Kegging Carbonation Woes

[jkwearl]

Hey all!

This is my first post and I am very new to homebrewing.

So, I could really use some help. I have a newly kegged winter ale in a corny keg. I've got it stored in a good, cold fridge. I carbed it with CO2 at 30 psi for about 2 days, and its been sitting at around 10 for a week or so. There are two issues I have, however. For one, the beer is not as carbonated as I'd like - at least, not like opening up a bottle of beer (but the taste is great). But even more annoyingly, every time I fill a pint, I get about 3/4 a glass of foam, and I need to very slowly fill a little more until I get the glass filled. I am using a 6-7ft beer line.

Any advice for how to tag-team both of these issues? Thanks so much in advance!

 

[Pkrd]

Welcome to HBT.

It's likely your beer lines are too short, hence the beer is coming out too fast and foaming which releases most of the CO2.

Have a look here to see what length you need (probably double what you have).
http://www.mikesoltys.com/2012/09/17/determining-proper-hose-length-for-your-kegerator/

 

[Nagorg]

1) longer lines will help with the foaming. I have ~12 ft. lines.
2) I'd say that the beer needs more time on the CO2 AND 10psi may be a little light depending on how cold you have your fridge set and the volume of Co2 you are going for.
I have my keezer set to 38 degrees and my psi set to ~13PSI and it takes ~10 days for a set and forget carb.

Here's a good tool to help you with the psi:
https://www.brewersfriend.com/keg-carbonation-calculator/

 

[MikeCo]

Make sure your lines are 3/16 inner diameter or smaller. I agree with the others that longer line would help with the foam. I would go 10 or 12 feet for 3/16 lines. Try higher pressure after installing longer lines to get the carbonation you want. Keep in mind it will take some time for the beer to reach the new carbonation level. I run my pressure at 12 to 14 psi at temperatures around 38.

 

[pvpeacock]

I second the longer beer lines. However, you may also have over-carbonated the beer at 30 psi for 2 days. If it is over-carbonated, you may be losing CO2 with the foamy pours making the remaining beer seem under-carbonated.
If it is over-carbonated, you have a few choices. First, you could turn off the gas to the keg and burp it every few hours for a day or so. Then turn the gas back on at around 12 psi and see if the problem is fixed. If not, shut off the gas, continue to burp it for a while and repeat until the carbonation levels are good. Second, you could hook up your gas line to your beer out post and give it a blast of CO2. Somehow, this forces CO2 out of suspension in the liquid. Then reconnect the CO2 to the gas post, set it for 12 psi and wait a few days for it properly carbonate.

 

[mcmeador]

I have 5 feet of beer line in my Kegco kegerator with a temp of 38 and pressure at about 11.5-12 PSI. The line sits on top of the kegs where the air temperature is around 50 or so degrees.

I have found that I get foamy pours on the first ounce or two in a pour due to the CO2 coming out of solution in the warmer beer sitting in the 50-degree lines. If I pour a couple of ounces and either drink or dump (I choose to just down it real quick), I then get a perfect pour to refill the glass.

 

[jmcquesten]

I second the suggestion on this:




http://www.mikesoltys.com/2012/09/17/determining-proper-hose-length-for-your-kegerator/

 

[jkwearl]

Thanks guys for your advice. I switched from a 6 ft line to a 9 foot line. It still comes out pretty fast though and still mainly foam. But I will take your advice and try some of these things.

 

[9Kegs]

The O-ring on the liquid out post could be the culprit. If worn out or damaged, it causes turbulence when pouring resulting in all foam and flat beer.