Kegging slow and low

[Aschecte]

I feel stupid asking this question but here we go. For the past year and a half when I keg a beer I was doing the fast carb method ie. chill the beer down to like 40 degree or so and set my regulator to 40 psi or so and give it a few rolls over a couple days and then lower my psi down to 10 psi serving pressure and off I went drinking my beer fully carbed. I've had a change of heart so to speak over the last few weeks about doing this not that I'm fully against it but I want to try doing the low slow method and see if my carbonation results improve or decline. So this time around I kegged my 5 gallons of pale ale and according to my carbonation chart I should get at 40 degrees and 12 psi 2.4 volumes of co2 which is appropriate for the style. so I set the regulator to 12 and she has sat there now for 1 week. My question is this how long does the slow method take to fully carbonate the beer ? is it a week a month hopefully not longer than that. I truly have no idea when I should tap this. Thanks for any info.

 

[geosteve]

With the low and slow method it usually takes my beers 2.5 weeks to get where they should be, carbonation-wise. That doesn't stop me from drinking them along the way, though...

 

[chickypad]

My experience is similar, they seem to reach equilibrium about 2 -2.5 wks but I usually start drinking at 5-7 days and they are most of the way there - definitely enough to enjoy.

 

[Bobby_M]

The rate of carbonation at a given pressure is logarithmic in that it starts fast and slowly levels off. While it takes a good 3 weeks to reach the exact volumes on the chart, it will likely be 2/3rds of the way there in a week. It's also reasonable to set the pressure to 30psi for the first 24 hours, then back off to the chart pressure. The key here is remembering to back off and not leave it like that for a week.

 

[alestateyall]

The rate of carbonation at a given pressure is logarithmic in that it starts fast and slowly levels off. While it takes a good 3 weeks to reach the exact volumes on the chart, it will likely be 2/3rds of the way there in a week. It's also reasonable to set the pressure to 30psi for the first 24 hours, then back off to the chart pressure. The key here is remembering to back off and not leave it like that for a week.

Bobby_M is that logarithmic curve dependent on time and the pressure setting? The reason I ask is I have tried 10 PSI and it didn't seem ready in 3 weeks. 11-12 PSI is always ready for me in 2-3 weeks like folks say above.

Just curious.

PS. The slow 10 PSI case could be my imagination. Maybe it just wasn't as carbed as I thought it should be.

 

[orion7144]

I also do the 30 psi for a day after cold crashing then back to 12 psi (remember to relieve the pressure in the keg first) and carbs nicely after 5-7 days.

 

[Bobby_M]

Bobby_M is that logarithmic curve dependent on time and the pressure setting? The reason I ask is I have tried 10 PSI and it didn't seem ready in 3 weeks. 11-12 PSI is always ready for me in 2-3 weeks like folks say above.

Just curious.

PS. The slow 10 PSI case could be my imagination. Maybe it just wasn't as carbed as I thought it should be.

The curve would be the same in relation to the target volumes of CO2 as dictated by the carbonation charts. I'm fairly certain that 3 weeks would be fully carbed. You just don't perceive 10psi (don't know your temperature) of carbonation as adequate.

 

[alestateyall]

The curve would be the same in relation to the target volumes of CO2 as dictated by the carbonation charts. I'm fairly certain that 3 weeks would be fully carbed. You just don't perceive 10psi (don't know your temperature) of carbonation as adequate.

My temp is about 38. I am sure you are right about it being a perception issue.

 

[Aschecte]

Just to chime in completely with a uneducated answer. I carb my kegs anywhere between 10-12 psi for the last two beers...... And I agree fully about the 10 psi and perceived amount of carbonation. Another thing of like to add is I used to run 1/4" Bev lines and that 10psi was just "head" not much in the way of bubbles in solution...... I asked about this on the AHA forum and Denny conn suggested me bumping down to 3/16" Bev line. I in my mind said really !!! That like no difference ( 1/16" of a inch ) let me tell you from my expierence what a huge differnce it made. Not only do I know have great in solution carbonation at 10 psi but no more excessive heads and foam and the head is perfectly proportional now. So fwiw I believe now not only psi carbed and served at but also the size of your beverage line plays a huge factor as well.

 

[Bobby_M]

Yeah that's true. The temperature and pressure thing gets a specific amount of CO2 dissolved while it's in the keg. What happens to it during dispensing is a completely different topic with many variables.

 

[Aschecte]

That's my point as well is alestateyall running 20 feet of 3/16" bev line at 10 psi then yeah I agree you won't perceive any carbonation...... conversely if he's running 20 feet of 1/4" he should be getting great pours as I believe 1/4" tube has a restriction of about .5 psi per foot therefore 20' feet is optimal excluding calculating for rise..... but if running 20 feet of 3/16" at 2.3 psi restriction per foot ( which btw is amazing that 1/16th of a inch maks that huge of a difference ) he has a deficit of 36 psi to overcome and will get no carbonation. I know I'm off on a bit of a tangent and I don't really know what he is running but my guess is line length and size may play a role there as well.

 

[alestateyall]

That's my point as well is alestateyall running 20 feet of 3/16" bev line at 10 psi then yeah I agree you won't perceive any carbonation...... conversely if he's running 20 feet of 1/4" he should be getting great pours as I believe 1/4" tube has a restriction of about .5 psi per foot therefore 20' feet is optimal excluding calculating for rise..... but if running 20 feet of 3/16" at 2.3 psi restriction per foot ( which btw is amazing that 1/16th of a inch maks that huge of a difference ) he has a deficit of 36 psi to overcome and will get no carbonation. I know I'm off on a bit of a tangent and I don't really know what he is running but my guess is line length and size may play a role there as well.

Just to be clear I don't have any kegging problems. I was just asking Bobby_M a question I half always wondered about.

 

[Aschecte]

Just to be clear I don't have any kegging problems. I was just asking Bobby_M a question I half always wondered about.

ohhh I'm sorry I misinterpreted the original question you posed about not perceiving carbonation at 10 psi as a actual "problem"..... I did not by any means mean to step on your toes so to speak. I was I guess over excited to share the info I learned on the AHA forum regarding carbonation at "x" psi perceived and actually held in solution by the variable of beverage line sizing.

 

[alestateyall]

ohhh I'm sorry I misinterpreted the original question you posed about not perceiving carbonation at 10 psi as a actual "problem"..... I did not by any means mean to step on your toes so to speak. I was I guess over excited to share the info I learned on the AHA forum regarding carbonation at "x" psi perceived and actually held in solution by the variable of beverage line sizing.

Cheers!