Kegging equipment questions...

[DyerNeedOfBeer]

I am building a three keg fridge. I am getting ready to purchase the CO2 components and need some opinions... Should I buy a three secondary regulator setup or just a distribution manifold? Is there a need to run the kegs at different pressures which would justify $110 for the regulators or should I spend the $40 on the manifold to run them all at the same pressure? My concern is that I buy the manifold only to find later that I want to upgrade to running seperate pressures... what is your opinion?

Another question... I think I know the answer... the standard Co2 line is 5/16 id. The ball lock coupler is 1/4 barb or the one with the threaded fitting can be outfitted with a 5/16 barb. Guess I should go with the threaded coupler and 5/16 barb so the CO2 line will fit on both ends... are there any other options there? Is this info correct?

Cheers...

 

[RichBrewer]

I would definitely go with the dual regulator set up. This will at least give you 2 different pressures for dispensing and or conditioning. Maybe have 2 manifolds in the fridge with 2 connectors each. I just think it would give you more options than a single regulator at one pressure.
Now- Could you make me one after yours is done?

 

[DrewsBrews]

What Rich said.

If you want to be able to put a porter or a brown ale in the fridge with a properly carbonated hefeweizen at some point, go with the dualies. I'm a detail freak and couldn't handle the idea of having a foamy porter or a weakly carb'd wheat.

For a cheaper alternative than your $110 setup (where I got mine and it works great), go to http://cgi.ebay.com/Taprite-Dual-Ou...ryZ38172QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

[DyerNeedOfBeer]

I was looking at a tripple secondary so I would have three different pressures, not two... so the $110 I was speaking of is in line with the $70 of the duals you linked to DrewsBrews. (I already have a CO2 bottle and primary regulator.)Tripple secondary
One other question that I should have posted originally which your post reminded me of DrewsBrews, Can't you control the foaming of the drawn beer from the length of beer tubing even if all of the kegs were at the same pressure?
The one thing I am thinking now is what RichBrewer said about being able to serve from one pressure and use another pressure to do force carbonation or such. I imagine if you were force carbonating at mmm... what 30psi? then that would be a long long beer line if you were to serve from the other keg at 30psi.

 

[Mikey]

There's no need to over pressure a keg to carbonate. The laws of physics dictate that it will carbonate all on it's own. Adjust your keg to the final serving pressure and let nature take over.

 

[Tony]

There's no need to over pressure a keg to carbonate. The laws of physics dictate that it will carbonate all on it's own. Adjust your keg to the final serving pressure and let nature take over.

Yes sir! Set it and forget it!

 

[Spoonta]

whats that about set and forget

 

[subwyking]

whats that about set and forget

he is saying to just set the regulator to the pressure you want it dispensed at and leave it. eventually it will carbonate at that pressure. some people apply more co2 pressure so the beer will carbonate quicker.

 

[RichBrewer]

I was looking at a tripple secondary so I would have three different pressures, not two... so the $110 I was speaking of is in line with the $70 of the duals you linked to DrewsBrews. (I already have a CO2 bottle and primary regulator.)Tripple secondary
One other question that I should have posted originally which your post reminded me of DrewsBrews, Can't you control the foaming of the drawn beer from the length of beer tubing even if all of the kegs were at the same pressure?
The one thing I am thinking now is what RichBrewer said about being able to serve from one pressure and use another pressure to do force carbonation or such. I imagine if you were force carbonating at mmm... what 30psi? then that would be a long long beer line if you were to serve from the other keg at 30psi.

Oh my... Now you got me thinking. That triple regulator is sweet!
From my understanding, if your keg is in the fridge at say 38° and you want the CO2 level to be about 2.4 or 2.5 volumes then the pressure would be set at about 10 pounds. It will take longer to carbonate at 10 psi but you can also gently shake the keg which will speed up the process. You can also force carbonate faster by setting the pressure higher say 30 PSI and then lowering it to 10 after a day or so. Either way the pressure will need to equalize at 10 psi for proper carbonation. 30 PSI would be way too high for dispensing. The problem I have is that my beer line that came with my kit is only 4 feet. At 10 PSI I get nothing but foam. I have to turn the pressure down to 5 psi to dispense then crank it back up to 10 to maintain the carbonation. If I leave it at 5 the beer will go flat. There are formulas to balance your system that calculate the length of your beer line so you can leave the pressure set at the carbonation pressure but I can't figure them out.

 

[Some Hasbeen]

he is saying to just set the regulator to the pressure you want it dispensed at and leave it. eventually it will carbonate at that pressure. some people apply more co2 pressure so the beer will carbonate quicker.

So, if I have a keg that I'm dispensing from and want to add another keg with my dual tap setup, it will essentially just take a little longer to carbonate since I'd be dispensing at the lower level? I just finished the final touches on my kegerator setup last night and was wondering about that.