Fat tire kegerator

[r0xt4r]

I jsut recently made a kegerator and the beer of choice is Fat Tire from New Belgum Brewery. My problem is that the keg is brand new, barely any scratches (its sexy) and a brand new co2 tube (5#'s) set to about 15 #'s. i tired using 13 pounds and it came out too foamy. then i tried upping the pressure to about 15 pounds. same thing, foam. 135 dollars a keg, i dont want to waste very much of it trying to find the "perfect" pressure.

It tastes kinda flat about 15+ minutes later after the pour. im wondering why that is as well.

if anyone taps Fat Tire and knows the ideal pressure of co2 for a perfect pour every time, i would be grateful to know your regulator secret. please help??

[TAPMAN]

The reason your beer tastes flat is that when you pour nothing but foam, that is actually the CO2 escaping from the beer. Are you sure that your temp. is below 40?

[r0xt4r]

im pretty sure, ill have to put the thermometer to use. anything else i should check for? i niticed some bubbling in the beer line last night as i was troubleshooting, coming from the tap side, any ideas there? they seems to have stopped for now.

[r0xt4r]

i dunno if this makes much difference but the keg comes cold from the LQ and the fridge is set at the coldest possible setting.....

[r0xt4r]

ok i figured it out with the help of my friendly local neighborhood homebrew specialist.... i told ya i was new at this.. lol

Step 1. install keg in kegerator.
step 2. close co2 tank valve on regulator.
step 3. tap keg
step 4. Pull Blow off ring on keg tap assembly. might have to do this a few times
step 5. adjust pressure for keg (Fat Tire - approximately 5-8 PSI)
Step 6. open co2 valve on regulator.
Step 7. Test pour into a pint glass
step 8. if all goes well, drink test pour.

Head of beer should be aproximately the size of a nickel tall.

[cubby_swans]

ok i figured it out with the help of my friendly local neighborhood homebrew specialist.... i told ya i was new at this.. lol

Step 1. install keg in kegerator.
step 2. close co2 tank valve on regulator.
step 3. tap keg
step 4. Pull Blow off ring on keg tap assembly. might have to do this a few times
step 5. adjust pressure for keg (Fat Tire - approximately 5-8 PSI)
Step 6. open co2 valve on regulator.
Step 7. Test pour into a pint glass
step 8. if all goes well, drink test pour.

Head of beer should be aproximately the size of a nickel tall.

Not sure where you/he got the PSI from but 5-8 seems awful low for any beer.

Get a liquid thermometer, or a digital thermometer and get your kegerator down to 38 degrees liquid temperature. I just got a digital thermometer from the grocery store and set a glass of water in the kegerator. Let it sit over night and check the temp.

[cubby_swans]

Not sure where you/he got the PSI from but 5-8 seems awful low for any beer.

Well, I was right about that.... I sent an e-mail to New Belgium... this is what they said..

Most New Belgium Brewing Products will be kegged at 2.5 to 2.6 Volumes of CO2.
A standard beer cooler will be kept between 38° and 40° Fahrenheit. The
regulators should be set between 11.2psi and 13.4psi. This is based on beers at
sea level. For every 1000 foot rise in elevation, a half of a pound of pressure
should be added. For example, at 5,000 feet, 2.5psi should be added to any of
the above figures.

Let me know if you have any other questions.

Cheers!

Mandy Miller
Quality Assurance
New Belgium Brewing Company
Fort Collins, CO USA

If you keep your keg at 5-8, it's GOING TO go flat. And you're 135 dollars will be mostly wasted. Get it to 12, and if you have foam issues, your problem lies elsewhere. Verify that your temperature is 38 degrees with a liquid temperature reading. Good luck, Fat Tire is some good brew.

[cubby_swans]

sheesh, I just realized I'm responding to a post that was originated over a year ago.... somehow I think this guy's keg probably has gone flat by now.

[cavern]

cubby got sidetracked because some dude wanna some roommate.

hilarious that someone chose this forum to try and find a roommate.

"roommate wanted, kegerator a must. good flowing fat tire a plus"