Ok so I've searched 3 days and pulled all my hair out. I have the dreaded nostalgics electric kegerator. I got it used but cleaned eveverything and got new line ( 5 ft of 3/16). Since day one, I probably tapped it too soon, but I've got nothing but foam. I put a glass of water in the kegerator and its 38 degrees. I can get it any cooler than 57 degrees out the tap. The line does take a 90 degree turn out of the keg. I've read it can be many issues as I have bubbles in the line too. Regardless the temp is the main issue. I could get a tower cooler...the 1/6 barrel has been in the kegerator 3 days..its should be cold by now, no?
If you picked it up and it was cold, it shouldn’t be at 57 now. You do need a tower cooler, and likely more than 5’ of line. Temp is the issue right now though.
I tweaked the thermostat, now inside is 34 and beer at tap is 50...maybe I do have to wait longer...that's a long time to chill the keg
The easy way to know if the beer is cold enough is to measure the temp of the beer immediately after the beer in the line has been poured. We can guarantee that with no tower cooler the line beer is too warm. After that is poured it will be keg beer, and that must be 38 A bit lower even. What psi is applied? How accurate is your thermometer? Check it with an ice bath. 5' of line is too short. You will get better flow with 6'. 7' even. 90 degree bend? That's not a good sign. Cheers.
I've tried 2psi to 14psi waiting on between chnages. I'll check the thermometer. Its crazy because there's alot of conflicting info on line size, psi, ect. Tower cooler would help but I wouldn't think a 8 inch tower would warm up beer 20 degrees. I'm trying to figure out how to post the picture of the 90 degree bend. There just isn't much room between the top of the keg and the top of the kegerator.
Once you start screwing with the applied pressure that much you have no idea what is going on in that keg. Unfortunately you won't be able to get it back. But. There is a lot of ill informed people on the interwebs. People who know next to nothng offering advice. Everywhere. 3/16 ID beverage line. 6' at least for home bar. What is the room temp? That is what the beer in the tower will warm to. Fairly quickly too. Cold air does not go up by itself. It settles in fact. Yeah, Nostalgia is good for that stuff. It's a bent tailpiece and it is probably factory original along with a factory original not removable clamp. So you'll have to live with it if there isn't enough room. Have you measure the keg beer temperature? That is by far the most important chunk of data. Cheers.
Now I think I'm getting there. Still need a fan I agree because.. Water in fridge 37 degrees 1st glass 50 degrees 2nd glass 40 degrees A fan will take care of that 1st glass issue I am at 11 psi now AC in house is set at 76 If I get a longer beer line do they make like a 90 degree coupler or connection so it isn't touching the top of the kegerator
Random thought, do those who have in, run the tower fan 24-7 or can you wire into the compressor somehow
Tower cooler should run all the time. You can buy a low profile coupler to solve the bend problem. Also do not keep changing things. This is like stopping a cruise ship not a jet ski. Change one thing at a time, wait 24 hours. Evaluate. Adjust. Temp, pressure and the volumes of CO2 for the beer are mathematically linked.
Pour a few ounces. Dump it. That beer is in the line and not cooled because you don't have a tower cooler. Immediately pour a few more ounces. That beer is coming from the keg. Measure the temp. Drink it. You should do it once more as well, without letting the beer sit in the line for even one minute. The keg temp beer should be nearly the same as the glass of water temp in the kegerator. Check your thermometers accuracy with an ice water bath. Don't assume it is correct. We need to be within a degree of accuracy here. Cheers
So I got the highly recommended tower fan...not seeming to do much but make the tower sweat profusely. I used an infrared thermometer on the outside of the tower and it measures 41 to 55 degrees depending where I point it but I'm not sure if I trust that. Beer temp is pretty much the same as before. 1st glass- foam pretty much- 49 degrees 2nd glass immediately after - 39 degrees - 2 inch foam Glass of water in kegerator is 38 degrees Calibrated therm in ice bath at 32.5 degrees I'm thinking the tower may be to cramed with the stock insulation, beer line and cooling hose or I need a new handle...this is seeming to be a money pit and wasting beer is a crime
Make sure the end of the hose is all the way up to the top of the tower and not just in a little ways. Ideally the hose should be attached to the bent shank. Next be certain the top cap on the tower is sealed. There should be some foam that fits inside and the cap should fit tightly without any leaks. The sweat you see means the fan is cooling the tower. The tower will not be the same temperature as the inside of the kegerator. It will bring the temperature down significantly however. Expect about a half ounce of foam on each pour after the beer has been idle for a half hour or so. This is expected and manageable. There is a bit of an art to pouring draft beer efficiently. The turbulence caused by the beer hitting the glass as well as the rate of the pour* and the applied pressure all make for foam if that managed. You have adjusted the psi previously, so it is not possible to determine if the correct pressure is being applied. You should apply about 11 psi for 38 degree beer. *Five feet of line does not provide enough resistance. So the beer flows to fast, and it causes turbulence. Therefore, as previously stated, you should use about 7' of line. This may be reduced to 6' but 7' is going to make this much more manageable. THIS, btw, is why Nostalgia brand kegerators are shite. They should be paying us. Cheers
The beer flows actually slow in my opinion, wouldn't a longer beer line make it even slower. If I am correct you have to match your beer line length to the mathematical psi. So length wouldnt matter as long as I had the correct ratio. So when I get a new keg how would ensure the correct psi?
Longer line will slow the flow of properly balanced beer, so if your foaming is coming from turbulence it will help. Usually pros look for 2 ounces per second, so an 8 second pint. If you look at your beer line after a pour, do you see bubbles moving to the high spots of the line? When you are pouring are you opening the faucet all the way?
I got a 7 1/2 foot line and a new faucet and all seems to be well. Just one question, I had trouble getting the new faucet to attach. I removed the spring from the shank and connected it. The beer flows much faster now. Did I ever need this spring?
Good news. Not sure where there would be a spring in the shank, but some faucets are self closing and do have a spring. And yes that feature is garbage for a variety of reasons. Seems unlikely there was a flow compensator in the shank, which is similar to a spring, and that should definitely be brought out back and buried in a shallow grave. A don't mention it to anyone ever again. If you do not have one of these you should get one. A faucet wrench is one of those tools that has one purpose in life and no other tool can substitute. And upgrading your faucet is never a bad idea either. Perlick Perls are preferred but anything that did not come with a self closing spring is going to be better. Cheers
