1/2 keg of Harp?

[wangdango]

Hello,
just about ready to pick up a half of Harp. My ref temp is about 32 degrees, and my last keg was pouring out at a temp of 38 degrees (Coors original). What sort of pressure would be good for the Harp? I am about 241 feet above sea level. My CO2 tank (aluminum, 5 lb, in the ref) is reading 38 psi. Do I have enough left to do a few (2 or more), kegs? THanks

[cubby_swans]

Your co2 tank is reading 38PSI? I will need to see a picture of a guage accurate enough that you can read it accurately enough to know your tank is has 38PSI left in it. A full tank is between 900 and 1100PSI when full, and the guage that shows how much is left in your tank is the left hand guage, in this product. Each tick mark is 100PSI, and about a millimeter apart from each other. So IF you actually have 38PSI left in your tank, then no, you don't have enough gas to dispense a keg, but I'm guessing you're reading it wrong, or reading the wrong thing. How many kegs have you run off that 5lb co2 tank? You should expect 8 or 9 altogether.

http://www.micromatic.com/draft-keg-beer/regulators-pid-842.html

[Scott Zuhse]

Once you figure out the 38 PSI deal, set your Harp pressure at 12 PSIG to the keg. Harp is a 2.4 volume beer and requires this pressure at 38F beer temperature.

[wangdango]

was looking at the outside #'s, inside # reads 500psi. have only run one keg thru it, BUT, some idiot thought it was funny to open up the valve when the tank was not hooked to the keg...... so, a lot of CO2 was wasted!

[Scott Zuhse]

Is the cylinder inside the kegerator?

[wangdango]

Yes,
my CO2 tank is inside the ref (its brand new, and aluminum), didnt want to drill any more holes in the ref, is this ok?

[cubby_swans]

500psi is a pretty normal reading when the co2 tank is inside the fridge. Keeping the co2 in the fridge is fine. I think keeping the co2 outside the unit is probably the minority. The tank pressure guage doesn't drop gradually, as co2 is used. It remains static until you're near the end of the tank. It will drop rapidly, when the gas is nearly gone.

The co2 tank guage is measuring the co2 gas pressure inside the tank, but there is also liquid co2 in there. As you use the gas, the liquid co2 evaporates into more gas. When the liquid co2 runs out, the tank guage will begin to drop rapidly. But you can still expect quite a bit of beer poured once that guage starts to drop. When mine began to drop, I still dispensed the remainder of quite a bit of a keg, and there was still a bit of gas left when that keg was dry.

Since you had some gas dispensed and you're not sure how much, what I would do is to just continually monitor that guage. I glance at mine at least once a day out of habit. When you see it begin to drop, don't panic, just refill your co2 at your earliest convenience. You should have several days worth of gas left, at least, (unless you're throwing a party)