Pour rate

[Dave C]

Hi All,

I hate to register just to post a question, but I am new to this and really don’t have any expertise to add yet.

I have a half keg of Sam Oktoberfest at 33 degrees in my spare refrigerator. I know that’s a little cold, but I really prefer it that way, and it doesn’t sound like that would be contributing to my problem. It’s about a quarter gone and 2 weeks old. I measure the temp by using a thermometer in a bottle of water that sits next to the keg.

I have 5 feet of brewery approve 3/16 line and the tailgate style pouring spout. I originally had the PSI set at 12 per the Sam Adams spec, but the flow was very quick, which results in a lot of foam. The beer itself doesn’t seem to be over-carbonated. Once I clear the foam it is quite fresh tasting, it’s just hitting the glass so fast I end up with a ton of foam. I get the same issue with cold glasses and room temp glasses. It’s better when I use a pitcher of course, but I usually drink a beer at a time so that’s not the answer.

Our elevation is 151 feet.

I spoke with the distributor and he said 8 PSI was okay and that should take care of it. I’m not convinced he was sure about that though. It did help a bit, but it was still pouring too fast.

I am leery about dropping the PSI down any lower. I’ve done a lot of looking around the web and it sounds like the line may be too short. I can certainly change that, but I don’t want to do that unless someone who knows what they are talking about thinks that’s the way to go (so of course I posted to anonymous people on the internet).

Any input would be greatly appreciated.

[jumper]

You can certainly lenghten your line in order to slow your flow rate down. Another problem you're likely having is that your PSI is set for what it should be when the beer is 38*. At 33* you should lower the pressure down to around 9 or 10 for Oktoberfest I believe.

[HaveAnotherBrew]

Look in the post Good CO2 chart (something like that, on my phone so I can't copy and paste). There is a link to a calculator I believe in the first reply. Put in the recomended co2 volume and your serving temp and it'll tell you what pressure you should run. I put in 9.5 feet of 3/16" line. 5 feet is way too short; they should give you line to play with when you spend $300 on a conversion kit.

[Dave C]

Thanks guys.

I will order up a longer line and check the chart mentioned.

[cubby_swans]

+1 on longer line. I seem to do fine with 5' of line, but some people don't. You don't adjust pressure to ajust flow. Longer line = slower pour.

[Saintjude33]

Sam Octoberfest issue

I set mine up with 6' of line and i either run too fast and foam out or too slow and it doesn't make it to the tap. I'll pick up 8-10' 1nd start with that myself, is there a problem with too MUCH beer line?

Also, if the keg sits for any period of time (less than 12 hours) the CO2 is building a bubble up in the line, is this a result of too high pressure?

[bonefish]

I would say...

...too low. Low pressure or warm temp is allowing gas to escape. It may be happening in the tower only, and not a big issue.
SEAN

[Dave C]

[QUOTE=Saintjude33;22135]I set mine up with 6' of line and i either run too fast and foam out or too slow and it doesn't make it to the tap. I'll pick up 8-10' 1nd start with that myself, is there a problem with too MUCH beer line?

QUOTE]

I will say I am a bit nervous about beer sitting in theline overnight. I usually only drink about 18 ounces per day. With a 10 foot line wouldn't most of that be sitting in the line all night?

Do you need to clear out the line to get fresh beer?

[cubby_swans]

I will say I am a bit nervous about beer sitting in theline overnight. I usually only drink about 18 ounces per day. With a 10 foot line wouldn't most of that be sitting in the line all night?

Do you need to clear out the line to get fresh beer?

As long as you're applying the correct pressure, and your line is staying cold (which yours is, since it's in the fridge) then the beer in the line is just as good as the beer in the keg. You could go a week without pouring and there's nothing wrong with that beer. I don't feel like doing math right now, but it should only be a few ounces in the line. Maybe 3 or 4 in 10'?

Also, I think 10' is too much line, anyways. Once you get the 10' of line on there, you'll PROBABLY find that the beer pours too slowly, and you'll end up trimming 2 or 3 feet off of it, so you end up with around 7-8' of line.

[Gordy]

As it sits right now with 5' of line to each faucet, it takes about 3 seconds to overfill (foam) a 16 oz. glass. Any formulation to determine how much more line I need. I am currently running Dos Equis Amber at 38° and 14 psi. Any less psi I noticed gas in the line. I was also tapped into a sixer of Widmere Heff untill last night but that psi made for some explosive pours. Got 20' of line and a secondary regulator on the way for the fix.

[cubby_swans]

As it sits right now with 5' of line to each faucet, it takes about 3 seconds to overfill (foam) a 16 oz. glass. Any formulation to determine how much more line I need. I am currently running Dos Equis Amber at 38° and 14 psi. Any less psi I noticed gas in the line. I was also tapped into a sixer of Widmere Heff untill last night but that psi made for some explosive pours. Got 20' of line and a secondary regulator on the way for the fix.

If you're pouring foam, than yes, it's gonna come out fast. Are you pouring foam, or is clear beer coming out of the glass then foaming once it hits the glass? A longer line will not solve the pouring of foam. You'll just be pouring slower foam.

How do you know it's 38°? You need to pour a glass, dump/chug, then pour another glass, and take the temperature of that beer/foam with a calibrated thermometer. I prefer a cheap ($10-$15) digital food thermometer that you can pick up at the local grocery store/target/wally world.

[Gordy]

It's foaming once it hits the glass. As far as thermometers, I have a digital probe in a bottle of water with the readout on the outside of the fridge, an analog hanging in the back of the fridge for air comparison and I checked the beer temp with a third digital probe. Both digitals read 37.8°.

TruTemp Digital Cooking Thermometer#3518

[Saintjude33]

Foam-out

So I swapped the beer line out with 5/16 ID at 10 feet, and I turned the pressure up to about 10-12, but it's doing the same exact thing. Not sure the temp, but I'ts definately cold enough. Would the CO2 tank being cold make a diff? The set-up is in my un-heated garage in northern CT, so it only gets about 45 degrees outside, and I have the refer turned waaaayyyy low.

I'll get you the ambient temp for the tank and the inside-refer temp and my altitude, if that helps.

[Saintjude33]

Just a thought, I don't remember seeing the check ball and retainer in the coupler, think this might be a problem?

[cubby_swans]

So I swapped the beer line out with 5/16 ID at 10 feet, and I turned the pressure up to about 10-12, but it's doing the same exact thing. Not sure the temp, but I'ts definately cold enough. Would the CO2 tank being cold make a diff? The set-up is in my un-heated garage in northern CT, so it only gets about 45 degrees outside, and I have the refer turned waaaayyyy low.

I'll get you the ambient temp for the tank and the inside-refer temp and my altitude, if that helps.

you need 3/16" ID line. Not 5/16. 5/16 is HUGE, and will act like a firehose at 10'. You'd use 1/4" ID line at 20'. 5/16" might work if you had 35 feet of beer line.