Gassing a king keg

[kenny850]

How quickly can i expect my kk with 40 pints of wherry/60gms of brewing sugar to have any pressure. I kegged it yesterday morning but my curiosity got the better of me and opened the tap-nothing,tried opening the top again nothing, the beer looks good but because i gained my kk 2nd hand have got no instructions.I wanted to avoid using gas if possible but am now worried that the brew will spoil without co2. What options are available/best way to proceed or is every thing fine and i need to be more patient, cheers ken

[richard_senior]

I'd say it'll take 2 weeks to gas up nicely.
If you use gas, it'll not taste as good as if you wait the fortnight.
What you could do in future is use a bottom tap rather than a top tap, that way if curiosity beats you, you can always have a quick sample.
Don't open the top again!

[stevezx7r]

I've tasted no difference between natural c02 and forced.

[steve_flack]

CO2 is CO2 regardless of where it comes from. The two weeks extra maturation is probably what improves the flavour. The source of the CO2 is probably coincidental.

[richard_senior]

That's what I meant... You need the two weeks for the yeast to eat the sugar you added to get the gas.

[kenny850]

Thanks guys, if someone could explain what the differences/advantages between soda syphon bulbs and cylinders, do i need other bits and bobs or do they just screw on, cheers ken.

[SiHoltye]

Check out the dispensing section in the equipment tab top right.

[richard_senior]

Soda Stream :
good : available at tesco, but you'll need an s30 (hambleton bard) fitting to use them.
bad : they're tiny, and faffy, and expensive.

Cylinder :
good, they fit and work straight away, last a long time and give better pressure.
bad: you'd probably have to get one from a homebrew shop. When you first buy it you pay a premium to get the bottle (about 15 quid) thereafter you take your bottle back, and they give you a new one and charge you only for the gas (5 quid I think?).

[kenny850]

Thanks Si,tried that but plastic keg section "under construction" Thanks Richard,looks like cylinder is best in long term, btw, how many kegs will a cylinder do? cheers ken

[richard_senior]

If you're lucky, you're keg will self gas ([edit] as daab said), and the gas it produces will half empty it. When it's not producing enough gas, you just add a tiny tweek of gas from your cylinder (half a second burst) and that'll be enough.
If you drank a barrel a month it'd still last you a year or more.
EDIT : it depends what keg you use too.. if you use a 'top tap' it'll use a lot more gas.. but still... a year at least.
MORE EDIT: If you nip to a homebrew shop they'll give you the full low down.

[kenny850]

Thanks DaaB,Richard, looks like im getting a cylinder as "backup"

[gullarm]

WORD OF WARNING

I have fitted a pressure valve to both my KK's as I like to see what is going on pressure wise, I also use dalex taps so can play around with the pressure to get a better flow rate/head etc.

Last friday I gassed my keg as normal after a few jars, I tend to leave the S30 cannister attached to the top of the keg but screwed back slightly. My keg is out side so taking it on and off the S30 valve is a pain.

Anyway about half an hour later i hear this hissing sound from outside, look out the back door : --

The pressure valve was reading 30 Psi ( the max ) and the S30 valve was encased in a ball of ice, the pressure valve was venting but clearly not fast enough.

Quick as a flash I rushed out side and drew 4 pints and stuck them in the fridge, then tried to unscrew the gas cannister but it was solid ice, so shut the door and waited for the explosion.

Needles to say it all calmed down, but lesson learned, make sure the S30 little internal valve isnt jammed open, even a a little bit.

Oh and take the thing off!

[kenny850]

Nice Gullarm,Like the way you pulled off 4 pints BEFORE running for cover-there could be a medal in this for you.I bought a co2 cylinder yesterday and banged it on my kk, sure enough leaking like the proverbial from the lid, seem to have cured it now with the wifes lipbalm(vaseline based) and managed to pull off a small glass-still cloudy but OMG it tastes like beer! Cheers ken