I have a 2-tap kegerator. One keg is a corny and the other is a sankey. I'm having an issue with beer flow from the sankey -- it flows real slow, and then it has stops completely! My solution has been to remove the coupler and release pressure on the keg (by pressing down the 'ball' with a tool) -- this results in a short-term resolution and then the problem comes back again. Also, I swapped the 'bad sankey keg' for a good one and had no flow issues with the good one -- so I believe I have eliminated the sankey coupler as the source of the problem. The corny keg has no issues -- so I believe that eliminates CO2 as the source of the problem. Any ideas? Thank you.
Could be a problem with the dip tube, I’d bring it back and ask for a refund. Most places will do that for you.
Is your troublesome keg a German import by chance? Or perhaps Hoegaarden? What you describe can be caused by using a Sankey D coupler on a keg that is meant to be tapped with a Sankey A coupler. The probe on the A coupler is a bit longer when engaged. Both use the same key slot, so they fit interchangeably but a D will not fully engage into the ball valve. And yes, Sanke kegs do wear out. It is mechanical after all, and like anything else the parts do eventually wear out. Your distributor should take it back no problem. Cheers
Thanks for the response ... unfortunately that won't help. The sankey keg was mine, so I own the problem. Any thoughts on what could go wrong with the spear/dip tube? Could it be related to how the keg had been cleaned, i.e., leftover crud from the prior fill? Thanks.
Thanks for the input ... I checked with the supplier and the keg is a standard sankey keg and it uses a 'D' coupler. Dang!
Next question. NEIPA's have been known to clog up the works. Any beer with a lot of suspended solids can interfere with the flow. This was a bigger problem a few years ago as brewers struggled to get their beers chunky but not too chunky. We had a keg of NEIPA demolish a long draw draft line And, could just be a bad Sanke valve. Looks like the issue here. If you paid for a keg of beer, and the keg is not working, the distributor will take it back. This won't even be a problem, they deal with this sort of thing all the time. Only time you would run into trouble is if you were trying to get them to take back a keg with a noticeable amount of pints poured off. Then maybe. But if it's not pouring then it's no big deal. Just exchange it for another. Cheers
Thanks again for the perspective. Fortunately, after a couple complete stoppages and subsequent adjustments, I'm now getting a large enough trickle to enjoy a glass of beer (Hefeweizen). I plan to exchange the keg back to the brewery once I'm done. Slainte!
The yeast settled to the bottom of the keg. Hefe is a cloudy beer, that yeast clogs the works. It's not supposed to happen but it does. Good news.
