Party star tap not holding gas

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MrN
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Party star tap not holding gas

Post by MrN » Tue Aug 01, 2017 6:35 pm

I was just about to tap a mini keg with my party star and screwed in a new co2 bulb and the whole thing just immediately leaked out. I made sure the knob was definitely off and then proceeded to waste another bulb trying again... This is only my third time using it, has anyone had this happen to them? I now have a keg of un-accessible beer, is my tap broken?

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oz11
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Re: Party star tap not holding gas

Post by oz11 » Tue Aug 01, 2017 6:54 pm

How old is it? It might be worth taking it apart and cleaning out workings. I have, somewhere, a jpeg file showing how it all fits together (in German, though it is reasonably straight forward to follow).

I can email it to you if you wish.

MrN
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Re: Party star tap not holding gas

Post by MrN » Tue Aug 01, 2017 7:04 pm

It's pretty new, only been used on two kegs and seems pretty clean. Might be interesting to see your jpeg anyway!

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oz11
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Re: Party star tap not holding gas

Post by oz11 » Tue Aug 01, 2017 8:24 pm

Sorry, I see you said only the third time you have used it. I have sent you a pm as I cannot attach file through the forum it seems.

Fil
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Re: Party star tap not holding gas

Post by Fil » Tue Aug 01, 2017 11:32 pm

try a smear of keg grease or vasaline on the dip tube as you push it thru the bung, it helps seal as well as slide ;), a wrap of ptfe can also be used to increase the top of the tube diameter a tad for a snug seal too..

also if using 12g bulbs with a 16g bulb tap you can use a wadd of paper or a 1p coin to create a false stop to push the shorter bulb in to engage and seal.
ist update for months n months..
Fermnting: not a lot..
Conditioning: nowt
Maturing: Challenger smash, and a kit lager
Drinking: dry one minikeg left in the store
Coming Soon Lots planned for the near future nowt for the immediate :(

MrN
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Re: Party star tap not holding gas

Post by MrN » Wed Aug 02, 2017 12:17 am

Hmmm at the point I attached the gas bulb, I hadn't put the tap through the bung but surely that shouldn't affect whether it leaks the gas or not?

I have put ptfe tape on the thread of the tube as well as a little lube on the ring at the top.

Maybe I'll try again tomorrow but I only have one bulb left to waste!

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Fil
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Re: Party star tap not holding gas

Post by Fil » Wed Aug 02, 2017 1:49 am

Ahh, may i suggest perhaps the bulb isnt sealing either because of a dodgy or missing oring to seal the bulb head, or perhaps the bulb isnt being pushed far enough in place to engage the seal effectively.
ist update for months n months..
Fermnting: not a lot..
Conditioning: nowt
Maturing: Challenger smash, and a kit lager
Drinking: dry one minikeg left in the store
Coming Soon Lots planned for the near future nowt for the immediate :(

MrN
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Posts: 75
Joined: Fri May 20, 2016 10:38 am

Re: Party star tap not holding gas

Post by MrN » Wed Aug 02, 2017 9:27 am

The gas definitely seemed to be coming out the tube, rather than the bulb housing. When I screw in a new bulb it briefly fires out the back of the bulb housing but then stops once I screw it in properly.

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Fil
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Re: Party star tap not holding gas

Post by Fil » Thu Aug 03, 2017 12:38 am

MrN wrote:The gas definitely seemed to be coming out the tube, rather than the bulb housing. When I screw in a new bulb it briefly fires out the back of the bulb housing but then stops once I screw it in properly.

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Hmm, it shouldnt do that, but i think you got there by yourself a while back ..
i always loose a tad of co2 on finalising the bulb seal when screwing home the bulb holder too


and with only 1x bulb left, double hmmm..

So if its the regulator, what could go wrong?? perhaps some foreign body such as a tiny aspect of a punctured foil cap from an earlier bulb, or some un noticed grit picked up by an earlier bulb has found its way in and is stopping the 'off' position seal.. Times like this a big co2 bottle would be handy to blow thru, and if you had more bulbs at hand i would perhaps suggest sacrificing one to blow through with the reg wide open to attempt to clear any blockage?

you say its fairly new? under 12months?? its not right, the built in reg should retain a full charge of co2 when turned off most homebrew suppliers are pretty good with post sales support in my limited experience.. its not a known 'feature' with a known work around that im aware of for what little thats worth, good luck..
ist update for months n months..
Fermnting: not a lot..
Conditioning: nowt
Maturing: Challenger smash, and a kit lager
Drinking: dry one minikeg left in the store
Coming Soon Lots planned for the near future nowt for the immediate :(

MrN
Steady Drinker
Posts: 75
Joined: Fri May 20, 2016 10:38 am

Re: Party star tap not holding gas

Post by MrN » Thu Aug 03, 2017 10:36 am

It seems to be something to do with the workings of the flow control knob. When I pulled the tap out out the empty keg it held the remaining gas however I then tried turning the gas on and off again, to check if there was anything left but once on, I couldn't make it turn off again. It's after this that I tried putting a new bulb in and had the issue described in the op.

I think I bought it from hop and grape so I guess I'll give them a try.

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oz11
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Re: Party star tap not holding gas

Post by oz11 » Thu Aug 03, 2017 11:32 am

You can dismantle the regulator end, you need something pointy to get into it though, and whether you want to do this with something that new is up to you of course.

I can do another picture this evening with one dismantled if you want to get into it yourself.

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oz11
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Re: Party star tap not holding gas

Post by oz11 » Thu Aug 03, 2017 8:55 pm

Additionally you can buy cartridges in bulk from here should you wish to.

MrN
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Re: Party star tap not holding gas

Post by MrN » Fri Aug 04, 2017 9:24 am

Thanks oz11 (and thanks for the diagram you sent!) but I think I'll leave it for now. Might give it one more go then get in contact with the store.

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