Leaking Corny Post

[yeasty]

I have just invested in a couple of cornys from Norm. I filled my 2nd keg yesterday but the gas in post is slowly weeping

I have tried increasing the pressure to 60 psi when it does appear to stop leaking but as soon as it gets under 20psi it starts weeping again.

I have tried pushing and fiddling with the post to try and help it seal but no luck.

My question is can I remove the post when the keg is full? I think I need to give it a clean and boil. I have never removed a post before and wasn't sure if I unscrew the top will the under side fall out to the bottom of the keg?

and yes, next time I will pressure check the keg before I fill it with beer but as its new I expected it to be ok.

Any suggestions welcome.

[Subsonic]

Unscrew it and try to reseat it. It won't drop into the keg. Just get a spanner or mole grips on it and unscrew completely. Take it off and cover the threaded post with cling film to jkeep your keg sanitised. Now get the post you have removed and the rubber spring loaded plunger inside should fall out (or have fallen out) clean and examine for hairs or grit etc. Give it a good wash out. If it has not fallen out of the post you can wiggle it out . Just clean and re-seat carefully. I sometimes use a bit of vaseline on the rubber (ok ok no jokes please!). When screwing it back on I use an allen key to hold the central valve 'bit' central as I screw the post on. I have also 'pulled' the spring to give more pressure as a last resort. Usually a post leaking is due to it not seating properly. I am rather tipsy so no doubt some other Corny Kings can chip in as necessary. I have to say some of my kegs are a bit more fussy than others. The RED corny I have is a BitCh! Subsonic

[adm]

What sub says!

You can remove it just fine. Take it apart and have a good look inside the post where the poppet (little internal spring loaded valve bit) would sit against the hole in the top. Often there's a bit of clart (technical term) stuck there. Give it a good scrape with a wooden skewer or something then boil all the bits to make sure everything is clean and reassemble.

If the valve seat is actually scored or nicked, and you are feeling adventurous, you can gently grind or polish it with a Dremel if you have one to get a perfect seat. Be careful though as if you go too far you'll need a new post.

Norm is pretty good about sorting this kind of thing out - if the post does leak after cleaning, be sure to tell him and he'll probably mail you a replacement.

[Scooby]

Sub and Adm are spot on but you really need to remove the posts to properly clean and sanitise them, the poppets and tubes before every filling.

[yeasty]

Thanks guys. I will give it a go before I go to bed and check the presure in the morning.

[shedman]

I had a leak on one of my posts too, dismantled it and found an o ring had split. Wasnt sure where to get a replacement but found them in B&Q in the plumbing section.

[yeasty]

I gave it a good clean and boil but the damn thing still leaks. Have emailed Norm and he is sending me a replacement post out.

[yeasty]

You may find leaving the keg under high pressure for 24 hrs will help seat the valve better also.

This is also something as a corny newb that has confused me. How long can you leave a keg under pressure before it effects the carbonation? I did think about leaving it overnight but I am using a beer engine and don't want a lot of carbonation.

I have been looking at a lot of force carbonating calculators and charts which all give me the figures I need but not how long it will take at the specified pressure to reach carbonation.