G'day brewers, I've got a problem with flat foamy keg beer. It's my first go at kegging and I did a lot of research (thanks YouTube). In short I made a kegerator out of a small fridge. 1 regulator, tee piece, 2 kegs and CO2 tank in the fridge, taps on the door (1 beer, 1 soda water). Here's my story (big breath in) here goes... Clean/sanitize everything. All gear is brand new. Filled first keg with water and 2nd keg with brand spanking new Sierra Nevada wort, 5 psi gas burst both and burp to remove oxygen. Let it chill overnight - no lines are attached. The next day I hook up both gas lines and set it to 30 psi and leave for 48 hours. After that, I dropped it to 10 psi, burped and it settled on 10 nicely Eagerness got the better of me, I had to sample it and I'm glad I did. I hooked up both liquid lines, beer mega foamy, soda water not pouring - discovered the water keg was too close to the freezer plate and had frozen over the gas and liquid tubes Disconnect all lines, refill water keg and force carb with 30 psi and shake for 5 mins then set it to 12 psi - the water is perfectly carbonated Now the beer. Remember it's had 30 psi for 48 hours so I burp all gas out, leave in fridge overnight then burp it again. Hook up gas to beer keg (it's getting 12 psi) and after 24 hours it still pours mega foamy and the beer is flat. The beer line is 3 metres long x 5mm ID. I think that's long enough for 12 psi? I wasn't expecting the beer to be carbonated yet but what's with the foam? I'm fangin for a beer so grateful for any tips. Cheers
30 psi for 48 hours when the beer is cold is overcarbed. I’m not sure about the ID of your beer line, as I’m terrible with metric but mine has an ID of 3/16” but google tells me that’s similar. Purge the keg often, to release the extra c02. Also, maybe the there is a temperature gradient, where the beer is very cold on the bottom but the lines/faucet is warmer(?). How are you pouring, and are the faucets warm? Make sure you open the faucet completely, as to not ‘pinch’ the flow. Think of that like a garden hose- when you pinch it, it shoots farther. So open the tap completely. Also, cold beer + very warm faucet = FOAM. So try to get the lines/faucet/beer as close to the same temperatures as you can. If you can look at any temperature issues, and report back, that will help us diagnose further.
48 hours at 30psi may have over carbonated the beer, depending on the temperature your fridge is running at, the keg size and amount of head space. At 40 degrees F,12psi would give you a carbonation level of just under 2.5 volumes. If you're much colder than that, which I suspect if the water keg froze, you'd need to bring the temperature up, reduce the pressure, increase the resistance in the beer lines, or a combination of any of these to avoid foaming problems. Colder beer will more readily absorb CO2 and will also hold more in solution. Excessive foaming is caused when CO2 rapidly comes out of solution, which is usually caused by excessive pressure drop as the beer exits the faucet. The pressure drop needs to occur in the beer lines to prevent this. Flat beer and excessive foam go hand in hand. More foam in the pour means less CO2 remaining in solution. Below is a link to a carbonation chart for reference. Check the temperature in your fridge, preferably close to the beer keg and a couple of inches from the bottom, and adjust accordingly. Set your pressure as needed for the desired carbonation level. https://www.kegerators.com/carbonation-table/
Letting it settle out a few days can help also. Longer beer line can help and so can running higher pressure to balance what your beer was actually carbed at. I've honestly had little luck purging and more luck running higher pressure if a keg is over carbonated. Depending on height of taps in relation to your kegs, you may do much better with longer line.
As above if it Is pouring to quick just disconnect gas from keg next session this should slowly we gas the keg over the hours your consuming by the end of the night you just might if you've been a good lad get a full glass of beer!
Yeah my go to areas are longer lines or lower pressure. I may have missed it but the tap can get warm too, so if it's just the first glass pouring foamy there isn't much to do there. I just pour 1/3 of a glass and either drink or dump the foam and start pouring.
Yea. With a tower on my keezer I get the first 3 or 4 ounces of foam. I keep a taster glass and pull the foamy stuff into it. After that I get a nice clean pour. When I go for a refill, I just drink the taster beer.
I've had a new sixlet sitting at 30psi in my kegerator for about 24 hours now. Should I be lowering the psi to 10-12 and burping it at this point to get it adjusted?
If it's been 24 hours you should be fine to just reduce it down without worrying about burping it. 3 meters is about 10 feet and if you have it around 3-4C that is where I keep mine. Should be fine, but again first bit of the first pour might be foamy just due to the faucet being warm.
I have a manifold inside my fridge with industrial type regulators which are "relieving", so when I turn pressure down they vent and actually adjust the pressure down. I typically set for 30 PSI for 24 to 36 hours, then turn it down to 10-12. Your results may vary!
I'm a little jealous. Where does one inquire about purchasing one of these magically-infused regulators/manifolds?
Typical manifold available on amazon https://www.google.ca/search?sxsrf=...j30i10j33i21.MWZYoE4m7Vw#imgrc=U4m6QXTvnicCAM:
Relieving regulator, this is the actual unit I use. Not intended for bottled gas, but as long as you keep your main regulator below 150 psi, they work fine. https://www.amazon.com/Parker-Miniature-Regulator-Relieving-Type/dp/B007HEVSL2
You will need a gauge for each one, and some fittings. I have a shutoff valve on each one as well. I will post a picture of my setup... hopefully tomorrow.
