I set up my kegerator and placed plan on hookin up my keg this coming Tuesday . I've never done this before but I was wondering how long do you keep the co2 on and Hooked up to the keg? Once I set the right psi and start drinking do I just turn it off after I'm done?
Nope, just dial it in and leave it alone. If you are running multiple faucets, don't make the mistake I did and leave the manifold on the untapped line open.
I'm guessing this is all new to you and offer this expanded advice; you want the pressure of the CO2 in the keg headspace to be in equilbrium with the CO2 dissolved in your beer. This requires three pieces of information: 1. the carbonation level of the kegged beer, expressed in volumes of CO2. You get this from the brewer or the internet. 2. the temp of your beer (not the surrounding air, but the actual temp of the liquid). Then refer to a keg carbonation chart (search google) and 3. it will tell you the pressure to set. These are the steps to make the beer taste as intended by the brewer. You leave the pressure set at this level until the keg is empty. As you pour, the pressure of the CO2 in the headspace maintains equilbrium with the CO2 in the beer. If you ask your supplier or friend what pressure to set and they say something like 10 or 12 psi, don't trust them (unless they come to your house and take some measurements). The other big variable that gets people in trouble is they change the pressure to adjust the level of foam. This is incorrect, you adjust the length of your beer lines to get foam under control (beer line has resistance, longer lines have more resistance). This may sound wrong, but it is the proper way to balance a kegerator. If you search this forum you can find expanded info on all of the above. Also, a lot of people post about initially hooking up their CO2 tank and the next morning it is empty . . . leaks are part of the joy of having a kegerator. It will pay dividends to find and correct your leaks before the beer is at risk.
Hook up the gas and set it to the correct pressure (as determined by the temp and desired volume of CO2). Then don't touch anything but the faucet handle until the keg is empty!
Thanks for the great advice! My first keg is going to be a full size heniken . I'll look up the specs for it but if you want to save me some time please feel free to post!
I put a jug of water in the keg for a few days and the temp reads 34. Will the temp change from the size of the keg? Or anything like that?
I put a jug of water in the kegerator for a few days and the temp reads 34. Will the temp change from the size of the keg? Or anything like that? (On mobile app which has no post edit function)
You will probably be all right here, to be sure put a 5 gal bucket in the kegerator . . . if that holds in the mid 30s you got it made. But be aware it will easily take 24 hours for your new keg to stabilize (temps move slowly with large volumes of liquid). As the drinker you get to pick the temp you like best for your brew, but again, you must give it time to stabilize. If you search Google for "heineken carbonation level" you'll find the volumes of CO2 desired. Armed with temp/volumes and keg carbonation chart you look up the desired pressure. While waiting for the keg is a good time to check for leaks. Set a high pressure (40 - 50psi) throughout your system before you hook up the keg and look for leaks at all the fittings. Then shut off your master valve and see if the pressure holds for 24+ hours. This will test everything except the keg connection fitting. You really don't want to join the "I-blew-a-tank-in-a-day" club. Search this forum for "leaks" for some good tips also. A lot of people post about having a keg taping party the day their first keg arrives. This almost always leads to problems as all the setting take a day or so to stabilize. I would not advertise this fact until a week or so of test-pouring-drinking. Pretty sure you just want a nice beer and didn't intend to be a thermodynamicist/plumber . . . but this is all learned pretty quickly. Good luck.
You may find this to be too much information, it is geared to a commercial bar, but there is everything you need (and more) in this pdf. The section on balancing is definitely worth reading. http://www.kegworks.com/faqs/Draft-Beer-Quality-Manual.pdf
