Kegerator FAQ
From KegbotWiki
Contents |
What are common causes of foam?
Beer is sensitive, be gentle and kind or it will foam. Some things that will cause undue foaming:
- Dirty Beer Line
If not properly cleaned, beer line will accumulate yeast deposits and other grime on the inner wall of the tubing. This can cause foaming, so keep your lines clean! Some beer line manufactures claim a superior smoothness of their inner walls, which may also reduce head.
- Improper Pressure
It is said that the perfect pressure for beer is when the beer at the tap falls freely. This means that whatever pressure it takes to get your beer from keg to tap is all you need. If your beer is shooting out like a soda fountain, expect extra head until you crank it down. Also remember that the C02 pressure affects the carbonation of the beer, and overcarbonated beer will of course be foamy. Check below in the pressure section for more information on proper pressure.
- Temperature Inconsistencies
Sudden changes in temperature can cause foam. For instance, pouring cold beer into a warm glass, or more subtly, pouring cold beer through a room temperature plastic tap (metal taps conduct the cold better and shouldn't have this problem).
Also in this category would be the freezing and thawing of a keg. Beer does not like to freeze and a runaway thermometer could result in a permanently foamy keg (but still drinkable).
- Line Turbulence
Try to reduce the number of connections and fittings in your beer system. Every time the beer flows into a different diameter conduit, or around another sharp corner its getting agitated that much more, and just like shaking a soda can you'll end up with more foam. Remove unnecesary fittings and line splices, and if you have ill fitting components, consider adding washers to take up the extra space.
- Pour Technique
While pouring, close your eyes and pray to the supreme being you hold most dear. Did that work? No? How about trying to minimize the height the beer falls before hitting your glass. This means tilt you glass so the pour hits the side and keep it close to the tap.
What temperature should I keep my beer?
Cold, is generally preferred.
At what pressure should I keep my beer?
This is waffley information, so be careful relying on it too much, but this is how I understand things right now.
Ideally beer should be dispensed by gravity. This means that the pressure delivered by your CO2 tank should precisely equal the pressure it takes to get beer from the keg to the faucet and no more. Once its in the faucet the beer should roll downhill and into your glass, kazaam. Beer being forcefully ejected from the faucet ala a soda fountain is not desirable. Details on this are below.
Even if you get the pressure exactly right for pouring, pressure also effects the carbonation of the beer. The higher the CO2 pressure, the more CO2 that will be absorbed into the beer. Additionally, different beers/types of beer require different pressures for the 'perfect' amount of carbonation. This carbonation need should be accounted for when a brewer says a beer should be served at X pressure. The problem being that changing the serving pressure to suit the brewer could disrupt the careful balance as described above.
What to do. You can really only control two variables in this system: The length/type of beer line, and the pressure coming out of the CO2 regulator. In the ideal world this would mean that you set the regulator to the brewery defined value, and then cut a length of hose that results in the correct pressure drop. If they recommend a higher pressure, cut a longer hose, less pressure would need a shorter hose. This is a bit unrealistic, unless you are serving only one or two beers and don't mind swapping out lines and fittings for a new keg. More likely is that you will pick a middle of the road pressure requirement and cut your hose to fit that and deal with the slight imperfections when a higher or lower pressure is asked for.
Now that I've made this really complex, read this for a short answer on how long your line should be.
Do I need special "beverage grade" CO2?
The concensus appears to be "no". See this thread on rec.crafts.brewing for all the gory details. Correction welcome here, as there appears to be no other authority.
My Kegerator is frozen, help!
- If you are building your own kegerator this is likely to come up sooner or later (especially if you are modifying a freezer to do it). It is shockingly easy to freeze a keg when you are already keeping it just a few slight degrees above freezing for that frosty pour, so don't be surprised if one day you pull the tap and nothing comes out.
- Fear not, as anecdotal evidence shows that kegs can be frozen solid and yet be thawed out and drunk! It is, however, unknown under what conditions a keg may burst, and frozen kegs tend to result in foamy beer so it is generally ill advised to freeze your beer.
