them that way themselves. You may also notice that kegconnection.com also sells a "CO2 regulator, add a body" which is what I described (single-gauge reg with pipe nipple) which allows you to add an additional reg to an existing setup.

For a cost comparison, you could buy two nice dual-gauge regs with knobs, plus the pipe nipple, for $81 from beveragefactory.com - and you could save even more if you went with cheaper 'economy' regulators - which makes it cheaper than the pre-made dual regulators I've seen.

Literally, all you do is unscrew a gauge, screw the regs together with the pipe nipple, and screw the gauge back in. Done in just a minute or two with nothing more complicated than a wrench and some teflon tape (or preferably, loctite).

IMHO, a dual secondary regulator is a smarter way to go in most cases, albeit not the cheapest of options... You'll have the convenience of being able to mount your secondary regs anywhere you want, so you can easily access them to view and change pressures.

I stand corrected. After looking around MicroMatic's site, it looks like they're designed to be daisy-chained. Did I mention that I'm a kegging n00b and have never actually kegged a batch? :D
 
At second glance, it seems what I just said hinges quite significantly on whether the threads are left-handed or right-handed. Looking online, it seems that a lot of regulators use LHT for the high-pressure ports. The pipe nipples used to connect regulators together don't specify LHT or RHT, but from pictures they appear to be RHT.

The "add a body" regulator at kegconnection doesn't state whether it's RHT or LHT, but from the picture it sort of looks like RHT, which leads me to think that it's kind of a crap shoot as to whether it's LHT or RHT.

While in theory it wouldn't make a huge difference either way, in practice, it doesn't appear that obtaining a LHT pipe nipple is quite as easy as one might expect.

If yours has left-hand threads on the outlet, unless there is an easy source of LHT pipe nipples, you are probably better off buying a dual secondary regulator, or doing as Evan! suggested and buying a premade dual primary and selling your old one.
 
You've got it right. Just remove the gauge and the put your coupler in. Then, using a wrench to keep the coupler in place, tighten the other regulator onto it.

Northern brewer has the coupler/nipple you need for connecting two LHT Highpressure Regulators. Just put Teflon tape and you are good to go.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/regulator-parts.html

A picture of it in action.
2244034544_7588338de4.jpg


I had fun finding that. Northern and Keg connection(i think) are the only ones I found who carried it. Every gas/welder outfit didn't know what I was talking about.

EDIT:They make the high-pressures/Oxygen threads LHT, I believe, to keep you from screwing PVC or any other low pressure piping into it. That keeps you from earning a darwin award.
 
ClutchDude said:
Northern brewer has the coupler/nipple you need for connecting two LHT Highpressure Regulators. Just put Teflon tape and you are good to go.

http://www.northernbrewer.com/regulator-parts.html
Excellent! Guess that solves the RHT vs. LHT issue. Thanks for providing the link.

cubbies said:
How would I go about knowing if I need the right handed or left handed version? Will it say it somewhere on the regulator?
Well one way would be to try and find info on your regulator online. The ones sold at micromatic have parts lists available which show whether the gauges are LHT or RHT, for example. The more direct option would be to simply try unscrewing your high pressure gauge (or if there are threads visible, take a look at them to see which way they are oriented). And, of course, make sure that whatever addon regulator you buy has the same thread orientation as your existing one.

I am getting the feeling that most primary regulators are LHT for the high-pressure ports, and most secondary regs are RHT. If that's the general rule, then you would need to buy a PRIMARY regulator as an addon, not a secondary regulator. Primary regs seem to be cheaper in many cases anyway.
 
It is weird how primaries are the same price as a secondary.

Anyways, check your high pressure gauge. It should by all means say which direction it is.

Failing that, you loosen it to find out. Which way you turn it will tell you what you have. If it doesn't come loose after trying to turn it to the left, you have got a LHT and Vice Versa.
 
5 years later...
I am undertaking this project myself currently and have not found a lot of information on the web about it. I thought I would take a moment and share my experience.

I acquired 2 new Corelius primary regulators that I was looking to link. The high sides are LHT so I obtained the correct connector - which was the easy part. The regs had blue loctite around the connections tot he manifold. I had to wrap the regs in cloth and clamp them in a vise to get them to budge. It was a pain and tricky to not damage anything but they do eventually give if you keep with it.

After finally getting the components off they all have to be cleaned - and cleaning blue loctite off of a reg with a rubber diapharm and plastic gauges is a huge PITA. Typically one would use heat - but it cannot be done with components that are damaged by heat. Or damaged by soaking in solvents. It was painstaking to say the least and took many hours.

If I had to do it again - I would spend the money and save the headache. Although it only monetarily cost me $10 to build the dual primary reg - it cost me huge amounts of time and was just not worth it in MHO.

Bottom line - don't use blue loctite on regs! Use Harvey 55. And be wary of Teflon tape - if a tiny scrap comes loose and enters the reg it can cause spikes and all kinds of other issues. Harvey 55 is cheap, simple, non-permanent, rated for high pressure, and available everywhere.
 
Back
Top