Moving to John Guest Fittings: A Few Questions

Moving up to a bigger keezer (10-tapper, here I come!) and have decided that I don't want to wrestle with getting barbs on Bev-Seal Ultra again. I'm running the 3/16" version, which I'll order more of, and have found that I need to buy these fittings:

5/16 x 5/8 BSPP (PI451015FS) for shank side
5/16 x 1/4 Flare (PM4508F4S) for disconnect side

That's the easy part. Since my QD's, manifold and primary have MFLs, I'd like to convert the gas over as well. I currently use the red Bevlex 200 5/16 ID x 9/16 OD line. But the John Guest 1/4 female flare fittings only go up to 3/8" OD line, so something has to give.

My options seem to be:

1- Abandon the BevLex and swap the gas to BevSeal Ultra also.
2- Abandon the BevLex and swap to vinyl gas lines (perhaps UltraFlex?).
3- Suck it up and deal with coils of thick, opaque BevLex everywhere.

Option 1 seems like it would look weird. Option 2 seems like it might impart vinyl flavor. Option 3 is not idea.

Any input? I'd like to place the order in a few hours.

If it were me, I'd use the existing MFL connections on the gas side. It only takes a second to get softer tubing over a swivel nut's barb, and with a gas line you shouldn't ever have to replace it or remove it to do any cleaning.

I guess I don't see any advantage for a John Guest fitting on the gas side. The idea is that very stiff (accuflex) tubing can be quickly installed/removed, and that's a big advantage compared to painfully stretching the accuflex over a 1/4" barb. But there's no advantage with a less rigid gas line.

Can vinyl gas lines lead to plastic off flavors? I'd think that's pretty unlikely.

So if it's not broke, don't fix it.

Gotcha. You're probably right. I think my desire to move to push-lock fittings on the gas side was out of a desire for uniformity, which isn't necessarily beneficial in this case.

I think the JG fittings also might have some minimal maintenance (o-rings and whatnot) where a stainless swivel nut should be good forever.

I wish I'd known about the JG fittings before I set up my system. That accuflex is such a PITA to get on a barb...

Yup. I squeezed barbs onto both ends of 5 or 6 cables.

Now that I'm adding 6 taps, I don't want to to do that again. Especially because one of the barbs leaks no matter how many times I re-do it and clamp it. So, out the existing 1/4" barbs come.

5/16 stem X 1/4 push lock using 1/4 poly line stays flexible at cold temps and good up to 230psi and color coding for different temps will have 5 regs feeding 10 kegs set to 5 separate pressures

I see what you're saying. You sure that's 5/16" OD? That'd be a wall of only 1/32" thick on 1/4 ID tube.

Is it this stuff? http://www.freshwatersystems.com/p-887-38-od-lldpe-polyethylene-tubing.aspx Says it's 3/8" OD.

Looks like maybe you used this enlarger, 5/16" to 3/8" stem? http://www.freshwatersystems.com/p-2449-enlarger-516-od-stem-x-38.aspx

If so, you could use the same connectors as on the liquid side.

Reduced down from 5/16 to 1/4 to help save space and really wanted to color code the pressures for easy reconnection to keep styles accurate pressures. I will have line leftover if your interested waiting for the yellow and green yet. No this line is flexible like the Bev line your currently using just smaller dia.

Guess I don't understand what I'm looking at.

Here's what I thought you were showing me:

3/8" OD (1/4" ID) LLDPE Polyethylene Tubing
to
3/8" OD to 5/16" Stem enlarger (PI131012S)
to
5/16" OD to 1/4" FFL (PM4508F4S)

But that doesn't seem to make any sense. There's a 3/8" OD to 1/4" FFL fitting (PI4512F4S) that not only costs 10% less, but would render the enlarger redundant.

There is a reducer, but it's backwards colors (light grey with dark grey insert, not all dark grey like what is pictured). I suppose with it you could do the following:

1/4" OD (.170" ID) LLDPE Polyethylene Tubing
to
1/4" OD x 5/16" Stem reducer (PI061008S)
to
5/16" OD to 1/4" FFL (PM4508F4S)

Is that what you have pictured? And if so... why 1/4" OD line? Is it for flex and space reasons? Once you add in that reducer, the cost savings over 5/16" or 3/8" LLDPE disappears.

No reduced not enlarged on that web site I believe you would be looking at #P1061008S






5/16 Bev compared to 1/4 polyurethane line

Any experience with DMFit fittings? Is the quality equal to John Guest?

http://www.freshwatersystems.com/p-...dapter-516-push-in-x-716-20unf-cone-type.aspx
http://www.freshwatersystems.com/p-...e-adapter-516-push-in-x-716-20unf-v-type.aspx

http://www.freshwatersystems.com/p-...adapter-14-push-in-x-716-20unf-cone-type.aspx
http://www.freshwatersystems.com/p-...re-adapter-14-push-in-x-716-20unf-v-type.aspx

Also, any idea on what the difference is between V type and cone type flare fittings are? It looks like V type connects to the typical 1/4" MFL, but I'm not sure.

Sub'd.

To update this thread, the John Guest and DMfit Pushfit fittings are both great. They are equal quality and interchangable, certain types of fittings are just less expensive from one manufacturer or the other.

Regarding the DMfit female flare fittings, the V-type are what attach to male flare fittings such as the ones on the end of the keg quick disconnects. The 1/4" work great with 1/4" OD polyurethane tubing for CO2 and the 5/16" work with the Bevseal Ultra 3/16" ID tubing.