picnic tap fail

[thaefathan]

I haven't had a drink for a couple days, today here's how I found my raspberry cider that I saved for 8mo before drinking. Keg was totally empty, CO2 nearly empty... uggh.

 

[iijakii]

No problem..

 

[poptarts]

time to buy taps

 

[BrewerBrad82]

Picnic taps are notorious for doing just this, it has happened to me. For extra insurance it is a good idea to disconnect the picnic tap line from the keg when you are done serving the beverage.

Sorry for your loss. iijakii has the best solution at the moment...

 

[IslandLizard]

That's a really sad picture, I feel for you! Looks like it would have been yummy.

Do you know what was wrong with the cobra tap itself?

 

[CajunChuck]

That's why I took these first steps over the weekend. Sorry for your loss and best of luck to you!

 

[IslandLizard]

No problem..

A little short, though!

 

[iijakii]

And OP, just incase youre not wanting to get taps/shanks etc, I've been using this setup and love it:

Flow control faucet with post adapter. I can pour perfect beers and don't have to clean lines or balance etc.

 

[ericbw]

And OP, just incase youre not wanting to get taps/shanks etc, I've been using this setup and love it:

Flow control faucet with post adapter. I can pour perfect beers and don't have to clean lines or balance etc.

How do you keep the pressure right?

 

[passedpawn]

How do you keep the pressure right?

It's a flow control tap. Perlick 650SS.

 

[iijakii]

Yeah there's a dial on the side you can turn to increase the resistance

Can pour anywhere from full foam to no foam, although that comes out at a trickle. Easy to dial in a good pour.

 

[ericbw]

Ah I see where that would be handy.

 

[EJay]

And OP, just incase youre not wanting to get taps/shanks etc, I've been using this setup and love it:



Flow control faucet with post adapter. I can pour perfect beers and don't have to clean lines or balance etc.

What adapter are you using? Most of the adapters I've seen say "not for use with perlick"

 

[thaefathan]

Is this:

a good faucet?
(from: http://www.morebeer.com/products/pin-lock-qd-faucet-assembly.html)

thanks everyone

 

[iijakii]

What adapter are you using? Most of the adapters I've seen say "not for use with perlick"

http://www.chicompany.net/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=3343

 

[iijakii]

Is this:

a good faucet?
(from: http://www.morebeer.com/products/pin-lock-qd-faucet-assembly.html)

thanks everyone

You're going to have a bad, foamy time mounting straight to keg without a flow control faucet.

 

[thaefathan]

Do you know of any other places to get the adapter? $30 for the adapter, $8 shipping, and $50-60 for the faucet itself is a good chunk.

 

[iijakii]

Do you know of any other places to get the adapter? $30 for the adapter, $8 shipping, and $50-60 for the faucet itself is a good chunk.

That's the only place I found one when I bought it half a year ago. Not sure if any more now. Agreed it's pricey.

There's other brands of flow-control faucets out there, maybe a non-Perlick is more affordable.

 

[brewcat]

That's a really sad picture, I feel for you! Looks like it would have been yummy.

Do you know what was wrong with the cobra tap itself?

That's what I'm wondering.

 

[EJay]

That's the only place I found one when I bought it half a year ago. Not sure if any more now. Agreed it's pricey.

There's other brands of flow-control faucets out there, maybe a non-Perlick is more affordable.

Anyone know why the regular cheap adapters don't work with Perlicks? I've got a metal lathe so if its a matter of clearancing something, that might be trivial.

I do like the idea of a perlick flow control directly attached to the keg. My fridge is about the size of the one pictured and I may just attach a tap to the door. i had a picnic tap attached until this thread popped up, so I've unhooked it while not in use.

 

[thaefathan]

That's a really sad picture, I feel for you! Looks like it would have been yummy.

Do you know what was wrong with the cobra tap itself?

nothing is obviously wrong with it. The cider was really clear, but I guess there could have been a little bit of debris from the raspberries that got stuck in the opening, keeping it open

 

[thaefathan]

Anyone know why the regular cheap adapters don't work with Perlicks? I've got a metal lathe so if its a matter of clearancing something, that might be trivial.

I do like the idea of a perlick flow control directly attached to the keg. My fridge is about the size of the one pictured and I may just attach a tap to the door. i had a picnic tap attached until this thread popped up, so I've unhooked it while not in use.

Hey if you figure it out, I'll buy one off ya

 

[ericbw]

Anyone know why the regular cheap adapters don't work with Perlicks? I've got a metal lathe so if its a matter of clearancing something, that might be trivial.



I do like the idea of a perlick flow control directly attached to the keg. My fridge is about the size of the one pictured and I may just attach a tap to the door. i had a picnic tap attached until this thread popped up, so I've unhooked it while not in use.

If you're going to attach it to the door, why not use a shank?

 

[EJay]

If you're going to attach it to the door, why not use a shank?

I certainly could. But I like the other guy's setup that had it directly to the keg, and that would give me the option to grab-and-go with the whole keg (and a charger).

 

[IslandLizard]

Do you know of any other places to get the adapter? $30 for the adapter, $8 shipping, and $50-60 for the faucet itself is a good chunk.

You got to watch for sales. I check HomeBrewFinds daily.

During one of their fantastic sales I paid $15 for the Keg Faucet Adaptor Assembly. It came complete with a generic (not CMB) MFL Quick-Disconnect, and a brass faucet with black tap handle. I wish I had bought a few, I really like them.

The only thing that gave up the ghost after a year of use was the (likely) Chinese made QD after I had boiled it in PBW. The collar had deformed. I guess they shouldn't be boiled, my bad.

I've seen the adaptors by themselves go for a similar price. No, they're not worth $30, IMO. And again, no, I never buy just one item. To absorb the shipping I wait until I have a bunch of other things to go with it. There's always something on the shopping list. Like Perlicks.

My Perlicks 525 SS fit fine on the adaptor, which is like a very short shank with a 1/4" female MFL on the keg end. Just don't leave it in Starsan for extended times, the chrome starts to pit and tarnish.

 

[IslandLizard]

nothing is obviously wrong with it. The cider was really clear, but I guess there could have been a little bit of debris from the raspberries that got stuck in the opening, keeping it open

It's possible something prevented it from closing properly. Most times it is operator's fault, like closing a lid or door against it, or something else jamming it, engaging the handle. Touching wood, I never had any issues with them, even when it was spitting out fine hop dust pulp from a dry hop bag, with a too coarse mesh, in the keg. I went to using thin muslin after that.

In general, I would always check faucets, but small accidents do happen. Usually when people not familiar with the system operate them.

I wonder if a liquid sensor on the bottom of the keezer/kegerator coupled to an alarm could help warn about something being wrong before it escalades. Another use for a Raspberry Pi or Arduino perhaps.

 

[ericbw]

It's possible something prevented it from closing properly. Most times it is operator's fault, like closing a lid or door against it, or something else jamming it, engaging the handle. Touching wood, I never had any issues with them, even when it was spitting out fine hop dust pulp from a dry hop bag, with a too coarse mesh, in the keg. I went to using thin muslin after that.

In general, I would always check faucets, but small accidents do happen. Usually when people not familiar with the system operate them.

I wonder if a liquid sensor on the bottom of the keezer/kegerator coupled to an alarm could help warn about something being wrong before it escalades. Another use for a Raspberry Pi or Arduino perhaps.

That made me laugh, because a liquid sensor is a great idea, but so far beyond my skill or knowledge!

 

[ericbw]

You got to watch for sales. I check HomeBrewFinds daily.

During one of their fantastic sales I paid $15 for the Keg Faucet Adaptor Assembly. It came complete with a generic (not CMB) MFL Quick-Disconnect, and a brass faucet with black tap handle. I wish I had bought a few, I really like them.

The only thing that gave up the ghost after a year of use was the (likely) Chinese made QD after I had boiled it in PBW. The collar had deformed. I guess they shouldn't be boiled, my bad.

I've seen the adaptors by themselves go for a similar price. No, they're not worth $30, IMO. And again, no, I never buy just one item. To absorb the shipping I wait until I have a bunch of other things to go with it. There's always something on the shopping list. Like Perlicks.

My Perlicks 525 SS fit fine on the adaptor, which is like a very short shank with a 1/4" female MFL on the keg end. Just don't leave it in Starsan for extended times, the chrome starts to pit and tarnish.

OK, maybe this is just going by me, but if you have a "normal" (meaning basic cheap brass/chrome) faucet without flow control, wouldn't you have to have the pressure set to like 2 psi? Otherwise, you'd get foamy spray from the tap, wouldn't you?

 

[IslandLizard]

OK, maybe this is just going by me, but if you have a "normal" (meaning basic cheap brass/chrome) faucet without flow control, wouldn't you have to have the pressure set to like 2 psi? Otherwise, you'd get foamy spray from the tap, wouldn't you?

Agreed, with a regular faucet, either being cheap brass or Perlick SS, it's not the best pour one can get. I dial down to 5-6 psi and although more foamy than I like, it's very acceptable. With a flow control faucet you can leave the keg at 10-12 psi and get better pours.

Then again, given the ease of having a portable, on-keg real tap, it's a very elegant solution. We shouldn't compare this to a typical keezer/kegerator setup with 10-20' lines and long shanks.

 

[wilserbrewer]

I've been using picnic taps for years, I've had them drip slightly if they get gunked up with yeast or hop debris, but never anything like this. My guess is that you had 10 lbs of stuff in a 5 lb keezer and something, a bottle or gas line depressed the tap trigger...guess we'll never know.