Weighing pros and cons of the two main choices in beer faucets for homebrewers. Also would like to start a discussion of other brands, outliers, etc.
Beautiful setup you've got there, I really like the German / Czech theme and that Bitburger tower is sweet. Who makes those side-pull faucets? Are they compatible with standard shanks, etc?Neither...Side pull faucets have much more appeal. Although this question is damn near 100% personal preference as most people will say what they use is the best due to confirmation bias. Which is why I said side pull. Although, on the other side of my Bitburger tower is an Intertap flow control that is equally as good, but doesn't look as cool as my side pull. Prior to the Intertap, I had a Perlick flow control that was equally as good, but I wanted to see if there was a difference, so I got an Intertap, and they pour the same.View attachment 641020
Standard shanks, a company in the Czech Republic makes them, and I think the shipping is out of control to the US also someone had mentioned to me before. https://eshop.czechminibreweries.com/product/dtp-ba100/Beautiful setup you've got there, I really like the German / Czech theme and that Bitburger tower is sweet. Who makes those side-pull faucets? Are they compatible with standard shanks, etc?
I have perlicks now and gave reasons why I made a decision to hopefully add to the conversation. Next time I'll try smart alec comments. Maybe that'll be more helpful.
Ha! That was in response to someone else. Thanks for your helpfulness though.
I have never used any faucets, but I just ordered some Intertap flow control faucets, so they must clearly be better....right? I refrained from voting as I have no idea what I am talking about.
I have both the Perlick's have a heavier construction and feel better overall however I really like how my Intertaps pour. You are not going to go wrong with either. If I could only choose 1 I would keep my Perlick's but there is nothing wrong with the Intertaps at all it's just preference. I also really like having the flow control option it's great for filling bottles fwiw.
$52 for the Perlick adjustable flow is almost the same cost as Intertap adjustable flow
https://www.amazon.com/Perlick-Fauc...+flow+control&qid=1566574729&s=gateway&sr=8-6
Both the intertaps and perlick flow controls are cheaper at ritebrew. $38 and $50 respectively
http://www.ritebrew.com/category-s/1909.htm
Intertaps.
I swapped out my Perlicks for Intertaps and haven't looked back. I'm a big fan of being able to swap out the faucet ends on the Intertaps. I've got the growler filler, stout and ball lock ends for mine and I use them all.
Intertaps.
I swapped out my Perlicks for Intertaps and haven't looked back. I'm a big fan of being able to swap out the faucet ends on the Intertaps. I've got the growler filler, stout and ball lock ends for mine and I use them all. Cleaning the kegerator is especially nice with the ball lock ends, just hook my cleaning pump up to the faucets and run the system in reverse to clean. My Perlicks are now living on my jockey box but I'm toying with the idea of going Intertap there as well simply for ease of cleaning.
Mine (Intertap) aren't closing completely.Can anyone comment on whether the flow control lever on either brand closes off the flow completely? That would seem even more foolproof than a self-closing spring to prevent spillage if the lever gets bumped accidentally.
Can anyone comment on whether the flow control lever on either brand closes off the flow completely? ....
Which version is that? I've got the 8473 model (I think) and it doesn't completely close.On all four of my Intertaps, the FC will completely shut off the flow.
I'm looking at keg land's flow control ball lock disconnects since they claim less foam than FC at the faucet (something about more head pressure producing less turbulence) so I can tweak flow once when I tap a keg and not bother with it any further. Anyone experienced with these??
Neither...Side pull faucets have much more appeal. Although this question is damn near 100% personal preference as most people will say what they use is the best due to confirmation bias. Which is why I said side pull. Although, on the other side of my Bitburger tower is an Intertap flow control that is equally as good, but doesn't look as cool as my side pull. Prior to the Intertap, I had a Perlick flow control that was equally as good, but I wanted to see if there was a difference, so I got an Intertap, and they pour the same.View attachment 641020
Sounds like you've got yourself a unicorn faucet!Mine are kinda a hybrid...found them on Albia (Chinese ebay)
1. they look like Intertaps on the outside
2. they have the removable, cleanable nozzles like Intertaps, and I can swap my bottle filler attachment onto it in a jiffy
3. they are like Perlicks on the inside (forward sealing but they don't have the shuttle thing inside). simple, not complex
4. they have a spring inside the shank that forces the faucet closed, no more faucet accidents